Schiit KARA Preamp and Headphone Amp Review

[40th Anniversary]

It is mind boggling to me that they didn't include a front power switch and/or a 12v trigger. I would have bought one already if it had either one...

Very true what you state and must agree.

And as I discover the Kara in time, it is mind boggling that they offer two active gain stages + a passive mode + a sophisticated volume relay matrix with remote for volume control.

This is the most expensive Schiit item I have purchased; I progressed up the line and the Kara impresses with its quality and refinement.

I have a Khozmo passive preamp now shipping from Spain and I'll be comparing the Kara Passive Preamp (PP) to it. This will be used for a second system in my home.

My wife states my stereo system is becoming complicated; made more so with the power switch at the rear of the Kara. I see it as a powering up geek process.

 

[solderdude]

If I'm reading the headphone graphs right, my Dan Clark Audio Aeon Open X with an impedance of 13ohms will sound like crap?

Nope, they will sound fine acc. to the measurements. Distortion of the Aeon open will be higher than that of the amp at high volume.

 

[HoweSound]

Very true what you state and must agree.

And as I discover the Kara in time, it is mind boggling that they offer two active gain stages + a passive mode + a sophisticated volume relay matrix with remote for volume control.

This is the most expensive Schiit item I have purchased; I progressed up the line and the Kara impresses with its quality and refinement.

I have a Khozmo passive preamp now shipping from Spain and I'll be comparing the Kara Passive Preamp (PP) to it. This will be used for a second system in my home.

My wife states my stereo system is becoming complicated; made more so with the power switch at the rear of the Kara. I see it as a powering up geek process.

I agree, the toggle switch at the rear of my Freya S is annoying. The remote is also obscure - I would like a rotary dial to choose between inputs.

 

[P1NBA11ER]

My Kara sounds (really… sounded) perfect but I too find the input switching, which requires stepping through each of them in order, pretty annoying. There’s no way to simply toggle between the two I would use. My Kara also broke. Left channel started making loads of static/crackling noise after about 3 months of almost daily, but very light, low volume use. It’s currently in the mail back but rather disapointingly, Schiit wants to repair it so I have to sit around for weeks without a system. Don’t understand why they can’t drop ship me a replacement and sell it on as refurbished. Pretty crappy service IMO. Wish there was something similar with at least 1 balanced input and a couple regular inouts, that was priced reasonably. Everything comparable I’ve found is much more expensive and/or contains a bunch of features I don’t want or need.

 

[EJ3]

My Kara sounds (really… sounded) perfect but I too find the input switching, which requires stepping through each of them in order, pretty annoying. There’s no way to simply toggle between the two I would use. My Kara also broke. Left channel started making loads of static/crackling noise after about 3 months of almost daily, but very light, low volume use. It’s currently in the mail back but rather disapointingly, Schiit wants to repair it so I have to sit around for weeks without a system. Don’t understand why they can’t drop ship me a replacement and sell it on as refurbished. Pretty crappy service IMO. Wish there was something similar with at least 1 balanced input and a couple regular inouts, that was priced reasonably. Everything comparable I’ve found is much more expensive and/or contains a bunch of features I don’t want or need.

Exactly why I always have a working product that can be put in place of a piece of gear that has been sent for repair.
I have 2 systems & spares (not necessarily duplicates but something that can be substituted for each item in my main system [whether it would be pulled out of the second system or is just an item I kept for it's ability to be substituted into my main system]).

 

[P1NBA11ER]

Well, I should have a spare sometime this week (if I get the last few parts I ordered and have enough time) when I finish restoring the Luxman C-02 I had been using for years, but which started having channel imbalance issues due to failing power supply caps and loads of cold solder joints earlier this year.

 

[Jefrpol]

It is mind boggling to me that they didn't include a front power switch and/or a 12v trigger. I would have bought one already if it had either one...

Is the Kara meant to be powered up continuously with the the mute switch intended to act as a pseudo-standby?

 

[steve f]

A little bit of user friendly would get Schiit extra sales. A front panel power/standby switch and the ability to switch sources in either direction would be nice.

