"You can't make up dog sounds like that" xD

$699 vs $700 is an age old marketing tactic. They use it because it works.

I once had a similar resonance problem with a hybrid headphone amp and turns out it was a bad tube. That would also explain why you only hear it through one channel. An easy way to troubleshoot this would be to move the tubes around to see if the resonance goes to the other channel. I also used to have a similar hum with my tube speaker amp, a Hum-x completely fixed the problem. Tubes pick up interference from the ground really easily and the Hum-x isolates the device from your house's ground without lifting it (I don't know how that works from an electrical standpoint but it does work). You don't necessarily pick it up with a headphone amps since the voltage going through the tubes is much lower than it is with this or with power tubes outputting 75 wpc.

Another great review Zeos. Always a fan of Schiit gear =D

Zeos what remote control u using for your media centre PC?

The hum and other stuff might be the tubes themselves even. However, a set of GOOD 6SN7s, four of them, matched....expensive...but yeah hum and microphonics are part of tube quality and tube burn-in.

The noise you're hearing sounds a lot like a ground loop issue. I have the Freya and only hear a slight hiss (no hum) with my ears up to the speakers.

Why no balanced cables from the pre to the jotunheim?

I have the same Emotiva DAC but was thinking of upgrading to something better . But you have probably tried a bunch but still use the XDA-2 , do you feel that there isn't anything better out there , and if you do what would it be ?

I love all your reviews. Great work. Keep it up. I did have a question on the schiit freya+ . If I have 2-3 inputs that I can toggle thru,, can I have a choice of what outputs to play the input I selected? Do u understand? I have one xlr outputs going to one set of speakers,, and the rca outputs going to another set up with another set of speakers. Can you help?

Did you try swapping those cable's to see if noise switches channel's?

That song at 9:02 by the way, is "Whiskey, Mystics and Men - Version #1 - Recorded at Elektra Studios , 1970" by The Doors. I saw it on Spotify after googling the lyrics and thought i'd post it here if anyone else is interested.

What's the song at 16:02? I know I've heard it before but the name is eluding me.

Does the j buffer mode without tubes sound better then the passive plan mode? What's the difference

your running the gopro hero 5 correct if the same as your livestreams could you please turn on motion stabilization on this c cause watching these lately i have been getting motion sick

Would the Freya and an amp be comparable to say the Mcintosh MA252?

I heard the noise you went silent for, and I knew what you were saying as soon as you said, "You remember in Back to the Future..." That's it. That's all you had to say. I immediately knew. 😂

I have a tube phono pre and I just never turn it off. I am interested in this product.

would this be good with a spec 2 or spec 4 pioneer power amp ?

What are you doing for monobloccs in the living room next? Have you considered two Adcom GFA 555 II's?

Are you going to modify the Grado GS1000i?

anyone heard anything about the emotiva pt-100? im looking for something like it

I love Schiit's products names!

Nice vid! Would you recommend the Freya for this setup? Denon 600NE + Klipsch RP600M

That moment around 28 minutes when he has the epiphany.... Priceless!

Hi Guys i search a open back Headphone for Ps4 Gaming with a wide soundstage which. Headphones would you prefer to me ;) 😎👍

I own a LOT of tube equipment from headphone amps, regular audio amps, nixie tube frequency counters, ham radio gear ( RF Amplifiers, receivers, transmitters, etc.) and I have never heard any gear that has such bad "microphonic ringing" as my Schiit amp. If anything touches it, or moves, or my dog farts...it squeals. I really like the relay volume control as it reminds me of my automatic antenna tuners and demonstrates the physicality of what you're doing.

"Resonance Cascade...... Dr. Freeman." Nice one sire! I am officially your fan:-)

With all this schiit not having a power button on the front, or autosensing, or remotes with power buttons, or triggers....has anyone found a remote controlled power strip that is working well with schiit???

I have a denon avr x3300 preout to the Schiit Freya (tube) to a crown 1502 power amp. Now, in this setup, do you think the crown power amp is acceptable or would getting an actually audiophile rated power amp make it better? Would I even notice in most cases?

