Grado Red4

The Grado Prestige Red4 is an entry-level moving-iron phono cartridge hand-assembled by Grado Labs in Brooklyn, NY. It sits in the upper tier of Grado’s entry-level Prestige Series (directly above the Black4, Green4, and Blue4, and just below the flagship Gold4).

Core Characteristics & Performance

• Moving Iron Architecture: Unlike traditional Moving Magnet (MM) or Moving Coil (MC) designs, Grado uses a fixed coil/magnet structure with a low-mass iron element moving inside the field. This gives it a lower effective tip mass for quick transient response, but maintains a high 4.0 mV output so you don't need a specialized MC phono stage.

• The "Red" Selection Process: The Red4 shares the same internal construction as the lower-priced Green4. However, Grado tests and hand-selects the top ~10–15% of production runs that exhibit tighter channel balance, superior tracking tolerances, and better channel separation to be badged as a Red4.
• Sonic Profile: Classically "Grado"—warm, lush mid-range, deep bass, and smooth, non-fatiguing highs. It prioritizes musical engagement and vocal clarity over ultra-clinical detail.