Aesthetic preamp

@elf1: I have the Calypso Signature and find it to be everything I need as far as the connectors go, (almost) as well as the sound.  It, as others do, it has a muting circuit, which puts it into standby mode as soon as it’s powered up.  The only thing it doesn’t have that I wish it did is xlr outputs for the tape monitor.  I’m using all balanced cables, except for the tape monitor, which I use for my subs. It’s very clean, dynamic with plenty of gain steps.  The balance control is very handy, as there are both LP’s and cds that I will occainsionally need to adjust slightly.  For a company called Aesthethix, the remote is a little cheesy looking.  As with any tube amp, the end sound, will be greatly influenced by the tubes you use.  It also has an illumination control, for dimming, or turning off the led read outs.  The top opens up for tube rolling, by simply lifting it up.  No tools required.  I’m pushing a couple of Krell monoblocks and the combination gives me all the slam I couled ever want.  Great midrange and highs too.  I’m very happy with mine.

 I’m using all balanced cables, except for the tape monitor, which I use for my subs.

If I'm reading this right, are you saying that the tape output is controlled by the volume control? If not, then you would have to adjust the subs every time you changed the volume??

@atmasphere :  That is correct. I find older LP’s or cds that were not produced well, need different amounts of sub volume. I have my two JL Fathom113’s connected to a separate preamp, so I can adjust the gain, if need be. I read a blog today, that recommended coming out of the main output, to get better sound. I haven’t tried that yet, but that may be too much going into the Sony I mentioned. It’s great having control of the subs gain using the Sony. 

@atmasphere  I may have not been specific about the subs. I keep the frequency roll off the same, I just adjust the gain.  I don’t have to adjust the volume that often, but can’t imagine not having complete control of the volume.  

@handymann So you have a *different*  preamp for the bass?
I think you would be better off running the sub off the main output, if the Aesthetix will support it.

The bass issue is understandable- I seek out original pressings on the older LPs, just because bass gets lost as more and more pressings are made. The liveliness of the recording suffers as well. That's why the original press often goes for more $$$. I think in cases like this tone controls might be helpful- for example when Mercury bought the recorders from Everest, they found an error in the EQ curve that causes the bass turnover to be off on a 6db slope starting around 100Hz. That's why Everest recordings can sound so great except for the bass. I think a similar thing happened with Westminster.