Does it actually convert single-ended to balanced, though? I know its outputting via XLR....but unclear if there'a balanced signal on that output or single-ended.

Great review! Exactly what I would want to know before I bought anything hifi. So pumped I didn’t have to find the follow up video of the living room setup; glad you edited it in.

I have 3 of these preamps. They all have a problem. Popping sounds are heard from the speakers when the volume knob is turned. Yes, from the speakers. Usually around the 12 o'clock position of the volume knob, and with many combinations of cables, sources, speakers and amps. This happened to all 3 brand-new units right out of the box. I contacted Schitt to see if there is a defect with these and all I ever got from them was the runaround. They would not give me a straight answer. Anyone else experiencing this issue?

Can you make a guide most hig end amp audio for gaming and streaming pleasee how to plug in best audios amp and headphone and xlar mic for console and pc

That volume is why I want it

so is the review on the 660s next?

Somebody please send Z the Cayin HA-1A. It is a tube headphone amp, pre amp and speaker amp.

I’m here to warm my heart, oh and for the Tube thingy.

Any comparison with Vincent SA-T8?

The stock tubes in the Freya are terrible, it's been well discussed. All that "resonance" is the microphony of the tubes. If you can find some non-microphonic 6SN7s then the Freya will definitely benefit.

What cables are you using on the 660s? Great review as usual.

What's that song name???? Ludovico Einaudi's ??????

What is the first song's name?

See, they could offer a version that trades the balanced XLR inputs for a MM/MC switchable phono input w/ impedance dips and a grounding lug and they'd have my interest. I'd also like to see a standalone, dedicated tube phono preamp from Schiit. The Mani is really, really good for the money. Shame they haven't expanded on it with their toob tech.

Will the job 225 work with this preamp

The place where I buy my bus tickets used to have routes priced at 5, 6, 7€ and so on. Now they switched to 4,70, 5,70 and 6,70€. 6€ tickets have never looked so expensive, even if they in reality just slashed 30 cents off all tickets. Edit: I thought my Jot was clicky!

Teasing the HE-4XX ...

Seems like a nice pre to add to collection or as a main. Nice price.

FYI Freyja is the goddess of love and fertility, also we still need Klipsch RF 7 III...

But you’re knocking the electrons off the grids of the tube when you thump the amp. That’s pretty cool! Super schiit powers!

Finally- Ron Jeremy has become an audiophile

I prefer 699 to 700 because a Fucking dollars is still a FUCKING DOLLAR

Oh shit, dropping some Young MC. this song is so fresh!!!

how do you resolve the buzz

Was that Static X that I heard? Good Taste.

psychologically the X99 makes a difference. Its pretty well known market research. In my line of work I will sometimes price and market a product at x98 to really shake things up!

Am I to assume since you bought the 660s that they are good? Been waiting on that review to buy my first set of Good headphone, its between 660s and 6xx..

Hope you find a Saga to review

Hi Z great review. I have Walsh Ohm 3s, Dual 1219 TT, Pioneer SX 1250 and Schiit Modi DAC feeding into the Aux of the SX 1250. I don't own an amplifier. How can I connect the Freya tube preamp to my system. Can I connect the preamp with my existing components? What I'm I missing. Pls share your knowledge if you like to help.

this looks sick

Been using the freya with the gumby dac, Vidar, ls50s, and a sb2000 sub. All on my desktop. It's fucking amazing

Well, I lived with mine for a few months, then a couple days ago plugged the DAC (with soft volume control) straight into my Aegir. Well hoolee schiit. Dynamics! Detail! Soundtage! 3D space. The Aegir is a special amp and I think the best pre might be ... no pre. I only have digital sources, so I'm thinking this is a no brainer for me. It could be the tubes, but I'm just not willing to dump the required $800 to get some tubes (light bulbs) that sound as good as not having a pre.

Put the left tubes in the right sockets and the right tubes in the left sockets.

