Tube preamplifier lifespan

What??? Paul McGowan said tube preamps only last 20 years?  Where?  When?  He surely knows better than that.  ANY component--tube or solid state--will need refreshing after 20+ years.  But there's nothing special about tube preamps that would cause them to be obsolete after 20 years. Tubes are transconductance devices just like transistors.  Properly employed they work just as well if not better.

I'd think any well made tube preamp will last much longer than 20 years, though you may have to replace resistors, caps, or tubes along the way.......same with a SS preamp.

BAT, ARC, CJ, Aric Audio, Don Sachs, Supratek, Backert, et al are built with extremely high quality parts; I'd suggest that too will lead to longevity. Cheap parts won't last, better parts will.

I also like the idea of point to point wiring (Aric Audio, Don Sachs, Supratek, etc). Part goes bad, unsolder it and resolder the replacement.

I would argue that tube preamps with the tubes on the exterior of the chassis will last longer than solid state designs all else being equal.