I have been really busy with family and work. I will say that the Backert has improved clarity and soundstage from top to bottom, and I am very pleased. I guess predictably the high and midrange of my usual acoustic/vocal music has really benefitted. However, the lower ranges are also definitely shaking out more clearly, including for more "complex" music like full on rock and funk. (Sorry I am not really all that great at describing this stuff) There is just more separation and clarity between the instruments even in the lower mid-range than the Freya plus.
I realize it may not mean much, but the volume on the Backert stays between 8 and noon. As mentioned, I am listening in nearfield, and my office is around 12x12, but it is completely open on one side (behind the speakers). So the nearfield and size of the room may be helping with the lower gain. It is really quite loud and fills my office at noon.
I will add that I do have a pair of REL T-Zeros that help the very lower end, but again, I have to really get the sound up before I feel they are pressurizing the room. The Harbeth's are definitely putting out better low end on their own than before with the Freya.
It is hard to tell if the sound is "thin" or "anemic" without comparing to another preamp. If anything is hinting at a thinness, it is the high end, but it really might just be that the clarity has thinned out the treble more than I am use to. It may be a matter of it being less forgiving of poorer recordings. Certainly, the comments make me want to compare it to a higher gain preamp, and there is an Aric Special for sale. Frankly, I do need a second preamp for my living room/HT, and would happily move the Backert there if it did not perform as well as another amp. On the other hand, I don't need another preamp without HT bypass, and I don't see that the Aric's generally have that (perhaps saw reference to a bypass mod, but I could have imagined that). I am going to think about this some more. I really was planning on getting serious about a streamer, but may have to divert the funds to a another preamp.
Finally, with regards to the Cary, I would point out that I have a Matrix Audio DAC, with higher voltage, and the thread recently discussing this issue involved a Matrix DAC. So that was concerning for me going that direction. It might not have been an issue using unbalanced inputs from the DAC, but it was a concern for me.
Thanks for the input.