Can tube preamps be as 'detailed' sounding as ss?

Atmasphere: Mr. Karsten, I wish I could believe your explanation were the whole story, but to me that's the first post of yours I've seen that just sounds too pat and self-serving. I like and own both tube and solid-state gear, so I have no special agenda in that debate, and I'll be the first to admit that like most audiophiles I'm not technically competent to debate the point on your level. From what I've heard (not nearly everything, or even very much by typical audiophile standards, including none of your own gear), good apparent detail transmittal is available from both technologies. As I noted above, I don't think it's as simple as saying that SS has a lower noise floor and therefore must be more detailed, but neither do I think it's as simple as saying that SS always suffers from distortions that give only a false impression of detail and therefore tubes offer more real detail. Personally I think tubes can suffer from at least as much in the way of audible anomolies of various kinds as can transistors. But I also think painting either approach with too broad a brush is to downplay the importance of design, something I'm a little surprised to see a designer such as yourself endorse.

Ditto on checking the tubes. I have tube amps that sounded positively awful (unlistenable awful) all because they had cheap driver tubes.

I don't know the minimax tubed preamp. I think the problem with your question is that it's so general & theoretical. The only way to "really" know what you like--and what sounds good with the rest of your system-- is to buy & try some used pre-amps on a'gon or elsewhere & try them out--(that's half the fun of the hobby for some).

BTW I own both a Cary slp-98 & a C-J PF-R SS pre-amp. Both are truly excellent preamps IMO. The PF-R does have a bit more detail, but can verge on sounding slightly "bright" on the highs at times. (This may prove nothing about tubes vs. SS in general tho.....).

A good tube preamp shouldn't be adding "hiss" to your system tho--either there's something wrong with it, or it's not a very good design.

Also, if you have an urge to get a Cary slp-98, I think that's a great idea, esp. if you can get a decent deal on a nice used one. They sound great, look sexy as he*ll, & I pretty much stopped thinking about upgrading pre-amps once I got mine. (Altho I've always wanted to try a Levinson).

Just my own 2 cents as a hobbyist.....

The only thing a tube design will give you over SS is a higher level of distortion. Some people like it, but it's not accurate, i.e., it's not on the recording.
Bob_reynolds (Answers)

Speaking only for myself, none of the accurate solid state or digital gear I have owned has been musical, and I have owned or tried some very highly regarded, uber-spec'd amplification and preamplification.

Different strokes for different folks, but I don't subscribe to the notion that by definition more accurate sounds better, and I believe this has to do with the recording. IMO, no recording sounds like live music due to the inherent manipulations required in the recording process. So, while the goal of accurately reproducing what's on the recording is a fine utopian ideal, it falls short of the goal which most of us desire...which is an enjoyable musical experience.

Thanks, Machman12000, for starting the latest in a long series of Audiogon tubes vs. solid state pissin' contests. Caution: Aim downwind!

:)