[TS0711]

Well, right now I have the Freya hooked up using some GE NOS Tubes to my Carver…running Dynaudio Contour 20 Speakers. "To me" it sounds fantastic!…The reason I want the Kinki Monoblocs is that I want to hear my set-up thru a modern high-quality amp. Also…I want to take my Carver to be serviced… I think. It has its original capacitors in it and they sound fine (which most reviewers say is not possible. THEY'RE WRONG! )…but I think I should have them replaced, the volume pots cleaned (or replaced), the contacts cleaned and any upgrades done that my tech seems to think are relevant. He has a 4-5 month turnaround time, so I need the new amps so that I have tunes!

No disrespect but the Freya is the weak link in your chain. I'm a fan fan of Dynaudio, having owned the Special 25's since they were first released. Not sure what Carver you have but new caps can't hurt depending on it's age.

I own the original Freya and swapped it out for my passive Bent Audio TVC (which was gathering dust in a closet), and there was no going back. That said I use antique VTL compact 100's with original Mullard EL34's feeding Marten Design Dukes... Also interconnects matter... Get yourself speaker cables and interconnects from Crimson Audio and be done with it.

Unsolicited advise from an old guy

 

[PoMarantz]

No disrespect but the Freya is the weak link in your chain. I'm a fan fan of Dynaudio, having owned the Special 25's since they were first released. Not sure what Carver you have but new caps can't hurt depending on it's age.

I own the original Freya and swapped it out for my passive Bent Audio TVC (which was gathering dust in a closet), and there was no going back. That said I use antique VTL compact 100's with original Mullard EL34's feeding Marten Design Dukes... Also interconnects matter... Get yourself speaker cables and interconnects from Crimson Audio and be done with it.

Unsolicited advise from an old guy

Glad you are having fun!
EH …I use 10-gauge lamp cord.
Carver C-500. 250wpc@8ohms. Solid state…not one of those magnetic field things.
I did take my amp apart and Deox-ited the pots and all the contacts. Nice change. Amazing actually.
…my Freya is staying…. I am thinking two Krel subs next….then maybe Kinki Studio Mono-Blocs.
Then I could get the Carver re-capped.
We'll see.

 

[jonathan c]

Hey all, I've got a Freya S that was stained by the feet of an AC Infinity unit. It's circles. Alcohol didn't even make a dent and it's engrained. Any ideas on getting this removed?

Did the Barkeeper’s Friend cleaner work for you on this?

 

[Voxata]

Did the Barkeeper’s Friend cleaner work for you on this?

Yes it worked! I did not use the steel pad that came with my combo for obvious reasons hah but a combed soft pad did the trick. Thank you,

 

[duranxv]

I'm torn between getting the Saga+ or Freya+ as a tube pre-amp to a SE solid state (I'm currently using the Sparkos Aries) feeding a Verite Closed. Is there any reason to go with the Freya+ vs the Saga+ other than the additional gain of the Freya?

I'm trying to introduce some of that magical tube sound to help bring out the VC's potential, but at the same time I don't want to stop using my SS amp because it's really damn good and pairs very well with the VC.

 

[uphoto]

This has to be the most detailed and longest thread on rolling tubes for the Freya, so I thought I would ask for some advice.

I just got the Freya + and I really like the sound of the differential buffer stage but the tubes were what I was most excited about yet I don't like the sound. Vocals are too veiled and details are a bit "mushy" sounding. I would like to find some tubes that could clean up the mid's and lift the vocals a bit and clear them up. I tried reading thru this but damn there is A LOT of info.......

One review I read earlier said they preferred the Shuguang Treasure CV181-Z tubes, just one pair of them seems to make the vocals more "airy" and forward and that's what I want with that added tube magic. At $150 a pair or so, those are the top of what I would want to spend but thought I would reach out to see what others would say might help with what I'm hearing with my stock JJ's.

Appreciate the time and help!

 

[armyjazzer]

This has to be the most detailed and longest thread on rolling tubes for the Freya, so I thought I would ask for some advice.

I just got the Freya + and I really like the sound of the differential buffer stage but the tubes were what I was most excited about yet I don't like the sound. Vocals are too veiled and details are a bit "mushy" sounding. I would like to find some tubes that could clean up the mid's and lift the vocals a bit and clear them up. I tried reading thru this but damn there is A LOT of info.......

One review I read earlier said they preferred the Shuguang Treasure CV181-Z tubes, just one pair of them seems to make the vocals more "airy" and forward and that's what I want with that added tube magic. At $150 a pair or so, those are the top of what I would want to spend but thought I would reach out to see what others would say might help with what I'm hearing with my stock JJ's.

Appreciate the time and help!

I am running 2 pairs of the CV181-Z's for a long time now and have been very satisfied. I haven't done any other tube rolling to compare them though, so maybe ignorance is bliss on my part. Wanted to get some of the good RCA's but too high for me, so I have just stuck with these.

 

[Licht]

This has to be the most detailed and longest thread on rolling tubes for the Freya, so I thought I would ask for some advice.

I just got the Freya + and I really like the sound of the differential buffer stage but the tubes were what I was most excited about yet I don't like the sound. Vocals are too veiled and details are a bit "mushy" sounding. I would like to find some tubes that could clean up the mid's and lift the vocals a bit and clear them up. I tried reading thru this but damn there is A LOT of info.......

