All tube system or Tube with SS phono?

Ditto my EAR 834P also thinks it's solid state.

Don't expect to necessarily "lose bass" with a tube phonoamp. Compared to solid-state tubes might show a little less bass control (if the rest of your system can reveal it), however weak bass would be the result of an impedance mismatch with the preamp or interconnects in relation to the output impedance of the phonostage, not of using tubes per se. In fact if you're comparing relatively inexpensive SS and tube phonostages, you might find that on average the SS ones could be leaner sounding overall. A possible disincentive to using a tube phonostage can be tube noise -- finding tubes with minimal "rush", microphonics, spurious little farts, squeaks or tones and resonant colorations in general, which can be laid bare in the high-gain environment of the phonostage. (The lower the gain, meaning a higher outupt cartridge is required, the less these problems are likely to intrude.) All in all you should try to choose based on sound quality in general and compatibility with your cart.

Sometimes tube equipment does actually 'think' it's solid state, but that thought is actually an unfulfilled wish..cf Freud on Preamps.

"Sometimes tube equipment does actually 'think' it's solid state, but that thought is actually an unfulfilled wish. cf Freud on Preamps"

LOL. :-)

Actually a number of transistor amps are voiced and marketed as sounding tube like. Never seen an ad for a tube amp that sounds like solid state. I don't think that will sell ...

My reference to the Seduction was to illustrate that one doesn’t have to spend silly $$ to get a good tube phono. It is a kit yes, but I am sure if you go on the Bottlehead forum Pablo find somebody willing build one for him for $100 or so. It really isn’t a difficult build.

Regards
Paul