Solid State for Rock and Tubes for Jazz, Yes or No

Both my SET and my pushpull amps can be considered marginal, in terms of power, for my speakers. My SET amp is rated at something like 6.5 watts and the pushpull is 5 watts. I don't have any problems playing rock at fairly high volume.

Where some power issues do show up is with large-scale choral music. I do notice some compression and mild clipping if I try to play something like Rachmaninov's "Vespers" at somewhat high volume.

Good SET systems do reproduce classical and jazz music convincingly.The irony is that recordings of these two genres are often done to a higher quaility standard than a lot of rock and in most cases also provide a much wider dynamic range gradient with better musical ebb and flow.Much of rock and pop music is by comparison compressed so it seems listeners will compensate by cranking up the volume.Absolute volume levels will be in the domain of higher power amps if that`s the goal.

I`ve heard SET play digital and analogue rock recorgings very well in terms of overall sound quality and involvement,it was loud but not 'crazy' loud.
Regards,

Charles,

What I have seen/heard to date with sets is consistent with your assessment and I would tend to agree.

Rock music is meant to be played/heard loud but some may not care for that so it is not an issue then.

Of course peaks on orchestral and even big band jazz recordings for example can get pretty loud, but from what I have heard, SET power may not be as big an issue there for most.

I have heard some orchestral recordings with convincing dynamics on at least one very high efficiency horn system using what I recall to be fairly low powered (but very expensive) Audio Note tube amps (not sure if these were SET or not though).

I love the absolute distinction of how "rock" music is supposed to be heard. Classical music is supposed to be heard acoustically while surrounded with smelly old people in one of thousands of seat location options in a packed concert hall, and jazz is supposed to be enjoyed through a haze of cigarette smoke and waitress yammer while seated behind a hipster glued to his iPhone that's not supposed to exist in 1959. I've been a professional musician since 1967, I mix live shows from Richie Havens to Bill Charlap (in November...and it will sound GREAT using stereo condenser mics and a zero compression full range system), my band opened for a Led Zepplin show on the second half of their first tour, and I've worked in recording studios all over the place. All that and I will never claim that my gear is "genre sensitive" or it's OUTTA HERE.

"I will never claim that my gear is "genre sensitive" or it's OUTTA HERE. "

I hear you and feel the same way in that I listen to all kinds of music and want it all to be completely satisfying to me all the time, soft, loud or whatever (recording permitting, but that is a different story).

Having it all usually comes at a cost. Its not uncommon to compromise on certain things if not important. We all do it to some extent I suppose since it seems there is always more out there that we seek.

I personally have some reservations about perhaps the most flea powered of SET amps with most any speakers that I have heard at least, to do this practically, but I suspect most any other amp suitably set up and matched to system can deliver the goods.