"Stubborn refusal to face the facts," that's insulting, isn't it? You are an objectivist. That's fine, and of course, it is not insult. Insulting people with contrary views is what the holy warriors of that orthodoxy do here, you foremost among them. It is one of the reasons, this site is so dead. Instead of a discussion, people who express a different opinion are subjected to insults. So, folks either leave, or self-censor.
Let a thousand flowers bloom, John.
You should agree that audio enthusiasts disagree as to their prefernces between tube and solid state amplifiers. I prefer the sound produced from tube amplifiers because I think mine produces a more natural and realistic sound - warmer, richer, more liquid. That is, of course, subjective.
I did a quick google search and found various professional peer reviewed AES and IEEE articles about tube sound compared to solid state. They discuss the issue openly. It seems to me the matter is not as settled as you make it out to be.
Now, I am not an engineer, I am a consumer. I rely on my ears, and as to those amps I prefer, I figure the engineers who designed them did a better job than those who designed amps I like less.
I am not able to discuss differences in how amps deal with feedback, voltage spikes, transients, the effect of complex solid state circuits compared to the simple circuits of tube amps, even ordered and odd ordered harmonics, soft/hard clipping ... I cannot point to the reasons for the differences I hear. I hear them. Your graphs tell you, I do not hear them.
You must therefore deny my experience to validate your objective criteria and your belief that the objective criteria you rely on are sufficient to the task of describing the totality of audio reproduction sound quality. I suspect your criteria are not adequate to describe all the factors which contribute to sound quality.
Speaking of which, our local SoCal jazz audio get-togethers are hosted at member's homes. We get a chance to listen many systems, some are definitely high-end. This gaggle of enthusiasts almost universally prefer tube amplification.
What do we know? We don't know enough audio engineering to know our preferences are not valid.
Enjoy the music. We do.
