Is the Phile sound an Aquired taste.

It is all dependent on the interaction between your speakers and your amp. If your speaker is sensitive enough these amplifier trade offs are less important.

Each amplifier type has its own sound, but much of this is dictated by the speaker it is attached to.

So I would say the answer is no. You just need the right gear to make it work properly.

Mechans, I am in the same camp you are. Tried SET (but not any that cost as much as a car), loved the midrange, missed the highs and lows. But you know... I may try them again someday.

I kind of expected there would be strong polarity of opinion. I have listened to several DHT I came to like the 845 for it's inherently richer tone once again but liked 2 of them even more per channel in PP. A close second would be the 211 in single ended triode.
Thanks for your responses.
I know I am "supposed" to prefer the purity of a SET. In my case it it is not money is not the issue, because the SETs I speak of are in my friends systems that I have spent time with. I do want to counter one common response that Philes are more into the equipment than the music.
Yes that may well be true. If you really just like music spend your time on a music appreciation site that does not concern itself with playback and use the most affordable equipment you can. I really think liking equipment is not a sin. No more than liking cars instead of traveling etc.

Mechans,
I may not quite understand your post,"supposed" to prefer the SET purity. The degree of sound quality and purity ranges a lot within the SET amplifiers, just as for PP tube or SS amps(I sure would`nt say they all sound simillar either).The best sound in home systems I`ve heard were with SET amps,but there are some SET amps that I realize will sound rather less than good. Rolled off extremes is a stereotype that can easily be avoided with proper speaker matching(as is true for any amp type). When done right the purity and realism is remarkable.