In reply to:
But, if they really are noticing a difference, I would have to "assume" that their current gear is somehow power limiting. If true, it would imply that the FTC ratings are not sufficient.
The curious side of me wonders what is ground truth????
Rat, you are looking for an answer when a disparity in the information does not exist because of the fundamental difference in the type of information that is being paired. You cannot try to correlate such subjective reports on sound improvement while attempting to associate the answer with power and FTC spec requirements. It won't work.
What will end up happening is that you will continue to scratch your head figuring out why people report a sonic difference b/w SS amps if there appears to be no reasoning as associated with FTC regulations/restrictions/requirements.
There is a huge leap of faith that the original assumption the subjective reports are 100% true and without flaw.
Audio is a religion to many. Sometimes they don't want a search for answers as to why and the reality is, there may not be any. The cliche "to each his own" could apply thousands of times over for every subjective report you read and believe without doubt.
