Class "A" solid state vs. Tube amp.?

I have been very happy with a Threshold Stasis II amplifier I've owned for some time. Very clean sounding, wide soundstage, good basss extension, and utterly reliable. So what's wrong? Last year, I purchased a used Audio Research VT100 MK-II through Audiogon. There is no contest on unamplified music. There is an unmistakable "rightness" to the purity and timbre of strings and woodwinds. There is a natural "bloom" to the sound. Voices hang in the air. The Pass designed "Class A Stasis" amp was sterile by comparison.

I have tried, but have never found an affordable solid state amp to compete with a very good valve amp. I listen to a lot of acoustic music and vocal music. I used to stick to solid state because of the hassle of valves, but I was always struck by the fact that at a live concert there was a certain beauty to mid-range tones and a certain roundedness to high frequencies that was not reproduced on my system. No amount of tuning could ever get it right. Then I tried a pretty good valve amplifier and I instantly heard the hint of what had always been missing. I then went on a quest of trying valve amps and tube rolling until I got what I was looking for. Since then I have tried a number of solid state amps (in fact I own a Plinius SA250 Mk IV to drive Thiel 3.6 in one of my systems), but the only ones that get close do so in a way that sounds artificial in a way that my tube monoblocks do not (but my tube monoblocks do not quite drive the Thiel 3.6, I must admit, but a bigger valve amp probably would). In the end there are undoubted downsides to tube amps, and so the choice comes down to your musical values. I can live with my beach house system (ss and dynamic speakers) for a short while, but the only thing that gets me close to the live experience is valves and panels. Curiously, I am not so adamant when it comes to CD output stages or preamps - I can put up with solid state in these departments quite easily, and I do not like the added sweetening people sometimes use valves for in low-level stages. It is in the output stages of power amps where I believe solid state is not capable of being faithful to the original sound.

A hearty Amen to both above posts. Redkiwi has it right. The conventional "wisdom" that's been floated for decades is that combining a tube preamp with a solid state amp gives you "the best of both worlds". IMHO, this may be valid if your musical tastes run heavily into rock or synthesizers and/or your speakers are power-hungry or present a difficult load. For all-around enjoyment of all types of music, rock included, my wife and I are both convinced it takes a tube amp to "deliver the goods". We've certainly had more than enough of both SS and tubed pass through our front door over the past twenty years. The only SS amps that haven't yet worn out their welcome are the Monarchy Delux 100s. These may not be the best SS has to offer, but are quite musical and a very good buy when discounted.

Like the above posts, I have had similiar experiences. I have been involved in and around music all my teen and adult life (now 55). I do have both solid state and liquid state systems at home. I have both class "A" and class "AB" SS systems with both planar speakers (Magnepan 1.6's) and several pair of more conventional dynamic speakers. I have 3 tube amps including 300B SET, 2A3 push-pull, and a larger, high powered tube amp...and the speakers required to bring out the best in each unit. While I love them all, I have to say that the most involving and evocative listening sessions are with the 300B amp, followed closely by the 2A3. While my tastes now tend to "quieter" types of music, I still like to crank 'em up once or twice a week. However with that said...if I had to limit myself to just one amp and/or system...I would sell every other piece of equipment I have, if necessary...just to keep the 300B SET in tubes!

Solid State VS Tube amps? Is this a trick question?