Schiit Freya plus. Is this an upgrade?

@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. 

I’ve got an original Freya with NOS tubes (CBS Hytron and GE) feeding a pair of PS Audio M700 monoblocks and have used that with both Zu Omens and Klipsch Heresy III’s and there was Zero noise audible with my ear right up at the speaker.  The only complaint I had about the original is you can’t tell where the volume is set once you use the remote, and they seemed to have fixed that now, but that’s not enough to make me want to buy another one.  I’m more than satisfied with the one I’ve got.

I had a Freya and returned it during the trial period.
The noise heard when using the remote was too
annoying. 

This is what I've been waiting for, I bought the Saga instead of the original Freya just on the hopes that they would do this!!! Tube shut down is AWESOME.

@ghasley - wow, that is substantial. Thank you very much for taking the time to provide that information. I'm more than a little embarrassed that I obviously didn't do enough research of my own. I'm perfectly happy with my Freya, but I can see the draw of the Freya+ to those on the fence considering a purchase. Happy (quiet) listening :).

Tom