I don't so much understand the reasons that certain circuit topology sounds the way it does. But I do have an understanding of the way different designs sound mainly from my listening experience with a wide variety of different amps.
Decades ago I was using Class AB solid-state, which worked well enough especially when coupled to a decent tube preamp. I've also used some hybrid amps and some Class-A solid-state here and there.
In the '80's I got into tubes big time and have owned many different tube amps of many types. Accordingly I have some favorite tube types and realize that the sound of any tube amp is highly influenced by its particular tube compliment and its condition. I recently owned a pair of Atma-Sphere M60 Mk3.1's with upgrades and liked their sound very much (though they were a bit hot running for AZ summers). Plus they only perform their best with 8 to 16-ohm speakers so they are somewhat limited in that respect.
But now, in this 21st Century, I've gotten away from finicky tube amps with their ridiculously priced NOS tubes. After trying many class-D switching amps (NuForce, Spectron, DAC, and Wyred 4 Sound) I believe this technology has evolved to the point where it can exceed the performance of most tube amps although I do admit to using my ICE and Tripath amps with very good tube preamplifiers feeding them. Plus I like that they are very efficient and use little AC power to produce their given output. Additionally, I don't need to consider that I may get a hernia every time I have to move my amps to a different system or location. I do have a very nice QuickSilver tube amp sitting in my closet as a spare and for nostalgia.
Decades ago I was using Class AB solid-state, which worked well enough especially when coupled to a decent tube preamp. I've also used some hybrid amps and some Class-A solid-state here and there.
In the '80's I got into tubes big time and have owned many different tube amps of many types. Accordingly I have some favorite tube types and realize that the sound of any tube amp is highly influenced by its particular tube compliment and its condition. I recently owned a pair of Atma-Sphere M60 Mk3.1's with upgrades and liked their sound very much (though they were a bit hot running for AZ summers). Plus they only perform their best with 8 to 16-ohm speakers so they are somewhat limited in that respect.
But now, in this 21st Century, I've gotten away from finicky tube amps with their ridiculously priced NOS tubes. After trying many class-D switching amps (NuForce, Spectron, DAC, and Wyred 4 Sound) I believe this technology has evolved to the point where it can exceed the performance of most tube amps although I do admit to using my ICE and Tripath amps with very good tube preamplifiers feeding them. Plus I like that they are very efficient and use little AC power to produce their given output. Additionally, I don't need to consider that I may get a hernia every time I have to move my amps to a different system or location. I do have a very nice QuickSilver tube amp sitting in my closet as a spare and for nostalgia.