SS versus Tubes

Boy is this an old topic. But everyone seems to approach it from a "ss sucks" or "tubes suck" perspective. And the solid state guys argue the tube guys just like distortion because there is demonstrably more of it with tubes. So, musing on this I got out my ss amp and my tube monos and spent some time figuring out exactly why I preferred tubes (couple of weeks actually). Hopefully this will be taken as a thread trying to explore the differences, not an attempt on my part to put the case for tubes. Here goes.

Playing with the two amps I was struck by the fact that I liked both but how utterly different they were. But to keep this post short, it did finally click for me. In an objective sense (although not objective at all in the minds of the measurement freaks) I could catalogue a longer list of things that were right about the ss amp than I could for the tube amps. Interesting. So why did I like the tubes? The only way I can describe it is this (once again, for brevity).

With the solid state amp, it was a little like watching a special effects movie - I enjoyed listening to the ss amp, and lots of interesting stuff was going on - open fast detailed, dynamic - but I was never once fooled into believing it was real!!!!! (Forget about the rubish about "tube-like" mids on a ss amp. They can be warm and smooth but they are never the same as tubes.)

And that was what was different about the tubes. Unlike the solid state which sounded like a facsimile of the real thing, with the tubes it was like "inside" somewhere in what I was hearing there were sounds that sounded real. With the tube amp I could listen through the distortion and crud and say to myself "I am listening to Ella, right here and right now". That for me is the "goose bumps" moment, and beats a special effects movie any day. I did not need an oscilloscope to tell me the tube amp was more distorted, and NO, I did not like the distortion I could identify. I enjoyed the thrill of "near reality" that was never achieved with the ss amp.

Am I arguing that the tube amp was more accurate at what counts for me? No, because I don't know if that is what causes the effect. If reality is coffee with one sugar, ss amps may be coffee without the sugar, and tubes may be coffee with artificial sweetener. So what makes tubes do that extra thing may well be an additive distortion, and by all objective measurements the ss amp is closer to the real thing. Then again it may be that tubes leave some of the sugar in the coffee. Which of these it might be is interesting, but frankly, just academic if I am to decide which amp stays in my system.

I reckon I go for tubes because I like vocal music that gives the vocalist room to work in. So that midrange has to be magical - just like the real thing is. If I listened to other forms of music more, then I can think of lots of reasons why the ss amp might be preferred.

I am interested in other thoughts from either side of the fence, but please, if all you have to say is "ss sucks" or "tubes suck", please don't - it has already been said and fails to enlighten anyone.