*Tube vs Transistor?*

[Loud & Clear]

I am a Car Audio Electronics Tech, well, at least I was. Then along came the time for kidney transplant #2. I have also fixed just about everything else, including a paint shaker circuit board for the local Ace Hardware, and a special medical device brought in by a Highway Patrol trooper, (for his daughter's serious asthma) "I took that one real serious", etc. I've got repair tickets stacked to the cieling. With a 98% success rate. However, I came into the game, long after the tube stuff, and I never saw any of it. However, An associate of mine did, and he is a magician on tube equipment. I may have to talk with him. He was always talking about the industial Western Electric amps they used in theaters. I wish I could find a good tube amp to borrow around here. I'm interested...

[Thom]

The dynacos aren't just any old amp. People with their dynacos although more solid state than tube are one of the things that discouraged Mac from continuing their clinics, is my understanding. There were always more dynaco owners than Mac and the things tested extremely well. (if you have inside information and this didn't play into the decision don't flame me, I don't claim inside information, just the gossip of the day.

I'm not staking out a position here but I keep hearing the tube vs transistor thing treated on this forum as though it's a done deal. No question about it tubes are superior I thought it was a subjective thing. Varied amp to amp and listener to listener. Educate me. I don't object to it being settled for an individual even if not for everybody I guess I should just leave it at educate me. I don't have a position staked out and maybe general opinion is that tubes are better I just wasn't aware of it. They do have weaknesses I'm aware of but so do solid state devices I suppose.

[moldyoldy]

....snip....I'm not staking out a position here but I keep hearing the tube vs transistor thing treated on this forum as though it's a done deal....snip....

For most of us, it IS a done deal. The argument has raged since silicon hit the streets, and the concensus among the rational declared it a subjective choice. For many, it's ingrained as deep as their politics, and no amount of argument or objective data will change that. Discussion soon turns nasty and flames fly, and no one gets any good from it.

Personally, I use both, settling on whatever gives the best results in the application. There are sytems that are night and day with different amps, and there's no consistent winner, merely an application for each.

[Thom]

I once owned a 2105. Does anyone still use transformers with transistors or was Mac just afraid that their superior transformers was what had separated them from the pack and felt disadvantaged without them? I seem to remember hearing bragging about damping factor and how much better some speakers sounded with lots of it. I guess that's what you mean about depending on the application.