Grado Platinum4 Hi-Fi Cartridge

Grado Platinum4 — A Wood-Body Moving-Iron Cartridge for Hi-Fi Turntables

The Grado Platinum4 is a phono cartridge designed for hi-fi turntable systems, combining a Mediterranean Olive Wood housing with a bonded elliptical diamond on an aluminum cantilever. Built on the brand's patented moving-iron flux-bridger principle, this model delivers a balanced, controlled signal with low moving mass and long-term stability. Offered in high-output, low-output, and mono configurations, it adapts to a wide range of phono stages and tonearms. It sits within the Timbre Series and continues the tradition of hand-built wood-body cartridges.

What Sets This Cartridge Apart in the Timbre Series

What makes this model distinctive is its use of Mediterranean Olive Wood for the cartridge body, selected for its natural resonance control and contribution to tonal balance. Inside, the signal path uses ultra-high-purity 6N OCC copper coils, and each unit undergoes cryogenic treatment and internal damping to reduce unwanted resonance. The reshaped housing improves cantilever visibility during alignment, supporting precise setup across a variety of tonearms.

Key Specifications — Signal, Tracking, and Construction

The specifications reflect a design focused on stable output, controlled tracking, and broad frequency response. The high-output version produces 4 mV, allowing it to work with MM phono inputs, while the low-output version produces 1 mV for MC-compatible stages. Tracking force, compliance, and frequency range are all tuned to deliver consistent performance across a wide range of recordings.

• Type: Moving Iron — flux-bridger principle for low moving mass and stable signal
• Bonded elliptical diamond mounted to an aluminum cantilever — reliable groove contact for consistent tracking
• Output Voltage: 4 mV (high output) — compatible with MM phono stages
• Tracking Force: 1.6–1.9 g — suits most medium-mass tonearms
• Frequency Range: 10 Hz–60 kHz
• Compliance: 20 µm/mN — balanced for medium-mass tonearm designs
• Body Material: Mediterranean Olive Wood

Who Should Choose the Platinum4

This cartridge is the right choice for hi-fi listeners who want a wood-body moving-iron design with a balanced, musical presentation and broad phono-stage compatibility. It suits turntable owners running medium-mass tonearms in the 1.6–1.9 g tracking range who appreciate the tonal character of natural wood housings. Stereo and mono configurations are both available, making it a flexible option for collectors playing modern pressings and vintage mono records. Owners of existing wood-body cartridges from the same maker can also use the Wood Cartridge Upgrade Program to move between models.

Grado Labs — Hand-Built Cartridges from Brooklyn

Grado Labs has developed phono cartridges for decades, with the design philosophy rooted in Joseph Grado's patented flux-bridger moving-iron principle. The Platinum4 is part of the Timbre Series, pairing matched diamond and cantilever combinations with high-purity OCC copper coils and selected wooden bodies. Each cartridge is hand-built in Brooklyn.