I recently made a change that applies to this thread. I have not owned a SS amp in over 8 years. During that time I have played with several of the best known tube amps and have come across several great ones.I consider myself in the tube camp so to speak for the above mentioned reasons. Recently I purchased a bedroom system C/O Res audio CD50, proac 1SC. After a trial with some lower priced and powered tube amps that worked well (no surprise) I bit on an opportunity to try an Aleph 3, A SS amp you are all familiar with that has received more press in the last 4 years than any I can remember since being in this hobby. During the past 8 years I haven't even heard a SS in a quality system as I don't have any friends in the hobby and don't visit dealers. You could say my ears are virgin to good recent SS designs. I can't get over how different(not really better or worse) the Aleph3 sounds than anything I have had in the last 8 years (granted in a "new" system for me) Better low end extension, more speed, superclean with a surprising and refreshing lack of glare in the lower treble, rock solid image placement. Smaller stage size, lack of texture to the midrange that adds some sterility to the sound, somewhat compressed dynamics even compared to say an AMP 1 (sometimes makes you feel as if its holding back so as not to emit a single bad sound) Overall it is what I thought it would be in a strange way. It has its strengths and its weaknesses, and is really the best SS I have heard and has provided some great sound so far.
SS vs Tube: What do you hear?
Peter Aczel, editor of The Audio Critic, says "Whatever vacuum tubes can do in a piece of audio equipment, solid-state devices can do better, at lower cost, with greater reliability" (issue 26, p5). What do you hear which causes you to select tubes over ss, or vice versa?