If tubes only added distortion or coloration, wouldn't all SS amps sound better? This theory is very flawed.... Buffers are also used for impedance matching, which can be very useful between the cdp and amp.
Musical Fidelity Buffer
I just purchased a used Musical Fidelity Buffer for an old solid state system just to experiment with. I hear a small crackling in the right channel, and wonder if anyone has had that problem. If so, does it go away after a few hours of warmup, or should I just send the thing back and forget about it.... This is the X10 V3 model using the Trivista tubes which are soldered in place.