What numbers are important in SS amps specs

Trying to judge a component by the numbers is like trying to judge a person by their height and weight and color of their eyes, hair, skin, etc. Those details are meaningless, IMHO. Also, they are entirely subjective when it comes to the synergy within a given system, room and listener. Use the ears, heart and soul you were gifted with to judge such things.

This reminds me of folks who buy motorcycles by the performance specs, or cameras by resolution specs: You are going to be riding the motorcycle, right? Likely you have a specific agenda in mind for the use of the bike...how are the specs going to tell you anything about what you are specifically going to use it for (unless of course you are purchasing it solely to run 1/4 miles at the dragstrip, and or roll-ons and stoppies). Likewise the camera may offer remarkable resolution, which may not make one wit of difference in creating a beautiful image if relied upon to do so...unless you happend to find great beauty in images resolution charts. I exaggerate, I know, but really, c'mon...short of a truly intimate understanding of how such things manifest themselves within the performance of a given component, which I'd guess only a precious few of those posting here have time and expertise to cultivate, of what use can such specs be to anyone. In a case like this, I think "a little education" has the potential to do more harm than good. Forgive me if I am misinterpreting your motivations here, which is entirely possible. Are you really going to make a decision about an amplifier based upon slew rate or THD? How will knowing and understanding those details actually weigh in when you are comparing one amp to another in your system. Are you going to decide, "I love the sound of the Pass Labs amp, but the Levinson, which I don't like nearly as much, has 'superior' THD figures so......?"

Take the advice of the wise folks who have already said it above: trust your own ears.

If you really want to get a sense of how amps compare, start listening to some yourself and see which directions your preferences lean. Then start to read some reviews, as well as real-world criticism of those amps and see where that research may lead you. Numbers are a dead end.

Marco

WATTS are multiple of current AND voltage or a physical ability to do the WORK per unit of TIME(Joules per second).

Where's the solid state WATTS?

WATTS are important and so is important a condition under which these watts had been measured. Hence the most important spec you should pay attention for is sufficient number of CONTINUOUS WATTS i.e. continuous power which is likely neccessary to drive your speakers.

Then knowing the possible range of your speaker impedances you should verify if the amplifier will be able to handle the peak speaker loads.

Such specs as THD, peak power, S/N are now pointless...

And finally, WATTS are for all WATTs.

The spec wars are over. Numbers, even power ratings (wpc)can be completely deceiving. There seems to be many factors that come into play that determmine how well an amp will drive a speaker. Ask about the experiences of others with specific combinations. The only real way to know is advice from those who you trust and first hand listening.
I seemed to get the best results from my Totem Ones with the most powerful amp I tried. My friend who has them now gets great sound with his Bedini 25/25.

Viridian - you forgot to factor in the number of fins, thickness of faceplate, and finally multiply that all by the number of blue LED's on the unit. Doing this will give you the THI or 'Total Hype Index'.

Marco