I've paired my Freya with an ARC REF75 amp and it sounded astonishing, with none of the alleged soundstage issues described, so I can only surmise some people simply live on another planet. I brought it into an "audio salon" and the sales dudes were shocked at how good it sounded, even relative to some insanely pricey stuff. It's a quiet over-performer, with plenty of otherwise rational rave reviews supporting it.
Preamps
I'm not unhappy with the Jeff Rowland Corus preamp, but I don't know what I don't know. I'm currently looking for a solid state preamp with HT bypass to compare to my Jeff Rowland Corus preamp. I would like suggestions below $15K new list price to listen to. I have a Jeff Rowland 625 S2 amplifier, Antipodes DS GT music server and Chord Dave DAC.
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I'd first try a Benchmark LA4 @ only $2.6k, specs wise it's SOTA, remains to be seen if you also like the sound (Benchmark offers 30 days in home trial). Compared to the transformer coupled Rowland i'm sure it's more transparent to the source. https://benchmarkmedia.com/collections/preamplifiers/products/benchmark-la4-line-amplifier?variant=1... Closer to the stated price range I'd try the T+A P3000HV and the Chord CPA 5000 (since you have the DAVE). |
I’ve paired my Freya with an ARC REF75 amp and it sounded astonishing +1 for the Shiit Freya, a 3 in 1 Swiss army knife with the best mechanical volume control you can get. Has to be the bargain ($699) of the decade, embarrasses many $$$$$$K preamps, it’s got what’s needed under the hood that’s why. Probably not dazzling enough for the "glitz queens" though. As for the questionable coupling cap statement (above), the Schiit freya uses Wima coupling caps, so do many others. like this 8K euro Acoustics Arts from Germany that got raved about in 6 Moons http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dYJpNC7cRxQ/VI4GXO11ogI/AAAAAAAAwu8/tz9_JDR7cIA/s1600/accustic_arts_monoII... https://6moons.com/audioreviews2/accusticarts/1.html Cheers George |
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