Tubes & Digital - Is There A Link?


To what extent has the ongoing resurgence in tube components been fueled by audiophiles attempting to "correct" for some of the deficiencies in digital music reproduction? In the pro audio sector the causal relationship is quite clear. As soon as digital music production became prevalent there was an explosion in tube based products, particularly mics and mic preamps, but also equalizers and compressors. There was even line level devices that did nothing to the signal except run it thru a tube based circuit at unity gain. Engineers were upfront in stating that they were trying to add warmth, texture and depth to the digital signal. For audiophiles I'm not sure the link between tubes and digital is as clear cut, but I'm interested in what others think.
onhwy61

Showing 1 response by czbbcl

I have a copy of an article that is about 5-6 pages long that discusses the history of the tube, the current uses of tubes / tube industry, the stopage of the development of the tube and why there is a resurgence in the development of the tube. The article basically states that tube development is becoming mainstream and that it is a micro varient similar to the solid state device that replaced it; but with tube design topology. If anyone is interested, I will see if I still have the article or can get my hands on a copy.

Chuck