Aesthetic Calypso

I listen mostly to Blues and Jazz. The amps used with the Calypso (regular model not Sig) were first a Bryston 4Bst then a pair of Clayton M70's followed by a pair of Audio Mirror SET's along with a DIY 6V6. Speakers at that time were either Reference 3a deCappo's or Nola Contenders. The associated equipment was irrelevant. Once the trait was identified it was easily discernible. It's like when you buy a new car and now all of a sudden you see the same model everywhere. Whereas before you didn't notice them. It's not that it's a bad preamp, it's just that for the price you can do much better. IMO.
 
Thanks for the reply. I guess it just goes to show that we all have different tastes.

I find that the Calypso performs very well in my setup and I don't have plans to replace it anytime soon.
 
That's great that you are satisfied Mike. I too was satisfied until my friend came by and poked the pig. Darn friends.
Have you rolled the tubes in it? The combo that I liked best was a pair of Mullard 2492's and a pair of Raytheon 5751 windmill getters.
That combo produced a bold presentation with a sweet treble and a luscious midrange. I tried both the hi and low gain settings with the dip switches and found the hi gain was best with that tube combo.
 
jadedavid said:
That's great that you are satisfied Mike. I too was satisfied until my friend came by and poked the pig. Darn friends.
Have you rolled the tubes in it? The combo that I liked best was a pair of Mullard 2492's and a pair of Raytheon 5751 windmill getters.
That combo produced a bold presentation with a sweet treble and a luscious midrange. I tried both the hi and low gain settings with the dip switches and found the hi gain was best with that tube combo.
Click to expand...

Yes, I've rolled different tubes.

From an earlier post in this thread:

Currently mine has 1950's Swedish Military NOS 5751 Sylvania Triple Mica Black Plate & Russian 6H23P-EB / 6922's installed. A few months ago I picked up some ARC branded W. German ECC-88's from 1983 and will roll them in at some point. The ARC branded W. German ECC-88's were what I ran in my old ARC SP-11 for several years and they were fantastic in the SP-11. Hoping they perform similarly in the Calypso.
 
DUH. Sorry mybad. I missed that. Lots of variations in the Russian 6h23 family. But some good ones. Synergy is the name of the game. It's fun trying the different combo's. I like what Dick Olsher has to say. "A day without music is like a black and white sunset".
 
jadedavid said:
DUH. Sorry mybad. I missed that. Lots of variations in the Russian 6h23 family. But some good ones. Synergy is the name of the game. It's fun trying the different combo's. I like what Dick Olsher has to say. "A day without music is like a black and white sunset".
Click to expand...

These are they (I paid for their matching service): http://www.thetubestore.com/Tubes/6922-E88CC-Tube-Types/6H23n-EB-6922 Not sure what "brand" they are but they're quite nice.

Completely agree with Dick Olsher's comment!
 
I posted this elsewhere, but I did make my choice: Allnic L3000 MkII. It'll arrive soon. I can't wait.

thanks for all your ideas.. When it came down to it, it was a smokin' deal I couldn't turn down.
 
Allnic is very nice brand. It's too bad they don't have a strong distributor for NA like some other brands we see . Enjoy it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Congrats on the great score. The Allnic is a MUCH MUCH better choice than the Calypso. I have personal experience with both of them and would be greatly surprised if you don't love the Allnic. If not, email me with a screaming deal and I'll take it off your hands. LOL.
Enjoy
 
jadedavid said:
I listen mostly to Blues and Jazz. The amps used with the Calypso (regular model not Sig) were first a Bryston 4Bst then a pair of Clayton M70's followed by a pair of Audio Mirror SET's along with a DIY 6V6. Speakers at that time were either Reference 3a deCappo's or Nola Contenders. The associated equipment was irrelevant. Once the trait was identified it was easily discernible. It's like when you buy a new car and now all of a sudden you see the same model everywhere. Whereas before you didn't notice them. It's not that it's a bad preamp, it's just that for the price you can do much better. IMO.
Click to expand...

Just curious as to whether you were using balanced interconnects between the amp and preamp or single ended. Thanks.
 
I tried a multitude of cables both single ended and balanced both between the source and the amps. I take it that you have a Calypso.
It's not a bad preamp but when you hear something better you just cannot go back.
A similar experience just happened when I switched out my Eastern Electric Mini Mac Plus DAC with a Lampizator DAC. I thought that the Eastern Electric was a decent DAC. However after the first few notes from the Lampizator it was VERY obvious that it is in a completely different league.
The bottom line is that if YOU enjoy what you have then that is all that counts.
Some of us are forever chasing the rabbit down the rabbit hole while others are simply enjoying.
 
Thanks for the prompt response. I was using my Calypso Signature single ended and unhappy with the noise floor. After switching to balanced cables and RCA NOS tubes I am completely happy with the noise level, but of course always wanting something better. I plan to demo an Audio Research Ref 6 later this year.
 
This is how my pre amp journey went, Aesthetic Calypso stock then upgraded to SIG was beaten by a Pass Labs XP20 which was killed by a Zest Leto..Proper tube rolling is everything for tubed preamps.It was a bit of a shocker when I decided to go for the SS Pass over the Calypso.At the time I was tired of trying to make the Calypso quiet (with NOS tubes) when using a phono stage.Of course noise issues typically aren't noticeable when running digital front ends...
 
I just got a Calypso Signature and so far am not that impressed with it. I "upgraded" from an Odyssey Candela with PSVane 12au7 tubes. I'm using a Sanders Magtech with Magnepan 3.7i's. When I went to the Magtech from Odyssey Kismet monos, the difference was very noticeable--not so much when switching preamps and the Aesthetix is 4.6x more at retail than the Odyssey Candela.
 
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