"Warm Sounding" Solid State Amplifiers

Ralph, thank you for your response. There is never a time I don't learn from you or Al. I haven't mentioned the issue of reliability. But I do remember a recent post on another thread where you pay respect to a particular ss amp. I expressed my opinion on how I believe tubes set themselves apart, namely heat. I could very well be wrong. It appears the capacitance issue can be overcome to a satisfactory degree,'different strokes' as the saying goes. However, you've pointed out that tubes are far more versatile in arriving at one's design goals. If I can arrive at life like spl, speed/transient performance, extension, bass definition, ultra flat FR/linearity, etc., iow perfect neutrality more so with tubes, then that's what I would prefer. I'm still kicking myself for having second thoughts long enough to miss out on acquiring one of your OTLs on CAM recently for very reasonable cost. I'm certainly not averse to considering tubes in order to take advantage of sota sq. I have as I've mentioned two pairs of tubed monos I really like. But more so as a novelty rather than serious long term listening just because their short comings are too blatant. They are fun but not exciting. I wish I could afford to put your designs through the wringer!

"What I find is that warmth is more often the thing I hear rather than bright and harsh, the latter being a common hallmark of solid state, hence the existence of this thread :)"

The other possibility is neither warm nor bright and harsh. I'd call that more "neutral".

Some SS amps are more neutral or less bright than others. Same true with tube amps. I don't think either wins categorically anymore these days in general though perhaps that used to be true to a greater extent. The technology on the other side of the fence from tubes is anything but stagnant.

Also neutral may be considered better technically but not all like the same sound best, even neutral. Just like most people but not all like vanilla ice cream and some prefer others with more distinct flavor.

When it comes to sound, I am in the camp that thinks neutral is always better, however it is achieved.

Clones.

Mapman wrote,

"Its all semantics but warm can only refer to an exaggeration at certain frequencies which by definition is not accurate."

Well, not really the definition. Presence is close as a synonym. Cold and distant and uninvolving are related and are antonyms of warm. IMHO opinion of course.

Regarding SS amps, ones that use MOSFETs are often cited as having a warmer sound. My limited experience with these supports that I think. Tandberg gear was known for MOSFET use I believe and the Tandberg sound was always a tad towards being warm sounding. Tandberg tr2080 was the warmest sounding amp I have owned personally. It was very sweet sounding as older SS gear goes.