Added a Schiit Freya+ to a Sansui 8080
Hi. I started out with a Yamaha A-S801 and Wharfedale Lintons. Using a Wiim Pro Plus as my source.
Recently I swapped the Yamaha for a refurbed Sansui 8080. Sounded amazing. Tons of warmth!
I got curious and wanted to tinker and added a Schiit Freya+ preamp. Lost all the warmth! In return, it revealed much more details, vocals and instruments are more clearly defined and separated. But I lost the low end and warmth. It's not bad, it's just different, sounds amazing actually.
I've tried to recapture some of the warmth by adjusting the EQ in the Wiim. I cannot seem to get there without it sounding muddy.
I'm trying to learn and understand the difference in the amps and what specs might be contributing to my observations.
The Sansui has a 0.2% TDH while the Schiit Freya+ runs much more clean at <0.01%
Is it safe to say that less TDH main contributing factor to what I am observing when I say I've lost warmth?
I've only had a couple of days, so my ears might still be adjusting, but I do miss that vibe and feeling the music created when using only the Sansui.
I do think I lean towards wanting a warmer sound. This might have just been an experiment in me needing to try something different to learn that.
Other notes:
The tubes are new production Tung-Sol 6SN7
The Freya+ has 3 modes. Passive, JFET buffer and Tube gain. Tube gain is the only stage that is listenable for my ears
Thank you for the thoughtful response. All makes perfect sense. Now I feel like I'm at a crossroads. Continue down the path of separates or fall back to the Sansui (which I actually realize I really liked) and return the Freya Or fall back to the Sansui and keep the Freya to build around. (ie another system) Where does the madness end? :P |
Probably lower distortion. SS Freya measures well from what I have seen. Is this the Freya with the tube mode? I’d expect that to sound different than SS or passive. I have a Freya (no tubes) I’ll be hooking up for first time this weekend. Expecting good things! Freya with vintage amp will work fine. All depends on personal preference for sound. Personally, I would avoid most vintage gear. Technology has come a long way and best products at all price points which includes Freya reflect that. From a pure technical execution perspective, vintage gear is more likely to be the bottleneck to ultimate performance. Thing is ultimate performance is not the same thing as what people like. People like whatever for whatever reason and that’s perfectly fine. Different strokes…. I remember that vintage Sansui sound quite well. Very nice! |
Sansui amps are not in the same league as modern well designed stuff...I didn't like them much even back in the day, and saying they're "tuned for analog" begs the question, "as opposed to what?" before there was anything else. Tuned to limited range FM, cassette tapes, and mediocre turntables? I use an original series Freya with well designed modern amps and it sounds astonishingly good...NOS GE tubes are my preferred bottles and the early Freya like mine allows instant switching between modes for reference. Also, my early 70s KLH compact system sounded better than any Sansui I encountered. |
Hi wolf_garcia - I have been around hi-fi literally for almost seven decades; my dad sold and repaired the stuff for a living, so I can't remember a time when stereos were not part of my life. I was testing tubes for my dad when I was 5. My statement that stereos back then were 'tuned for analog' means just that, there was only analog. So yes, LPs, tape, and radio were the only things on the menu at the time. There were no CDs, SACDs, Blu Ray audio, streaming, or HD anything. I don't think that you, myself, and the original poster disagree here. We have all recognized that today's stereos sound different, with the nod being given to today's stuff as sounding more accurate. There is a YouTube video out there with Paul McGowan (PSA fame) saying just that and to him, it's not even close. To some, the vintage sound is worth chasing, but to me that is nostalgia talking. I started out with Philco & Voice of Music equipment. Graduated to SONY and there must be at least a dozen or more brands that have made their appearance since then. I chased vintage 22XX Marantz receivers at one point, but outside of FM radio, they didn't quite do it for me. One of my buddies had Sansui equipment that sounded nice, better than my SONY. Another buddy moved up from a KLH compact to a McIntosh/ Bose 901 combo (his dad had a cash business), but truth be known, I liked the KLH better. And so it goes. No reason to shade stereos from 40 and 50 years ago. How and what I listen for has changed dramatically. I think you would agree. Rich
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iApp9vIQihs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbIWGo2zCfY
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