Should an amp have a "personality"?

I think you may be up against the "designed-by-the-book" camp vs the "better-than-reality" camp. 

Most any hifi amp designers, using the "designed-by-the-book" model as a starting point, will try to push the performance envelope here or there, a little more presence...or clarity...or mo' better hi's...or whatever may suite best given the particular amp design being worked with and given his skill as a designer. Problem is that that will necessarily make for some reticence of performance in some other category or two of sound. Now if the designer is worth his salt of course, then that may likely fall in a category that, to most listeners anyway, will seem secondary or tertiary to our internalized "list" of our most (typically) favorite ones and the end result overall may be quite favorable...or at least at first. Just how long that will continue to be seen by us that way will be an open question after a decade or two. IOW our conscious perception of the amp may not really change all that much over time (barring major gear change), but our attitude toward it may actually be the thing that ends up changing...and if it does, do we once again find ourselves wishing for more neutrality.

Then there's the designed-by-the-book camp. That's how the Pro sound camp does things. Just the facts, Ma'am. Just design everything for neutrality's sake...no overemphasis here or there - and if the whole thing ends up coming up short of the sound of reality, then...oh well...

Traditionally, the pro sound, even when you turn loose of some money in the design process, has resulted in a sound that has taken a back seat to that of hifi amp designers. A little uninspiring in that there's nothing bad, like you say, but maybe nothing great either. 

In the last few years, I've had the chance to, while building my current system, try the kinda crazy idea of throwing a lot of money's worth of power treatments at the Pro-sound platform. It was all rather a lot of doing, but the end result for me here was that everything sound-wise was improved (in the whole system) so much that the amps still fall short of reality, of course - but by a whole lot smaller margin than before - full stop. Expensive? Yep. But, I'm no longer looking back at hifi amps...neutrality in spades, and I didn't have to give up excellence.

All that expensive power treatment might have done a great job with hifi amps as well, but this way I don't have any of the weaknesses that would necessarily have to be designed into the amp as a result (if anybody could improve the sound well ahead of the curve without it ever resulting in a single drawback, then everybody would be doing it that way).

But, short of all that, if you're just looking for a quick, easy and cheaper answer, then yeah, I'd say that you might as well have an amp with a "personality". If you really do get tired of it after a long while, well, then you can always think in terms of changing it out for a new attitude. Folks do that all the time. It's what I used to do before I came across what I describe above, and I'm sure I could have gone on like that...it's just that, as expensive as the solution for me was, now I don't have to. I suppose all that may come down to what price you want put on being able to get to a permanent solution that you know will suit you. And on all that, YMMV.

Regards

@andy2 

I agree. There's a difference between "neutrality" as an absolute theoretical and as a subjective impression. Either an amp in our system sounds like it's neutral to us or it doesn't.

It should go without saying that there is no component that ever existed that did not have a "personality". That's baked in to its DNA, whether by design or accident. That's a given.

I don't think we should exclude the discussion of a neutrality in the theoretical sense, it obviously might well be useful technically to understand as much as possible what might contribute, but I don't think that a conversation that starts with subjective impression should be prevented from concluding with the same. We might discuss amp theoretical neutrality all day long, but will it help us to identify the next likely amp candidate to try that might tic all the neutrality boxes for anyone subjectively.

As to your response to jetter's comment, have you considered trying higher efficiency speakers?

Sooo......you don't want to overspend on power treatments, a new serious amp OR less demanding speakers. All presumably (largely) because any of that costs too much.

Then my friend I think you are in a real pickle...one that I don't know how you might reasonably expect to get out of painlessly...unless you find, or someone can recommend, a less expensive amp that solves all your problems...but, for the life of me, I don't know what that beastie would look like. New-generation class D anyone? 

I think at this point I'd have to be thinking of opening my wallet to have to get out of that trap you're in, no matter which option you might choose....or be content to stay....just sayin'.

No No. I'm not copping an attitude. That's not my way of telling you to get lost. I'm just trying to give you my honest 2 cents on it is all. 

Sometimes the hardest system building problems turn out to be the best opportunities for achievement if we're willing to see it that way, but I've learned that from some equally hard mistakes that I've made over the years. But no, I apologize if I came across as hard nosed, not my real intent...just trying not to sugar-coat things too much. But, you are free to take that or leave it, wasn't meant to be personal.

My apologies then, I shouldn't have said it to you the way I did. 

I hope you can forgive me.