New Schiit preamps and power amp!

jhoyt

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Previewed at RMAF. From their press release:

SCHIIT PREVIEWS 2-CHANNEL LINE AT RMAF
10/06/2016
Remote-Control Preamps and Stereo/Mono Power Amp Help Bring Sanity Back to High-End Pricing

10/7/2016, Denver, Colorado. Schiit previewed the first products in its 2-channel line at Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, including the Saga passive/tube hybrid preamp at $349, the Freya balanced tube/buffer/passive preamp at $699, and the Vidar 100W/400W stereo/mono power amplifier at $699. All products were designed as no-compromise high-end components, using design techniques and topologies typically seen on much more expensive gear.

"It's time to decouple the high-end/high-price connection," said Jason Stoddard, co-founder of Schiit Audio. "There's plenty of mega-price gear out there, but we wanted to create great products that almost anyone can afford."

At the same time, Stoddard says, they didn't want to compromise on the performance of the components. Which is why the preamplifiers use extreme high-end design techniques such as relay-switched stepped attenuators (rather than a volume control IC or a potentiometer), and employ highly linear 6SN7-type tubes on 200 or 300V rails in the active stages. It's why the power amp was designed to double its rated power from 8 ohms to 4 ohms, why it uses an exotic current-feedback topology, why it has no capacitors or DC servos in the signal path, and why it is dual mono back to the transformer. The amplifier also employs a 100% linear power supply (no switchers) and is class A/B (not Class D.)

"These new preamps and power amp are the perfect companions to our line of multibit DACs," said Mike Moffat. "Combine them with any of the DACs—from the $249 Modi Multibit to the $2299 Yggdrasil—and you have a really amazing system, without the heart-attack price."

Schiit is showing three products at RMAF:

Saga
Remote Passive/Active Preamp

  • Relay switched stepped attenuator (64 steps)
  • Selectable passive or tube hybrid buffer operation
  • Tube hybrid buffer uses 6SN7 tube and 200V rails
  • 5 inputs, 2 outputs
  • Full remote control
  • Shipping October 2016 for $349
Freya
Balanced Remote Passive/Active Preamp

  • Relay switched stepped attenuator (128 steps)
  • Selectable passive, JFET buffer, or tube gain operation
  • Tube gain stage uses (4) 6SN7 tubes and 300V rail
  • 2 balanced inputs, 3 SE inputs, balanced and SE outputs
  • Full remote control
  • Shipping October 2016 for $699
Vidar
Intelligent Stereo/Mono Power Amplifier

  • 100W RMS per channel into 8 ohms, 200W RMS per channel into 4 ohms (stereo)
  • 400W RMS into 8 ohms (mono)
  • Current-feedback gain stage with dual mono topology back to the transformer
  • No capacitors or DC servos in signal path, no switching supplies, no class D
  • Microprocessor-controlled operational point management and protection
  • Shipping Estimated Q1 2017 for $699
Saga, Freya, and Vidar, like all Schiit products, are made in the USA (really.)

Schiit will be playing Freya and two Vidars in mono configuration, together with the Yggdrasil DAC and Salk streamer and Salk loudspeakers in Room 2003 at RMAF. Saga will be on static display. Schiit's desktop product line will also be displayed in the CanJam tent.

About Schiit Audio

Founded in June 2010 by Jason Stoddard and Mike Moffat, Schiit has grown into a leader in affordable high-end audio, with a wide range of products spanning DACs, headphone amplifiers, and preamplifiers, from $49 to $2299.

Jason Stoddard was the former engineering lead at Sumo, designing power amps that included Polaris II, Polaris III, Andromeda III, Ulysses, Ulysses II, The Ten, The Five, as well as preamplifiers including Athena II, Diana, and Artemis, and Sumo’s first digital line: Axiom and Theorem.

Mike Moffat was the founder of Theta, Theta Digital, and Angstrom, and his audio history covers an impressive list of firsts, including the first standalone DAC, the Theta DSPre, the first use of digital signal processing and bit-perfect digital filter algorithms, the first DTS surround processor, and more.​
 
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Hey
Yeah, thanks for posting this. I use their little passive preamplifier (sys) with a 5 watt amp that Opa 1 built a year or so back.
I'd also be interested in seeing reviews on these.
The remote was something the sys lacked. That and more inputs. I invisioned a larger sys at a slightly higher price. With the hybrid tube option I'm looking at the saga as something I'd like to try.for sure. Eric
 
This is quite interesting... thanks for posting!

I was about to make a bid on the eBay for some gear. Now, I might just have to wait, and risk passing up what could be a good deal on some used gear.The Schiit gear might be better for me, if it is as well made as their DACs. (It looks they are made in the USA too.)
 
Wow looks like nice gear with aggressively low pricing. I have the Modi 2 uber and really like it especially considering the price. I wonder if these new models will have a disruptive affect on the industry. Fingers crossed.
 
I plan on getting the Freya preamp. Similarly spec true balanced tube preamps start at around $1700 used...

I think it will be a giant killer and I can already imagine the modding community going crazy, seriously cool
 
Wow looks like nice gear with aggressively low pricing. I have the Modi 2 uber and really like it especially considering the price. I wonder if these new models will have a disruptive affect on the industry. Fingers crossed.

I also have the Modi 2 Uber. I got it for Christmas last year and love it. Great sounding DAC for the money. The Saga has my attention. I'd like to pair it with the Modi 2 Uber and a TPA3116 amp for a compact system for my master bedroom.
 
