OK, so the Freya is starting to hit its stride. But first my reference points. These are the pre-amps I have owned and listened to daily at various times: Audible Illusions 3A with phono, BAT VK-50SE, BAT VK-20SE, BAT BP-10SE, Bryston SP-1, Thor TA-2000, Forte model 2 (still have), Spectral (can't recall model #), Mod Squad Passive, and a couple of others that I'm not recalling at the moment.
So, the Freya? .... well its impressive. I paid $799 as configured (with tung sol tubes) and I expected it to sound good (heard it at shows), but didn't quite expect the performance level I am experiencing. So far I like the Jfet buffer mode the best as the soundstage is big and deep with a very "relaxed" ,very smooth and and extremely natural sound overall. In straight passive mode the soundstage lacks some depth, but the timbre is very natural - if somewhat light. With the tube stage engaged (not sure they are fully burned in yet) there is a very subtle "pinching" of both soundstage and timbre - although still excellent. The tubes do impart a bit of harmonic extras that make duller recordings sparkle and add to the "air" factor. I'll be interested to see if this harmonic addition tames down a bit as the tubes break in more (if they are still breaking in - that is). Dynamics with the tubes are a bit more "there" but not quite as natural sounding as the Jfet buffer mode - which is an extremely natural sounding configuration with soundstage scale and dynamics scale that are equally "natural". Again, we'll see if the dynamics with the tubes change over time.
As good as the Freya is in the Jfet buffer mode, I'm very curious to try the LISST solid state tubes that US Blues mentions in the post above. Suffice it to say that the Freya is a solid performer. At the moment, especially with HQ-HD classical files, its making me wonder why I would look to improve upon what Freya is capable of??? Stunning performance for the price, so I'm a happy camper!
I'll let the tubes cook for a full week and then post some specific observations from specific reference songs/recordings.
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