Royal Oud - 517

No. 517 is positioned against Creed's Royal Oud, a fragrance that treats oud as a supporting player to a bone-dry cedar and sandalwood structure rather than the loud centrepiece it is in many Middle Eastern-style ouds. The dupe opens with a light angelica and pink pepper lift, close enough in spirit to the original's understated freshness, before settling into its woody core. The cedar and sandalwood do most of the work here and are the most convincing part of the composition, giving a genuinely warm, polished wood accord. Where it falls short is the oud itself, which in Creed's version is a subtle, almost smoky whisper rather than a dominant note, and here reads more synthetic and slightly sweeter, tipping the balance away from the original's restrained luxury. Projection and longevity are also reduced, with the dupe settling to skin level within a couple of hours where the original holds a quiet sillage much longer. Still a reasonable everyday stand-in for the mood of Royal Oud, just without its precision.