Point to point vs printed

Marketing makes us believe that point to point wiring is better...

It sure is cheaper and faster do design, also easier to modify/fix, but more expensive to manufacture, PCB is more expensive to design, but cheaper to manufacture, particularly in quantity...

 

Erm. Yes.

 

So in principle which is actually sonically better and why, or is it personal taste?

 

Of course it is not personal taste...

Each has its own advantages and disadvantages, sound depends of the design, components and quality...

But PCB can have some advantages, shorter signal path, better ground, better isolation from vibration, etc...

 

All I will say on the subject is my point to point all valve bass amps sound great and have never broken down. My valve/solid state PCB amp sounded great but broke down on gigs 5 times.

Needless to say it was sold....

Point to point mil spec wiring for me every time. The cost doesn't matter: reliability does

 

Hmm. But surely that's a sample of one. All it can tell us is that your PCB based amp is unreliable. It doesn't tell us about PCBs in general.

 

PCB: neat and tidy
PtoP: uses components leads for connection, shorter signal path, less soldering, avoids usage of pcb connecting matl. Untidy, expensive -- can't mass produce.

PtoP: the "purist" choice.

Ultimately, however, if the circuit design is mediocre PtoP won't improve it.