"Am I buying in to trouble by going down the valve line?"
It all depends on:
a) how much unique pleasure you get out of using the tubes
b) reliability of equipment and support from the vendor if/when there is a problem
c) maintenance including dealing with tube bias as needed and cost of periodic tube replacements is not a concern
d) tube and SS are two different paradigms with unique requirements for best results. Any change from one to the other may well have a ripple effect initiating other changes until all is well again.
For me, I have found value using a tube pre-amp for example, but it is a very fine line that I might cross again easily. The value proposition will vary case by case.
It all depends on:
a) how much unique pleasure you get out of using the tubes
b) reliability of equipment and support from the vendor if/when there is a problem
c) maintenance including dealing with tube bias as needed and cost of periodic tube replacements is not a concern
d) tube and SS are two different paradigms with unique requirements for best results. Any change from one to the other may well have a ripple effect initiating other changes until all is well again.
For me, I have found value using a tube pre-amp for example, but it is a very fine line that I might cross again easily. The value proposition will vary case by case.