aHobbit,
Iyong basis mo ay purely "by the book", old notion of learning na ito. Go and explore, research and evolved so that you will know what's written in the book and what are those actually happening....Ano ba ang ibig kong sabihin dito?
I'll give you a simple analogy (Watt is Watt, Watt = Watt).......Miles/Hr = Miles/hr...OK ba?
300miles/hr Ferrari versus 300miles/hr Corvette. Parehong 300miles/hr speed and will run in the same speedway. Anong result? Ferrari wins. Ask me kung bakit eh pareho lang naman silang tumakbo ng 300miles/hr? Ano sagot ko, eh kahit pareho nga sila ng speed/velocity @ 300 miles/hr eh kung mas mataas at mas malakas humatak (torque) nung Ferrari, siguradong mamumuraot iyong Corvette?
Another concrete analogy with regards to variable comparison (50W/ch tube versus 80W/ch SS or Receiver)....1000cc Suzuki Big Bike versus 880cc Harley Davidson Iron Horse. When I was in the Mid-East, nakipag-pustahan iyong utol ko sa isang Arabo ng Drag Race. The Arab used Suzuki SV1000 Naked Big Bike while my bro used his Harley Davidson 880 Custom-Built Sportster. The same as what happened to Corvette, namuraot iyong Suzuki nung Arabo at halos tumagas iyong engine oil nito. As a proof, you can view the Winning Iron Horse, naka-display sa garden ng bahay namin dito sa Malate.
Again, ang pinag-uusapan natin dito ay POWER....
Anong relation nito doon sa Watt=Watt or Watt is Watt? Ngayon masasagot at maiintindihan mo na iyong argumento ko, pag ito hindi mo pa naintindihan ewan ko na lang...Uulitin ko, Miles/hr = Miles/hr or Velocity is Velocity. Pareho 'yan kahit saan Physics Book mo tingnan pero may exemption to the rule.
Did I read from here na those Vintage Amp may sound the same or mas maganda pa sa mga new series amplifiers? Sabi ni aHobbit, iyong claims ko walang technical basis. You asked for it, iyong mga electronic components na ginamit sa mga Vintage Amps ay 20% tolerance-ibig sabihin -20 accuracy with reference to zero (0). Iyong mga electronic components na gamit ngayon ng modern amps ay at most 5 to 1% tolerance....Ibig sabihin -5 to -1% accuracy (near zero). Iyong current na dumadaloy ay dito ay almost perfect. Ang color code nito ay GOLD (5-1%), tulad ng ginamit sa mga multi-meter testers for accuracy. And Silver (10%)..etc. Siguro alam mo ibig kong sabihin? Hindi galing sa internet ito, napag-aralan at natutunan lang po.
So from here, papaano mo/ninyo masasabi na mas maganda or pareho lang ang vintage sa modern amp? NO BASIS, kuwentong Barbero 'yan. 
Sa usapin ng tube & SS/Receiver, isang tinitingnan ng mga audiophiles & audio experts ay iyong Higher Voltage Drive ng tube amps for wattage versus ng SS in Current Flow. A watt isn't necessarily a watt - and not all watts are created equal....Remember the formular for watts? Watts = Volts x Amps. So watts is the product of voltage and current. If an SS amp makes watts by increasing the current, but tubes create watts by increasing the voltage more , you're going to get a different end result - because there's a different proportion of the components. Mathematical equations don't take into account the real world variables. Uulitin ko, hindi puwedeng magkapareho ang output drive ng Tube sa SS/Receivers.
"However, overtime I began to realized that even though the sound of my system with the QUAD 405 (SS) was the same as it ever had been, the MAGIC WAS GONE. Listening to my records began to play a smaller role in my life-until I replaced the 405 with an M&A tube amplifier two years later.
I was having to work harder to appreciate my music through amplifier, and it was this cognitive dissonance that triggered tipping point at which I changed from a hardline OBJECTIVIST into someone who recognized the value in listening" - John Atkinson (Stereophile Magazine July 2005)
Nagbatuhan na pala!
Ako lang ang binato, iba ang mga gumanti ... ala frats???
My basis is purely by the book ... because you are talking technicals...
Your basis is purely subjective ... because you are talking about your impressions ...
Regarding your sportscar analogy, like amps, has different parameter specs that you should look at.
not only speed, but the acceleration (your term is hatak) capability of the car - they can run at the same speed alright, but they will not be able to attain that same speed at the same time because they may have different acceleration capability.
a 1W amp is the same with another 1W amp - but they may differ in slew rate, loading capability, headroom dynamics, etc.
to use 'mas maganda' in a wholesale manner is a vague adjective and can be taken subjectively - mas maganda in what manner? At this point, there is no technical reference to speak of.
I dont know how many will understand how amps' component are being selected - but will touch a few here. Mathematically, for example, the value of a resistor is computed. After it is computed, engineers will refer to the table of standard values, then select the nearest value. It is not exact, coupled this with tolerance, coupled this with resistor behavior as temperature changes. We are dealing with physical things which are not in an ideal world, so compromises exist - much much more in an audio amps.
It does not matter if 1 amp uses 1% tolerance components if it can not deliver the goods - and component tolerance I do not need to know just to determine which sounds good on what. Much part of this are just marketing hyping to let you release your hold of your money. Even same model and brand of amp are not exactly the same!
I could wish I can describe in details how your tube works. It has high voltage in the tube side, because it has low current capability, so it can muster the precious watt (e.g. 1000V x .001A = 1W). So logically, since it is limited in its current capability, you need to increase voltage if you want more power! Your meralco transmit KV of voltage long distance at minimal current - so you can use it at 220Volts at home with big currents. Likewise, your tube send its high voltage amplification output to your audio (not power) transformer, convert your high voltage (low-current) into high current source (low voltage) which your speakers can tolerate. This is no different from your adaptors. It sucks only about .1amp at 240V (240V x .1A = 24W) from your wall outlet, then deliver your 2amps current at 12volts (2A x 12V = 24W). Transistors just do it differently, do away with those heavy output trannies - which affects slew rate, attack etc and present an inductive load to the HF, and a resistor to the LF - by using the right voltage appropriate for the speakers and deliver the current based on power-rating design.
I have high regards for specs - provided it is accurate and make sense. But I dont have a notion that good-specd receiver will always sound good on my choices of speakers and sources - thus, I also value listening in a subjective manner. You can choose to be at either extremes - just specs or just subjectivism - Both are disadvantageous to your pockets
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