DG-Miliano Cubic Zirconia: Pros, Cons & Sparkle

DG-Miliano was drawn for moissanite: stars, crown mains and upper girdle facets round the table, a girdle of ninety-six facets, and a pavilion cut in three tiers of sixteen, steepest at the girdle. Our model is 60.3% deep, and its pavilion measures 38.3°, just over CZ's guide minimum of 38.1°.

Cubic zirconia is a hard test for a round on this site, because the T73 already returns Brilliance 98 in it. DG-Miliano comes within a point of that, 97, and wins on the other scores that separate good rounds.

Its only con is the stone's own: CZ weighs far more than diamond for the same size.

Is DG-Miliano a good cut for cubic zirconia? Pros and cons

Pros

Much finer sparkle than the T73 98 vs 80
More fire than DG-Miliano in diamond 90 vs 82
Holds its light a little better when tipped 90 vs 87

Cons

About two-thirds heavier than diamond 1.70 vs 1.03 ct

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia and with the DG-Miliano in diamond. A difference counts from 3 points (Brilliance, Fire, Tilt, Leakage), 5 (Scintillation, Symmetry), 2 (Spread) or 5% (weight); Tilt counts as a pro only for a stone within 5 points of the brilliance it is compared with. How we measure.

All eight scores against the T73

At a glance: the DG-Miliano in cubic zirconia (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia (dashed): solid white where it reaches further, hatched where it falls short. Each pro and con is explained, with pictures, below.

Against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: ahead on 5, level on 1, behind on 2.

Global95, the comparison 93, difference +2
Brilliance97, the comparison 98, difference −1
Fire90, the comparison 87, difference +3
Scintillation98, the comparison 80, difference +18
Spread101, the comparison 100, difference +1
Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
Shape-norm104, the comparison 106, difference −2
Tilt90, the comparison 87, difference +3

Face-up light census, a different measure from the Cut Grading Tool; Spread and Shape-norm above 100 sit on the ring.

Open it in the Cut Performance Wheel

What DG-Miliano gives cubic zirconia

Much finer sparkle than the T73

Scintillation 98 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 18 points higher

Our scintillation score follows how finely the facets divide the stone, and DG-Miliano carries 177 against the T73's 73. The facet diagrams show how much finer that division is.

DG-Miliano · 177 facets · Scintillation 98

T73 Round Brilliant · 73 facets · Scintillation 80

Scintillation follows the number of facets: more facets, more and smaller flashes as the stone moves. Count the facets in each crown. Drawn from each cut's own model.

Try it yourself: Compare the Scintillation spoke in the Cut Performance Wheel

More fire than DG-Miliano in diamond

Fire 90 against 82 for the DG-Miliano in diamond: 8 points higher

Nothing about the design changes between the two renders. CZ splits white light into colour more strongly than diamond does, so the CZ render carries more colour in the same flashes.

Dg-miliano in cubic zirconia face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 90) — Look at the coloured flashes: those are fire. Same light, same size, same face-up angle; rendered by our 3D Gemstone Simulator from each cut's own model.

Dg-miliano in diamond face-up under a single bright light: a render from our simulator, its coloured flashes are the fire (score 82) — Look at the coloured flashes: those are fire. Same light, same size, same face-up angle; rendered by our 3D Gemstone Simulator from each cut's own model.

Try it yourself: See the fire in the 3D Gemstone Simulator

Holds its light a little better when tipped

Tilt 90 against 87 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 3 points higher

Tilted, it keeps 90 of its face-up light, the T73 in CZ 87. Because its brilliance is level with the T73's, this is a real gain and not a dim stone keeping a small share. The graded pavilion tiers are the likely reason.

Dg-miliano in cubic zirconia tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 0% of the face leaking — Tilt is how much of its own face-up light a stone keeps when tilted. Each frame is the Light Return map with the stone tilted away from you by the angle shown; grey is light leaving through the pavilion. The share under each frame is that picture's own.

Dg-miliano in cubic zirconia tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 2% of the face leaking — Tilt is how much of its own face-up light a stone keeps when tilted. Each frame is the Light Return map with the stone tilted away from you by the angle shown; grey is light leaving through the pavilion. The share under each frame is that picture's own.

Try it yourself: Compare the Tilt spoke in the Cut Performance Wheel

The catch with a DG-Miliano CZ

About two-thirds heavier than diamond

1.70 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.03 ct for the same cut in diamond (+65%)

This one belongs to the material, not to DG-Miliano. CZ has a specific gravity of about 5.8, so every CZ outweighs a diamond of the same size by about 65%.

A DG-Miliano 6.5 mm across, weighed from the model's measured volume and each stone's specific gravity.

What helps: Choose it by diameter: 6.5 mm across is 1.70 ct.

Try it yourself: Weights in all seven gemstones on the DG-Miliano page

Who a DG-Miliano CZ suits

In CZ this is the round we would cut first: the T73's light, sparkle at the top of our scale and more fire than the diamond version. It suits a centre stone meant to glitter finely rather than flash broadly.

For the very top of the brilliance scale, DG-Rafaello Cubic Zirconia reaches 100. For the published 1919 plan with a girdle a setter knows, the T73 Round Brilliant Cubic Zirconia.

With 177 facets it is a long job on the machine. CZ polishes readily, which makes it a fair stone to learn the three pavilion tiers on.

DG-Miliano Cubic Zirconia: questions

Is DG-Miliano a good cut for cubic zirconia?

Yes, in our census: Brilliance 97, Fire 90 and Scintillation 98, against 98, 87 and 80 for the T73 in CZ.

DG-Miliano or DG-Rafaello in CZ?

DG-Rafaello returns a little more light (100 against 97). DG-Miliano has more fire (90 against 87) and steadier light when tilted (90 against 88).

How heavy is a 6.5 mm DG-Miliano CZ?

1.70 ct. Cut in diamond, the same stone would be 1.03 ct.

Does DG-Miliano show more fire in CZ than in diamond?

Yes: 90 here and 82 in diamond, from CZ's dispersion of 0.060 against 0.044.

Get the DG-Miliano Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

DG-Miliano Cut 3D files

The DG-Miliano Cut as exact geometry: 177 planar facets, real-world scale, ready for CAD, rendering, printing and casting.

STEPExact faceted solid for CAD
3DMRhino, closed mesh on its own layer
STLWatertight mesh for printing and casting
OBJMesh for modelling and rendering
FBXBlender, 3ds Max, Maya, Cinema 4D, Unity, Unreal
GLBWeb, AR and quick previews

€9.99 · Personal useBuy the 3D files

GemCad96 index

DG-Miliano Cut cutting files

The DG-Miliano Cut as a faceting design: 81 + 96 girdles = 177 facets, 96 index, 8-fold mirror-image symmetry, ready for the machine.

.ascGemCad design file, 96 index gear
.csvTier table: angles, indices and cutting order
DiagramPrintable faceting diagram

€9.99 · Personal useBuy the cutting files

Questions before you buy? Email us.

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Cubic Zirconia: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The DG-Miliano: specifications, model and files

DG-Miliano Cubic Zirconia: the modern round's light, with far finer sparkle