One thought on “Schiit Freya+ Hybrid Preamplifier”
I’ve been living with the Schiit Freya+ for a while now, and given how much chatter there is about this unit, I wanted to share my hands-on experience for anyone looking to drop it into their system.
For those new to the brand, Schiit Audio was founded in 2010 by audio industry veterans Jason Stoddard (formerly of Sumo) and Mike Moffat (formerly of Theta Digital). They started with a mission to build high-quality, budget-friendly audiophile gear right here in the US. While they gained early traction with desktop headphone amps, it was the release of the original Schiit Bifrost DAC and their “True Multibit” technology that truly put them on the map, proving that high-end digital decoding didn’t need to cost a fortune. The Freya+ carries that exact same giant-killer ethos, even if that label needs a bit of nuance.
Connectivity & Features: A True Hub
The main reason I bought the Freya+ was its connectivity, specifically the two pairs of balanced XLR inputs and one pair of XLR outputs. Having all outputs active simultaneously is incredibly convenient.
One important technical caveat: in its active modes, the Freya+ converts unbalanced RCA inputs to balanced XLR outputs. However, if you run it in Passive Mode, there are no active elements to handle this conversion. If you feed it an RCA signal in passive, it will output as unbalanced on the XLR side.
The core connectivity features include:
Two pairs of balanced XLR inputs (Main reason I got the preamp, in addition tube 3 operational modes)
Three pairs of unbalanced RCA inputs
One pair of XLR outputs
Two pairs of RCA outputs (All outputs are active simultaneously)
The Three Operational Modes: How They Actually Sound
The headline feature here is the three distinct circuit configurations. I bought this primarily for the tubes, but I spent time testing all three:
Passive Mode: This offered an incredibly clean, dead-quiet, and uncolored performance. It proved to be completely transparent—essentially acting as “a straight wire with variable gain.” However, it was less capable when driving long balanced lines to power amplifiers, making the music sound marginally drier and smaller compared to active modes.
Solid-State (SS) Buffer Mode: This was the reviewer’s preferred mode. When driving long balanced interconnects, it significantly improved bass definition, enhanced treble detail, and expanded the space and soundstage depth around vocalists and acoustic ensembles. It provided a clean, detailed, and balanced presentation perfect for long listening sessions. However, the soundstage was fairly narrow and air was not very present. I used it a few times and then switched to Tube Mode.
Vacuum Tube Mode: This mode adds 12dB of gain and requires a 45-second warm-up delay. It delivered a warm, rich, weighty, and forgiving sound signature with a more intimate, upfront presentation with great vocal presence. While the bass was full and the treble was rolled off to sound smooth, it lacked some of the impact and sharp directness found in the solid-state buffer mode. Noise was minimal and only audible with an ear right next to the tweeter.
A Note on the Tube Architecture: If you are looking for pure tube mode with no feedback, this is not it. Due to feedback, the sound is much drier than what you would usually get from class A tube preamp.
The Tube Rolling Journey
The stock JJ tubes that the preamp came with contributed to the less vacuum tube sound. They are inherently dry sounding tubes compared to many Old Stock tubes. So the rolling started.
The Freya+ splits its tubes into two sections:
The two on the right handle the differential voltage gain stage
The two on the left are for the cathode follower buffer stage
The voltage gain stage would contribute the most to sound, so start rolling there. For the cathode follower, go for the most transparent tubes (GE 6sn7 would be a great choice). That way they can get out of the way and make the first two tubes shine. I rolled many 6sn7 in the preamp, and the best results were achieved with MELZ 1578. They added very nice weight and presence to vocals and bass.
Hardware Quirks
Living with the Freya+ means accepting a few classic Schiit design choices:
Employs a premium, tactile relay-switched 128 stepped attenuator for volume control (which makes a clicking sound when adjusted – quite annoying) and includes a heavy, solid aluminum remote.
No way to select input directly, have to go through all inputs.
The unit runs incredibly hot and acts as a small space heater, requiring plenty of open ventilation space.
Final Verdict
Is it a giant-killer like some claim? No. It isn’t going to unseat a $2,000 preamplifier.
But it is a very good sounding preamp. If you are willing to invest in a good pair of vintage tubes for the gain stage to unlock its true potential, it offers a level of control, connectivity, and sonic engagement that is incredibly tough to beat at this price point. Recommended, quirks and all.
I’ve been living with the Schiit Freya+ for a while now, and given how much chatter there is about this unit, I wanted to share my hands-on experience for anyone looking to drop it into their system.
For those new to the brand, Schiit Audio was founded in 2010 by audio industry veterans Jason Stoddard (formerly of Sumo) and Mike Moffat (formerly of Theta Digital). They started with a mission to build high-quality, budget-friendly audiophile gear right here in the US. While they gained early traction with desktop headphone amps, it was the release of the original Schiit Bifrost DAC and their “True Multibit” technology that truly put them on the map, proving that high-end digital decoding didn’t need to cost a fortune. The Freya+ carries that exact same giant-killer ethos, even if that label needs a bit of nuance.
Connectivity & Features: A True Hub
The main reason I bought the Freya+ was its connectivity, specifically the two pairs of balanced XLR inputs and one pair of XLR outputs. Having all outputs active simultaneously is incredibly convenient.
One important technical caveat: in its active modes, the Freya+ converts unbalanced RCA inputs to balanced XLR outputs. However, if you run it in Passive Mode, there are no active elements to handle this conversion. If you feed it an RCA signal in passive, it will output as unbalanced on the XLR side.
The core connectivity features include:
The Three Operational Modes: How They Actually Sound
The headline feature here is the three distinct circuit configurations. I bought this primarily for the tubes, but I spent time testing all three:
The Tube Rolling Journey
The stock JJ tubes that the preamp came with contributed to the less vacuum tube sound. They are inherently dry sounding tubes compared to many Old Stock tubes. So the rolling started.
The Freya+ splits its tubes into two sections:
The voltage gain stage would contribute the most to sound, so start rolling there. For the cathode follower, go for the most transparent tubes (GE 6sn7 would be a great choice). That way they can get out of the way and make the first two tubes shine. I rolled many 6sn7 in the preamp, and the best results were achieved with MELZ 1578. They added very nice weight and presence to vocals and bass.
Hardware Quirks
Living with the Freya+ means accepting a few classic Schiit design choices:
Final Verdict
Is it a giant-killer like some claim? No. It isn’t going to unseat a $2,000 preamplifier.
But it is a very good sounding preamp. If you are willing to invest in a good pair of vintage tubes for the gain stage to unlock its true potential, it offers a level of control, connectivity, and sonic engagement that is incredibly tough to beat at this price point. Recommended, quirks and all.