How big of a difference do amps make?

The folks who love tube amps just like the colorations..

This is incorrect. The folks that love tube amps have discovered that they enjoy a larger soundstage, greater detail and don't like the coloration known as brightness.

Tubes can be guilty of richness (coloration) due to 2nd ordered harmonics, but it is a matter of design (not the fact that it is a tube amp) that controls whether or not this will manifest (for example our amps lack this harmonic entirely due to their fully differential design). OTHO transistors exhibit odd-ordered harmonics that tubes don't; due to the way our ears perceive sound this comes off as brightness even if the odd ordered harmonic content is barely measurable.

Additionally, modern day tubes need not be expensive. Our M-60, which is very popular with Merlins, is about a little over $350 to replace the output tubes in both channels.

What we learned here is that both tubes and transistors exhibit colorations. With tubes they are easier to control.

Tubegroover:
"Rok2id, I wish things were as simple as you seem to wish or believe them to be, thanks for keeping it real :)"

Be careful what you wish for. Things are really dull on my side of the fence. Nothing to upgrade to, keeping the same wire forever, no beautiful tubes to watch at night, staring at lo-fi components and wondering when they will finally fail so I can buy something new. And worst of all, no personal involvement in playing the music. You guys have your ritual to play LPs. I just push a button insert the CD and sit down and listen, absolutely no sense of accomplishment in that. No, you true believers are having all the fun.
I can only take some solace from the music. If it weren't for the music, I just couldn't go on. :)

welcome back, have not seen you in a while.
Cheers

I'm with Phaelon: everything affects everything, and discussion of whether this amp or that amp is better or worse is pretty much lacking context when not discussed in connection with the rest of the system.

And this is coming from someone who is extremely happy with his current pre and power amps.

Charles1dad:

I have no axe to grind on either side of this argument. Who am I to say what someone else should prefer? Just appreciate someone standing against peer pressure.

The point I eluded to was that the ears hear but the brain interprets. It's a filter and it's called psyco-acoustics. For example, if a vocal frequency range is diminished in comparison to instruments, that can just as easily have the illusion of more distance or depth. For stereo, psyco-acoustics are fundamental. Nothing to do with tubes versus transistors intrisically.

In the projects I've done, like comparing Bessel to L-R filters, it's much more of a trick to disassociate the interpretation to identify an actual distortion or frequency response or whatever. Still not good at it.

Apologies for getting off track.

In my case, expensive speaker(Caravelles 4500.00) with less expensive amp(Jolida 102-B 450.00) sounded MUCH better, than Expensive Amp(Conrad Johnson MF-2500-A 3600.00?) less expensive speaker (Paradigm Studio 100 v2(1800.00?) Having said that the combo of expensive amp CJ MF-2500-A and expensive speakers Caravelles sounded heavenly! Wish I still had that amp,,,,will someone please send me one! I will pay you back when I get a full time job!!!Thank you in advance