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Gryphon Antileon Signature technical problems

Dear all,

I have recently learned that both the older Gyphon Antileon as well as the current signature model have some technical issues due to the enormous amount of heat they generate and many of those units require repair after 1 and a half to 2 years.

The problem seems to be that a small part in the amplifier breaks. This causes the amplifier to get very hot on one side only, while the other side stays cool. Obviously if it is working correctly the heat is distributed equally on both sides. The cause for the issues seems to be that Gryphon seems to be using a relatively cheap component (a few euroes...) for this part and while the part is cheap to replace it does require a huge effort as one needs to take the amps apart and the whole servicing, due to the overcomplicated design of the enclosure, takes 1-2 days. My friend told me that they had 5-6 antileons and antileons signatures that had this problem.

Does anybody have experience with the reliability of these amplifiers?

I have demoed thes amps and loved their sound and since then have actually been saving up to buy them either new or 2nd hand. But now having learned these things I have been bit put off from these amps!

Also does anyone here have experience with other solid state class A amplifiers, i.e. Pass Labs or Karan Acoustics or others I may have missed here.

any info on the Gryphon Antileon technical issue or alternative similar sounding amps would be much appreciated.
kaifupaddy
rleff
1,065 posts
 
What about jeff roland models 6,8t or 9t? I have the 6 monos driving usher rw723's and soundlab m2's when I feel like moving them;they are very tube like;controlled bass and the midrange/high freq ranges almost equal my audio valve challanger 180 mono's.
They control the panels of the m2's extremely well as this is one of the harder speaker loads to drive.
If you are near the east coast maybe worth having Bob & Gary Backert of RHB Sound Designs look it over.( not related and they get excellant praises for service and support)
If out west maybe Nick Gowan in Campbell Ca would be the one I would take my gear too.
Good Luck on that very nice amp;hope you can resolve the issues.
kaifupaddy OP
10 posts
 
Thanks guys. Your inputs are much appreciated perhaps I have been mislead here a bit. I will talk to another dealer in person.
changster
40 posts
 
This is a little off topic, but..

If you have the dough, try and stretch for the Gryphon Colosseum! I have done A/B testing using the Mirage/Antileon Sig and Mirage/Colosseum. First off, both are great, I could live with either. The Colosseum throws a bigger 3D soundstage while giving more focus on the image as well.

The Antilieon Signature is great though. I'd love to own either. I would say it's 90% of the Colosseum at most volume levels/power levels. While the Colosseum is rated at just 160x2 @ 8ohms and the Signature 150x2, a single Colosseum stereo was able to power 2 monster Rockport Arrakis at high volumes and absolutely no compression of any dynamics. Aural memory is short but I vividly remember the amazing bass control on that setup. A single stereo Ant Sig may be stretching it (or maybe not)if it had to do the same work on a pair of Arrakis.

I can go on and on about these two amps... as you can see I'm a big fan.

On the technical issue, I have yet to hear any problems with previous owners as well. Then again I don't know many.

Hope this helps.
himiguel's avatar
himiguel
152 posts
 
I have had the Antileon Signature Stereo amp for over five years and never had a problem. I play my amp every day.
blindjim
3,092 posts
 

Perhaps the dealership which conveyed such info, actually does not have the same margins on all their merchandise, afterall.
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