Two thoughts....as for electronics for Wilson (presently have Sophia 2...but moving to WP8 when available)...I don't care for the Audio Research sound....or for that matter most tubes....they make records sound great....but very far removed, at least for me, from live sound...be it a Jazz combo, classical or rock...on the other hand I also agree that many, if not most solid state amps aren't particularly musical....but there are some nice ones out there....I enjoy Spectral....and presently use Ayre...waiting for the new mono blocks to arrive...I have been very impressed with what Ayre does....and feel its a great match with Wilson...
John
John