Tube Amplifier Sound Characteristics

@miillercarbon maybe a liner scale lol. On the left is warm romantic, on the right cool neutral?
@russ69 My speakers are DIY Satori MW16P (x2) and TW29R tweeters. 2 way design. 90/91 db efficient, -3db @48hz.

BTW since I have heard the VTL and like their sound I would buy one on the used market except that only the really old ones are available and I am willing to spend more to get something not too old.The ASL are nice sounding but poor reliability from what I have seen. My tech advises against it.
I like the ARC but one owner tells me it is on the cool side, a bit bright and edgy.

@oddiofyl I have heard, that is why I am reluctant to buy any older VTL. I do have a good tech to fix amps but I dont want anything too old.

@Hilde45 I was just thinking of tubes as supplied from factory or stock units. For example on the extreme left (warm/tubey) I find Conrad Johnson. I have a Rogue preamp that is more in the middle. I have heard from people that in general that is their house sound.

OK I should have stated that I am new to tube power amps. That explains a lot of my ignorance on the subject and I apologize. I know what I hear people saying and about the sonic characteristics of different tube amps and was trying to identify those on the warmer side. So if it has to do with the tubes I know EL34 in triode is warm/romantic. I will read up on KT120, KT88 and 6550

Thank you @knotscott. I demoed 3 amps in my system in order of preference VTL, Quicksilver, Carver. I dont need thunderous bass. I want naturalness of strings and woodwinds/brass. I actually like bass that is a little bit round. I run GR Research servo subs so they are tight tight tight lol. It's funny when I got my RP7 out of the box it was very cool sounding and I remember myself saying "If I wanted SS I would have bought SS!" haha. I retubed with NOS Baldwin black plate to tone them down a bit. I had someone who owns a Ref75SE say it sounds like a SS amp.

@mozartfan my pre uses 12au7. Ive never used telefunkens in them. I used Baldwin black plate now.

@kw6 I agree the integrated are really good. I remember last year I was at a audio dealer showroom and he said he was putting on an integrated and I snickered and then heard it and was amazed how far they have come. I personally think it is the wave of the future as the demographics and industry have changed.

@atmasphere Thank you for the thoughtful reply. I love your statement that The last thing the industry wants is for the buyer to know what the amps sound like. They spend a lot of time trying to tell you that they don't sound like anything at all. So True!!

But as we all know sometimes when we insert different equipment into our systems, the sound changes. I have to admit I don't know what "true neutral" is. How would I know? I admit I love distortion, not sure I can tell you exactly but when I hear it I melt. Me personally find that the tube power amps sound better TO ME. Thats all that matters if if I like what I hear whether it is even or odd order harmonics.

Too bad my speakers ( My DIY design) are 4 ohm. I guess I can build an 8 ohm version.

@blindjim your description is perfect. Although it may be difficult to put into words I find that when you get to a certain level of performance you are seeking something that is emotionally involving. I remember putting several different SS amps in my system and they all sounded ok. But then I put in a vacuum tube amp and WOW everything just fell into place. It sounded so right in almost every way. For me it wasn't even close. Since then I have tried 3 different tube amps and all sounded better to some degree than the SS amps and 2 were very good. An important note is that the tube amps I demoed were entry level I can only imagine what the "better" units sound like. Amps on the very short list are ARC Ref75SE and QS Mono 120.

@knotscott tonality is the first thing most people hear. But like you and avanti1960 said there is so much more. I notice the decay in the hall or the lingering tone from the instrument itself. cant list it all as there is so much going on. When people ask what I am looking for it would sound like every other audio enthusiast. Yet we all yearn for something just a little bit different. I tell people I'll know when I hear it!