Frank Sol
Lunatic Member
One production run had one color main board the next run had a different color board... One was better than the other but forget which
That was a fine stack... CD Player , Preamp & Amp all with the gold on front
Schiit Freya +
- Thread starter Ross6860
- Start date
One production run had one color main board the next run had a different color board... One was better than the other but forget which
That was a fine stack... CD Player , Preamp & Amp all with the gold on front
Frank Sol
Lunatic Member
Well... I purchased the Rag2
The SQ is superb !
But it aint perfect... I got a good price tho
runnin'
Super Member
The second Freya+ is even worse than the first one.
Absolutely no output from the tube stage except HUMMMMMMMMMMM. Well, for maybe 20-30 seconds.
Then I was greeted with crackle, crackle, PFFFFFT and a decent amount of smoke, yes SMOKE.
I guess I'm done.
We'll see how much Schiit hits me for a "re-stocking fee". Yes, it's in their 15-day return policy.
Anyone want to recommend a decent pre-amp for under $1000? Must be dead quiet and have a remote volume control.
What a shame, too bad you had to go through this at all. Schiit should have at least tested the second pre before sending it out.
Ross6860
Super Member
I was hoping they had a stack of "we know these are good" units.
I moved my Parasound pre-amp to the bedroom and put my APT Holman back in the main system. Kind of ridiculous, I know, but I need a remote in the bedroom.
I'm still on the hunt for pre-amp or integrated...
Metamodern
Active Member
Dang man, what terrible luck you've had!! I picked up a B-stock unit a few months ago, and all its done is get better the more I play it! Got rid of those garbage Tung Sol's almost immediately though.
runnin'
Super Member
In the comments below that video(on YouTube), Thomas refers to the Freya and says he hasn’t heard the Freya + yet.
Its too bad the poster above received two faulty units, perhaps with the supply chain issues their build quality has suffered a little? Mine has been great and I’ll never sell it!
Ross6860
Super Member
After listening to it for two nights, I'm very happy with the Topping Pre90. It does everything I need. I'll start a thread about it after I've had it for a while. So far, no complaints. It appears to be a viable option for those wanting a pre-amp in the same price range as the Freya+ but without the tubes.
It's quiet when it's supposed to be quiet. Everything works. It sounds as good as I remember the Freya+ SS buffer.
Soundstage and imaging are as good as I've heard in this room (the room is not ideal, speaker setup is compromised, but hey, it's a bedroom). Bass is strong, treble is a bit hotter than I remember, but I've been using a Parasound JC2 and an old APT Holman since the Freya+ fiasco. The Parasound is more tame on the top end.
The Topping setup is a little clunky, but it has volume start-up memory for each input and you can specify XLR or RCA out for each input.
Plastic remote vs Schiit's metal one.
It's $300 less than the Freya+ and 1/2 its size. About the same price if you need the input extender module.
The relay-stepped attenuator is quieter in the Topping.
The Topping was double boxed and the packaging is on the order of Sennheiser/Oppo/Emotiva gear I have had. Schiit came in a generic cut-down cardboard box. Not that the packaging has anything to do with how it sounds.
I'm still using my Schiit Modius with no complaints. All the best of luck to you guys that go the Freya+ route. Hopefully you all will get good units with no issues.
It's quiet when it's supposed to be quiet. Everything works. It sounds as good as I remember the Freya+ SS buffer.
Soundstage and imaging are as good as I've heard in this room (the room is not ideal, speaker setup is compromised, but hey, it's a bedroom). Bass is strong, treble is a bit hotter than I remember, but I've been using a Parasound JC2 and an old APT Holman since the Freya+ fiasco. The Parasound is more tame on the top end.
The Topping setup is a little clunky, but it has volume start-up memory for each input and you can specify XLR or RCA out for each input.
Plastic remote vs Schiit's metal one.
It's $300 less than the Freya+ and 1/2 its size. About the same price if you need the input extender module.
The relay-stepped attenuator is quieter in the Topping.
The Topping was double boxed and the packaging is on the order of Sennheiser/Oppo/Emotiva gear I have had. Schiit came in a generic cut-down cardboard box. Not that the packaging has anything to do with how it sounds.
I'm still using my Schiit Modius with no complaints. All the best of luck to you guys that go the Freya+ route. Hopefully you all will get good units with no issues.
