Why is solid state more popular when tubes are better?

I think it's because audio sales people don't wanna spend all the time necessary to sell tube gear.

From what I can read above, tube is preferable but too much of a hassle to take care of, which really isn't true.

Fast food commodity is what solid-state devices tend to be. They are crude, fatiguing and just annoying. Some are better than others, and many are cheap but look really pretty in a nice looking chassis.

Simplicity. Some people don’t want to fuss with tubes, checking, or replacement.

There are times I take the tubes out of rotation and play a nice Class-A solid state amp for a while. In the future, when I consolidate the system back down to a simple footprint, it may be leaning back towards a nice SS integrated amplifier unit. For now, hearing the tubes do what they do is worth the extra bit of time and fuss to me.

@emergingsoul 

Tubes are better for multiple reasons and yet the world and the trade prefers solid state.

IMO, for audio this used to be true. Not because of anything other than the distortion tubes made was innocuous to the human ear so they tended to sound smoother and more real in the mids and highs.

There are engineering reasons for this. IME the big disconnect for engineers has been their understanding of human hearing perceptual rules and how that intersects with the circuit they are designing- most are looking for specs on paper rather than how the ear actually perceives things.

This is why tubes are still around- they obey human hearing rules better.

Until recently.

There are now class D amplifiers that can deliver all the musicality that used to be exclusively the domain of tube amplifiers. Because of that I really think tube power is on borrowed time. When people find out the first statement of this paragraph is true, they will be wondering why they have to seek special tubes to make their amp really sing and then deal with the simple fact that a little ways down the road they will have to do it again. They will also wonder why they are dealing with the weight, size, heat and the simple fact that tube power is expensive. 

You have to admit that solid state is easier to live with. But now you don't have to sacrifice anything in the sound quality department either. Your call.

Tubes are better for multiple reasons and yet the world and the trade prefers solid state.

What else does "the world" get wrong? Please tell us.

Give me a break. You like tubes. I like tubes. I also like pizza? Is pizza better?

Many people like solid state. It happens to be more convenient. But that's not why everyone likes it better.

And having a PASS XA25 amp, I can tell you -- it's different and it's damn good.

The answer is likely because customers buy them more often.

I have a solid state amp because I don't want to be fiddling with tube replacement.  I've heard some awesome sounding tube equipment (ARC, VTL, Rogue) and have chosen solid state over them.

I also don't like mustard - it doesn't mean folks can't enjoy it.

Enjoy your journey