Tube Equipment: Gimmick?


I recently had a mechanical engineer (who has no interest in audio equipment or the industry) express amazement when I told him about the high prices of tube gear. His amazement, he said, stemmed from the fact that tubes are antiquated gear, incapable of separating signals the way (what we call "solid state") equipment can.

In essence, he said tubes could never be as accurate as SS gear, even at the height of the technology's maturity. This seems substantiated by the high-dollar tube gear I've heard - many of the things that many here love so much about the "tube sound" are wonderful - but to my ears, not true to the recording, being either too "bloomy" in the vocal range or too "saturated" throughout, if that makes any sense.

I have limited experience with tubes, so my questions are: what is the attraction of tubes, and when we talk about SS gear, do we hit a point where the equipment is so resolving that it makes listening to music no fun? Hmmm..or maybe being *too* accurate is the reason folks turn from SS to tubes?

Thanks in advance for the thoughts!
aggielaw
Clueless - I am deeply offended by your remarks. Yet I'm curiously refreshed as well. In fact, I'm getting a tingling in my loins reading it over again, and yet again! Could you expand on the "glowing phallus" part?!

Marco
The fact is this.

Ive heard good tube setups. And i enjoyed them very much.

I still like solid state better.

That does not make me wrong, but what IS a rather pompous and arrogant statement is to say that "tubes sound better than solid state gear" and to boast that as a fact.

Tube gear suffers horribly from distortion. It is a pleasing distortion and can be a rather beneficial distortion, but im pretty sure that when Alicia Keys was playing the piano, that the piano did not send out a 2nd order harmonic distortion.

Distortion is distortion.

It does not take a genious to realize that if you look at the wave entering the Tube amp, and the wave LEAVING the tube amp, that the wave IS altered, and THUS, NOT the origional sound of the recording.

Solid state is more accurate, this is a proven fact. SS does not need any pixies and fairy dust to explain this fact, it does however have mathematical proof and the tests show it as well.

When Diana Krall is in yer living room singing, she is not introducing any 2nd order harmonic distortion either.

the tube amp does. Plain, simple, fact. Distortion is distortion folks.

Now im not bashing tubes, i think they sound great, and one day i will probably have a set of tube monoblocks just so i can mix things up from time to time.

Buying all this gear is about listening to music on your own terms. Some are purists who want perfect linear responce and frown on tone controls, some want to have the ability to change various aspects of the music to suit to thier tastes as well.

To me, to MY ears, Solid State Amplifiers sound great. Sure, there are some that suck, just like there are some tubes that suck, but im talking about MY enjoyment. My preference.
I prefer solid state. plain, simple, and i am correct. Tubes just dont really do it for me. I like the accuracy of solid state.

To state that preference has nothing to do about it, that it is all experience, well, maybe you need some more experience of your own. Such a definitive statement is about as idiodic as they get.

If you prefer Tubes and thier Distortion, then that is fine with me. Sit back, have your favorite drink, relax, and listen to YOUR music on YOUR terms and have fun.

I will be at home, doing the same, listening to my music on MY terms and enjoying it every bit as much as you.

And i can listen to solid state indefinatly and i dont get irratated by it. Maybe if solid state hurts your ears that much, you should consult a physician and see about making sure your ears are not going the way of the dodo.

Just dont sit there with a holier-than-thou attitude and tell me that my taste and my preference is wrong. Because when you say that, then I am right, and YOU are wrong.
Jax2,

"' annoying and refreshing " is exactly what I wanted to say. Annoying because sarcasm is in fact " annoying " Refreshing because I to have a bit of sarcasm in me, and I have found that people with a bit of sarcasm have spunk. I like people with spunk!! I don't however consider myself to be a person " in a gray flannel suit " quite the opposite. My life never has a dull moment!!! I have no doubt Jax2, that even though I find your language offensive ( and I don't drink beer, but I don't mind if you do ) your sarcasm is accompanied by humor as well. Yes I have no doubt, face-to-face I could call you friend.

I will not ( and do not avoid anyone's ) your posts. I prefer to respect all people's opinions, but I reserve the right to tell them my opinion about how they offended me.

Slappy, I will take your comments about my elevating ME over everyone else. I WILL do some SELF-reflection at the very heart. However!!! as the saying goes: "" It takes one, to know one " I hope your not squirming in your chair to much :)

keep it coming ( umm the posts, not the profanity ) Jax2. I enjoy your thoughts!!!

SS is a gray flannel suit!!!
KT-88,

Your definitive statements of tubes over SS are rather dumb.
Your inability to grasp the concept that people might not like the same things you like and that it is ok, rather disturbs me.
Your notion that your beliefs are the end-all-be-all of fact blows my mind.

In fact, you have demonstrated almost every aspect of a person that that causes me to not want to want to get to know them.

Yet, somehow, i feel that yer an ok person, and i would probably get along with you in person just fine.

you are a strange person.

But I think you might be sitting a little too close to your tubes. :)
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