[liv2teach11]

Thinking of purchasing a Schiit Freya+ to match up with my newly purchased Will Vincent ST-70. Would love to hear from those who have the Freya+ about amps you have matched up with and tube choices for the Freya+. Thanks

[jmc207]

iiWi Reviews on YouTube recently explored some tube options on the Freya.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krf6hmOAcIk

[mick wolfe]

I "almost" agree with that YouTube video with the exception that I never found the originally supplied JJ's to be as harsh as he describes. That said and for an uptick in performance, at least replace the 2 gain tubes( the ones on the right) with a nice pair NOS or ANOS 6SN7's. The Sylvania's are a good example, but I've used G.E.'s, Kenrad's , plus a few others.  Over time I've replaced all 4 tubes with NOS/ANOS tubes, but the gain tubes alone may get you where you want to be. FWIW, I use the Freya+ with a VTA ( Latino) ST70 and it's a superb combination.

[liv2teach11]

Thanks for the info... I'm tube hunting now. BTW: What tubes do you use in your ST70? Thanks

[DannyBadorine]

FWIW, I use the Freya+ with a VTA ( Latino) ST70 and it's a superb combination.

I have the VTA ST120 and I love it but I'm using a solid state Preamplifier.  You don't think the combo of the Freya and the VTA is too much tube?  Do you find yourself wanting cleaner sounding preamp tubes to be a better pairing with the tube amplifier?

[mick wolfe]

Thanks for the info... I'm tube hunting now. BTW: What tubes do you use in your ST70? Thanks

Psvane KT88T Mk. II's, NOS 12AT7 Mullard or Brimar driver/ voltage splitters, NOS Matsushita 5AR4. In case you're wondering, yes, the VTA ST70 is compatible and sounds great with either the Psvane 88's or Gold Lion (re-issue) 88's. Pop in anything from the 6L6 family thru the 6550/KT88 family.

[mick wolfe]

I have the VTA ST120 and I love it but I'm using a solid state Preamplifier.  You don't think the combo of the Freya and the VTA is too much tube?  Do you find yourself wanting cleaner sounding preamp tubes to be a better pairing with the tube amplifier?

It's a good pairing in that neither component would be considered to have that classic "lush" old school tube signature. Both are voiced to a more modern tube flavor, but not to a point that screams solid state. IOW, a nice blend of transparency and warmth. This of course with the tube compliment I've mentioned above.

[TJHUB]

I've had my Freya+ for about a week now.  It has the JJ tubes, and I don't like them, but the preamp is still good with them.  It seems to get better every day.  I've never liked JJ 12AU7 in my previous Rogue preamp, so no surprise.  If you buy new, get it without tubes!

I bounced a bunch of emails back and forth with Jim @ valvesnmore.  I caught a YT video he did on the 6SN7 tubes.  He has a budget kit of Sylvania tubes for the gain side with GE tubes for the buffer especially for the Freya.  After communicating with Jim, I purchased better Sylvania 6SN7GTA for the gain with NOS GE tubes for the buffer.  They will be here next Wednesday.  I hope they will be of my taste.  Jim is very confident, so I hope he is right!

[Tyson]

RCA, Sylvania and GE are all good NOS tubes for reasonable prices.  NOS Tung Sol tubes are more expensive but give better performance.  Surprisingly, some of the NOS Japanese tubes from the 70's are also very good.  Hitachi, Hit Ray, Matsushita, etc...

[liv2teach11]

I have the VTA ST120 and I love it but I'm using a solid state Preamplifier.  You don't think the combo of the Freya and the VTA is too much tube?  Do you find yourself wanting cleaner sounding preamp tubes to be a better pairing with the tube amplifier?

To much tube? LOL...is that possible? Actually I love tubes, my main system is all tubes. Prima Luna Dialogue pre into two Prima Luna Dialogue HP's running as monoblocks. Phono stage is Manley Chinook...with tubes... my streaming is through a ModWright Oppo 205...tubed... with a separate tube power supply. I think that's somewhere around 40 to 44 tubes running in the system. After a few hours the room is nice and toasty.

[liv2teach11]

I've had my Freya+ for about a week now.  It has the JJ tubes, and I don't like them, but the preamp is still good with them.  It seems to get better every day.  I've never liked JJ 12AU7 in my previous Rogue preamp, so no surprise.  If you buy new, get it without tubes!

I bounced a bunch of emails back and forth with Jim @ valvesnmore.  I caught a YT video he did on the 6SN7 tubes.  He has a budget kit of Sylvania tubes for the gain side with GE tubes for the buffer especially for the Freya.  After communicating with Jim, I purchased better Sylvania 6SN7GTA for the gain with NOS GE tubes for the buffer.  They will be here next Wednesday.  I hope they will be of my taste.  Jim is very confident, so I hope he is right!

If you can, let me know how you like the new tubes. Good luck, hope the work out for you...

[liv2teach11]

Psvane KT88T Mk. II's, NOS 12AT7 Mullard or Brimar driver/ voltage splitters, NOS Matsushita 5AR4. In case you're wondering, yes, the VTA ST70 is compatible and sounds great with either the Psvane 88's or Gold Lion (re-issue) 88's. Pop in anything from the 6L6 family thru the 6550/KT88 family.

Hey Mick,
Sounds like a winning combo, I'm going to check into this...thanks.

[TJHUB]

I've had my Freya+ for a couple of weeks now.  It's been a real rollercoaster ride.  I ran the JJ tubes while waiting for my NOS Sylvania tubes and NOS GE tubes.  I had also changed the power cable to one of my Triode Wire Labs 10+ cables.  The sound was bad enough that I felt I made a big mistake buying this thing.

The NOS tubes arrived and I installed the Sylvanias in the gain stage, and the GEs in the buffer stage.  As it turns out, one of the GE tubes was buzzing, so I'm waiting for a replacement.  It will be here Tuesday the 30th.  In the meantime, I was asked by the selling to leave the Sylvanias in the gain stage and run the JJs in the buffer stage.  The sound was thin and lacked any bass.  Just terrible overall.  That was until 2 days ago when I swapped power cords.

This story is MUCH longer, but I'm now back to the stock, super cheap power cable and the sound is really great.  I've never experienced this level of change from a power cable, but it's clear the Freya+ absolutely hates the TWL power cable.  So even with the JJs in the buffer stage, I'm really liking the Freya+.  I'm hoping the GE tubes will make the sound even better.

Long story short, the Sylvanias are so much better than the JJs they honestly shouldn't even be compared.  I'm sure there are better, but I'm happy with them.

[mick wolfe]

I'm glad you got it all sorted out in regard to the Freya+. I think it's a genuine bargain for what it brings to the table. This after one finds NOS( or ANOS in my case) tube choices that fit their ear. Strangely enough, I also happen to be using a TWL power cable with my Freya+.  That said, mine is an older 12 gauge. Although I didn't notice a remarkable change when switching from a Pangea 14SE II, the TWL seems to do the job at least as well with no ill effects. So I'm not sure what synergy issues might have occurred in your case, but at least you're now finding out what the Freya+ truly has to offer.