Schiit Freya S Preamplifier Review 2

[T.M.Noble]

YOU OBVIOUSLY ENJOY IMPUTING facts, opinions or emotions to people to set up a straw basis on which to put them in a false light. Your answers are this predicate and speak for themselves. As they say in Mexico, AMF. (Adios, my friend.) You and I are well and truly done.

I think I treated you fairly and directly. However, I am not in the business of trying to win people over who are determined to be dissatisfied.

Again, I hope you find what you are looking for.

 

[dkinric]

"Eat Schiit and die"?
@Thomas savage, is this how we let members speak to other members? Even given the leeway of a manufacturer and an upset customer, this type of behavior should be discouraged here, in my opinion.
If nothing else, my opinion of Schiit has only improved due to the professional way an irate customer was handled. Manufacturers who take the time to engage with members here deserve some protections as well.

 

[Laserjock]

I want a Freya +

Sometimes things said on text/email don’t come out the way they’re meant to or get misinterpreted.

Hopefully cooler heads prevail.

If I buy one, could it be drop shipped to Amir to test before being sent to me?

Chris

 

[Thomas savage]

"Eat Schiit and die"?
@Thomas savage, is this how we let members speak to other members? Even given the leeway of a manufacturer and an upset customer, this type of behavior should be discouraged here, in my opinion.
If nothing else, my opinion of Schiit has only improved due to the professional way an irate customer was handled. Manufacturers who take the time to engage with members here deserve some protections as well.

It works better if you report a offensive post, I don't read everything that gets posted .
.I used to for many years but it's not practical these days .

I will look through what's gone on here

Cheers

 

[Thomas savage]

You did not ask me for anything. Nor will I ever do business with you or get in your Schitt.

Laura neither stated nor implied that the back order was the waiting list.

Rationalize anything you want POST HOC, but you and I are done. I say eat Schitt and die.

This is totally uncalled for and at this point your only making yourself ( and our forum ) look bad. I understand things can get frustrating but I hope on reflection you see your error here and apologise accordingly.

Having high level access to manufacturers at ASR is a real asset, we are a consumer focused forum but that dose not mean we treat producers this way .

I'd like to apologise to @T.M.Noble and take this opportunity to thank you for the way you have conducted yourself since you arrived here . I know your only doing what's in your own best interest to a degree but I still appreciate the way you go about it . As de-escalating tacticians go your rather inspirational, I should really learn from your example... Should .

To our members I'd like to remind you all , if you wish to carry on benefitting from direct access to not only manufacturers but also audio luminaries and experts please treat them with respect as indeed you should each other.

We are all human beings!

Cheers

 

[spacevector]

We are all human beings!

Amen brother. Wish I had robot ears though.

 

[James Romeyn]

So why do people need a preamp these days? Seems that setting aside $700 towards a purchase of Benchmark DAC3 or the like is a more rational choice. And I do like the Freya especially now that they ditched the tubes, but can't think of a use case for my purposes, then you still lose couple of dBs of SINAD while going through it.

I don't think any passive source properly drives my 2 sub amps (each 12k ohm) in parallel with one of a wide variety of main amps (total load might be as low as 8-9k ohm).

 

[James Romeyn]

How do you go about listening for these differences? Is it through a controlled listening process, or you just notice differences after you hook up one or another?

If no controls are put in place, what you hear will not mean as much to you as you think, and it will mean even less to anyone else...

Set up a level matched (+/- .1db) double blind test with nearly instantaneous switching, and there are many who would bet embarrassing amounts those differences would disappear...assuming we aren't dealing with headphones and impedance/power issues. That definitely adds another element, but that's not magic either, just choose a device that's competent for the job.

Do you use different filters? I myself haven't managed to hear filter differences...my hearing has likely dropped below where that threshold could matter, but for others I have no doubt they could be audible.

Not trying to give you grief...just one possible answer as to how they could sound different to you...

Objectivists were given a blind test, A then B; A was L and R speakers non-inverted polarity. B was one channel inverted polarity, the other channel non-inverted polarity.

The objectivists said A equaled B, no change. A friend is curious if you have any comment.

 

[BDWoody]

Objectivists were given a blind test, A then B; A was L and R speakers non-inverted polarity. B was one channel inverted polarity, the other channel non-inverted polarity.

The objectivists said A equaled B, no change. A friend is curious if you have any comment.

My comment is that people work very hard to figure out why blind tests just don't apply to them...

Have YOU ever been part of a real one?

 

[solderdude]

Objectivists were given a blind test, A then B; A was L and R speakers non-inverted polarity. B was one channel inverted polarity, the other channel non-inverted polarity.

The objectivists said A equaled B, no change. A friend is curious if you have any comment.

Who were the objectivists ?
How many were there and did they identify themselves as objectivists or were they told they were ?
Is this documented somewhere ?
Were there also subjectivists and inbetweenivists that did notice the out of phase speaker that got it right and only objectivists got it wrong ?
If the friend is curious why doesn't he ask this himself instead using you as a proxy ?

 

[slingshot]

I'll get back to you on that. Fastest way of course is to place the order and get in line. We had a dramatic increase in orders for Freya + and we have been trying to keep up with demand. Freya + is currently one of our first priorities to keep in stock.

Tom, could you send Amir one of these to measure? We are all interested in the tube output stage measurements. The Benchmark preamp is the gold standard on this forum but the Freya + is a third of the price.