I had the chance to hear these at the show. While I wasn't familiar with the speaker it was clear that these components (Freya pre and 2 Vidar amps in system when I heard it) have great potential. They were using the Yiggy DAC when I was in there. The detail, timbre and soundstaging were all excellent. The bass was tight and really we'll defined, but it was (for my tastes) a tiny bit "lean". That may have been the speaker, but I don't know as i've never heard the Salk Song-3 speaker previously. It was very clear, however, that these components are well designed and "sound" a lot better than the price point.
 
I had the chance to hear these at the show. While I wasn't familiar with the speaker it was clear that these components (Freya pre and 2 Vidar amps in system when I heard it) have great potential. They were using the Yiggy DAC when I was in there. The detail, timbre and soundstaging were all excellent. The bass was tight and really we'll defined, but it was (for my tastes) a tiny bit "lean". That may have been the speaker, but I don't know as i've never heard the Salk Song-3 speaker previously. It was very clear, however, that these components are well designed and "sound" a lot better than the price point.

I'm a huge Salk fan and I would never describe a Salk speaker as lean sounding. It would be interesting to know what the settings were on the Schiit gear since the tube buffer stages can apparently be switched in and out.

I don't have a place in any of my systems for these new pieces really — but I am intrigued. I have a Schiit Bifrost that I've upgraded along the way to the current TOTL multibit version and I've been very happy with it.

I would like to snag a Freya just to compare it to my Modwright LS100 I just got. I purchased the LS100 specifically for the XLR outputs so I could move my setup around using long runs of XLR ICs. Had I known this was coming out... I might have waited on the Modwright. I might break down and just get a Freya and a pair of amps just to play with. Price of entry is low enough.

Edit: Sidenote. I did find it interesting that in the pictures posted on The Audio Beat you can see they are just using standard power cords and XLR cables from monoprice. Kinda nice they kept the cabling on par with the pieces. I found my Bifrost responded well to a little nicer power cable.

- Woody
 
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I'm a huge Salk fan and I would never describe a Salk speaker as lean sounding. It would be interesting to know what the settings were on the Schiit gear since the tube buffer stages can apparently be switched in and out.

I don't have a place in any of my systems for these new pieces really — but I am intrigued. I have a Schiit Bifrost that I've upgraded along the way to the current TOTL multibit version and I've been very happy with it.

I would like to snag a Freya just to compare it to my Modwright LS100 I just got. I purchased the LS100 specifically for the XLR outputs so I could move my setup around using long runs of XLR ICs. Had I known this was coming out... I might have waited on the Modwright. I might break down and just get a Freya and a pair of amps just to play with. Price of entry is low enough.

Edit: Sidenote. I did find it interesting that in the pictures posted on The Audio Beat you can see they are just using standard power cords and XLR cables from monoprice. Kinda nice they kept the cabling on par with the pieces. I found my Bifrost responded well to a little nicer power cable.

- Woody
Woody, overall the sound was outstanding considering I was listening to a system with 200 watt mono blocks and whose amps and pre-amp(with tubes) cost a TOTAL of under $2K! The bass was tight, fast and musical but a touch light relative to the top two octaves. I don't think, however, that seating allowed me to be on the proper tweeter axis, so that may have influenced things quite a bit. If you saw my posts in the thread "Rocky Mountain Audio Fest 2016" my statement was that this room (Schiit/Salk) was going to leave many of the high dollar rooms with some splainin to do! If you have the scratch, I'd say go for it. I'm seriously considering the Freya myself. The Freya would also take balanced input from a Gungnir or Yiggy - which sounds very tempting also.

FYI - I too have the Bifrost MB and enjoy it a great deal. I use an upgraded power cord and I agree that it "responds well" to an upgraded power chord.
 
At first, I wondered why Schiit did not put a DAC in them. But then, which DAC would they put in them? At what cost?

I believe these products are targeted to current owners of Schiit DACs and headphone amps. They are targeted at younger, Schiit users to step up their audio game. (I ain't no millennial but I am certainly excited by them.)
 
At first, I wondered why Schiit did not put a DAC in them. But then, which DAC would they put in them? At what cost?
Exactly. The price point is affordable enough that true mix'n'matching can take place with regard to DAC, pre, and power amp. If the new components live up to their billing, it could send the value proposition through the roof, and leave virtually everything else in the dust.
 
Exactly. The price point is affordable enough that true mix'n'matching can take place with regard to DAC, pre, and power amp. If the new components live up to their billing, it could send the value proposition through the roof, and leave virtually everything else in the dust.


Indeed, it seems like people at Schiit and Emotiva, among others(?) are starting to realize there is a market for moderately priced gear that think that through contemporary design, marketing and manufacturing they can provide what many of of us want. This include a means of incrementaly upgrading gear as our monetary situation allows.

I hope their efforts pay off for those of us with a moderate budget but still want good sounding, reliable audio gear.
 
Wow, how can they do it at those prices, is this stuff made in the US?

A $350 pre amp with relay-switched stepped attenuators instead of the cheaper IC stuff. A sub $1000 amplifier that doubles its wattage at 4 ohms, and has no caps in the signal path. Upgraded parts all around, this is seriously impressive. I used to buy Emotiva products, and they did nothing like this with their entry level pre amps and amps, and made it all in China. If Schiit is doing this plus having tubes and making it all in the US, that's head and shoulders above what Emotiva is doing even now.
 
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