My amp progression was SS reciever followed by three tube amps ending with the Moth s45, which is a custom SET amp that uses either 2a3 or 45s. The three tube amps were used with a speaker - Silverline Sonatina - which are not typical SET fare (93db). After three months with the Moth I've found that the Moth+Silverline marriage is not only compatible but improves on the presentation of the tricked-out 32wpc pp VAC. YMMV and all that jazz but what the Moth does is closer to my replay preference than any other amp or even component I've heard.
The Moth SET delivers on the SET virtues reported by end-users; the sense of naturalness, micro-dynamics, detail and listener ease is simply on another level. Where you STOP observing frequency behavior and focus on the music. With my less than ideal speaker pairing headroom, bass slam could be problematic but not for me as I do not listen much in the 90db range. With the above SET characteristics I'm less inclined to crank it up to seek what some look for with higer volume; micro-dynamics. Instead my head and feet bounce along to the propulsive musical pulse, this is especially true with the 45 tube (New Order). Though the 2a3 bass carries more weight and authority (Led Zepplin).
The fact is the SET amp causes you to rethink your priorities in replay, least it did with me. Actually, it affirmed the direction I was seeking. I will consider more "SET-friendly" speakers (horns / single-drivers) at some point but till then I'm enjoying a greater level of replay performance and listener enjoyment that before. Not for everyone, but for me everything else I've heard reminds me more of electronic artifacts than music-making itself.
