Another Schiit Freya owner here, with the "+" version. I tried to post earlier, not sure what happened. The Freya+ is the best preamp I've owned and also the cheapest(except for the Schiit Saga). I'm sure that if you've got unlimited funds, you can get a better sounding pre, but for most of us, for $899 this is a bona fide home run.
Anyway, the Freya is worthy of any preamp shortlist, unless you hate tubes. Imaging, staging beyond the speakers, and resolution. The piano sounds so natural, better than my old Parasound Halo gear.
And from what I've read, Schiit went with a subtle touch with the tube effect. In fact, some tube lovers think the Freya+ isn't "tubey" enough. For me, the gear has to be faithful to the music, not adding "tubey" effects or whatever. Adding personality, that's for my speakers...
And if I don't feel like tubes, I simply select one of the other non tube modes. That's right, there are 3 different modes. Passive, jfet buffer and the tube section.
Anyway, the Freya is worthy of any preamp shortlist, unless you hate tubes. Imaging, staging beyond the speakers, and resolution. The piano sounds so natural, better than my old Parasound Halo gear.
And from what I've read, Schiit went with a subtle touch with the tube effect. In fact, some tube lovers think the Freya+ isn't "tubey" enough. For me, the gear has to be faithful to the music, not adding "tubey" effects or whatever. Adding personality, that's for my speakers...
And if I don't feel like tubes, I simply select one of the other non tube modes. That's right, there are 3 different modes. Passive, jfet buffer and the tube section.