The ups and downs of tube vs. SS...

Too much generalization. There are some good, great, ordinary Tube components. There are some good, great, ordinary Solid State components.

There is also the issue of compatability. Some Tube Amps suit certain Speakers, some Solid State Power Amps suit certain Speakers. For example, difficult loads, like big Apogees,would generally be better suited and have more options in solid state Power Amps.

It would be foolish to discount either topology. All my Pre-Amps until recently incorporate Tubes. I hadn't owned a Solid State Pre. for 16 or so years and had written off S/S for Pre's as all my Tube Pre's thrashed my previous Pre. an ME25. About 3 months ago I acquired a Solid State Pre. a Vincent SA-94. OMG, it has blown me away and beaten out some good Tube Pre's. when matched well. Shows how wrong to write off either topology. However it does require careful matching.

However prefer Tubes so far for my Phono stages, and yet to hear similarly priced S/S CD Players get close to my Tube CD Players. For Power Amps it's my big Solid State Mono Blocks for driving my Revel Ultima Studios, but hybrid's for driving my active bass Speakers.

@schubert Have you heard the Vincent hybrid SP-T700 Mono Blocks? Have the airy top end and warmth of tubes with a nice punchy Solid State bottom end. Obviously not the slam of higher powered S/S Mono's.

Yes , I have . For the Classical music I listen to I didn't much like it .
Of course , we all listen with our own" hears " .

Most audiophiles care about their systems, and tubes provide that "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" ethos that allows interaction and care of a quality product.  In contrast, solid state is something you bought that just sits there.  

I also think the soft clipping of tubes is kinder than the brittleness (ugly harmonics) of solid state when it gets peaks that exceeds its range.

Speaking of hybrids and Vincent, I’ve had my SP-331 stereo amplifier for over three years and couldn’t be happier. I’ve tried more than a handful of different amplifiers borrowed from friends and family, some a lot more expensive, and this amplifier compared well against most of them at least in my system. One obvious exception was when I put in my brother’s Bryston 7B-ST monoblocks and they buried the Vincent. A tad bright for my taste but the overall detail and the added bass was quite impressive.