I think you can be sure upgrading can net you significant gains. I owned a Sonic Frontiers CD for many years and tried out one of their preamps. While very warm I found lacking in detail. I would highly recommend looking for a used Audio Research preamp. I floated around swapping pre-amps for quit a few years ago in the late ’80s until I bought my first Audio Research preamp. That stopped me swapping. I just moved up the product lines. Get the most contemporary used one that you can afford. They are highly detailed, natural, musical and built to last a lifetime. Also consider VAC and Conrad Johnson, they also make true audiophile gear. These also keep goo resale and trade in value.
Upgrading from the Schiit Freya+
I have a Schiit Freya+ that I really love. I cant complain about it, I have upgraded the gain side to a great pair of RCA JAN 5692's and the buffer side to PSVANE COSSOR 6SN7's. This is a great combo and really kicked the sound of the pre-amp to a peautiful place. I have been upgrading me gear to end-stage type gear. My turntable and amps are amazing. I am trying to figure out if I will hear much of a difference if I upgrade my pre from the Schiit to something like a Sonic Frontiers Line 2 or another tube pre in the $3k-$4k range, or will the improvements be so minor that it may not be worth te money. Given that I have put a little money into tubes I am just not sure how much of an improvement things would be compared to what I have now.
I will say that I would like a tube pre with at least two xle ins and one XLR out. Any thoughts on a step up from the Schiit in my price range or is it just not worth it.