Ok, you were right... (The end of the hunt)

[Fife]

This diamond is definitely a better performer than my HCA5.5

I thought my first choice was the best of the best. It was the largest purchase I'd ever made. Hearing that I could have done a lot better really offended and angered me. I did all sorts of research trying to prove that the HCA tool is junk. I took the diamond to jewelry stores to compare, and studied articles for countless hours.

However, now that all is said and done, I think there definitely is some merit to the HCA. There's a noticeable difference in light performance here going from a 5.5 to a 0.9

Thank you all very much for your insight. I think this is the best 1.5 diamond I could have purchased for the price. I am insanely happy with this purchase. The diamond is bright from the center all the way to the edge making it look HUGE!!

Again, my thanks goes out to PriceScope users and to Barry @ Exceldiamonds for being so accommodating with my return of the first diamond.

Camera-photo; will take better photos later on.

 

[ecf8503]

That looks like a beauty! Congratulations!

I purchased a RB from Barry a few years back and it too is a dynamite stone.

 

[MissGotRocks]

Yes, I agree with you. It's hard to believe at the beginning of the journey that small nuances can make such a difference but they do. You learned a lot in a short span of time and it has paid off. The ring is very beautiful and while the first one was too, I can see the additional brightness in this stone.

Congrats on a job well done! You will forever look at this ring and be glad you made the switch. As you said before, you won't have that niggling in your mind that you might could have done a bit better. Now you know you could have and you did!

 

[Bella_mezzo]

It is gorgeous!!!

 

[Enerchi]

Happy to hear the good news, Fife - that's fantastic that you have found "the one" and you are very pleased with the performance of the new diamond - yippee!!! There is a lot of info out in the internet and a HUGE WEALTH of knowledge from PS members - so glad that it all paid off for you in the end - congrats and we look forward to hearing about the proposal and seeing hand shots!

 

[Gypsy]

You did good Fife!!!

 

[GreenBling]

congratulations Fife! Your stone is georgeous! if it is this bright on the pic i'm sure it's stunning in real life!

BTW, i am a bit skeptical about HCA, your story is pulling me towards the 'believer' end.

 

[2023]

Absolutely stunning! Congratulations Fife!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I am glad you were open to finding the best possible stone for your money. AGS Ideal cuts aren't even about the HCA...they are about identifying stones with ideal light performance. So this was almost a sure bet compared to a stone that did not fall in the ideal cut range. It's a beautiful stone! Congrats!

 

[yssie]

Glad you are happy with your new purchase!

I find your comments interesting - these two in particular
There's a noticeable difference in light performance here going from a 5.5 to a 0.9
The diamond is bright from the center all the way to the edge making it look HUGE!

I would love to have both to play with for a bit, because from what you posted of the old stone I'm certain the GIA report numbers were averaged and rounded to disadvantage - there is some slight "leakage" visible in the faceup so certainly on tilt you could expect light escape (at smaller tilt angle than your new stone, I mean), but there were no issues w/ uncomplementary LGF/UGF - the stone had excellent light return around the edges, as does your new one.
"Brightness" - tons of white light return - is the forte of shallower stones. The steeper crown is a totally different flavour, one that excels in coloured light return across a variety of lighting types (necessarily at the expense of some of that bright white brilliance - especially in combo w/ slightly steeper pav) - all in all I think this is an excellent example of a consumer discovering his/her personal preferences, perhaps moreso than outright good vs. "bad" performance...

Well, whatever it is, it's happily just quibbling at this point, since the important bit - you loving your stone - has been accomplished

 

[Dreamer_D]

Glad you are happy with your new purchase!

I find your comments interesting - these two in particular
There's a noticeable difference in light performance here going from a 5.5 to a 0.9
The diamond is bright from the center all the way to the edge making it look HUGE!

I would love to have both to play with for a bit, because from what you posted of the old stone I'm certain the GIA report numbers were averaged and rounded to disadvantage - there is some slight "leakage" visible in the faceup so certainly on tilt you could expect light escape (at smaller tilt angle than your new stone, I mean), but there were no issues w/ uncomplementary LGF/UGF - the stone had excellent light return around the edges, as does your new one.
"Brightness" - tons of white light return - is the forte of shallower stones. The steeper crown is a totally different flavour, one that excels in coloured light return across a variety of lighting types (necessarily at the expense of some of that bright white brilliance - especially in combo w/ slightly steeper pav) - all in all I think this is an excellent example of a consumer discovering his/her personal preferences, perhaps moreso than outright good vs. "bad" performance...

Well, whatever it is, it's happily just quibbling at this point, since the important bit - you loving your stone - has been accomplished

Also memory bias comes into play, and post-decisional spreading of alternatives comes into play when comparing something returned for something purchased -- the returned thing always seems worse and the new one the best!

I too am glad the OP is happy. On the other hand,I do think for education for consumers the points you make are important to remember.

 

[Fife]

When I opened the 5.5 diamond package, i opened it under a tree, at about 10:00am and distinctly remember how it looked and how I felt.

I opened this new diamond, under the same tree (fedex parking lot) at about the exact same time of day. The difference is there. This diamond sparkles more and looks bigger.

When I took my 5.5 into a shop to compare it to a different 0.9HCA, that 0.9HCA looked bigger, sparkled more, but had lousy contrast.

I'm telling you, I looked at the diamond for hours and hours before returning it. It was a fantastic diamond, but this new one is even better.

 

[VRBeauty]

Congrats to you on selecting a beautiful stone.

And major congrats to you on being willing to consider other opinions, and the possibility that you just might be wrong. It bodes well for your marriage!.

 

[Laila619]

Looks beautiful! I'm glad you were able to return the other diamond.