Grado Labs is an American audio manufacturer known for hand building high-end dynamic open-back headphones and cartridges in Brooklyn, New York.

In its over 60-year history, Grado has kept a very low profile by relying on word-of-mouth among audio dealers and consumers instead of mass advertising campaigns.

[4] John created the first line of Grado headphones, building them at a workbench with his wife, Loretta, in the early half of the 1990s.

When he had established a sizable distributor list throughout multiple countries, he completely stopped going to shows to spend more time with his family.

[7] At one point, the family was going to build Grado Towers: ceiling tall speakers made of their headphone drivers.

[9] Over the next two decades, John created over three generations of headphone lines and oversaw Grado's cartridge reinvigoration, bringing units per year north of 60,000.

Originally embarrassed about his family's company, Jonathan had a change of heart in his sophomore year of college and started the Grado Facebook and Twitter pages.

[13] In 2014, Grado released their new line of headphones,[14] The e Series, and was named in the Top Eight Most Social Small Companies in America by Mashable and American Express.

[13] In early 2015, JetBlue Airways chose to partner with Grado to be their official headphone for their Mint Class flights.

Grado also manufactured an alternate headphone line for Alessandro Music Products; a maker of higher-end guitar components.

A considerable tip mass reduction results in a manufacturer-reported frequency response[20] to 50 kHz and tracking forces from 1,5 to 2 grams.

The Reference series of wooden cartridges are a fixed coil design, handmade at Grado labs from a specially selected species of mahogany.