Why did you lean one way or the other

I had a VAC Pre amp and VAC Amp for many years. I even for a while had a VAC DAC Mk II. I moved away from that 20 years ago but kept the other two. About 3 years ago I became frustrated with constant repairs and down time so I moved away from tubes. Also my VAC Amp weighed 140 pounds and I cannot lift it anymore. My son had to help me box it up. I am now all SS front to back and I am happy. Maybe some day I will play with another tube amp. I am getting really good sound right now.

When I first got my system it was a Turntable + McIntosh C24, Mc240 and older Heresy’s (with REL subs).  When I sent the C24 to be refurbished I purchased a vintage Technics SU-8600 as an integrated replacement.  Something was missing.  I couldn’t figure out why the music was less engaging.  I then paired the SU-8600 preamp with the Mc240 and something happened to the bass that brought me back in.  After a lot of listening and reading about systems and getting my C24 back I realized that the mid bass bloom is what I’m really drawn to.  Ultimately I swapped the C24 for an Mx110z and ended up all tube.  I love the sound, but am not convinced I’ll stay here forever. From what I’ve read, it sounds like there’s a lot to get down with on really good SS gear.

I had never experienced a tube amp in my system until 1999. Once I heard that sound I knew it was what I wanted. I was almost exclusively a tube guy, with the exception of a stint with some Maggies, after that. But I came across an SMc modded DNA 0.5 a couple of years ago. After sending it back for another round of mods, I was absolutely floored by the sound. It's good enough to not miss tubes, and that's mighty praise indeed.

+ several on tube preamp & SS amp. Love the NOS tube rolling on pre. 

I have been into audio for 45 years, the last 25 of those has been with mostly tube gear.   

Overall I have had great luck with minimal fuss.  I've had tube gear from vtl, cj, Sonic Frontiers , Anthem , Zesto ...  most of it has been great.   

In 2023 I wanted to set up a second system,   I had several pieces of gear displaced from my main rig.    A Vault 2i, REL sub, and a pre and amp.   

It was starting to take up too much room so I ended up ditching the tube gear and bought a Cyrus i7XR amp.   

It was such a great sounding amp I replaced my speakers and now have a system that is compact and sounds great.    One button to power up  instead of 10 boxes to turn on , this system gets a lot of use .   Makes no sense to power up a bunch of tube gear to listen for an hour or so.   

When I do have time to listen for an extended period I'll fire up the main rig .