 

[40th Anniversary]

My Kara sounds (really… sounded) perfect but I too find the input switching, which requires stepping through each of them in order, pretty annoying. There’s no way to simply toggle between the two I would use. My Kara also broke. Left channel started making loads of static/crackling noise after about 3 months of almost daily, but very light, low volume use. It’s currently in the mail back but rather disapointingly, Schiit wants to repair it so I have to sit around for weeks without a system. Don’t understand why they can’t drop ship me a replacement and sell it on as refurbished. Pretty crappy service IMO. Wish there was something similar with at least 1 balanced input and a couple regular inouts, that was priced reasonably. Everything comparable I’ve found is much more expensive and/or contains a bunch of features I don’t want or need.

I'm now using a Khozmo passive preamp with 1) remote control (volume and on-off) and 2) dimmable display.
It sounds great and I'm loving the features of the dimmable display when we watch movies. I also own the Kara and yes, little things can matter.

 

[formdissolve]

My Kara sounds (really… sounded) perfect but I too find the input switching, which requires stepping through each of them in order, pretty annoying. There’s no way to simply toggle between the two I would use. My Kara also broke. Left channel started making loads of static/crackling noise after about 3 months of almost daily, but very light, low volume use. It’s currently in the mail back but rather disapointingly, Schiit wants to repair it so I have to sit around for weeks without a system. Don’t understand why they can’t drop ship me a replacement and sell it on as refurbished. Pretty crappy service IMO. Wish there was something similar with at least 1 balanced input and a couple regular inouts, that was priced reasonably. Everything comparable I’ve found is much more expensive and/or contains a bunch of features I don’t want or need.

I'm fairly certain Schiit doesn't sell repaired units on their B-Stock section, only ones that were returned after a demo period, have minor blemishes from the factory or a return, or are discontinued. That's probably why you'd have to wait for a repair. Not convenient.

 

[EddNog]

Is the Kara meant to be powered up continuously with the the mute switch intended to act as a pseudo-standby?

Kara and Freya+ are considered, "powered off," simply by switching the unit to Passive mode.

-Ed

 

[calvados.boulard]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to ensure that I'm getting the most out of my components. I'm running a Schiit Kara into a Crown XLS 1502 power amp. In a thread on the 1502 power amp recently, the question as to how loud to adjust the 1502's gain knobs came up. The response was that users should look at the SINAD of their preamp to determine what the optimum volume setting on the preamp should be to get the best audio performace out of the preamp, then adjust the 1502 power amp to a comfortable listing level.

Currently I have the Kara's volume set at around 2pm (or approx 70-75% of max volume), and the 1502's gain set at 3/20 (yes, out of 20).

To that end, can someone help a dummy like me understand the testing results of the Kara? How loud should the Kara be set to get the best quality audio out of it?

Thanks everyone!

 

[MRC01]

Setting the appropriate levels is as much about the gain as the SINAD. With analog volume pots the channel balance is best from max (usually around 5:00) down to around the 10:00 position. Set the gain to avoid volume knob positions below that. If your knob is around 2:00 that is about right.

Also with power amps, the more gain, the more pain (noise & distortion). Use only as much gain as you need and no more. Low gain on the power amp with the preamp volume knob in the top half of the range is perfect.

 

[MorningsideMan]

I would use the passive mode to have a high quality attentuator to avoid full blast volume software glitches with my Topping DAC and simple "switch" between my fully analogue turntables and the prior. From what I'm reading for it to go from single-ended to balanced I would need to power it.

I find it quite expensive for my use case, but am not finding many decent relay based attentuators with the limited in-and-outs that I need. Have therefor not pulled the trigger on it just yet.

