The updated imagemagick IS normal release (or as you call it "GOLD"). In fact, the CURRENT version is ImageMagick-6.8.5-10.i386.rpm, which is several revisions ahead of what you are using. centOS is known to be VERY conservative in their software releases, and frequently requires the use of the EPEL to gain current functionality.
It's not "experimenting" but using an official EPEL supported by RedHat. centOS is based off of the Redhat tree.
This is direct from the centOS wiki
CentOS (
Community ENTerprise Operating System) is a
Linux distribution which attempts to provide a free
enterprise class computing platform which has 100%
binary compatibility with its
upstream source,
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).
[2] As of version 6.4, it officially supports
x86 and
x86-64 architecture with
Physical Address Extension, while a beta is expected to be available for
PowerPC.
[3]
The first CentOS is based upon RHEL version 2.1, and was numbered 2.1 as well.
[1]
Did you even go to the wiki I pointed you to?
What is EPEL?
EPEL (Extra Packages for Enterprise Linux) is a volunteer-based community effort from the Fedora project to create a repository of high-quality add-on packages that complement the Fedora-based Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and its compatible spinoffs, such as CentOS and Scientific Linux.
As part of the Fedora packaging community, EPEL packages are 100% free/libre open source software (FLOSS).
If your system is on centOS (and you are not running on a shared host but a true VPS or Dedicated server), you are basically using the same type of software. It's your choice, but as far as I know, the alternative is to run updated stuff. Can't expect xF to support legacy forever.
Even @
Brogan advised you that there were reports of old versions of ImageMagick causing problems. If you aren't willing to utilize the suggestions that have been given, then you will have to live with the problems that result from that. Don't mean to sound harsh, but sometimes reality bites.
I think that you are probably best left with letting them manage it since you are not comfortable with working to fix the problem yourself. Sometimes tho' that can result in not being able to utilize some features that require newer packages.