Schiit Freya plus. Is this an upgrade?

A preamp that seems whisper quiet in a typical system can suddenly have very noticeable noise (from seating position) when placed in a system with high-sensitivity speakers & amps. If your speakers are below 90 dB, your system probably won’t be a stress test for preamps, and you’ll be wondering about others’ complaints of noise. My speakers are 96 dB / Watt, 8 ohm, and amps output almost 300 Watts at 1V input. It is definitely a stress test for preamps. Impressively, the ARC REF 6 is whisper quiet here.

The Freya +’s noise spec of -115dB, if legit, is superb. Stereophile measured the REF 6 at -100dB, A-weighted.

@mulveling - that makes sense, thanks for the clarification. My Vandy 2Cs sensitivity is on the low side, about 86 dB if memory serves me correctly.

Tom

Interesting, and I'd buy one if my "original version" seemed noisy or lacking in some way

If you have a look, there's 4 new preamps in the Freya/Saga range.

And by saying the old was/could be noisy, it could have been only with measurements you could see this, not by ear, but this is enough to put the fear of god into some users to upgrade to the newer ones! Great Schiit marketing!!!!

Should be some great used buying of older models coming up soon.

Cheers George  

I also have been shocked and rendered defensive by those with noisy Freyas, although those mostly seemed from tubes. Maybe I can stop being such a "Schitt Defender." My speakers are 99db efficient and I’d know it if a pesky hum showed up...does the new Freya seem to have returned to the 12 db or so jump in tube mode? I’m used to that in mine, although it seemed later versions had lessoned that somehow...and the "tube shut-off" feature doesn’t matter to me since I only use the non tube modes to check on my tubes, and I turn everything off when I’m not around. So now I’m back to simply being a "me" defender.

@tomcarr

From the FAQ section of the Freya + on Schiit's website:

"So what’s the difference between Freya+ and the original Freya?
Actually, quite a bit. Here’s the breakdown:

1. Freya+ has a completely new tube stage, with DC heaters and a noise-cancelling semi-circlotron output buffer, which reduces noise by more than 20dB when compared to the original Freya—a significant improvement!
2. Freya+ has a completely new differential JFET buffer stage, which converts single-ended signals to balanced, which allows you to use more sources with mono Vidars or Aegirs.
3. Freya+ has a tube shutdown mode—tubes are completely off unless Freya is in tube output mode (no B+, no heaters, off means off), so you can extend life of costly tubes.
4. Freya+ has a motorized pot that tracks the remote control volume, which provides a continuous physical reference for the volume level.
5. Freya+ uses our new “fastenerless” chassis for a sleeker overall look.
6. Freya+ is sold only with new production Tung-Sol tubes, which we have found to be superior to affordable NOS tubes."

I've had a Freya and a couple of Sagas, amazing preamps for the money and its important to note that I also had an Audio Research Ref 5se at the same time. Make no mistake, the Freya/Saga did not play in the same league as the Ref 5se but you are talking orders of magnitude here. The Freya to me was noisier than the Saga but, (a) I only used the Freya single ended and (b) it was not noisy enough to cause me any issues and (c) I was using the Freya/Saga with non Schiit amps. The 5se is dead quiet and 3 dimensional in a way that defies reason, its that good BUT...and this is a big but, in a normal home with normal ambient noise, the Schiit preamps may be all the typical audiophile ever needs.

Any way you slice it, if this outperforms the original Freya, then it is a stone cold bargain.