Why don’t tube amps sound like tubes anymore?

Back in the days of yore Peter Walker (of Quad fame) arranged a comparative listening test of a tube vs. a transistor amp. Speakers were the Quad 57's. The amps were the Quad II mono's and the 303 (SS).. 15wpc and 35wpc, respectively. Signal source was 15 IPS copies of EMI master tapes. Listeners were members of the British audio press and HiFi industry. After extensive listening to both amps the general consensus was that no difference could be heard - both amps sounded the same!

The info above came from an article in HiFi News & Record Review that I read decades ago! Peter Walker was asked if he listened to his amps during the design process. He said no! He replied that his amps were designed to specifications and that no final listening was necessary! And this from one of the great pioneers of the Golden Age of tube HiFi.

Sorry for the redundancy! My smartphone was acting wonky and I tried to cancel the double posting!

None of my McIntosh Tube components sound at all like Solid State.  I think it entirely depends on the manufacturer of the products in question.  I think some Amps have tubes for the look, not the sound

Your resistor type,and coupling capacitors hav3 a large say in its voicing , as well as the tube type and brand. Power cords And cables used also Can have a large effect in the voicing .many people forget even 10 years ago many things have changed.