Posted by Wayne Parham [ 64.216.177.45 ] on January 02, 2004 at 01:44:59:
In Reply to: Re: tube amps should have tube pre-amps ? posted by gumby1 on January 02, 2004 at 01:07:38:
I'm sure you're right. I have both tube and solid-state preamps, and while the Foreplay tube preamp sounds slightly different than the NAD or Carver semiconductor preamps, they all sound very good. I like having an all-tube system, but the NAD preamp probably is the best sounding, all-in-all. No knocking the Foreplay - It's great. But I'm just saying that I wouldn't knock a solid state preamp either, just because it is solid state.
Perhaps it's a sacrilege to say on the tubes forum, but I do not believe that vacuum tube circuits are inherently superior to silicon. They are pretty cool though. A good tube amp sounds great, and the glow of the filaments is enchanting. The blue glow off my 2A3's pulses with the music, and it is like watching the dancing flames of a fire. And hey, if you get hit by a nuclear blast, your valve gear will still work after the EMF pulse. That's always a bonus.