It is not productive to attempt to address "analytical" without also discussing tonality. It's properly a system issue, and not just a component issue.
Imo, it seems "analytical" is more properly applied to listeners, and "complex" applied to equipment. This mirrors Stereophile's definition, excessive detail, versus, "Sucks the life out of," which gives no proper descriptor for the audiophile to act upon. The potentially anthropomorphic aspects of the term analytical seem to muddy the situation.
Often, it's not the amp that is the problem, it's the way the audiophile set up the system. It takes about a dozen different iterations with any component to know the innate character of the component. Most do not have capacity to do so many rigs in order to find the true character of the component. They set it up with their gear, pronounce it's sound, and think they know. Likewise, people set up a rig with an amp and think they have hit the jackpot. They don't bother to try other iterations, and consequently never optimize their rig; they really do not know the innate character of the amp either. Most of what is passed around here as judgments of equipment are only partially informed, a function of how the community works (No judgment in that, just describing the reality of the situation).
Imo, it seems "analytical" is more properly applied to listeners, and "complex" applied to equipment. This mirrors Stereophile's definition, excessive detail, versus, "Sucks the life out of," which gives no proper descriptor for the audiophile to act upon. The potentially anthropomorphic aspects of the term analytical seem to muddy the situation.
Often, it's not the amp that is the problem, it's the way the audiophile set up the system. It takes about a dozen different iterations with any component to know the innate character of the component. Most do not have capacity to do so many rigs in order to find the true character of the component. They set it up with their gear, pronounce it's sound, and think they know. Likewise, people set up a rig with an amp and think they have hit the jackpot. They don't bother to try other iterations, and consequently never optimize their rig; they really do not know the innate character of the amp either. Most of what is passed around here as judgments of equipment are only partially informed, a function of how the community works (No judgment in that, just describing the reality of the situation).