I think your assessment of solid state vs tube amps may be a bit unfair. The sound between the two have narrowed remarkably, especially as of late. I am a fan of tube gear (ARC) but decided to not use their tube amps because I just could not tolerate another high heat component in my room, so I went SS (Ayre) and am very happy with the performance. Comparing a few brands in your system does not necessarily mean the issues you had with SS amps vs tube amps are universal to them all. I am glad you found an amp to your liking that matches well with your speakers. It could be that your speakers simply work better with tubes. Either way, good for you for experimenting and for knowing what you like.