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Solid-state—longer quality life.
It was speaker technology last week, this week we go after amplifiers. What is your favorite amplifier technology and why?
Horses for courses. Valve for phono preamp (Manley Steelhead) & line-level (Leben). Solid-stage digital for power amp (Nuforce Reference VIII). Works for me. However, I suspect the Diavalet digital/class-A amps coming out of France are going to change all that.
I like what Bob Carver has done over the years. I had a Carver cube in the '80s and still have a Sunfire power amp. I drive Maggies, so it makes for a good match. In the '70s, I wanted a Phase Linear amp, but it was out of my budget by a long shot. (Marantz receiver instead.)
Much can be said about the efficiency of solid-state, and especially of switching class-D amplifier designs. However, in my ever so humble opinion, that last bit of musicality is available only from tubes. Whether it is from the memory effects, (ghosts left behind when electrons flow through silicon), or some other design aspect. When you listen with the finest front-ends and the most sensitive monitors, more music comes through with tubes. Even in the bass range, more natural detail is evident. Tubes may not give us the last bit of bass slam, but they are able to deliver the goods in just about every other way.
Definitely solid-state. Midrange is very important to me. I used to own a very high-end tube amp and they do sound very nice in their own way, and can be very dynamic. They are prominent in the mid-treble, sounding forward and/or bright, but very colored. Less overall presence, and not as musical and "right" sounding as the best solid-state amps.
When I hear audiophile friends say they can change (their tube amp) sound by changing tubes, I think something is wrong. Could you imagine an "art lover" prefering the Mona Lisa through pink colored glasses? Why buy "X" amplifier if you're going to change the sound later on? I'll stick with my Brystons.
Solid-state. Because of the lower cost of parts compared to tube gear. I like the sound of tube stuff, but when it's time to replace a tube or a pair of tubes, the price is kinda high. Transistors and diodes are much cheaper and with the newer audio grade capacitors, solid-state gear can be made to sound very tube-like!
45 single-ended—to my ears it is a very alive, human sound, with a lot of dynamic swing. My personal proof of preference is years of solid-state (Cyrus) leading to increasingly fewer listening hours. Since I have owned a Yamamoto A08s, I spend hours in front of the stereo. To each his own, I guess.