Tube vs. Solid State Amplifiers

I only know of one person who believes that tube watts are greater than S.S. watts and he is wrong. Read the post by Atma-sphere and take it as gospel.

@lewinskih01 
I lived with 300B and 45 SET for many years.
The SS vs SET thread got me to understand that there was at least one SS amp that could satisfy me-Bakoon. I bought their headphone amp. They create a clear window into the music without any SS negatives. However, the AGDs create a sound that goes to an even higher level. I hear the humanity of the musicians before unheard. SETs have a beautiful and musical sound. But when almost all of the distortion is removed and most of the detail is present the whole picture is transformed. Listening goes from a fun and pleasurable experience to a religious one. Transparency!

@mglik 
Interestingly enough, my takeaway from that thread was also the Bakoon 13R. I will PM to learn more about your experience so to not derail this thread.

Anyone ever hear an ASR Emitter II Exclusive? When I inherited a sum of money from my beloved Auntie, I decided to buy a stereo that would punch above it’s weight class. At first, I considered buying a flagship McIntosh tube preamp with two flagship McIntosh Solid State mono blocks but the overall cost was more than I wanted to pay. I then considered a tube preamp and two tube mono blocks from an arcane Serbian amp maker. However, I was uncomfortable about spending a huge sum of money by buying equipment from an Eastern European company that I wasn’t sure would exist two years after my purchase. Plus the cost was three times that of the McIntosh combination. It just so happened that I called Zed at Musical Sounds and he offered me a generous discount on a new ASR. Next time I get an inheritance, I will trade in my current ASR for the newest version. The ASR sounds neither like solid state or tube but it has the best features of both. And while there are other amplifiers that closely match the build and sound quality of the ASR, they had a starting price of around $46,000.00. Also, the ASR needs no preamp. 

I've had both solid-state and tube amps from quite a few manufacturers. In my experience a good tube amp has been my preference however I've heard some pretty ridiculous statements made about tubes. Output transformers and quality of parts play a huge role in the quality of the sound and your experience with the components. Find the sound that you like or want to achieve and then find a way to get there through either one of these solid-state or tube amplifiers or preamplifiers.