Opinions in this case are only valid if someone has actually experienced the sound. Otherwise it’s just unnecessary noise created by people who have nothing better to do than stir up controversy.
I have several rigs. Some are 100% solid state, some have components that are solid state and other components that are tube, some have hybrid. I enjoy them all.
I’d also venture a guess that if most naysayer were to listen to any of my rigs without looking at them, they couldn’t tell the difference.
The only issue at hand here is the fact that Tubes like LP’s require some level of dedication to maintain them.
It is my feliks euforia headphone amp. My first tube amp. I have never changed/rolled tubes. And it is dead quiet/no hissing. It is also not “warm” sounding at all. Just very quick, transparent and detailed. I like it.
You are very lucky, must be great to have such variety. I rely on two now, active and passive. One vinyl and one storage/streaming.
I’m not counting my headphones though.
I had a big purge. I put a photo of my valve gear and old speakers on another thread. I wanted to simplify things I guess. I think I have a bit of an addictive personality and was going too far down a rabbit hole in my opinion. Couldn’t part with the vinyl though!
Extremely well stated and with no apparent axe to grind. Why can’t all audio and audiophile discussions be so civil?
All too often someone chimes in about how science says that some audiophile belief is just not true. I find this to be very unhelpful since people are going to believe what they want to believe. My feeling is that if there is a thread about the benefits of super expensive cables and I think that super expensive cables are not worthwhile, then I just don’t participate in that thread. After all it’s not my money that is being spent.
So much for the nice side of things. With audiophiles one also encounters many claims of incredible improvements by using, adding or changing some item in the audio chain (like a cable or power supply) and this is often just not the case. Might there be a difference? Sure but different is not necessarily better. Perhaps if audiophiles toned down the hyperbole the discussions would be more productive.
Kind of reminds me of the Adirondack vs Sitka or Mahogany vs Rosewood discussions on the acoustic guitar forums. But it honestly always remains civil there because there is no “best.” It’s all completely one hundred percent personal preference. The sound, the response, the resonance.
Do you like the fundamentally dry, toasted-wheat underpinnings of Mahogany? Or the complex spice & chocolate overtones of Rosewood?
I’m sure there are exceptions on those forums, but rarely does anyone say “your opinion is crap” or “your guitar’s tone is crap” or “that combination of woods is crap”…
Always disappointed (but not surprised) when it degrades on other forums. Cars and bikes for sure, but audio equipment is like guitars in that sound is such a personal thing. So weird when it’s such a whizzing match.
On tubes vs solid state? I prefer a manual transmission, but it’s not a necessary element for me to enjoy driving.
Yes I was thinking of getting a valve based headphone amp but she would only roll her eyes and ask what was wrong with the old one (chord).
Of course she would be right and the answer would be ‘nothing dear’.
A very good friend of mine who is my go to audio service tech and who used to work for a MacIntosh dealer as a service tech speaks very highly of tubes but with the following caveats:
Tubes provide for a truly liquid and transparent high end but are not as good as solid state for the low end. His ideal amp would have a tubes for the treble and midrange and solid state for the bass. He also really likes full dual mono power amps, i.e. amps with completely separate transformers and circuitry for each channel. Plus he just loves vinyl!
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Bill_Janssen
(Wigwam wool socks now on asymmetrical isolation feet!)
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Well, that’s certainly your opinion. But you make it sound like it’s some kind of eternal verity. My opinion is that you’re not correct about that. Opinions are like that; everyone has one. And they’re all equally valid.
I used to have valve mono’s driving hart audio speakers. They were two sealed boxes per speaker, top one 12in tannoy driver and the bottom one was a solid state active sub. I can only say that his opinion worked for me!
The vinyl opinion is the main one though….
I see the photo has moved to this thread now, it’s up there ^
There are challenges to owning tubes - when the ones on my integrated need changing, I have to break out a multimeter, a signal generator and some dummy loads. Set the plate voltage via one trim pot, apply a signal to the inputs, measure the output voltage across the dummy load and adjust the voltage on one or other of the tubes until the output matches on both channels.
There is a certain romantic ritualism to it - a bit like painstakingly brewing a really good coffee. The end result is well worth the effort.
Ah yes, that outcome of a blind comparison would be much more likely than “worlds apart”. I’m a naysayer (i.e. say no to tubes) because, all else being equal, I simply don’t see the value of using this particular obsolete technology in everyday life. I might still get one someday, but only for my engineering pleasure, after all other needs and hobbies are satisfied…
I can’t always tell.