Gryphon Diablo & Dartzeel CTH-8550

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!

Personally, I would be leary of solid-state charactarized as "dark". To me, this suggests a lack of transparency, palpability, dimensionality. Reviewers often confuse "dark" and "tube-like", which to me, are opposites. If I detected any haze, noise, restricted top end, flatness, or emphasis on the lower midrange/upper bass, I would walk away.

Dartzeel has a crytstal clear and extended top end, which has an extremely desirable sweetness. However, I personally find the Dart flawed in that the midrange is thin and non-organic. I do think the Dart can work with certain speakers and cable combinations, but it would take work and experimentation to make that happen. I'm sure others will counter my comments and come to its defense, but that is what I hear.

Luckily, you have the Diablo in your system, but I would give it at least 200 hours before passing judgment.

Hi Rtn1
I have heard the CTH recently and I really liked it. Well, there is no perfect amp, and for both the shortcomings and strenghts of both the Dartzeel and Gryphon, I prefer the Dartzeel.

However, I do not think the CTH is worth the price it is asking for, no doubt a very good amp. And I understand what you meant by "that the midrange is thin and non-organic". It lacks a certain body to the sound; you hear the sound but you don't sense there is a musician there producing the sound.

Anyway, back to my drawing board and search for other candidates other than the Diablo and CTH.
Cheers

I think I will be

Try the Gamut Di150 if you can. It sounds very much like it will work for you, based on my own comparison with the Diablo.