I’ve been looking into building my first real audiophile system and was considering a tube or hybrid amp, such as the Prima Luna Evo, Vincent audio SV-237Mk2, or Billie Amp Mk2. I haven’t decided anything for sure but one thing that came up with one of the reviewers for the Billie Amp is that if your speaker sensitivity is too high, like 96 dB+, you can hear I guess a tube noise or hiss. Is this true of any tube or hybrid amp, regardless of price-point? Will you hear it even with a good solid state amp? I was just curious as I don’t know much about noise floor or how to keep it as long as possible. Thanks!
Tube amps love sensitive speakers! That’s why you can have low wattage and still attain higher dB output.
Noise can be introduced by a number of factors and yes may vary by integrated amp. More than likely though, the noise is introduced by the turntable or phono stage.