Would Appreciate Some Advice

[Il Duce]

I have a Marantz 2230 that I use with my Klipsch Forte III Speakers. I listen to some digital streaming stuff, and the TV as well, but mostly I spin vinyl with my Technics SL-1200Mk2. I've been itching for something new for the past year. I like to take my time but I can tell when I'm near to pulling the trigger.

I've been interested in the Schitt Freya + with one or two Vidars or Aegirs, but I also like the Ragnarok 2 for simplicity. I like the idea of hearing and playing with tubes and I've heard great stuff about the Freya + so it would be nice to maybe go that route but I just wanted to seek out some advice and also see if any vintage Marantz owners would offer their opinion on Schitt products as well.

Also first post here but I've been reading for a long time. Thanks in advance.

 

[Lavane]

If your happy with the 2230 and the Forte's, the 2230 should push them well, and you listen to records mostly, maybe look into a nice stand alone phono preamp plugged into the aux input or tape in. Either SS or tube. I have a Marantz 1060 integrated I restored several years ago and I still like it. It's basically the 2230 without a tuner. I've moved on to tube preamp, and amps, but still have the 1060 in my system And still listen to it from time to time. I use a tube phono preamp with the 1060.

 

[wmgwizard]

Schiit has a well earned reputation and tends to hold its value.

Go for it, if you don't like it you can flip it for a minimal loss.

Give yourself some time to adjust to the "new" sound but don't be surprised if you discover how much you appreciate your current setup.

 

[Il Duce]

If your happy with the 2230 and the Forte's, the 2230 should push them well, and you listen to records mostly, maybe look into a nice stand alone phono preamp plugged into the aux input or tape in. Either SS or tube. I have a Marantz 1060 integrated I restored several years ago and I still like it. It's basically the 2230 without a tuner. I've moved on to tube preamp, and amps, but still have the 1060 in my system And still listen to it from time to time. I use a tube phono preamp with the 1060.

Nice. Thanks for the input. I've definitely considered playing around with adding the Freya+ as a phono with the Marantz. I'd probably need to pick up a phono as well and could use the Schiit mani with it. Sounds lazy lol but it would be great to have a remote to adjust some stuff, mainly while watching movies, and the Freya+ has that. It would add some nice new sounds too and I'd love to hear how it did. I was a bit concerned about using the Freya+ with the Marantz, but I'm sure it would be fine.

Schiit has a well earned reputation and tends to hold its value.

Go for it, if you don't like it you can flip it for a minimal loss.

Give yourself some time to adjust to the "new" sound but don't be surprised if you discover how much you appreciate your current setup.

Good point. I could flip it if it wasn't for me. I would definitely adjust to the sound and I'd welcome appreciating the current setup even more. Curiosity is getting to me lately though and I'm intrigued by Schiit for sure.

 

[Lavane]

Does the 2230 have pre-outs and Main-ins?
I don't remember. If so, you could also use the Freya as the preamp and use the Marantz amp section using the main-ins. The preamp is going to set the overall tone. If you like how a tube preamp sounds, then you can think about adding adding a tube amplifier.
I've used SS power amps with my tube preamps with good results before. But you would still need a stand alone phono preamp.

 

[Il Duce]

Yeah. It has them. I've never used them but I'm sure they're fine. I'm leaning in this direction for sure as I'd really like to hear some tubes. I considered looking into other things as well but I keep gravitating back to the Freya+. Schiit seems to be doing good stuff for great prices. Of course, I could choose to part with more cash and go for something else, but even then, I'm not sure what would please me more than my current setup. Tough call for sure, to not be able to hear things.