Your journey with lower-watt tube amps -- Can a kit be good enough?

Many thanks to the additional posters and to the additional advice. Lots of brands to consider (Yamamoto, wow!) and varying advice about kit vs. used, etc.

One thing I notice at work that puts people on different sides of an issue has to do with framing -- is an amp purchase like "getting a car" or like "taking a vacation"?

We want to have a good outcome with both, but we want a "car" to do "the job." We want a "vacation" to not be unpleasant, but we often want "surprise," "novelty," and to gain "new perspectives."

Some people want audio to do a job. Some want from audio what they get from an interesting journey or vacation. After a vacation, that money is gone. You don’t resell a vacation. You come out the other side a slightly different person. That’s what I want from audio. That difference might come from trying something that is not "end game" but will teach me something, and add perspective.

@hilde45  I appreciate your vacation analogy. I enjoy the experience from trying different approaches to this audio hobby. Could not manage it in the past, however now have kids through college and have house paid off. 

My first time vacationing to a new part of the world is a survey trip to get a feel for the different kinds of experiences available. There second and third are long stays in the place and for the experience I then know I want. 

I built and now use my DIY amplifier not to save money but because I wanted to make an amplifier better than the market offers. 

I use output and interstage Hashimoto transformers plus James Audio and Hashimoto power transformers and Hashimoto chokes,

and many other expensive parts. Only the parts for my amplifier cost me $7000. 

My speakers are Alteс 604E. According to the passport, their sensitivity is 102 dB per 1 watt/1 m. In fact, their real sensitivity is 97-98 dB 1w/1m. 

The vast majority of manufacturers overstate the sensitivity of speakers. These speakers do not have very deep bass.It is around 40Hz.

So it makes the life of the amplifier easie.

My listening room is L-shaped, with a 300 square foot main area, a smaller 120 square foot section, and 8-foot ceilings.

I don't have any issue with playing super load +105dB and I don't have any issue with speed and bass in different styles of music.

But it took me many years to improve the amplifier and to make it sound good with different kinds of music that people think don't suit SET amplifiers.

Hilde:

Like the "vacation" take.

I don't care about true to the source/low lows/high highs - I just want to be entertained and fooled a bit - take a brief vacation while listening.

DeKay