My Rhea's new partner arrives today

Ubglub, the Rhea has no volume control so it has to be used with a pre-amp. The Calypso is the linestage of the Aesthetix Saturn series. The Rhea and Calypso together are very quite, this is with no music playing. I do hear some noise when the Rhea is mated to the BAT although it is still pretty quiet. I wonder if this has something to do with differences in balanced circuitry between BAT and Aesthetix. This is not really an issue for me, just an observation.

Stew3859, I have not seriously rolled tubes in the Rhea. I have replaced the 6922 with a somewhat quieter tube but I don't recall what it is just now. Right now I'm just concerned with deciding which pre mates better with the Rhea. Once I get this sorted out I'll start rolling in earnest.

I must say that I'm surprised by the differences I'm hearing from just switching the pre-amps. The BAT is sounding so much more musical that I'm wondering if something isn't connected or matched properly, or if the Calypso is not fully broken in. I believe it has around 100hrs on it. It may need another 100-150hours.

I almost posted before you sent your initial reponses. I had a Rhea vs BAT VKp10SE listening test about a year or two ago. I pretty much heard on the phono stage side what you hear on the line stage side. I think the Aesthetix are a better value. Details were better. The BAT had a better flow and image.

I kept my BAT. And since then have updated it to the super pak version. I'm pretty sure a Io Signature will beat my current p10se superpak.

Also, if you upgrade to a 51se from you 50se, you're in for a monumental change. Truly a much much much better preamp.

btw, I bet the Calypso does sound better after 2-3 weeks...

Hi Jfrech. Well, the Calypso definitely sounds better if one doesn't connect both amps to only one channel! Now that I'm over that senior moment I am hearing more what I would have expected from the Calypso. It sounds much closer to the BAT now, but I agree with you. The BAT does have a more defined image although it sounds just a little veiled and less detailed. The Calypso is definitely the better value as the 50SE was retailing for almost twice what the Calypso does. Then there is the added feature of being able to roll tubes in the Aesthetix units. I never did get to listen to a P10SE. I was looking when the Rhea came up for sale. May have to follow your lead and put these two great phono stages up against each other some day.

Hi Dan...I am also interested in the Calypso!! I also have the Rhea (all original tubes and they sound fine). I am curious to know how you feel about a "no mono" and balance capability on the Calypso? I am anxious to hear more form you as the tubes have more hours.

I should be outside stacking firewood now that it's finally quit raining here in New England. I should be, but I'm not!

The Calypso experiment is progressing very well. It did occur to me that I might tame some of the slight edginess by switching out tonearm/cartridge combination. I have been running my Vector/103R combination for a few weeks now that I finally seemed to have solved the static issue I was having. But that's another story. This arm and cartridge together are quite dynamic. I think the edginess is attributable to the 103R. The Calypso/Rhea is to be a very revealing combination, which really suits my tastes. Others may want more of a tube sound and from Stew3859's post it is possible to get it with the right tubes.

Anyway, out came the Graham 2.2/Benz Glider. The main difference here is the cartridges as I think the 2.2 is very stable with this cartridge. The Benz is pretty dynamic but also abit smoother. This combination is working very well with the Calypso/Rhea.

The Calypso is really beginning to impress me! There is part of Peter Gabriel's Red Rain when the bass is playing a riff towards the end that starts as a single phrase, no harmony. Then it starts into the same riff with harmony. (Sorry, I'm not a musician so I'm describing this the best I can.) I've never heard that before and I've played this record hundreds of times! The bass is very clear, every bit as much as the BAT and maybe more. It's doing a very good job controlling the 301's. Now, this is not what I would call a tubey sounding pre by any means. But it is not really SS sounding either. This is how I've always thought of the 50SE's sound as well.

Rwd, I'm not sure where this notion that the Calypso doesn't have balance capability came from (I have read that too), but it certainly does. If you adjust the balance (which can only be done with the remote) you see two volume settings come up in the window, one side less than the other. The lack of mono is not such a big deal for me either. I've tried switching to mono on the BAT while playing mono records and I don't hear any difference. Perhaps if I had a mono cartridge.

I think I'm going to have to listen to the Calypso for a week or so and then switch back to the 50SE.