Tír Na HiFi

I recently upgraded my Aavik U-380 and Esoteric P-03 CD transport to a Gryphon Diablo 300 and dCS Rossini CD player and matching clock. The Aavik was a wonderful amp which reminded me a great deal of the delicacy and refinement of Constellation Audio’s Inspiration Integrated. It improved significantly on the Constellation with the quality of its bass reproduction and was rather more emotionally involving than the Constellation. I also appreciated its practicality. It’s a cool-running amp with a negligible power consumption. Although I adored my Jadis I-88, I ultimately could not live with the heat output and electricity bills. However, it was undoubtedly the most emotionally gripping amp I have yet owned and, as satisfying an amp as the Aavik was, it ultimately could not match the Jadis.

Earlier this year, I began to investigate my options for an amp that would stir my soul like the Jadis without its associated running costs and excessive heat output. After much research, I settled on the Gryphon Diablo 300, one of the most well-reviewed and well-regarded integrated amps to be released in the past few years. In person, it is quite imposing and easily the largest amp I have yet owned but, aesthetically speaking, it is a very attractive and quite bold piece of industrial design. Sonically, the first thing that struck me was the quality of the bass which was warm and fulsome but also tight and controlled. This is integrated perfectly with a warm sweet midrange and treble that reminds me of the Jadis. There is a touch more clarity with the Gryphon and the Jadis is a tad warmer.

The CD player I decided on was the dCS Rossini with its matching external clock. I was tempted to try the new Esoteric K-01XD with its new and improved transport and the new proprietary Esoteric DAC. However, I decided to try something different. Like Esoteric, dCS is one of the most respected names in digital, but unlike Esoteric which built its name on quality of its transports but relied on third-party DACs, dCS developed their own proprietary Ring DAC which they have refined for more than 20 years. Visually, it’s a beautiful component which complements the very different aesthetic of the Gryphon very effectively. Sonically, it reminds me of the refinement of the Meridian 808.5 but improves significantly on the Meridian in its emotional involvement and unforced detail retrieval. The transport is not quite as solid as the transport in the Esoteric K-01XD but the musical presentation is more emotionally compelling than the somewhat analytical presentation of the Esoteric. With the dCS, the music just flows naturally. There is also an added bonus of a built-in streamer which I have not yet investigated.

I’ve lived with the Gryphon and dCS for over a month now and I am delighted with the results in tandem with my Kharmas. This is easily the most emotionally rewarding system I have owned to date.

Now that right there is a system I think I would love. I'm am MOST envious.

Enjoy it all!

Thanks, Simon.

That's a beautiful system right there - well you may wear!

That’s a hell of a setup, all you need do now is enjoy it.

I think I'd had a glass or two when I responded before, but I must admit, the only dCS I know (Ciaran's) is the best source I've ever heard. Especially with classical, it does things with spatial cues that I've never heard anything else match.

The Gryphon I have never experienced in person, but I always imagine it to be an iron fist in velvet glove sort of sound (that's something I'm always striving for). I would be fascinated to hear that combo with the Kharmas.

I'd certainly love to hear more about it all as time goes on, mcq.

The Gryphon stuff is pretty special all right. I had a listen to the Tabu AT which was in Cloney's a few months back. Probably the best amp in the shop at the time.

Serious Pedigree!!

Many thanks, Derek, Fran and Adrian, for the very kind words.

Simon, an “iron fist in a velvet glove” is the perfect way to describe the Gryphon. The Kharma Exquisite Minis are wonderful speakers but they can be a tricky load and are fussy with partnering amplifiers. I suspect that they are happiest with Class A amplication (either valve or solid-state) and they would happily devour everything that you could feed them with. However, my prior experience with the Jadis I-88’s (albeit glorious) 90 Class A watts taught me a valuable lesson about the residual levels of heat that can build up in a small room (especially when listening sessions last for at least 4 to 5 hours per day) and the impact that such amplification will have on your electricity bill. The Gryphon really takes hold of the Kharmas but balances this with a sweetness and a tonal warmth that is quite beautiful and profoundly satisfying.

The dCS is an understated gem of a player. It retrieves a lot of detail from the disc but the music is always presented in a very natural and lifelike way. The presentation of spatial cues you mention create a sense of depth and vividness to the reproduction of the music, which is amplified when you add in the Rossini master clock. The sense of timing which this player has is outstanding - you just feel utterly enveloped and wrapped up in the music. It’s simply a wonderful experience to be exploring the nooks and crannies of your CD collection with a system this good.

I saw (and heard) a Gryphon Diablo 300 in Cloney’s yesterday as part of early tyre kicking the possibility of moving on from my Naim amplification and speakers. @mcq I wondering whether you leave it on all the time or does it have a stand-by mode? One of the reasons that I might move on would be the necessity to keep the Naim boxes on 24/7 which doesn’t seem very environmentally aware these days. [however the pieces are 13-15 years old and still fully serviceable so that has its won impact into the overall assessment].

The one I heard was quite warm but Ivan said it had been playing at low volumes all morning so was predominantly working class A and hence it gets warmer than A/B. It was hooked up to large B&W (800 D4 I think). It did very little for me but I presume it was the speakers/ rom I was predominantly hearing. The Magicos connected to a PASS amp sounded to my ears so much better in the upstairs room.

.sjb