Gryphon Diablo & Dartzeel CTH-8550

Hi Hamburger,

I have seen and enjoyed your posts. I have not heard either unit...sorry. But i have owned Antileon and Colosseum...and have spent time auditioning Dartzeel.

I think Dartzeel,in my experience with them, is a very lithe, fleet of foot natural sound that can be very beautiful in the right system. It was not for me, but i very much respected the sound.

The Gryphon sound is also very beautiful, extraordinarily powerful and propulsive in the bass, and generally with a clear, measured control over the whole spectrum with a touch of 'sweetness' in the treble. Now, some may say Antileon is dark (i would)...but i quite liked the voicing, and i am told Diablo is similar. The Colosseum stepped away from that darkness but maintained the sweetness in the treble which i love.

The Dartzeel may feel illuminated in comparison...but i suspect it will depend on your component mix and personal preferences...i did love the Antileon treble (prefer the Colosseum by far).

Finally, i think the Diablo will drive anything with the power of an ox...i spoke with my dealer about the Dartzeel and he did suggest relatively more caution with lower impedance speakers.

my two cents. Good luck and hope you can post your findings.

Hi Lloydelee21,

Your post has been most helpful and I concur with your points mostly, in view of my own personal experience. I would like to share my thoughts here.

I have a fresh from box Diablo on a one week loan in my home system now, but I have not heard the CTH-8550 at all. The Diablo is about 30 hours now…

My own amplifier is the Orpheus Laboratories (Swiss) and I understand what you meant by “a very lithe, fleet of foot natural sound that can be very beautiful in the right system” on the Dartzeel CTH. I have heard the NHB a few times before. Immediately I agree with what you were describing. “Lithe, sprightly, agile, sweet”… think Peter Pan’s Tinkerbell. Most Swiss amps I know have this character, but not all do.

I recently heard a Mirage/Colosseum-Stereo set up and was very very impressed by how musical and organic it sounded. Yup, I was awed by the “extraordinarily powerful and propulsive in the bass” that you have described on Gryphon. The change from the Orpheus to the Diablo was very similar to my change of turntable from a Wilson-Benesch Circle to a Kuzma Reference. Suddenly I realize there was a missing bottom. I am not talking about boom-boom bass, but a kind of solid low frequency foundation where music emits from. And subsequently such bass energy drive that comes out from that foundation.

Yes, I noticed a “darkness” in the Diablo and I do not consider the Diablo as “sweet”. It is clear treble but not sweet (The NHB was sweet). The gryphon is an ox… hahaha, not a gryphon? In Asia, it is more a water-buffalo that can pull anything (any music genre) along with it. No problem with the power! Considering my small room and relatively easy to drive speakers, it is a piece of cake for the Diablo.

Personally, I like Class-A sound but dislike the Gryphon heat… kind of a contradiction. I know the Diablo is class-A/B. Also, although my Orpheus amp is a “lesser” amp than the Diablo, the Orpheus is more “musically engaging” to me. The Diablo has more fire power in the high-fidelity sense, but it lacks a certain x-factor on musicality. (I sing more in my head after listening to the Orpheus than the Diablo… my own personal measure of musicality). And if the CTH is anything similar to the Orpheus (the Swiss character), I get a pretty good idea how the CTH and Diablo will compare. Quite an enigma for me right now!

Perhaps the Diablo will sound better after more running-in?

Cheers

Hi Hamburger,

Always good to read other people's experiences and observations, particularly when they have clearly done a lot of listening! Thanks!

I would think the Diablo will benefit from burn-in over time...however, your observations about the Diablo sound not being as lithe/lyrical as your Orpheus could possibly end up being your final conclusion.

After hearing a Goldmund in my system while my Antileon was out for repair, i realized that i vastly preferred the midrange through the bass of the Antileon...but the Goldmund made appreciate what an 'illuminated' treble could do for a system.

Hence why i went with Colosseum second-hand when i got the chance to trade in my Antileon.

Good luck! and please keep us posted!