Product Comparison: CAYIN N3 vs Fiio M3K Mini

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Best Pick

CAYIN N3

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Fiio M3K Mini HiFi Metal Shell MP3 Player

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General Specifications

Brand

CAYIN

Fiio

Model

M3K Mini

Origin

China

About the Product

Cayin’s lightest digital audio player to date, the N3 has gotten a ton of hype since its unveiling at Canjam 2017. It features the AKM4490 DAC chipset, an audiophile favorite, with support for all common music formats up to 32 bit/384 kHz and native DSD decoding up to 11.2 MHz (DSD256).

With the M3K’s high quality microphone, record audio whenever you want, wherever you want. The M3K is powered by the Ingenic X1000E processor which provides high performance but with low power consumption.

Key Specs

Memory

0 GB

Display

Yes

Integrated Speaker(s)

What customers say about "Key Specs"

CAYIN N3

Screen is certainly large enough to watch videos or view photos, etc.
I think that a better player would be hard to find for anywhere near this price. Great sound on my Audioquest NightHawk headphones.
This player exceeded expectations for an entry level DAP. Very clean, powerful, balanced sound.
No internal storage. MicroSD only. This seems to be consistent with most players around this price range, but I would prefer both.
Display shows large art image and microscopic small text. Opposite small image and large text would be better when playing music clips.

Fiio M3K Mini HiFi Metal Shell MP3 Player

The player is great and and the imaging is nice when listening to music.
The M3K has great build quality and design, a surprisingly good screen, good sound quality.
The sound from the AK4376A DAC being utilized is outstanding and punches well above its weight.
You cannot use the internal memory so don't forget the micro SD card.
Currently, sometimes album art is not displayed and the player won't acknowledge a few songs.

Size & Weight

Color

Black

Silver

Height

3.9 in.

3.57 in.

Width

2.1 in.

1.74 in.

Depth

0.5 in.

0.47 in.

Weight

3.5 oz.

2.73 oz.

What customers say about "Size & Weight"

CAYIN N3

The size is really nice for someone who is on the go like I am. My main music listening places are in the car, working out, and at work where I am quite mobile.
I am able to stick this into a pocket without it looking like i'm walking around with stolen goods and it's so light that I almost forget it's there.
Nice size. Not too big. Not too small. And not too heavy. Perfect! Recommended.
I bought this to keep from running down the battery in my Samsung Note 4 phone. The small size is nice. The value for the money is pretty good.
Very pleased overall with this mostly because of the excellent sound & small size.

Fiio M3K Mini HiFi Metal Shell MP3 Player

The M3K is a great device: simple UI, compact size, good audio, and long battery life.
I like the small size and ease of use. I use it in my garage connected to a stereo and in the yard with earphones.
Nice build materials, pretty good ui, physical side buttons, nice compact size.
I like this product because it is compact and simple to use, I use it every day to listen to different types of music and the quality of sound is great.
Too small therefore a great fidelity to lose it.

Features

Supported Audio Formats

DSF, DIFF, SACD-ISO, WAV, AIFF, FLAC, ALAC, APE, WMA, MP3, OGG

DSD, APE Fast, APE High, APE Normal, FLAC, WAV, AIFF, WMA, Apple Lossless, MP3, AAC, OGG

Memory Card Slot

Yes

Input(s)

USB type-C, 3.5mm Jack

3.5mm Jack, USB port

Usability

2.4" TFT IPS (400x360) display

2" IPS TFT display

Voice Recorder

Yes

Video Playback

Bluetooth Enabled

Yes

Extras

Dual digital outputs from One Type-C connector, Enable Blind Control with Physical Buttons on both sides, Big Expansion with a Small Adapter

up to 2TB memory card, Deep sleep, 5-band EQ, 1100mAh Li-polymer battery, Charging time: 2.5 h, Touchpad buttons

What customers say about "Features"

CAYIN N3

The rounded edges make the device more comfortable to hold.
Very good sound. More punch than my HiFiMan SuperMini. Blu tooth works good with my JBL Everest Elite 700 headphones.
The great feature is the superior bluetooth wireless features in this player, including the new apt-X bluetooth technology.
You can add m3u playlists, however, I can't get them to show up under the playlist section. Instead, you'll have to browse your folder for them.
No radio, video, voice recorder, stopwatch, eBook reader, etc. It's odd that many players in the $20-30 range have such features, but more expensive units like this one do not.

Fiio M3K Mini HiFi Metal Shell MP3 Player

Sound quality is great, I don't believe in the HiFi sound thing so I didn't try to compare FLAC 16 bits and 24 bits. But it sounds great in player mode as well as in external DAC mode.
Interface is relatively straightforward with no lag. Nice size, colorful screen.
The case has a rubberized polymer cover that is grip-friendly.
Touch buttons can be annoying sometimes but you can also use physical buttons to navigate the interface.
The power connection and SD card slot are vulnerable to water intrusion, so keep it dry.

Power

Battery Life

12 hours

26 hours

Battery Life

CAYIN N3

Fiio M3K Mini

What customers say about "Power"

CAYIN N3

Battery life is excellent (at least 8-10+ hours so far). Audio quality via Bluetooth is great, likely better with pro-quality headphones.
The touch buttons are very sensitive. Good sound quality and battery life.
Battery life is about what they claim so far. The Bluetooth works well.
I've been having problems with battery life. The battery drains completely in less than 5 days when the player is idle.
After a year the battery doesn't hold much of a charge anymore.

Fiio M3K Mini HiFi Metal Shell MP3 Player

The battery life is good for a player of this quality. It can push my Sennheisers well without going dry.
The interface is good, the sound quality is great, it can do folders or tags organization, the screen shows a lot, and album art looks good, battery life is good, file transfers go well.
It really does have quite the battery life, it could last awhile before really needing a charge.
Great sound quality and battery life, and charges via micro usb.
After a month, I stopped holding the charge and had to charge 2 times more often.

Warranty / Certifications

Manufacturer Warranty

1 year(s)

Certifications

CE, FCC