New: Astor by Blue Nile

[texaskj]

Named after Brooke, perhaps?

https://www.bluenile.com/diamonds/astor?click_id=131580271

 

[HDer]

I'm looking at this and it looks like just a regular well cut MRB.

Anybody know if this is really a new cut or just a selection criteria like H&A plus their gemex certificate?

 

[LawmaLlama]

Prices are certainly marked up from the regular "ideal" cut inventory.

 

[tyty333]

I'll take the ACA...higher clarity, less money.
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3880981.htm

https://www.bluenile.com/diamond-details/LD09203168

It is nice that BN makes it easier to find a good stone though.

 

[AprilBaby]

I was wondering what makes this different from their ideal cut .

 

[doberman]

I wonder what the difference is between an Astor cut and a BN Signature round. And if light performance is ideal, why don't they have AGS grading?

 

[gm89uk]

I think it's poorly marketed, with gemex often showing less than top performance in more than one category. If I was a regular consumer, paying premium price, I'd wonder where I could go to achieve the highest in all categories on a gemex report.

I've done a search and I couldn't find much on the methodology behind gemex?

 

[ChristineRose]

I wonder what the difference is between an Astor cut and a BN Signature round. And if light performance is ideal, why don't they have AGS grading?

They have a GemEx, which uses a different scoring system and provides more information than an AGS. Whether it's more reliable is a different matter.

I strongly suspect that the GemEx is the difference. This may be a collaborative venture to boost the reputation of both companies. Anyhow there are tons of supposedly better than all the others superideals so they obviously want a piece of that market.

 

[bmfang]

Isn’t this just a rebrand of their previous Signature Ideal line?

 

[HDer]

If it's just a subset of MRB stones with a new cert it feels a little misleading to call it a different cut. Although white flash does something similar with ACA.

Also realized that forum rules probably prohibit any trade members from commenting on this.

 

[bmfang]

If it's just a subset of MRB stones with a new cert it feels a little misleading to call it a different cut. Although white flash does something similar with ACA.

Also realized that forum rules probably prohibit any trade members from commenting on this.

Totally agree.

Their previous Signature Ideal range was hit and miss consistency wise for the super-ideal premium they put on them. If this “new” range is more consistent in their cut quality, then JA (and maybe the true super-ideal vendors like WF, BGD, CBI) will have another true competitor in that realm.

 

[doberman]

Isn’t this just a rebrand of their previous Signature Ideal line?

Looks like it. Substitute GemX for GCAL. I have a Signature and I actually thought the GCAL reports were pretty good.

 

[PopeofSales]

They have a GemEx, which uses a different scoring system and provides more information than an AGS. Whether it's more reliable is a different matter.

I strongly suspect that the GemEx is the difference. This may be a collaborative venture to boost the reputation of both companies. Anyhow there are tons of supposedly better than all the others superideals so they obviously want a piece of that market.

GemEx is a fraud!! It completely undermines the ideal or excellent cut. I am a diamond wholesaler and we had GemEx for a year. We cataloged all of our Rounds and it was a joke. There were many instances where a Good Cut Round performed better in light performance in all categories over an Excellent or Ideal cut Rounds. And even worse, a Fair cut even had better light performance than one of our excellent cuts. It is completely false and takes away the premise that Excellent cuts are better than Fair cuts. Worse yet, with your own eyes you could see how much brighter the excellent cut was.

Dont believe GemEx because it is a joke

 

[Karl_K]

Gemex has been discussed to death on here in the past:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/gemex-light-performance-report.101584/
https://www.google.com/search?q=gemex+site:www.pricescope.com

It fell out of favor due to high cost, repeat-ability issues, and limited light conditions tested.

popeofsales:
That a GIA good or poor cut can score higher in the specific measurement and light conditions that Gemex measures is well known and not fraud it is physics.
That does not mean they are not deficient in other lighting conditions or have other issues.