Does SS cost more than HS for superior sound?



I sure hope I’m saying this right… I may be off the mark a bit….. Money talks… money matters as well, perhaps now more so than ever before.

For a while now I’ve been hearing or keep hearing, and in part am finding out for myself by acquiring this amp and that here and there, in order to obtain an equivalancy in audio refinement a SS amp will cost far more than will a tube amp when seeking out a natural, organic, or more dense and lifelike sounding presentation.

To me it seems less expensive a task to acquire these elements with tube amps and preamps, than with the likewise solid state products.

EX could be one will find far more bright sounding SS amps than one will find bright sounding tube amps, indicating extension isn’t all it could be in the world of sand only products.

I have heard repeatedly solid state appliances that are cool, dry, and uninvolving yet quite expensive.

I’ve not heard all of those characteristics in tube powered devices, although I have heard not long ago very pricey tube amps I simply wouldn’t buy with someone else’ money…. Yet they weren’t dry or lifeless, but they didn’t captivate.

Also I’ve never heard a tube preamp or amp that was prone to listener fatigue.

OR… could this possibly be more a matter of preferential requirements, and merely the age old subject of taste?
blindjim

RE - HS

Yes. "hollow state"

Sorry folks.

I've seen that term "hollow state" in a number of articles and thought to go outside the box of so very often and over used terms here by employing it now.

BTW… No one was born knowing all the abbreviations the modern slang, shorthand, and the web holds… and it’s ongoing people… so Hey! Catch up.

know how long it took me to figure out ICE, SOTA, LOL, & FWIW? Let’s not even mention... ‘ROTFLMAO’ ?

It’s showing…. I’m not a txt-ter… if I’ve a phone in my hand I’ll call… like you’re supposed to.

Riley804

>> Guess its just me, but how can somebody be a member on this site for a number of years, have done plenty of transactions, participate in the threads, but has a hard time finding a particular amp ?<<

Better put perhaps… finding the particular affordable amp.

I don’t know why I bother to have to explain myself, but just to lessen your pain, but it's pretty simple. Just be vehicularly & financially challenged, and fairly picky.

Add to it a need to sell what's on hand at times in order to get the 'unknown' certainly different and only ‘possibly’ better, gizmo.

Then too, if all those pesky amp makers would just stop making amps differently, or altering them significantly all the damn time, this would be much easier a thing to contend with… but this ain’t about my other thread.

Riley804, What’s the rush? You spend your money when and how you want and I’ll attend to mine in my own fashion. Neither method can be construed as inferior.

Of the 9 or 10 amps and 2 receivers & 1 multi ch processor, i've bought since being a member here i've not disliked but one and i did much to it prior to letting it go. I took a lot of time and effort in order to try getting it to it's best level of performance prior to selling it…. IMHO

Not every purchase I’ve made or sold in electronics has been done just on this site.

One or two i have now of that lot I feel are true ‘keeper’ ampsthe rest? I’m reasonably satisfied with. i've no real designs on selling a few of the others unless i'm forced to.

Consequently, i think my methods are working so far. I’ve yet to find something I simply had to flip quickly as it’s performance levels were sub par… yet. I aim to keep it that way.

Actually, I just found it too too curious a theme that continues to crop up repeatedly as I peruse the multitudes of electronic articles accounting for this amp or that one, as over half of those reviews compare the described SS to some other vacuum tube amps in order to further illuminate either shortcomings or advantages at some point during the article.

While reading thru these press clippings, seeing statements like, ‘the cool side of neutral’ or ‘could be seen as bright sounding’ or ‘bass shy’ aren’t inspirational notes in my mind either.

Rrog
Thanks.
I was a little worried my bias would seep into things, but did not want it to.

Your point on merely the 'cost' differential between the two classes for likewise results, is indeed my aim… not necessarily though, SOTA .
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>>05-14-10: Tpreaves
That would be Thurston HOWELL III.<<

No fooling Sparky.
Duh

It was a play on words

Hollow/Howell

Get it?

How about Thick as a Brick?
Heard that one?