One review I read earlier said they preferred the Shuguang Treasure CV181-Z tubes, just one pair of them seems to make the vocals more "airy" and forward and that's what I want with that added tube magic. At $150 a pair or so, those are the top of what I would want to spend but thought I would reach out to see what others would say might help with what I'm hearing with my stock JJ's.

Appreciate the time and help!

Burn-in clears it a little bit, but in my opinion JJ has really colored tuby sound, it might be good or bad depending on your preference and system synergy though.
Tung-Sol sounds clear and I love them.

 

[Balthazar B]

This has to be the most detailed and longest thread on rolling tubes for the Freya, so I thought I would ask for some advice.

I just got the Freya + and I really like the sound of the differential buffer stage but the tubes were what I was most excited about yet I don't like the sound. Vocals are too veiled and details are a bit "mushy" sounding. I would like to find some tubes that could clean up the mid's and lift the vocals a bit and clear them up. I tried reading thru this but damn there is A LOT of info.......

One review I read earlier said they preferred the Shuguang Treasure CV181-Z tubes, just one pair of them seems to make the vocals more "airy" and forward and that's what I want with that added tube magic. At $150 a pair or so, those are the top of what I would want to spend but thought I would reach out to see what others would say might help with what I'm hearing with my stock JJ's.

Appreciate the time and help!

With the caveat that I haven't had an opportunity to compare them directly with the Shuguang CV181 product, I like these PSvane tubes a lot (I pair them with Tung-Sols):
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00N9T5ZHW?tag=stereoshore00-20&geniuslink=true

I also saw a good review of these, but have not heard them: https://www.vivatubes.com/new-gain-matched-pair-psvane-cv181-t-mkii-6sn7-classic-vacuum-tubes/

 

[jbua5150]

I also enjoy the Treasure CV181 with the TungSol.
not quite as good as my RCA/Sylvania combo, but also not as microphonic.

 

[Paladin79]

This has to be the most detailed and longest thread on rolling tubes for the Freya, so I thought I would ask for some advice.

I just got the Freya + and I really like the sound of the differential buffer stage but the tubes were what I was most excited about yet I don't like the sound. Vocals are too veiled and details are a bit "mushy" sounding. I would like to find some tubes that could clean up the mid's and lift the vocals a bit and clear them up. I tried reading thru this but damn there is A LOT of info.......

One review I read earlier said they preferred the Shuguang Treasure CV181-Z tubes, just one pair of them seems to make the vocals more "airy" and forward and that's what I want with that added tube magic. At $150 a pair or so, those are the top of what I would want to spend but thought I would reach out to see what others would say might help with what I'm hearing with my stock JJ's.

Appreciate the time and help!

I have heard most any 6sn7 and equivalent known to man (my local audiophile group and I collected them for a blind listen) and for overall accuracy of sound I prefer Melz 1578's between the years 1958 and 1963 in the Freya. Many can still be found in the $150 per tube range. I also like CBS/Hytron 5692's for overall accuracy and a little less warmth. Mind you I run the preamp into a Cary tube amp as well as a tube amp I designed myself, both Class A. Tubes are not for everyone but eventually you learn which tubes are right for you and specific types of music. I do not roll tubes in the Freya often myself but another fine choice is the Raytheon 6sn7wgt. These are all older tubes and you have to know what you are doing when you try to find them, especially the Melz. Some of the new Chinese tubes are decent and I tend to prefer those over Russian remakes.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/274405496479?hash=item3fe3d7969f:g:oQYAAOSw6cRgfTfe

These are the real deal, I also run those as well as some rare variations in headphone amps I designed. On occasion the solder in the tube pins can cause issues but I have replaced said solder for friends at no charge. My Freya is on a shelf in a rack so not real visible but here is a shot of a Melz my group ranked near the vary top of 1500 tubes we tried in blind comparisons.

 

[uphoto]

I also enjoy the Treasure CV181 with the TungSol.
not quite as good as my RCA/Sylvania combo, but also not as microphonic.

I think this is the direction I'm going.

Just ordered a pair of the Treasures and will probably follow with the TungSol. Appreciate everyones advice, really want to stay under $200 or so for all 4, will probably be a bit over that but it's a good start I think.

 

[Mondo Caliente]

Switching among the modes in a Freya is where you can easily see the differences, and I've found with the NOS GE 6SN7GTB tubes they're utterly as clear seem to display more micro detail than the 2 "passive" non tube modes, and these GEs are fairly old at this point. They keep on so they stay in the amp!

 

[uphoto]

Switching among the modes in a Freya is where you can easily see the differences, and I've found with the NOS GE 6SN7GTB tubes they're utterly as clear seem to display more micro detail than the 2 "passive" non tube modes, and these GEs are fairly old at this point. They keep on so they stay in the amp!

That's good to hear that tubes can make that kind of change. I really like the sound of the differential buffer in the way of soundstage and having more forward and clear vocals and detail but it's a bit sterile sounding and a bit harsh, I think getting tubes to give me the vocal presence like the other modes along with the tube rich and warmth is my happy place.

 

[uphoto]

Got my Treasures in today and plugged in.

At first I got nasty high static from the left channel so I unplugged the unit and took the tubes out and back in. The got loud crackles and pops. Unplugged again and took them out. Now plugged back in and seems fine, got one nasty loud crack but nothing since. Anybody else experience this? Seems like the tube base is almost too big for the opening and it might be causing some noise from being in contact with the opening in the preamp? Pic attached on how little space there is.

Or maybe the prongs were a bit dirty or had something on them? Seems like the putting in and out over a few times made things get quieter.