About Grado Labs

We are Grado Labs, a family-owned American company that has been producing the finest audio products since 1953. Founded by Audio Hall of Famer Joseph Grado, with his brother John, we are known for inventing the moving-coil stereo cartridge and developing the first true high-end dynamic headphone. These headphones gave birth to what is now the Audio Quality Headphone market.

Through the years we’ve been a textbook family business. John Grado took the reins from his uncle Joe in the early 1990s, having first swept the floors at our Brooklyn, NY offices in the 1960s. In 2023, John turned to his brother Richard to lead the evolution of Grado, beginning a period of change at the company and in its products. Two generations of brothers could lead to a third as Matthew and Jonathan Grado are learning what it takes to lead an international consumer electronics company.

But family participation doesn’t end there. There have been dozens of spouses, children, siblings, cousins, nieces and nephews who have spent time working and being part of Grado. There are people from our close-knit Brooklyn neighborhood, starting as family friends, becoming trusted employees and eventually being part of our extended family. All of this makes us what we are today.

Producing the finest cartridges and award-winning headphones has always been what’s driven us to continue innovating. We dedicated all our resources to producing the world’s finest phonograph cartridge, then in 1976 designing the first true high-end cartridge, reaching prices never imagined possible at $1,000. In the early 2000s we redesigned the cartridge line, virtually eliminating resonant distortion in the magnetic and electrical circuits, bringing analog to new levels of performance. The Timbre and Lineage Series of cartridges were praised as “the most significant advancement in analog reproduction,” resulting in a Golden Note Award for analog design.

In April of 2026, we introduced the /4 generation across our Prestige, Timbre and Lineage Series, continuing more than 70 years of Grado cartridge development. From our entry-level cartridges through the Epoch4, all Grado cartridges continue to be assembled in Brooklyn, NY.

The HP-1000, introduced in the early 1990s as the first true high-end dynamic headphone, was a turning point in the evolution of headphone design. Astonishing the most critical of reviewers, the HP-1000 performed to levels previously attained by only the best full-range speaker systems.

Our first line of headphones followed in the early 1990s. The 2nd generation “I” series launched in 2008, 2014 brought our 3rd generation “E” series which led to the 4th generation “X” series. In April of 2026, the Prestige, Reference and Statement Series were brought together as the Classic Series, continuing more than 30 years of Grado headphone design and carrying that legacy forward.

The Signature Line represents a new evolution in Grado headphone design. Introduced in 2024 with the HP100 SE, the Signature Line brought new driver platforms, detachable cables, redesigned headbands and a new approach to materials and construction. The line has continued to expand with the S950, S750 and S550, each building on more than 30 years of Grado headphone development while moving our designs forward. Together, the Classic Series and Signature Line represent our current wired headphone lineup and the continuing evolution of Grado.

Our headphone lineup continued to expand with IEMs, Bluetooth models, and Special Editions. The Heritage Series, launched in 2015, utilized wood housings sourced from trees that fell in Brooklyn during 2012’s Superstorm Sandy, while our GH2 introduced us to Brazilian Cocobolo. With its amazing acoustic resonance, Cocobolo went on to become an important material in our headphone designs and is used today in the GS3000.

June 2020 brought the launch of our Hemp Headphone, a unique natural wood offering environmentally friendly and luxurious characteristics. There were fun marketing opportunities as well. A housing made from Hemp wood offered a chance to go in all kinds of promotional directions, and we did. No, you couldn’t toke them, but the headphones are smoking...

In 2018, we introduced the GW100, our first Bluetooth headphone and the first open-back Bluetooth headphone on the market. 2019 marked our first entry into the TWS market with the launch of the GT220. The GW100 went on to three generations, bringing the Grado sound and open-back headphone design to the wireless market.

We continue to operate from our modest offices in Brooklyn, NY, and are still a proud American business. We’re located in the building that our father/grandfather/great-grandfather Pasquale bought back in 1918, a building that housed an apple store—or should I say, the Grado family fruit store. Our future is bright, with family members ready to continue doing what we’ve done since 1953, making Truly the World’s Finest audio products.