Yes, you are right. Playing tube amps can be time-consuming. Moreover, it takes more time to warm up and its performance will be affected by the weather. And the time to search for nice matching tubes are simply klling all my time and emptying my pockets. That is the reason why I have switched to solid state amps and active speakers these days.
About active speakers, you can go to DMA for auditions. There are a number of brands available for testing---Genelec, Adams, Focal. To me, TAD TSM-300 is the most comprehensive speakers with very little coloration in this price range. For sweet strings music alone (up to string quartets), LS 3/5a is a very good choice. I used Proac 2.5 many years ago. It is great. Image has a clone version, less than 1/3 of the Proac counterparts. You might consider it if you do not mind.