Would you choose valves over solid state simply because you love having them ?

[Ian]

I would 🙂. In a world that sometimes feels like it lacks real stuff, I love them !

Wit, warmth, humour and descent welcome !

 

[audio_PHIL_e]

yes

 

[Ian]

yes

A friend of brevity 😊

 

[JANDL100]

I must admit I do get a warm glow when I have valves in the system.

 

[The Bish]

I would 🙂. In a world that sometimes feels like it lacks real stuff, I love them !

Wit, warmth, humour and descent welcome !

Yes Ian, no doubt a valve or ten in the signal chain adds something to the way it all feels. I've got years of rolling ahead of me with the stash I have!

 

[DomT]

Love should trump everything where it is valves or anything else. I was delighted to go back to Audio Research to have some valves in my life again but I also have a non-valve Audio Research amp and a Quad 909. Love them all.

 

[Ian]

Yes Ian, no doubt a valve or ten in the signal chain adds something to the way it all feels. I've got years of rolling ahead of me with the stash I have!

Well obviously you'd pop up ! 😂

 

[Ian]

Love should trump everything where it is valves or anything else. I was delighted to go back to Audio Research to have some valves in my life again but I also have a non-valve Audio Research amp and a Quad 909. Love them all.

You're forgiven in your climate !

 

[The Bish]

Well obviously you'd pop up ! 😂

just listening to a hot rodded Croft RIAA-R with Tesla ECC83s, RCA 12bh7a, and some corny but good Roxy Music has got me in the mood for a rare post!

 

[tackleberry]

No, pain in the arse.

 

[Ian]

No, pain in the arse.

To be fair I did invite descent 😉

 

[Jazid]

Valves were responsible for the birth of electronics. They were, and sometimes still are, handmade and their glass was originally craftsman blown. Along with big iron, point to point wiring, and hand rolled capacitors they represent a (mostly bygone) world of shirt sleeve experimenters, a time when even amateurs could aspire to achieving something close to the state of the art at their workbench with perseverance and rigour.

Is it then remarkable that some of us find them nostalgic and interesting? What can be achieved with such lowly objects remains surprising, the 'Doctor Frankenstein' form follows function aesthetic of the resulting equipment appeals to many, and I believe that amps built with them can sound damn good!

I believe that they remain because their presence has cultural resonance - belonging as they do to an era before industrial processes became so complete. At that time a single craftsman's skills learned as an apprentice and , like his tools, honed with use, could be harnessed to produce the best that the world was capable of. Cultures with a tradition and belief in refined craftsmanship are those which keep this apparent anachronism alive.

 

[DUVET]

I they sound good yes . I am always keen to have valves somewhere in the equation . Modwright pre was great with the Plinius previously and currently the Allnic phono stage pairs lovely in the vinyl set up.

 

[garn63]

Valves were responsible for the birth of electronics. They were, and sometimes still are, handmade and their glass was originally craftsman blown. Along with big iron, point to point wiring, and hand rolled capacitors they represent a (mostly bygone) world of shirt sleeve experimenters, a time when even amateurs could aspire to achieving something close to the state of the art at their workbench with perseverance and rigour.

Is it then remarkable that some of us find them nostalgic and interesting? What can be achieved with such lowly objects remains surprising, the 'Doctor Frankenstein' form follows function aesthetic of the resulting equipment appeals to many, and I believe that amps built with them can sound damn good!

I believe that they remain because their presence has cultural resonance - belonging as they do to an era before industrial processes became so complete. At that time a single craftsman's skills learned as an apprentice and , like his tools, honed with use, could be harnessed to produce the best that the world was capable of. Cultures with a tradition and belief in refined craftsmanship are those which keep this apparent anachronism alive.

After reading your post I felt inclined to recommend this beauty.
June Tabor - All Our Trades are Gone. From Angel/Tiger.

 

[toms wait]

Is there any other reason to have them?

To be fair I did invite descent 😉

Descent, to go downwards into the abyss of poor jokes and dodgy humour or dissent, jovial or forthright debate?

 

[Ady]

For me valves are just fantastically visually appealing in themselves. Put them into a amplifier or phono stage where they are on show and it's no contest. Why would I want to look at a boring enclosed ss box . Cue someone posting a pic of a gorgeous ss box🤣
Cheers Ady

 

[ACS]

Is there any other reason to have them?

Descent, to go downwards into the abyss of poor jokes and dodgy humour or dissent, jovial or forthright debate?

I'm glad that it's not just me.

 

[hifinutt]

no they can be a pain in the butt sometimes !!

 

[rabski]

Yes.

Refer to James' post No. 12 for further explanation. I'm too busy listening to music.

 

[MVJ]

Before I went to active speakers I had valves in my system but once I confirmed my move to the dark side they were all sold.

The only box with valves on board now is my EE Minimax PhonoStage & thats going nowhere any time soon but I did enjoy the valve glow in particular from a pair of 845 Monoblocks I had.

The heat was a whole other matter though the 845's in the summer were so uncomfortable even though they sounded awesome they had to go.