Raul,
Have you considered starting a new thread in the amp/preamp section of Audiogon where you might debate amplifier design?
Yes, the signal originating from the source, whether its from LP/CD/SACD/DVD-A/cassette/real-to-real tape/etc., is compromised by the components downstream, a loss of fidelity as it were, regardless of whether those components are tubed or solid state. Not only that, the source itself is a compromise, and hence a loss of fidelity compared to the original musical event. And if you take this argument still further, the event itself, if it is amplified music, also suffers a loss of fidelity compared to what could be achieved with acoustical instruments played by inspired, talented musicians in an ideal environment, whatever that might be. However, among those who cherish unamplified music, you will not get universal agreement as to which opera house, symphony hall, or recital room will do proper justice to the sound. There is, Im afraid, an inherent relativity to the quality of music reproduction, not only at the live event itself, but also in the recording process, as well as in the playback equipment tube or solid state. No matter at which point one chooses to examine the music making process, whether that includes the original creation of the musical score, the interpretation of that score, the recording process used to capture it using either analog or digital means, or the playback equipment in the studio or in the home, everything listed here is open to opinion, interpretation, judgment, preference, bias, and so forth. All of these issues have been thoroughly examined over the past 30 years, and as yet, to my knowledge, no absolute sound has emerged, Harry Person notwithstanding.
While it may be admirable to minimize sonic degradation and loss of fidelity in our home playback systems tubed or solid state a more practical ambition might be to please ourselves rather than remaining doggedly faithful to the straight-wire-with-gain axiom, which usually favors transistors over tubes. No matter how good ones home system might be, no matter how perfect the room, the music reproduced there is, at best, a facsimile of the original, a facsimile, if one is flexible enough, that could be open to interpretation and modification if one pleases. Why not? Interpretation and experimentation are artistic expressions that give the audiophile the ability to mold the original event, whatever that might have been, into a form that simply pleases him or her. It might not please others, and it might not even please the creator of the original performance, but that is what art is all about, is it not? Art is the process of personal expression, interpretation, and experimentation that may very well lead to something new and exciting. This process is what makes being an audiophile rewarding, stimulating, and personally gratifying. However, when preconceived ideas are applied (e.g., tubes degrade sound), when theory becomes the goal rather than the process, the enjoyment of home audio, in whatever form it may take, is inherently diminished, along with the motivation to pursue it.
>>When we use tube electronics always do a heavy degradation , let see why: when the signal goes through any tube the tube adds harmonics that does not exist in the signal and the problem is not only the degradation of the signal but that that harmonics are at hearing levels, so in this stage the tube electronics works like a " signal generator ".<<
I will submit to you that no matter how a signal is transmitted, no matter how it is amplified, whether tubes, MOSFETS, bipolar circuits, JFETS, and so forth are used, the signal is changed, and the devices being used, whether they are tube or solid state, add their own signature to the sound, which cannot be measured with current means. Moreover, it has been my experience that when passive preamps have been used (or no preamp at all) and the most simple, but elegant solid state circuits have been employed, the sound that has resulted has been the most amusical I have ever heard in my 30-plus years in audio. Furthermore, some of the best performances I have every witnessed, ones that conveyed the emotion and soul of the music in ways that were utterly captivating, have been accomplished quite easily with tubed gear. Interesting, isnt it?
>>I'm not against tubes, I'm only in favor of music.<<
If thats true, then why are you posting your views in favor of solid state reproduction in a thread dealing with turntables, tonearms, and phono cartridges? I think maybe you have an agenda that does not correspond with the topic under discussion? You have told us to think about tubes in relationship with the love of music, and we already have. As a music lover, I now ask you to examine your reasons for posting here, off topic, and your efforts in trying to convert some of us, or all of us, to leave the "glowing bottles" behind to embrace the cold, unvarnished realty of solid state.