I agree, for headphones, get a Schiit Lyr2. Best HP amp Period for under $450.00. I've heard every Schiit headphone amp except for the Magni3, and my pick would absolutely be the Lyr2 (6 watt!) tube headphone .amplifier. It can power any headphone.

Freya is in... Using the SVS SoundBase as a DAC for streaming... Then to the Schiit Loki (If you do not own a Loki, buy one)... Everything flowing through the Emotiva XPA-2 to SVS ultra bookshelves... Two SVS subs outboard... I am crying it sounds so good. Don't start me on the vinyl... Oh MY GOD. Very HAPPY! ;-)

Freya, ordered... Mani too... Cannot wait to hook this all up! Emotiva XPA-2 amp... Hoping it will work the magic. ;-)

Please review the saga!

Schiit Saga or nfb 11? Nice review by the way

I agree with you on the 699 thing but I'm guessing they do that because marketing and psychology

Dude you’ve got. A microphonic tube!

Hey Z, whenever you get around to reviewing the 4XX, I'd appreciate a comparison to the 400i's if possible. I like them a lot, but I'm wanting something with a similar sound sig but more bass.

Schitt and Big Ass Fans need to merge. That would be interesting.

Warms your heart, freezes your bank account

That clicky clicky from the volume is a very very very good thing. Well built stepped attenuators are much clearer than pots, though it depends on the resistors used. The tubes the Freya comes with are complete garbage, which is why it sounds like his speakers are gateway to hades ( Norse for hell ) and why there is an "envelope." What really confuses me is that he has a Freya and Vidar, products designed to be used together, and yet the Vidar isn't in use here. Perhaps the Freya will show up again in his VIdar review or perhaps something stupid like the Jot will be used as preamp.

my god that volume knob sounds like rats scratching on a window

You should contact McIntosh and ask them to send you their 2kW monoblocks.💥

Did they quit making it?

I don't own any tubes amp or preamp, but I don't think I want any tubes anywhere. tubes are not my thing.. i have di-boxes, XLR, ground lifts to eliminate any interference and hums/cracks and whatnot.... but then I connect the tubes and... HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMM .. I think I rather have really clean sound. I admit that tubes can sound good and warm, full but it just isn't for me. But still I watched this video, just in case its really good. :D

12:56 yes because one side of the triode is microphonic the tubes are not quite the best selection in the factory, seems like no quality control implemented, lol, that means unbalanced tubes are used, now what can we expect if there are not matched... that is a lame

I round. $700. This always bugs me

clicked z's video > heard chewbacca > alt f4'd

Why is the Freya now 899!

I sold my freya imo more drawbacks then I fealt like dealing with for $700. The clicking drove me FUCKING nuts. Mine had a hum also and I swapped tubes didn't help. Sent it back came back with no hum, a few weeks later hum came back again damnit.

I always round up.

I don't hate $699, but I'm basically going to call it $700 until the day I die.

When’s the 660 review? I’m really considering buying them.

Too be honest, it sounds to me like you might have either a defective preamp or one (possibly more) of the tubes is defective. While you probably should try to isolate the amp to avoid microphonic noise (in the same way you should isolate a turntable so that vibrations don't affect the performance), some of the characteristics you've described shouldn't be present in a good tube pre.

Funny! At the end, he sounds like a guy that has to stop what he's doing to go visit the "Jack Shack!"

It is a psychological phenomenon where people who see 99 on the end of things instead of rounding up have more of a tendency to buy the item, even if the price is $1.00 less or $.01 less

so does 660s dethroned your beloved hd600?

sooo He4xx is there..;)

Love having the links... But how does this sound if it’s the front for a Schiit power amp????? That’s the rub.

That hum is the deal killer for me.

$699.00......Actually I don't give a Schiit!! BTW I one one, and love it!!

I knew... I should have bought the 4XX... shit shit shit.. when is the next drop happening!?

I agree. There's something more-honest by saying "4700."

Bring it on Freya + Vidar review!

...a Jack Russell Terrier Zeos?!

Fuck HL3.. WE NEED THE HD660S REVIEW!!!!!

Aeon flow when?