Ssssh, is your tube preamp really that quiet?

Yes, Charles1dad, you and I are of the same opinion in that regard.

Ralph,
I discovered this some years ago when I owned a Symphonic Line SS amplifier and a tubed Audio Prism el 34 tubed amplifier. The S.Line amplifier was quieter in terms of external noise than the tube amp. Yet when comparing the same recordings via these two amps the tubes revealed nuance,subtle-inner detail and emotion that wasn't apparent with "quieter" amplifier. It was as if the noise floor of the tube amp became lower once there was signal propagation activation. I sold the Symphonic Line amplifier.
Charles,

Hello Charles, the same thing happened to me although it was a different solid state preamp that I started with.

We can get such good gain numbers with the use of stepup transformers that at normal listening levels, you can't hear the phono noise over that of the line section and amplifiers regardless of the loudspeaker. But I have yet to find a stepup transformer that conveys the music as well the tubes do running directly.

Over the years we have experimented with semiconductors as well- super linear FETs and bipolar devices, and we have tried OP Amps as well. Try as I might, I can't get them to sound as musical as the tubes- I hear the same problems with the semiconductors in our stuff as I hear in the competition. So for the time being anyway, we are sticking with the tubes. They just work.

Quietest I've ever heard in the tube realm are Ypsilon phono and pre.

Tried out the Audio Research Reference 3 recently. The sound from drumheads, guitars, voices and liquid cymbals was wonderful!
But eaven if the Ref3 is a great preamp famous for it's quietness compared to other tube preamps... there is some (eaven if it's little) grain in the soundpicture anyway.
You must spend some good money on a powercleaner besides the mandatory good powercords I guess.
Compared with the preamp in my SS Bladelius Thor III (which is not in the same priceclass), the Thor is much more quiet or black in the background and gives an impression of more 3D (but not detail!).
And it's not a subtle difference!
It's sad...
The detailed, liquid sound from the Ref3 would be fantastic with a quiet background.. but maybe it's possible with a great powerfilter... I don't know..
I'm givin up the Ref3 and will try out a better dac-source for more soundstage, "blackness", clearer soundbodies, 3D and details instead.