Tube or solid state

i think Tubes are better for Jazz and Classical music like Vaughn Williams string works where you can recreate that ethereal sound you get with a live symphony. for Rock its solid state all the way, so ideally 2 amps are needed.

This might come as a shock for some but its impossible to design amps or preamps to favor a certain genre of music. If the amp is bad on massed strings it will be bad on electric guitars with heavy drums too.

@atmasphere Wrote:

This might come as a shock for some but its impossible to design amps or preamps to favor a certain genre of music. If the amp is bad on massed strings it will be bad on electric guitars with heavy drums too.

I agree. Just as you can’t design speakers for certain genre of music.

Mike

Another vote for the McIntosh MA 352 Hybrid; plus if you decide it’s not for you, you should be able to sell/trade without losing much compared to some other options.

I think what you are driving is the biggest determining factor for whether tube/SS output stage is right for you-- if your speakers are not the most efficient, I think most people would agree that you'll likely be better off with SS with plenty of headroom. If you're driving speakers with at least 92dB or greater sensitivity, then I think you could go either way on the output stage, depending on your preferences. There's really no substitute for an in person demo, ideally on your own or very similar equipment. In the end, there's always going to be the critically important subjective component--- what sounds good to YOU. 

For anyone looking to get into tube amplification I would suggest that they start with a tube preamp. Look for one that has a low output impedance so can be matched with either SS or tube amp. Choice of amplifier is highly driven by the speaker in use. I use a tube preamp with either a tube or a SS amplifier. Enjoy both. 

@spaceguitarist : It’s not a good practice to try to speak for others who have different tastes, opinions, and situations than your own. I ultimately trust my ears, not marketing or the opinions of others. Do I take the opinions of others into consideration? Yes, I do. But the final determinant is my own listening. I favor vinyl played through tube equipment because it sounds best to me. I also stream music, and it sounds great, but, to ME, not as great as vinyl (in my system). You are welcome to share your experiences, but telling others their preferences are “wrong”, because you say so is arrogant and presumptuous. Think about what you wrote from the perspective of a reader who has a different viewpoint. It’s offensive.