I love vinyl even though I think the reason why it seems to sound better is a combination of fluff, overdrive, gain, distortion, imperfections, etc. Digital doesn't really have that... everything that distorts in digital is like nails scratching a chalkboard. However, when something analog distorts (I'm using the term loosely, not technically) it sounds a little fuzzy. More fuzz and you get warmer sounding perception. It's the same reason guitarists like me love tube amps.
I bet if people used tube amps for their hi fi systems, they'd get more warmth. Some do, but it's expensive!
In the guitar world, they're more affordable... usually just 2X as expensive as solid state. So a $200 ss amp will be about $400 if it's tube. There are more expensive ones that go for $1000, $2000, etc. Whereas in the audio world, the contrast in price in simply inaccessible... $20,000? Insanity! It is hard to find any tube guitar amp for more than $3000.
I bet if people used tube amps for their hi fi systems, they'd get more warmth. Some do, but it's expensive!
In the guitar world, they're more affordable... usually just 2X as expensive as solid state. So a $200 ss amp will be about $400 if it's tube. There are more expensive ones that go for $1000, $2000, etc. Whereas in the audio world, the contrast in price in simply inaccessible... $20,000? Insanity! It is hard to find any tube guitar amp for more than $3000.