Solid State vs. Tubes - What if Transistors came first?


What do you guys think?

If transistors came first, and then decades later tubes were invented, would we have any tube amps we would call high end?

Wouldn’t they all fail to reach the height of performance and transparency set by transistor amps?

Best,

E

P.S. I love Conrad Johnson. I'm just wondering how  much of our arguments have to do with timing. 
erik_squires
Well, it seems to me that there are a few around here who may benefit from a bit of professional help.
I cannot tell you. geoffkait is our diagnosis guru. He can tell us what we have and need.
What I find interesting in the Tubes versus transistor debate, is the prices of vintage items. A stereo 70 goes for much more than it did new where as a 30 year-old solid state amp is hard to give away.
Except for a rare few vintage SS amps, most were poorly designed.  First tube gear wasn’t spectacular either.  Took awhile for digital to work things out as well.