The Boulder 1060/1010 combo are transparent, powerful an overall natural sounding. They also have some of the best build quality i've seen. Think Lexus precision. However I found the Boulders lack warmth and richness, and some soul. They are very accurate, but don't convey the emotion of the music in the way my current Vitus does. They also don't sound as liquid as the Vitus operating in Class A mode. Then again it's all about system synergy. I ran the 1060 with my modded Ayon CD-5s as linestage driving my Coltrane Alto's which need a bucketload of power & that was a great combo. The Boulder's speed and power combined with some tubes upstream was great. But Boulder with plastic VA's? That would be like a lobotomy