Tube amps that kick ass?

Thanks to all.

Ya, I should have mentioned the speakers that I am driving...

I have a pair of Vandersteen 5A's. And now that I think about this.... the 5A's have a powered sub woofer. Not that I didn't know this already.... I just didn't consider this fact when I wrote my initial post. So anyway, I guess the tube amps won't actually be helping much in that area - da.

The 5A's are rated at:

FREQUENCY RESPONSE
22Hz to 30kHz + or - 2dB

EFFICIENCY
87dB at 1 meter with a 2.83 volt input.

RECOMMENDED AMPLIFIER
40 TO 200 watts per channel into 8 ohms for the upper section, 400-watt subwoofer amplifier built in.

IMPEDANCE
6 ohms nominal, 4 ohms minimum.

CROSSOVER
100Hz, 600Hz, 5000Hz and adjustable H.F., 6dB per octave.

did nobody said KR Kronzilla?

Luxman has a relatively new offering, the MQ-88, that I use in my primary system. I love this amp! If you have an opportunity to audition it, I suggest you do, as it seems to meet all of your criteria, depending on what speakers you will be driving and the size of your listening room. It sells new for $8000.

My new dedicated sound room (theater and 2 channel) will be 17.5 feet wide by 22 feet deep.

Given those speakers, if I were flying blind, I would try hard to get a demo of some high-powered OTLs, maybe with autoformers (disclosure: no affiliation or ownership history with either). I expect the 450 VTLs would do you fine. I would, however, be wary of using amps at the low end of the recommended amplification range if you want the speakers to come to life.

You might ask what other Vandy 5A owners use for tube amps - you might draw a few out of the woodwork.