Soundstage vs background noise?

...tubes are just noisier than solid state.

My amp is dead quite with Tung-Sol KT120s with my ears "4 inches" from the speaker(s).

Dead quite.

I appreciate all the comments. Ralph, my experience is that tubes are just noisier than solid state. Admittedly I do not listen to music with my ear 4 inches from the tweeter, but I have to tell you, at that close range I always heard a hiss through the speakers and now with SS (I'll give a plug- Pass Labs) it's dead silent. I have to think that has to make a difference.

Some transistors are indeed quieter than some tubes, but not all. IOW you are for the most part correct. Unless you have high efficiency speakers though, it sounds to me like you have a very minor noise problem if what you describe is the extent of it. If you listen further than 4" from the speaker, its likely not a problem :)

However, just as a point of reference, our speakers at our shop are 93 db and we have to put our ears right on the driver to hear the noise floor. My speakers at home are 97-98 db, and I hear some residual noise about 8" from the mouth of the horn. I have found that transistors tend to make a similar amount of noise on that system.

IOW with most speakers you shouldn't be hearing anything. That is why I suggested noisy tubes, as that is a common issue with weak tubes.

Its really in high gain circuits, like a LOMC phono section, where noise really becomes a concern.

I'm wondering if a significant contributing factor to the noise levels of your prior setup may have been noise induced by ground loop effects (which can result in high frequency buzz, as well as low frequency hum), and/or noise pickup in interconnects.

I see in your system description that you are now using a Pass INT-150 integrated amplifier, which obviously eliminates the possibility of ground loop effects between a preamp and power amp, as well as noise pickup in the cables that would connect those components. Also, perhaps you are now using a balanced connection between the Pass phono stage and the INT-150, while I suspect that your only option connecting the phono stage to the previous CJ or Rogue component would have been to go single-ended. Balanced connections are of course less susceptible to both ground loop effects and noise pickup than single-ended connections.

Assuring that a perceived sonic effect is attributed to the correct variable can often be a challenge in audio.

Regards,
-- Al

Zavato -

do you have a dedicated 20A line running directly to your system? If not, you may have had a ground loop or excessive RFI.

Background noise has nothing to do with sound staging. Noticeable noise, from the listening spot, during very low levels obscures the details. This noise is mostly quiet hiss. If the ambient noise in room is not very low, system noise may not matter.

I like the system noise to be inaudible, with my ear on the tweeter, at the highest volume level setting. Only then is the noise low enough, to not ever effect the low level details in music, IMO. This only happens with certain solid state equipment. Pure tube phono stages and LOMCs never reach this level, even on mint records.