Should I got full tubes or stick with hybrid amps?

Also to soundchasr; 
Don't limit your search by excluding chifi equipment. There is some surprisingly good stuff coming from China lately. Before I bought my Crimson 275, I bought a Chinese made integrated tube amp to see if I really wanted to get back into tubes. I started with a Muzishare X-7 that ran four KT88's and pushed 25 wpc in triode mode and 45 in ultralinear. As a straight integrated amp with no tone controls, I found it a little too  neutral for my liking, but using the SV-237MK as a pre amp, it was very impressive. Both the build quality and appearance were exceptional as well. You might be surprised what you can get for your stated budget. The down side is if you have to return it. I got mine through Amazon so that wasn't a problem, and mine arrived in perfect condition and working order. Check out https://www.china-hifi-audio.com/en for ideas and then cross reference on Amazon. If my budget had not allowed me to step up to the Crimson 275, I would have been more than happy to continue using the X-7. 

Well, duh to me! Where does Jolida come from?! Anyhoo, it's still good stuff. 

I owned a Vincent SV-226MK and the tubes were not soldered in. Wish I had not sold it. They are made in China to Vincent's specs and parts choice. May by a company (forgot name) that is known to produce a fine chinese product.

I have never owned the SV-237MK, however, based on my experience with the 226 and feedback within this forum I believe it to be a great integrated in it's price range. 

soundchasr:

Sorry I didn't get back sooner.

Assuming that the sound of the tubes in a "buffer" is similar to what they would be like in the gain stage of an amplifier the GE 5751's were a good reasonably priced pick if you were aiming for more clarity/detail over typical 12ax7's (probably what I would have tried).

I would also take a look @ the Sovtek 12ax7LPS if your goal is to squeeze more detail out of the 1501.

Another cheap/free experiment would be to support the 1501 with "hard" footers to see if doing so increases detail enough without robbing fullness/richness too much.

Perhaps something around the home used in a 3-point position?

I've owned various purpose made cones and ball bearing footers, but have also experimented with things as simple as bull nosed lug nuts and small ceramic ramekins.

DeKay 

@dekay 

I don't know anything about footers or isolation.  Do they really impact sound that much? Even in an amplifier?