 

[Veri]

We are all interested in the tube output stage measurements. The Benchmark preamp is the gold standard on this forum but the Freya + is a third of the price.

The Freya S is solid state, the Freya+ = tubed gain stage which will add distortion and some hum. It won't hold a candle to the Benchmark...
if you want the best performance the Freya S is the budget performer to get. Unless you want those pretty tubes, but they won't measure as well.
You can already check out Schiit's own measurements for the Freya S though. APx555 Report for Freya+

 

[majingotan]

Tom, could you send Amir one of these to measure? We are all interested in the tube output stage measurements. The Benchmark preamp is the gold standard on this forum but the Freya + is a third of the price.

It's a tube stage so it's a given it'll perform horribly. It's 0.1% at 4Vrms and 0.02% at 2Vrms

 

[T.M.Noble]

I want a Freya +

Sometimes things said on text/email don’t come out the way they’re meant to or get misinterpreted.

Hopefully cooler heads prevail.

If I buy one, could it be drop shipped to Amir to test before being sent to me?

Chris

If you ever have any questions about purchases or shipments, always shoot an email to [email protected]. We get back to people quickly and they will give you the info you need.

 

[T.M.Noble]

This is totally uncalled for and at this point your only making yourself ( and our forum ) look bad. I understand things can get frustrating but I hope on reflection you see your error here and apologise accordingly.

Having high level access to manufacturers at ASR is a real asset, we are a consumer focused forum but that dose not mean we treat producers this way .

I'd like to apologise to @T.M.Noble and take this opportunity to thank you for the way you have conducted yourself since you arrived here . I know your only doing what's in your own best interest to a degree but I still appreciate the way you go about it . As de-escalating tacticians go your rather inspirational, I should really learn from your example... Should .

To our members I'd like to remind you all , if you wish to carry on benefitting from direct access to not only manufacturers but also audio luminaries and experts please treat them with respect as indeed you should each other.

We are all human beings!

Cheers

Thank you for the kind words but an apology is unnecessary. I have enjoyed this forum thus far and I am glad I can be here as a small conduit between Schiit Audio and ASR.

 

[Laserjock]

Should we expect the Freya + to perform the same as The Freya S with the option to add tube “distortion” or is it a different design when not using the tubes?

 

[majingotan]

Should we expect the Freya + to perform the same as The Freya S with the option to add tube “distortion” or is it a different design when not using the tubes?

No. Different amplification topology. Freya+ uses differential JFET buffer stage (unity gain) https://www.schiit.com/products/freya-1

Differential Buffer Stage—Versatile Interface
Freya+’s buffers aren’t just buffers—they’re differential. That means they convert single-ended signals to balanced, so you can interface more easily throughout your system. In addition, you can use it to convert SE sources to drive mono Vidars and Aegirs.

Compound Differential Buffer
Gain: 1 (0dB)
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.2db, 3Hz-500KHz, -3dB
THD: <0.004%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 1V RMS
IMD: <0.0055%, CCIR
SNR: >120db, A-weighted, referenced to 2V RMS
Output Impedance: 75 ohms SE, 600 ohms balanced
Topology: JFET differential amplifier compound pair with equalized-gm followers

Freya S uses Schiit's proprietary differential buffer stage with selectable gain swich

Nexus Differential Stage
Gain: 1 (0dB)
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.1db, 3Hz-500KHz, -3dB
THD: <0.001%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 2V RMS
IMD: <0.001%, CCIR
SNR: >115db, A-weighted, referenced to 2V RMS
Output Impedance: 75 ohms SE, 600 ohms balanced

Gain: 4 (12dB)
Frequency Response: 20Hz-20Khz, -0.1db, 3Hz-200KHz, -3dB
THD: <0.002%, 20Hz-20KHz, at 2V RMS
IMD: <0.002%, CCIR
SNR: >110db, A-weighted, referenced to 2V RMS
Output Impedance: 75 ohms SE, 600 ohms balanced

Topology: Nexus™ topology; current feedback with nested differential stages

 

[TheInquiring]

As I explained, it is for those of us who have more than one source such as LP or Tape plus DAC. Otherwise yes, you feed the DAC to the power amp if it has a volume control (or if you are brave, using software volume control).

Do I understand correctly, @amirm, it is your recommendation to feed the DAC (if it has a volume control like, for example, Topping D90 DAC) to the power amp directly, and any preamplifier in between the two will only degrade the signal? Is it possible to estimate how significantly? A few dBs of SINAD, perhaps?
I have a few analog sources, and am considering a quality solid-state fully-balanced preamplifier for my modest Hi-Fi system. @amirm, if I might ask, what preamplifier(s) are you employing in your main setup? Will you please be so kind to give me some recommendations on the matter?

 

[amirm]

Do I understand correctly, @amirm, it is your recommendation to feed the DAC (if it has a volume control like, for example, Topping D90 DAC) to the power amp directly, and any preamplifier in between the two will only degrade the signal? Is it possible to estimate how significantly? A few dBs of SINAD, perhaps?

Correct unless you get a lous preamp with tons of distortion and noise.

 

[amirm]

. @amirm, if I might ask, what preamplifier(s) are you employing in your main setup? Will you please be so kind to give me some recommendations on the matter?

I would personally put this Freya in there if it had a level display. Right now I am using a Premair amplifier as a preamp which I like to upgrade.