Schiit Freya+ or Saga+? Vidar or Aegir?


I listen at moderate volumes in a smallish room, 15x15 with a 10’ ceiling. My single driver speakers are 95db efficient. I’m a bit confused about which amp/preamp pairing to run with. 

The Saga+ preamp has 0 gain. The Freya+ preamp has 12db in tube active mode. The Vidar amp has 100W per channel into 8ohms (which my speakers are) and 27db of gain while the Aegir has 20W per channel into 8 ohms and 22db of gain. 

I’m a bit dense as regards the necessity of gain in the preamp relative to the amp and speaker efficiency so I’m not sure which pairing suits my needs. I’ll never need all 100W of the Vidar but I wonder if that and a pre with 0 gain is a better pairing than the Freya/Aegir. 

Any input? 
larshepping

Showing 2 responses by mlsstl

I have a Saga+ and a single Aegir running my 88 dB sensitive Ohm 1000 speakers. I moved to this combo after using a much higher power Hypex Class D amp. At my preferred listening volume (around 85 dB max average), the Saga/Aegir combo has more body and clarity than the Hypex.  I sold my Hypex.

I was initially worried that the Aegir might not have enough power, so I used my VTVM to monitor the amp's output into the speakers while I listened. On average, I was only using about a quarter of the amp's power at my loudest listening level with peaks running only to half power. The amp showed no audible signs of not having enough power. 

Now, if my preferred listening volume was in the mid-90 dB range or higher, the Aegir would run out of gas for me. However, with your 95 dB efficient speakers, you should be fine unless you listen at extremely loud levels. 

Whether the 0 dB gain of the Saga+ will be sufficient or whether you'll want the extra gain of the Freya depends in large part on the voltage output of your music sources. If your DAC, tape deck, tuner or phono preamp put out 2 volts or more at peak volume, then you should be OK with the Saga.  Currently, Schiit says Sagas are in stock and can ship immediately while Freya's are back-ordered and won't be available until late March.  With Schiit's 15 trial polcy, you could try out a Saga knowing you could return it for only a 5% restocking fee if it doesn't work for you. (The web site says Aegirs are in production and should ship in a week or so.)
The output voltage of a line source component should be shown on the specs page of their marketing material or owners manual.  

The "more power is always better" mantra is the more popular approach these days -- I think the popularity of Class D amps which have lots of watts for their size/weight/cost has fueled this sentiment.  As noted previously, I've tried both approaches and the Aegir is working spectacularly for me. However, as they say, YMMV.  

The problem with amp specs is that they are primarily static measurements while the music signal is incredibly complex and dynamic. And, not every manufacturer has exactly the same method for measuring the specs they do list.  So, while numbers are important and meaningful, it still boils down to what YOU hear when YOU listen.