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Are tube watts equal to solid state watts?

I remembered reading sometime back that the power for a tube amp is equivalent to double that in a solid state amp. So for eg. a tube amp with 40watts is equal in power to a solid state amp of 80watts.

Did I remember reading that correctly?

Thanks
hlgoh2006
tvad
9,467 posts
 
You might remember correctly reading this supposition, but it's incorrect. A watt is a watt. This topic has been discussed here at length. Research the threads for further details.
timrhu
2,778 posts
 
A watt is a standard unit of measurement. Here's a definition.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watt#Definition
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
I agree that a watt is a watt, but tube amps can play louder due to smoother clipping characteristics than SS amps of similar power, so they will tend to seem more powerful - at least that has been my experience. There was an interesting demo at the Stereophile show in NYC last year comparing a 30 watt tube amp and a 200 watt SS amp, the tube amp seemed just as powerful because the SS amp was noticeably clipping at a certain volume level and it was not noticeable with the smaller tube amp.
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