FYI - The average life span of a new tube is around 5000 hours, as rated by most manufactures of the time. If you listened to your tubes for 4 hours a day, every day, that’s over 3.33 years before an expected failure.
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To each their own, I wish you joy, less stress, and good vibes only on your journey.
Edit: PS I believe iFi a local company to the UK could have some options as well for you if you don’t like Schiit. @Klmahnn
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Thanks, the iFi range does look interesting. The new Diablo portable looks very exiting. I do like the idea of decoupling myself from the mains and less cables. Interestingly, the RME also has the ability to be powered from a power bank, making it a decent portable option a la Hugo 2…
Anyway hugely off topic, apologies!
Risk-reward, cost-benefit, delayed gratification, maximum potential upside. We each make our own respective determinations. Enjoy the music.
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I can relate since I have felt the same way.
I did have tube amps back in my speaker days and I swore never again for mostly the exact reasons you list.
Aaaaaand of course the story ends with my having a tube amp again. It’s one of those things where headphones sound “right” with tubes and “wrong” with ss, at least in the mid end where I play.
This might be an extreme case due to unique hearing issues but it is what it is so I have accepted the tubes.
Of course, the amp only has one tube that I can replace for $10, or $25 if I want to splurge. I don’t care if the amp runs an extra 5 hours a day because I turn it on before I think I might want to listen and then have to replace the tube a year or 2 early.
This isn’t a sales pitch but instead I’m saying “The sound will lead you”. If you listen to a Pendant with your ZMF’s either it’s “Oh crap this is so good I can’t go back” or “This is different but not enough to make me want to switch”.
You won’t know until you can hear for yourself.
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Yeah exactly! I really hope it’s the latter 
Been there done that…tubes will go bad and bad things might happen…Two years ago I was listening with a $2000 tube amp…and then after a few weeks a loud “POP” and driver tube shorted out, smoke comes out of the amp and that wonderful smell of burning parts permeates the room. A high wattage grid resistor was turned into carbon…
That said dont let this stop you from enjoy a good tube amp…tubes are what they are and many last thousands of hours…
I got tired of chasing tubes and watching the cost go up and up and up…crazy. They run hot, cant really be left on all the time…and when things go wrong other things in the amp can and will be damaged. They can be harmonic, microphonic, temperamental, hiss, pops and tings…lol
I have gone thru 5-6 tube amps in the last year and sold all of them except for the simple one tube Schiit Lyr.
For me tubes are a thing of the past, with so many good SS alternatives some of which do sound tube like no more nervosa…waiting for something to happen…
Enjoy your ride to audio perfection, the Jot 2 is a great amp.
Alex
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Yikes 
I see myself going the Violectric route in future for tubey SS!
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I know that everyone says ZMF headphones love tubes, and I’ll support that by saying that I haven’t found anything better than my Pendant for my Verite and Aeolus, but I think it’s wrong to discount solid state amps. Instead, we should ask what it is about certain tube amps that make ZMFs so sweet, and are there any SS amps that have those same qualities.
For instance, I was shocked when I first got my Burson amp, because it sounded a lot like my Pendant when driving the Verites, when I A-B’d them. I don’t know if it’s because the Burson is class A, or has tons of power or something else. I asked Zach about this and he explained to me that not all tube amps sound the same, and that the Pendant was designed to have some of the fast & lean sound characteristics of a SS amp (as opposed to the other end of the tube spectrum, with a thick & syrupy sound), and therefore it wasn’t surprising to him that there was overlap between the two amps’ sound.
I haven’t had the Jot 2 (I think this is a Jot thread, LOL) long enough to A-B it to everything else I own, but it does sound good with Verites too. It’s not class A, but it does seem to have some of the same sound characteristics of both my Burson and Pendant amps. @ProfFalkin called it a little tubey, which I’m assuming is the same thing that I’m hearing.
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There’s nothing remotely tube-like about Violectric’s amps.
Not good tube amps, at least.
They’re dark, smooth and mellow … a bit pricey for their technicalities … though very solidly built. But, still, not remotely like a good tube amp.
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For those that want solid state and are tube curious, consider the LTA MZ2. It is solid state rectified and its ZOTL design allows for longer tube life and lower output impedance than a standard tube amp. With stock tubes, it can be underwhelming for some, but I’m quite pleased with my current tube roll - 2 12AT7s and 2 6SN7s.
See below:
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Have to remember or put in perspective the cost of a Jot 2 vs the cost of a “good tube amp”…
Good tube amps often cost just a wee bit more than a Jot 2…
Unless u think a Schiit Lyr 3 is a “good tube amp”?
Its a “hot” topic eh?
Alex
Note: Dont forget the cost of getting those super NOS tubes as well…which seems to be a thing many tube addicts seem to do…sooner or later…(and i went down this rabbit hole as well…).
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Good tubes often cost more than a Jotunhiem 2!
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I always consider total cost of ownership.
With ZMF Eikon, Senn HD6XX, and Focal Clear dynamic drivers, I prefer Valhalla 2 over Lyr 3.
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I had a Vahalla 2 here for several years…and it was excellent for what I used it for. mostly higher impedance headphones, all those Beyers, Senns etc…not as great with the lower impedance stuff…but thats the design…
I did go back and forth with it and a BH Crack and BH Mainline…at times the V2 was as good to me or better than the crack with the high Z cans.
The Lyr 3 for me is a better pick, for the total cost of ownership u speak to…only one tube vs 4, more power all around, work with hi and low Z cans etc…but its a true hybrid and the tube is in th input side and the SS is on the output side…so how tubey is a Lyr 3 compared to a “good tube” amp??
Only your ears can decide this…
Alex
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Those impressions are helpful. You raise good points about the Lyr 3’s versatility and total cost.
It’s interesting that depending on where one is in their audio lifecycle, some value supreme sonics above all else, others may place more value on what is easier to own and live with. That’s my current situation dealing with a hum/ground loop. Solid state does have its advantages - I said it!
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Oh dear. I’m sure I’ve seen them described as such many times before. Thanks for setting that straight 
Now I have the @antdroid consensus too on the Asgard 3. I’m looking to that kind of amp to have some colour that my Lehmann Audio Linear doesn’t give me (if they called it Linear there must be a reason) and reading this from you really brings me to pull the trigger. Thank you
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Thank you, much appreciated.
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