My first post on ASR was prompted by wondering if this is a good use case for the Kara. Similarly, I am considering running a balanced minidsp Flex into the Kara and as input from my phono stage directly. For the Flex use case I assume I would set it to 0db and control the volume with the Kara in passive mode. In the case of the phono stage (Rega MM MK5) I am unsure what gain stage I'd have to use, but the reason I see the Kara as possibly useful is the unbalanced input to balanced output option. I could also run my turntable setup through the minidsp, but for illogical reasons to many, I'd at least like the option of a fully analog train. I thought about a passive preamp like the Khozmo in between the Flex and my amp, but I am unsure how that would work for my phono stage in terms of unbalanced to balanced and gain structure as well. Either way, I'm wondering if the Kara would be a good option for what I'm trying to achieve or if I should look elsewhere. I am attempting to keep the budget under or around $1000, otherwise I'd just get an LA4 and call it a day.

 

[40th Anniversary]

My first post on ASR was prompted by wondering if this is a good use case for the Kara. Similarly, I am considering running a balanced minidsp Flex into the Kara and as input from my phono stage directly. For the Flex use case I assume I would set it to 0db and control the volume with the Kara in passive mode. In the case of the phono stage (Rega MM MK5) I am unsure what gain stage I'd have to use, but the reason I see the Kara as possibly useful is the unbalanced input to balanced output option. I could also run my turntable setup through the minidsp, but for illogical reasons to many, I'd at least like the option of a fully analog train. I thought about a passive preamp like the Khozmo in between the Flex and my amp, but I am unsure how that would work for my phono stage in terms of unbalanced to balanced and gain structure as well. Either way, I'm wondering if the Kara would be a good option for what I'm trying to achieve or if I should look elsewhere. I am attempting to keep the budget under or around $1000, otherwise I'd just get an LA4 and call it a day.

I used Kara rca in to balanced out. Worked well. I also tried the various modes including passive and it worked. Just be mindful that the Kara is 10 kOhm input and the volume relay is a ladder type. I have Benchmark AHB2 with 50 kOhm input and it was fine. With my powered monitors, the passive stuggled a bit due to the lower input 10 kOhm input impedance.

 

[EddNog]

…With my powered monitors, the passive stuggled a bit due to the lower input 10 kOhm input impedance.

How does this manifest itself?

-Ed

 

[40th Anniversary]

How does this manifest itself?

-Ed

With both My Khozmo passive pre and Kara in passive mode, limited bandwidth at the edges: rounder less robust bass and a somewhat softer higher end (but not as dramatic as what I noticed with bass).
No such issue with the AHB2.

 

[Dougey_Jones]

My first post on ASR was prompted by wondering if this is a good use case for the Kara. Similarly, I am considering running a balanced minidsp Flex into the Kara and as input from my phono stage directly. For the Flex use case I assume I would set it to 0db and control the volume with the Kara in passive mode. In the case of the phono stage (Rega MM MK5) I am unsure what gain stage I'd have to use, but the reason I see the Kara as possibly useful is the unbalanced input to balanced output option. I could also run my turntable setup through the minidsp, but for illogical reasons to many, I'd at least like the option of a fully analog train. I thought about a passive preamp like the Khozmo in between the Flex and my amp, but I am unsure how that would work for my phono stage in terms of unbalanced to balanced and gain structure as well. Either way, I'm wondering if the Kara would be a good option for what I'm trying to achieve or if I should look elsewhere. I am attempting to keep the budget under or around $1000, otherwise I'd just get an LA4 and call it a day.

FWIW, I use these cables from my unbalanced phono stage to the analog input on my Flex Balanced. It works like a dream and I get the benefit of my vinyl source going through the same Dirac car wash as everything else:

Amazon.com

 

[Stoutblock]

With both My Khozmo passive pre and Kara in passive mode, limited bandwidth at the edges: rounder less robust bass and a somewhat softer higher end (but not as dramatic as what I noticed with bass).
No such issue with the AHB2.

This has been my experience also but a good buffer between your passive and your amp will fix this.

 

[MorningsideMan]

FWIW, I use these cables from my unbalanced phono stage to the analog input on my Flex Balanced. It works like a dream and I get the benefit of my vinyl source going through the same Dirac car wash as everything else:

Amazon.com

I was warded off by minidsp's advice on that option, but given it's a relatively cheap experiment I could try it out. What max output voltage from the Flex can I expect in this scenario?