Do valves burn in?

[Jazid]

If you can't hear the change then you should not invest in a valve amp. The extra running cost would be wasted on you. A reasonably seasoned valve amp audiophile can tell the difference between valve sound in a blind test. You can't say the same for a blind test with transistors.

I think you misunderstand me, I am not saying that you need good hearing to tell a valve amp from a s/s one, rather that you would need something that pretty much all blind testing so far has shown people not to posess; A reliable long term aural memory.

However we do posess long term reliable sensitivities to stress and fatigue which might explain why valves used for amplification of music continue to sell to people who consider this characteristic significant whereas they are rarely used in any other kinds of equipment.

I would suggest that this sensitivity explains in part why people are prepared to stump up the extra money and ongoing maintenance costs for valve amps. YMMV of course..