Anything can happen. Output driver tubes can "blow" and place full voltage at the speaker terminals. Same as output drivers on transistor amps blowing and taking out speakers. There are protection circuitry in good equipment that mitigate this so, it is really hard for this to happen. Maybe the guy was trying to sell you a SS amp. However, my advice is to don't buy the mind blowing tube vs solid state argument. Just go "borrow" equally matched amps, solid state and tube in your price range, (compare apples to apples please) and place the amp in your system without changing anything else and listen for yourself. You will find some pleasant suprises with good tube equipment and some drawbacks. Same as with solid state. You will find something that will simply make you smile and not want to get up. Typically, that is the one you can't afford, but if you can, that is the one you buy.
plain and simple. Tube and solid state equipment have been around for quite some time. There are some outstanding tube equipment and some outstanding solid state equipment. Again, audition apples to apples. Same price point, etc. for tube and solid state and you will definitely get a good indication of what you (not anyone else) like. Try hard to not buy until you after you have heard both in your system. You are thinking of both the amp and pre-amp so this is really difficult. For $15k, you can find a combination that would be wonderful. However, don't dismiss the posibility of a tube pre-amp and solid state amp. The fun is that you have time and can take your time comparing and listening. Any decent store sells demo equipment all the time, so they will either set up a room for you with equipment similar to what you have a home for comparison purposes or they will let you take the amp/pre-amp combination home (after giving up the credit card information) for a home demo.
With your price point established, take home a tube pre-amp/amp combo first, the swap the tube amp for a solid state amp, then swap the tube pre-amp for a solid state pre-amp and then back to the tube amp and you will have a good idea. However, there will be many amps and pre-amps both tube and solid state within your price range and many are outstanding, so don't just listen to one manufacturer. listen to several and have fun.
plain and simple. Tube and solid state equipment have been around for quite some time. There are some outstanding tube equipment and some outstanding solid state equipment. Again, audition apples to apples. Same price point, etc. for tube and solid state and you will definitely get a good indication of what you (not anyone else) like. Try hard to not buy until you after you have heard both in your system. You are thinking of both the amp and pre-amp so this is really difficult. For $15k, you can find a combination that would be wonderful. However, don't dismiss the posibility of a tube pre-amp and solid state amp. The fun is that you have time and can take your time comparing and listening. Any decent store sells demo equipment all the time, so they will either set up a room for you with equipment similar to what you have a home for comparison purposes or they will let you take the amp/pre-amp combination home (after giving up the credit card information) for a home demo.
With your price point established, take home a tube pre-amp/amp combo first, the swap the tube amp for a solid state amp, then swap the tube pre-amp for a solid state pre-amp and then back to the tube amp and you will have a good idea. However, there will be many amps and pre-amps both tube and solid state within your price range and many are outstanding, so don't just listen to one manufacturer. listen to several and have fun.