I see, yes for hi-fi applications that would make sense. I'm a guitar player so distortion is very desirable for tube amps in that application. They've made great strides to create digital modeling of tube amps for guitar but in the end they're just simulating the real thing and they still don't have the same feel or response. Tubes aren't cheap but they haven't been beat yet. Glad to see we have some audiophiles here!