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Best diamond retailer for AGS or ACA diamonds?

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Morenita21

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Nov 16, 2018
Messages
888
Hi Everyone!

I’m thinking of getting a .9ct to 1.2ct diamond for a travel ring. I’ve looked at Whiteflash and James Allen for loose diamonds. I’ve never had an AGS or ACA diamond, only xxx GIA. Is it worth the extra money? Also, which retailer is best and also has a great upgrade policy? Any other suggestions for sellers welcome.
Thank you in advance!
 
AGS stands for American Gem Society and they grade diamonds like the GIA does. They are the most strict.

ACA stands for A Cut Above and is Whiteflash's branded diamond. You should be able to select for ACA diamonds on Whiteflash's site.

Investing in cut is worth the money. You will pay a premium for ACA branded diamonds. Whiteflash has the best upgrade policy and a curated selection. James Allen has a lot more inventory to choose from, but you have to know what you are looking for and request grading reports.
 
MRBXXXFVVS1 said:
AGS stands for American Gem Society and they grade diamonds like the GIA does. They are the most strict.

ACA stands for A Cut Above and is Whiteflash's branded diamond. You should be able to select for ACA diamonds on Whiteflash's site.

Investing in cut is worth the money. You will pay a premium for ACA branded diamonds. Whiteflash has the best upgrade policy and a curated selection. James Allen has a lot more inventory to choose from, but you have to know what you are looking for and request grading reports.
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So should I stick with Whiteflash? I hate buying a diamond without seeing it in person. Would buying an ACA diamond guarantee a perfect diamond with lots of fire and scintillation?
 
Morenita21 said:
So should I stick with Whiteflash? I hate buying a diamond without seeing it in person. Would buying an ACA diamond guarantee a perfect diamond with lots of fire and scintillation?
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There is more than one vendor for a super-ideal cut. The most popular are: High Performance Diamonds and their CBI (Crafted by Infinity), Brian Gavin, Whiteflash (ACA), and Victor Canera. I would suggest you looking each of them up and see how you like them (they all have slightly different upgrade policy and/or trade up policy.)
 
daisygrl said:
There is more than one vendor for a super-ideal cut. The most popular are: High Performance Diamonds and their CBI (Crafted by Infinity), Brian Gavin, Whiteflash (ACA), and Victor Canera. I would suggest you looking each of them up and see how you like them (they all have slightly different upgrade policy and/or trade up policy.)
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Your diamond is gorgeous! May I ask where you got yours?
 
Morenita21 said:
Your diamond is gorgeous! May I ask where you got yours?
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Lovedogs beat me to it :). Yes, it is CBI from HPD. Try to use the search option on Pricescope (top right corner) by typing CBI, Victor Canera...etc... and you will see a lot of posts with pictures of various people's diamonds and their reviews. That might give you a good idea of what an ideal-cut diamond looks like.

Here is the link to mine:
 
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daisygrl said:
Lovedogs beat me to it :). Yes, it is CBI from HPD. Try to type into a search on Pricescope (right top corner) by typing CBI, HPD, Victor Canera...etc... and you will see a lot of pictures of various people's diamonds and their reviews. That might give you a good idea of what an ideal-cut diamond looks like.

Here is a link to mine:
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Wow! That stone is gorgeous!! Will definitely check HPD out.
 
It often comes down to finding a diamond in your preferred size, color and clarity specs. They all have beautiful super ideal cut diamonds. Good luck with your searches!
 
MissGotRocks said:
It often comes down to finding a diamond in your preferred size, color and clarity specs. They all have beautiful super ideal cut diamonds. Good luck with your searches!
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This is my dilemma - do I find a GIA graded diamond for a little less money and probably a bigger size or go with a premium diamond such as ACA for a lot more money and smaller size? I had 3 modern round brilliants before I had my final upgrade to an antique moval which I still love. Out of the three, I only loved my first and smallest (0.72ct) from my original engagement ring.
 
If you are foreseeing an upgrade (or two), vendors like Whiteflash and HPD only require you to spend more
than your original stone. Other places require you to spend 2x the cost of your original stone. Some have other
criteria like upgrading a minimum of 2 specs. Anyway, make sure you check out the specific upgrade policies of each
company.
 
Morenita21 said:
This is my dilemma - do I find a GIA graded diamond for a little less money and probably a bigger size or go with a premium diamond such as ACA for a lot more money and smaller size? I had 3 modern round brilliants before I had my final upgrade to an antique moval which I still love. Out of the three, I only loved my first and smallest (0.72ct) from my original engagement ring.
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It depends what your priorities are - carat, cut, or value? What's most important to you? Do you love your first, original engagement ring because of the stone size or due to the sentimental value?

In re-reading your original post, if it's a "travel ring" would you consider a lab diamond? I feel a bit like a broken record, but I'm a bit obsessed with the idea of resetting a Lightbox 1ct pendant into a ring (I have yet to do this myself)! That would definitely be the best value for a travel ring!

My travel ring is a 7-stone 1ctw ring. The stones are much bigger than in my wedding band, as I like that look to mix things up! I wanted a smaller wedding band to fit flush and not compete with my engagement ring.
 
I’m open to all possibilities but I don’t know if lab diamonds will be right for me. I’m a bit of a purist and knowing it’s a lab diamond would probably bother me. I might just go with the best upgrade policy vendor. I am curious as to why ACA and CBI diamonds are so popular here though.
 
Morenita21 said:
I’m open to all possibilities but I don’t know if lab diamonds will be right for me. I’m a bit of a purist and knowing it’s a lab diamond would probably bother me. I might just go with the best upgrade policy vendor. I am curious as to why ACA and CBI diamonds are so popular here though.
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Because of the cut quality first and foremost. A super ideal cut diamond just provides the optimum in light performance. Both of those vendors have webpages for you to read and learn about the whole concept. That is most important to many of us. Second is the customer service and the great trade in policies. That is also important to many of us.
However, you have to weigh out which is the most important to you - having a superior cut diamond that gives you all it has to give or do you want to balance value with performance? Only you can decide if price or performance is the most important to you.
 
I will just add to MissGotRocks comments that many of us have tried well cut diamonds but ultimately went with superideal cuts. I have Whiteflash ACA diamond earrings and have upgraded a few times! MissGotRocks once had an ideal cut but ultimately upgraded to the Whiteflash ACA in her avatar picture. My greatest jewelry regrets were when I sacrificed quality for price. I learned along the way that I am better off getting what I really want and having no regrets later.

I will say that when I don't want to wear my e-ring, I wear either a plain band or a 5 stone diamond ring. So there are many options for an alternative when not wanting to wear a larger diamond.
 
diamondseeker2006 said:
I will just add to MissGotRocks comments that many of us have tried well cut diamonds but ultimately went with superideal cuts. I have Whiteflash ACA diamond earrings and have upgraded a few times! MissGotRocks once had an ideal cut but ultimately upgraded to the Whiteflash ACA in her avatar picture. My greatest jewelry regrets were when I sacrificed quality for price. I learned along the way that I am better off getting what I really want and having no regrets later.

I will say that when I don't want to wear my e-ring, I wear either a plain band or a 5 stone diamond ring. So there are many options for an alternative when not wanting to wear a larger diamond.
Click to expand...

I am thinking of that also. I have a 7 stone 1.75ct diamond ring. I may just have it redesigned and add another stone. Ugh! I’m so indecisive.
 
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