I would be very interested in this thread, as I’m looking at both options without the possibility to demo the Pass. I also had Boulder 866 and Vitus Ri-101 in my radar, but they were way below my expectations compared to the Diablo 300. The issue with the Gryphon is that the model is already 8 years old and once its replacement comes out, the resale value should drop…
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@soix yes indeed, I tested both the Vitus Ri-101 and the Diablo 300 at home.I mainly listen to classical music and the Vitus just sounded muffled whenever the musical message became complex, like on an orchestral tutti or on a piano arpegiatto. With the Diablo 300, there was life, flesh and drama in the music. Definitely not the most neutral amp out there but not in the bad sense of either « bloated syrupy » or « ear-pearcingly euphonic », quite the contrary. It’s well balanced and enhances the musical experience. For the Boulder it’s a nice amp, but when I listened to it on the Dynaudio Confidence 60, it didn’t feel more enjoyable than my own integrated which retails at $7k. Everything was nice and all but compared to other amps in its price category I heard, I feel the value is less attractive. Unfortunately for the Pass Int 250 I don’t have a dealer around me and I see magazine reviews which are often very contradictory. So if somebody who tried both the Gryphon and the Pass could elaborate on the differences between them, it would be very much appreciated. |
