All of the blind tests have said that people in general prefer tube amps - including the guys who build some of the best solid state amplifiers. I don't put all my eggs in blind test baskets however - I just find it interesting that every DBTer on every forum I run into owns SS amplfiers even though their precious tests indicate that tubes are in fact more desirable by the professionals.

And arguably the best recording studio for classical music is Chesky Records - they record and master with tube amplifcation and their Mastering engineer helped demo a room of tube gear.

Of course you and anyone else can prefer tubes or solid state - in fact it is not tubes that Colloms was making the point about - I like some SS amps over tubes - lots of crappy tube amps - I think the degree of tube gear varies far more widely than does SS and that hurts tube amp reputation in some respects. I don't cary for the CARY amps I've heard despite the prices and reputation - I do like Grant Fidelity and Antique Sound Labs at lower price points - less thrilled with Vuum, and Jolida.

Most SS tends to sound pretty much the same - kind of like McDonalds - there are subtle difference between outlets but generally it's the same Big Mac whether you're in Florida or South Korea.

The blind session I posted had more to do with negative feedback - and ESTAT posted one SS company (Pass) that believes in no negative feedback class A design - and Sugden's A21a is a Solid State Single Ended Topology (SET). The a21a has been selling since 1968 and it is imo the best sounding SS amplifier for relatively sane money.

As for foisting my opinion - well I think my opinion is right - I think there is a subjective elemant but people do hear things very similarly - just like we see things similarly - the human animal still follows a blue-print. Preference is a big factor of course we can both hear rap music and one of us could love it and the other could hate it with a passion. So yes my opinion is right for me as is yours for you.

Most people under 40 started with SS - they go to tubes they don't go back. There is a huge misconception started by people who heard 50 year old tube amps and their soft mushy billowy sound and lumpy bass and veiled sound and then heard the clear crisp tight SS and then go around on forums and say stupid ass things like "put a resister in the cable and it will sound like a tube amp" as if all tube amps sound like 50 year old washed out distortion generators. Who knows maybe they can equal that sound.

But Chesky Records chose tube amplfiers because they chose "good" ones not 50 year old Pieces of junk.

A good tube amp directly compared to Bryston spearates systems - the tube amp had deeper bass, more pressure of instruments - real decay, faster cleaner tighter attack, far far better transients - no noise, no hums, no groans, no hisses. Granted there are "tubey" tube amps that some people like - I don't. What I don't like is having to sit through an incredibly fatiguing fake experience and then for some clown on an internet forum tell me that what I just heard was "technically" more accurate because it has less frequency response deviation with impedence. It's non-thinking idiocy from narrow minded sheep who never bother to actually test their claims.