I've narrowed it down...

If you want to own SETs, you do proabably have to make that decision first and the find appropriate speakers and I suppose in the real world this might very well happen. However, if I were advising someone, I would still tell them to find the speaker the love first and then find an amp to drive it since I think the speaker has a much greater impact on the sonic signature of a systems than any other component, and then tweaked a bit through the selection of electronics, but the recording, speaker and room are at the heart of a system's core performance and sonic attributes IMHO. Of course you could find an amp first, but that would limit speakers you could audition and fall in love with - though some speakers may need high powered SS or tubes, and yes even sometimes SETs to sound their best.

Hi Pubul57,
The reality is we`re both obvious exmaples that either way is fine,it`s really no big deal. If Botit gets a tube amp first then an appropriate speaker his chances for sucess are as good as mine were. He will do well.

what is it that makes one speaker sound better on ss and another on tubes? Is this an experience item or are there specs I can look at?

Maybe you should look here first:

http://www.atma-sphere.com/Resources/Paradigms_in_Amplifier_Design.php

In a nutshell tubes drive speakers differently than transistors tend to, although you can make them do it if you add enough feedback. The problem is that when you do this, you will also rob them of the music. IOW, its not so much a transistor/tubes debate as it is whether or not making an amplifier into a Voltage Source is a good thing or not.

To this end I don't agree with Unsound, as the research that has been done in the last 45 years points to the fact that the human ear is very sensitive to the use of feedback in an amplifier, and also that it hears harmonic distortion as tonality. Another way to putting this is that you will have a very difficult time to get the equipment to sound like music and run feedback at the same time.

The B&Ws require that the amplifier be a constant voltage source which is why they don't work so well with tubes.

So if you want tubes, you *have* to find a speaker that works with them. If you go with the speaker first, you may be forced into using a transistor amp. Since most transistor amps use a fair amount of feedback, its nearly impossible to get such a combination to sound like real music- at best it will sound like a good hifi. Its that last nuanced difference that brings home the bacon!

Now you could try using transistor amps that have no feedback; there are a few around like the Pass Labs and Ayre. The problem is that transistors have non-linear capacitive aspects in the junctions of the device itself. This contributes to odd-ordered harmonics- the very thing that the ear uses to sort out sound pressure (volume of a sound).

Another way to put this is that the more the equipment obeys human perceptual/hearing rules, the more it will sound like real music. In a nutshell its easier to do that with tubes than with transistors- I am not saying that its impossible with transistors, just that its several orders of magnitude more difficult.

Hi all ! I think I did it backwards too . I decided on a 4wpc otl tube amp then ordered the speakers . Perfect match ! In reality it can work out fine both ways .

That's the point, it goes either way depending on fiat and personal circumstances for most people. If I were a newby like everyone once was, I'd likely would first have to ask myself this question: SS or tubes? Say I chose SS. Ok, what speakers? For argument sake say, Maggie's 1.7. OK, I do research and work with dealer to try stuff that is good, synergistic match. I purchase super duper power house amp that Jonathan Valin has blessed as it sounds great in my room to my ears also.

Another scenario: I'm a newby, hear a friends system, it's a Rotel integrated, with Sound Dynamic 300 ti speaker and associated friend shows you Absolute Sound Mag and Harry Pearson article, great speaker to price ratio recessed midrange like electrostatic speaker A. Newby asks, "what's a electrostatic?" Friend explains, adding lots of mumbo jumbo newby doesn't understand, but knows he wants a system like his friend for music. Newby buys most of audio mags, reads all the articles and reviews and talks to his 1 friend that has a decent stereo. Newby travels to the 2 high end dealers he found out about, 100 miles apart and a 2 hr. drive either way. Newby makes the drive to each dealer, one is worse than the other and he finds out his $5,000.00 budget is crap and he is a worthless human being, they, the dealers, have little time for him and brush him off. Newby leaves humiliated and humbled. After some research he learns about John Rutan at Audio Connection in Verona NJ, 3 hrs away; he makes the drive. John is totally unlike the previous dealers, spends tons of time talking and listening with said newby. No sale today, but newby comes back another time and learns more, listens more, knows more. John has been kind and patient. Newby walks out with Vandersteen 2ces, Rotel like his friend, cd player. Newby now knows better amps will make those Vandy's sing better, he just doesn't have the $$$$ dollars yet. But he has learned the Vandy's can go with him through a number of amp upgrades before he'll want to move up the Vandy's food chain and/or other components in his system.

These and other scenarios are more real world process rather than the blanket Speakers First approach, although it works well its not the only way nor necessarily the fastest way to audio nirvana. It's a process, many intended and unintended consequences occur along the way.