Holographic imaging

My impression is that my equipment is much more "holographic" than what I hear in live music (jazz, chamber), and live music is much more dynamic than what I can get out of my system.

On the "holography" side I find that good SS (Pass XA30.5 for example) is very good on locating the instruments within the soundstage with depth and stable localization, but that tubes make the individual instruments sound more 3D as a source, the instruments themselves seem more 3D within the soundstage to me with tubes than SS. I don't know which is a more "distorted" signal, but that has been my experience pretty consistently with the same speakers and room placement.

Pubul57,
I think that your observation holds good for most of our rigs, at least I made the same observation, when I had the chance to compare the WAVAC phono pre, which is tube with the Boulder 2008 phono pre, which is solid state. The Boulder threw an impressive sound stage with the highest rate of transparency I had ever heard, whereas the WAVAC gave individual instuments and voices a degree of air and bloom which came closer to the real thing than I had ever heard before. Wished one could have both.

There is one that has both.

I thought that would come, but to what degree, that is the question....(:

How many folks out there own the H-CAT? I've never heard it, but if it is half as good as Tbg says it is I'm surprised there would not be more owners. I would love to have an SS pre that puts my tubes pres to shame, in every way.