The new Schiit Kara seems much better than Freya S, any info on it?

[aaronsarkissian]

Yesterday I was researching about Schiit Freya S and Freya+ and today saw that Freya S is no longer available and there is this new Kara.
It includes headphone AMP and many more performance boosts.
Can we expect major changes or is it better to get Freya+?

 

[HoweSound]

Interesting: I have the Freya S, purchased only a month ago. The Kara looks identical to the Freya S and the performance and features appear the same, except with the addition of the headphone amp/jack. Unless you have a tube fetish, get the Kara; apparently an upgraded, re-badged Freya S. They say performance is improved over Freya S. I'll wait for a report from Amir on that.

 

[Pe8er]

I'm so happy whenever Schiit release a new product because there's a new FAQ to giggle at. This one doesn't disappoint either:

Measures good? Must sound like ass, right?
Guess again, bub!

Link for the lazy: https://www.schiit.com/products/kara

 

[amirm]

Usually they reach out to me on well measuring gear so strange that they have not this time. But maybe they will....

 

[aaronsarkissian]

Interesting: I have the Freya S, purchased only a month ago. The Kara looks identical to the Freya S and the performance and features appear the same, except with the addition of the headphone amp/jack. Unless you have a tube fetish, get the Kara; apparently an upgraded, re-badged Freya S. They say performance is improved over Freya S. I'll wait for a report from Amir on that.

At first, I thought it was the same with headphone out (and a +$100 base price tag), but it seems that it is tuned a bit based on this info:

• Much higher performance: Kara kills Freya S from all outputs, in all modes.
• Much higher rails: Freya S was +/-17V, Kara is +/-32V. More volts more linear.
• Now with headphone jack: none on Freya S, yes on Kara.
• 2x bigger power supply: 48VA transformer in Kara, 24VA on Freya S.
• Better controls: More rational front panel layout on Kara.

The higher rails and bigger power supply seems interesting tho.
And yes I'll wait for Amir's review before buying it.

 

[aaronsarkissian]

Usually they reach out to me on well measuring gear so strange that they have not this time. But maybe they will....

Yeah, will wait for it.
In the meantime, how reliable is this info from them? https://www.schiit.com/public/upload/PDF/APx555 Measurements--Schiit Kara.pdf

 

[Matias]

Schiit Freya S Preamplifier Review 2

Exactly. An attenuator is configured as a voltage divider (I'm excluding special cases like L-pads which are pretty much loudspeaker-only), with the source impedance being at a maximum at 50% (-6dB). The two halves in parallel make a source resistance of 1/4 the potentiometer value. OK I...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[mhardy6647]

At first, I thought it was the same with headphone out (and a +$100 base price tag), but it seems that it is tuned a bit based on this info:

• Much higher performance: Kara kills Freya S from all outputs, in all modes.
• Much higher rails: Freya S was +/-17V, Kara is +/-32V. More volts more linear.
• Now with headphone jack: none on Freya S, yes on Kara.
• 2x bigger power supply: 48VA transformer in Kara, 24VA on Freya S.
• Better controls: More rational front panel layout on Kara.

The higher rails and bigger power supply seems interesting tho.
And yes I'll wait for Amir's review before buying it.

"More Volta more linear" Is that straight from the EE textbook?

 

[dweekie]

At first, I thought it was the same with headphone out (and a +$100 base price tag), but it seems that it is tuned a bit based on this info:

• Much higher performance: Kara kills Freya S from all outputs, in all modes.
• Much higher rails: Freya S was +/-17V, Kara is +/-32V. More volts more linear.
• Now with headphone jack: none on Freya S, yes on Kara.
• 2x bigger power supply: 48VA transformer in Kara, 24VA on Freya S.
• Better controls: More rational front panel layout on Kara.

The higher rails and bigger power supply seems interesting tho.
And yes I'll wait for Amir's review before buying it.

The list of stated benefits aside from improved performance and headphone output are a bit absurd... I will still pick it up as it fits my needs perfectly.

