The Gryphon Audio Diablo 333 is one of those products where the numbers tell most of the story. It starts with the base price, which at £24,500 / $24,900 / AU$39,995 sits near the top end of the scale as far as amplifiers go.
This integrated amp is chunky but not oversized by class standards, though the all-in weight of around 50kg gives us pause for thought as we take the unit out of its smart wooden crate. Perhaps most impressive is its claimed power output of 333 watts per channel into an 8-ohm load.
Whatever you think of the Gryphon’s distinctive black on black aesthetic, there is no denying the quality of the build, fit and finish. Every panel lines up perfectly, and the precision in terms of machining is exceptional. Gryphon’s amplifier designs have tended to be distinctive, prioritising wide bandwidth and zero global feedback while being dual mono in nature. This one is no different.
High-end integrated amplifiers don’t tend to be packed to the rafters with features, and this Gryphon hardly bucks that trend. Anyone thinking of buying at this level prioritises performance, and so the manufacturers tend to remove many of the frills to maximise sound quality.
As standard, the Diablo 333 is a relatively simple line-level integrated amplifier, with four inputs (including two balanced XLRs) and both fixed and variable line-level outputs. There is provision, however, to add optional modules – the PS3 phono stage (£4950 / $5600 / AU$9995) and the DAC3 digital-to-analogue converter (£6950 / $7000 / AU$11,995). Neither is cheap, but they are neat ways to add functionality should you need it.
The Diablo 333’s huge power output is central to its sonic presentation. It should come as no surprise that this amplifier is happy to play loudly. We try all our usual bass torture tracks from Massive Attack’s Angel and Nitin Sawhney’s Anthem Without Nation to Time from the Inception OST, and the Gryphon barely breaks a sweat. It delivers some of the most grounded and punchy low frequencies we have heard in our test room, and does it with class-leading composure.
At the same time, large-scale dynamic swings come through with enthusiasm and utter conviction. There is an authority about this amplifier’s performance that is a joy to behold. As we listen to Stravinsky’s The Rite Of Spring, the Diablo delivers each of the music’s seismic crescendos with an iron fist and class-leading control.
The amplifier’s presentation is breathtakingly physical and set against an astonishingly quiet background. The Gryphon delivers a huge sense of scale too, something helped by its muscular nature and the ability to render a panoramic and utterly stable soundstage.
As we work our way through our music collection, we find that Gryphon Audio’s engineers have managed to combine beauty with the beast. It can speak quietly and wield a big stick at the same time, and that’s a talent worth having. Rarely have we heard such a powerful unit sound so fleet-footed and musically cohesive.
This year, we’ve been fortunate enough to test some world-class integrated amplifiers. We are pleased to say that the Gryphon Audio Diablo 333 shines brightest among them.
MORE:
See all the winners of the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2025
Read the full Gryphon Diablo 333 review
Arcam and Cyrus crash the stereo amplifier category at the What Hi-Fi? Awards 2025
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