I have an original Freya that seems ok. I get some low crackling once in a while but now cant recall if it was with my sylvania tubes or the tung sols or both.
i also have a restored carver C-1 thats great but i wanted to try these tubes.
that topping pre90 is on too of my list. Been waiting on them to be in the states rather than direct from china.
might have to sell bith units i have for the topping.
i also have a restored carver C-1 thats great but i wanted to try these tubes.
that topping pre90 is on too of my list. Been waiting on them to be in the states rather than direct from china.
might have to sell bith units i have for the topping.
StimpyWan
Addicted Member
Schiit found quite a few chassis pieces, for the Freya S and the Saga S preamps, during inventory. So, there is going to be an unofficial rerun of both the Freya S and the Saga S. Not sure when. No announcement yet. But, according to Jason, it will happen.
Ross6860
Super Member
If they do, I'll try one...
Ross6860
Super Member
I've been very happy with the Topping Pre90. I do not need the additional I/O since my DAC is handling most of those duties. It's dead quiet, which is a big deal to me. Any noise I get is from my power amp.
The only real complaint is with the remote/receiver. I'm pretty close (10 feet or so) and you really have to point it exactly right to get it to function.
An odd thing, the display may or may not increment up or down with single "clicks" using the volume knob.
Other than that, no issues.
My Freya + disappointed me when I got it. I thought I had made a mistake when I first fired it up.
I just let it run and things got much better with some time on the unit and the tubes. In fact I am very happy with the purchase and the SQ now. Other members here have experienced the same thing and were ready to send their back after first use. But they hung in there and now are happy with their Freya + units as well.
Sorry things didn't work out for you!
I just let it run and things got much better with some time on the unit and the tubes. In fact I am very happy with the purchase and the SQ now. Other members here have experienced the same thing and were ready to send their back after first use. But they hung in there and now are happy with their Freya + units as well.
Sorry things didn't work out for you!
rhing
Active Member
I've had a Freya + now for almost two weeks now, and I am very impressed with this amp. I have only listened to the Freya + in the JFET differential buffer mode and in the tube differential mode. In my opinion, both modes sound great with my preference for the tube mode when I am actively listening. When I want some background music, I switch the Freya + into the JFET buffer mode. I love the fact that when I switch from tube mode to JFET buffer mode, the tubes power down.
I hate to admit it, but I enjoy using this preamp more than my Audio Research LS7 tube line stage, and my ARC LS7 has set a high bar. This is how impressive the Freya + is to my ears. With full balanced connections from my SMSL SU-8 v. 2 DAC to the Freya + to the Pass DIY Aleph J Class A power amp, the huge soundstage has a black background. I hear nuanced details and tone in recordings I have never heard before--it really is amazing to me that this preamp is less than $900 and comes with a 5-year warranty.
I installed two matched OS GE gray plate side FAT D getter 6SN7GTB tubes in the differential voltage gain positions (right side) and two new production Tung Sol 6SN7 tubes in the output buffer positions (left side). The Freya + shipped with a quad of JJ 6SN7's, but I went with this combination from the start. The presentation is clean, holographic and rich in tone. In either mode I've used, the bass is nicely defined and taut. I do not hear any boomy or flabby bass at all.
This is my first piece of Schiit gear, but now I am wondering about a Bifrost Multibit as an upgrade to my SMSL SU-8 v. 2 DAC.
I hate to admit it, but I enjoy using this preamp more than my Audio Research LS7 tube line stage, and my ARC LS7 has set a high bar. This is how impressive the Freya + is to my ears. With full balanced connections from my SMSL SU-8 v. 2 DAC to the Freya + to the Pass DIY Aleph J Class A power amp, the huge soundstage has a black background. I hear nuanced details and tone in recordings I have never heard before--it really is amazing to me that this preamp is less than $900 and comes with a 5-year warranty.
I installed two matched OS GE gray plate side FAT D getter 6SN7GTB tubes in the differential voltage gain positions (right side) and two new production Tung Sol 6SN7 tubes in the output buffer positions (left side). The Freya + shipped with a quad of JJ 6SN7's, but I went with this combination from the start. The presentation is clean, holographic and rich in tone. In either mode I've used, the bass is nicely defined and taut. I do not hear any boomy or flabby bass at all.
This is my first piece of Schiit gear, but now I am wondering about a Bifrost Multibit as an upgrade to my SMSL SU-8 v. 2 DAC.
StimpyWan
Addicted Member
Thanks for your comments, and your comparisons to your ARC pre. That's very encouraging. It makes me want to upgrade my Saga, to a Freya+, even more.
