Any thoughts on tube vs ss?
Sure. I used to have a more myopic viewpoint on that topic, but the more I hear great implementation of both topologies, the more I believe both have tremendous potential. There's no right answer there. I'd stress that your three different cans are going to mesh differently with any choice you make. I don't know that you're going to find one single amp that makes all three sound their best, but it will certainly offer some choices when listening to various types of music. Tubes are definitely more high-maintenance (also more tweakable), whereas SS is set-it-forget-it friendly. Tubes are more friendly when pressed to clipping. Of the favored HP amps I mentioned there are representatives of both topologies. I'd suggest, if possible, try to listen to a few options and see where your preference lies. You can go over to Headfi.org and see if there may be meets in your area. I know it's more difficult to find a dealer that carries many options. There's one in Portland, OR called 320 Ohm that is all about headphone products. With the speaker right at your ear, you definitely do not want an amp that is going to distort or run out of headroom (clip) or you will find yourself investing heavily in Advil. If I were going to put together a little system like you are, I might shift my focus from headphonecentric choices to more conventional choices, like a Cary SLI80 integrated (tubes) or a Portal Panache (SS), both of which have respected headphone sections. I have a Portal in my office and can tell you the headphone output is excellent, though not quite up to the dedicated Woo, it certainly is about 80% there. My bedroom is headphone only, so that's why I went that direction there.