 

[bigLP]

Mine just arrived. Havent had freya for a year. Will compare to a90d in an almost scientific blind test once in rack and I have my sons assistance and ears

 

[TK750]

Yeah, will wait for it.
In the meantime, how reliable is this info from them? https://www.schiit.com/public/upload/PDF/APx555 Measurements--Schiit Kara.pdf

I'd expect it to be fairly accurate as they know it's going to get scrutinised by people here, also it's obviously going to be measured by at least some third parties in the future (hopefully Amir). Had a quick flick through but didn't check how similar the measurement parameters are to those that Amir uses so not sure how comparable the results are. As you mentioned, I'm in the camp now where I won't buy an audio product (aside from the very simple/cheap) unless it has been measured by at least one third party (90% of the time Amir).

 

[HoweSound]

Yes, I'm waiting for a test - looking for a precise measurement of my disappointment index (if any) for buying the Freya S a month too soon.

 

[dweekie]

Yes, I'm waiting for a test - looking for a precise measurement of my disappointment index (if any) for buying the Freya S a month too soon.

Maybe not so bad; you paid $100 less (no one is talking about this price creep and new price-point from here on out), and you know the Freya S doesn't have any major known defects. There are a few products I've missed out on in the past that I'm very glad I missed out on...

 

[HoweSound]

Maybe not so bad; you paid $100 less (no one is talking about this price creep and new price-point from here on out), and you know the Freya S doesn't have any major known defects. There are a few products I've missed out on in the past that I'm very glad I missed out on...

Also I wanted silver and the Kara only comes in black at the moment...

 

[Vive la dissonance!]

I, for one, am hoping Schiit's published specs are accurate.

 

[RosalieTheDog]

Much more sensible to add a headphone output. Seems like a good proposition. Any info on functionality? How does it switch output from headphone to xlr or rca? Can xlr and rca output at the same time?

 

[dweekie]

Much more sensible to add a headphone output. Seems like a good proposition. Any info on functionality? How does it switch output from headphone to xlr or rca? Can xlr and rca output at the same time?

The manual in the downloads section of the product addresses your questions.

 

[bigLP]

I have done sighted comparisons between my new kara and the a90 discrete through balanced input. node 2i into modius, modius balanced into the 2 pre amps. Volume leveled by cell phone using a tone from a chesky test album.
Impressions of these two preamps were similar to when I compared to a90d to freya s. Bias may also be rearing its ugly head as well. The a90D seemed to have more low end emphasis, while the schiit had more high frequency. Smaller but more defined "image" from a90d. Kara has a larger image but more diffuse. The Kara seemed to find more detail, breaths and fingers on strings seemed easier to hear. We did do a couple "close your eyes and guess which one is playing" trials. Just like with the freya s and topping a90d, it was hard to discern the two beyond chance.
the schiit looks better than topping in rack and is easier to use in terms of space on back and input selection. I dont really like either remote. These things are basically the same money if you include the input extender for the topping. the Kara makes me feel like I got more for my money. Im not sure i want to sell my topping anymore though. Listening to both gave us enjoyment.

 

[aaronsarkissian]

I have done sighted comparisons between my new kara and the a90 discrete through balanced input. node 2i into modius, modius balanced into the 2 pre amps. Volume leveled by cell phone using a tone from a chesky test album.
Impressions of these two preamps were similar to when I compared to a90d to freya s. Bias may also be rearing its ugly head as well. The a90D seemed to have more low end emphasis, while the schiit had more high frequency. Smaller but more defined "image" from a90d. Kara has a larger image but more diffuse. The Kara seemed to find more detail, breaths and fingers on strings seemed easier to hear. We did do a couple "close your eyes and guess which one is playing" trials. Just like with the freya s and topping a90d, it was hard to discern the two beyond chance.
the schiit looks better than topping in rack and is easier to use in terms of space on back and input selection. I dont really like either remote. These things are basically the same money if you include the input extender for the topping. the Kara makes me feel like I got more for my money. Im not sure i want to sell my topping anymore though. Listening to both gave us enjoyment.

Thanks for sharing your results.

 

[SCG]

Usually they reach out to me on well measuring gear so strange that they have not this time. But maybe they will....

They sent Steve one, so hopefully they sent one to you also.

BW 606 S3 testing with Kara & Vidar 2 at the 6:45 mark

I'm enjoying mine and it measures well on their site

Schiit APx555 Kara Measurements