Gryphon Audio Designs Delivers Best Sound
HIGH END 2019 Show Report By Steven R. Rochlin

  It is no secret that I love Gryphon Audio, as they produce incredibly well-build products that sound incredible! Just as it was during AXPONA 2019, they were showcasing their new Ethos CD player and DAC (€28,800). Breaking the rules of black boxes, Gryphon Audio gave the Ethos a wonderful sense of style combined with the fun of handling physical media. Am truly in love with the visual presence of this modern CD player / DAC, plus it offers top-shelf performance too! Here's what we write within our industry news page April, in case you missed it:

With a sleek styling and low profile combined with stylish blend of metalwork and high-gloss acrylic, the exterior design of the Gryphon Audio Designs' Ethos CD player / DAC can only begin to hint at the sophisticated technology concealed within. Gryphon's Ethos is designed unapologetically with single-minded dedication to the compact disc, because this focused approach enables the company to devote all their resources and expertise to releasing the full, unfettered musical potential of the compact disc. In addition to handling standard 16-bit/44.1 kHz Redbook CD, the Ethos offers convenient playback and can be connected to external sources up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and up to DSD512. Be sure to visit our Industry News page to see the lasted announcements from high-end audio manufacturers and the music industry.

With that out of the way, their new CD player / DAC has dual mono and fully symmetrical balanced operation. DACs are in full dual differential mode of course to achieve the very best sound quality. Jitter is effectively addressed with two independent, specially designed, temperature-compensated crystal oscillators accurate to better than five parts per million. Gryphon has incredible power supplies within their gear, and the heavily regulated, fully discrete, fully balanced Class A analog output stage employs zero negative feedback and offers both balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA outputs. The analog section is supplied with +23 Volts and careful attention has been paid to power supplies with separate transformers and comprehensive regulation.

There's a listing of the system @ HIGH END 2019 (pricing sans VAT):
Ethos CD Player & DAC: €28,800 
Trident II Speaker System: €98,000 (pair)
Mephisto Solo (mono-blocks): €90,000 (pair)
Pandora Preamplifier: €24,000 
Cables: The Gryphon VIP Speaker, Interconnect, And Powercord

Of course what truly matters is that you enjoy the music, and during HIGH END 2019 it appears Gryphon has many fans and customers. Met one of their enthusiasts that have their large four-tower Kodo speaker system, and yeah I was very jealous! They'd be perfect within our extremely large livingroom. During HIGH END 2019 Gryphon chose to use the (relatively) smaller Trident II speaker system. Standing at 193cm tall (75.5") and weighing nearly 600 lbs., as you can imagine they are quite enough for most listening rooms. The Kodo is for crazy people like me with enormous rooms with 9' high ceilings and over 30' of room depth... or/and if you love body-and-soul shaking accurate deep bass.

Rune, Gryphon Audio Designs' all-around great guy, played a variety of music including a track from the CD by Lynda Ainsworth. My Muse / wife Heather rarely asks about what music is/was playing as she either knows the artist, or it is 'audiophile music' she cares little about. 

My listening notes say immersive soundscape, fast bass, very clean mids and gloriously extended highs. If I decide to drop a cool mill on my audio system it'll be Gryphon Audio gear. Solidly build, highly reliable, and they exude elegance and style fit for any luxury home. Gryphon Audio Designs ranks very highly within my show report as one of the best sounding music systems during HIGH END 2019.

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