Amps for Vandersteen 3A Signature SS or Tube?

Over the years I have owned 1B, 1C, 2CE, 2CE Sig, 3A and 3A Sig speakers. I've always thought they were some of the best bank for the buck speakers available. I still do. However, once you move up in class (and spend more money) they are easily bettered, in my opinion. Once I owned my first pair of
Audio Physic Virgo IIs I've never looked back at Vandersteen.
I've owned Avanti IIIs for the last three years and they are easily the finest speaker I've ever owned and one of the very best I've ever heard. They are more transparent than Vandersteen could ever hope to be. They do a disappearing act that is incredible. My point being that Vandersteens are very good but, when budget is available, there is much, much better available. By comparison, every Vandersteen system I've ever heard (with the exception of the 5s) sounds
veiled.

Laid back and yet detailed is a very good description of the whole Vandersteen line. Especially the 3A sigs and the 5As. Laid back in that you can listen to them for hours at any sound level without ear fatigue. In other words not colored on the bright side. Detailed in that you have no problem hearing the most subtle aspect of any recording. Music instruments and voices simply sound like what they are. It is the magic of Vandersteen speakers, and their curse. It is a curse for dealers because people give them a short listen and think they aren't hearing something special because they don't sound "differen". They simply reproduce sound the way we hear it all day long.

Thanks for all the input. It seems that the Vandy's thrive on neutral tubes. Anyone use the Aronov 9100's? Also, what seems to be the popular speaker cable to use? I visited Brooks Berdan in LA once and he swore by the Jadis Defy 7 and Cardas Golden or Neutral Reference.

It's shocking that no one has mentioned Quicksilvers yet. They are a synergistic match with Vandersteens. I've used a pair of the old quicksilver kt88s on this speaker before, and I don't doubt that their current equivalent (the mid-mono) would be a great-sounding, trouble free match. The V4 is another strong possibility: Richard Vandersteen uses a pair.

The Defy 7 is a great match and one of the best tube amps ever
made. Outstanding combination.