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Grado Epoch3 Lineage Series Phono Cartridge

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SKU: GREPOCH3-LO
WARNING: for more information go to http://www.P65Warnings.ca.gov
    $12,000.00
    $12,000.00
    Temporarily Out of Stock. Usually Ships in 5-7 Business Days.
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    "Contender for the Title of 'Best Cartridge Money Can Buy.'"

    The flagship Grado Epoch3 produces a dimensional sound field giving it a truly believable presentation. It combines sapphire, gold, diamond, and cocobolo wood to produce the finest hand assembled cartridge ever.

    The Epoch3 brings to life an exceptional reproduction of vocals and instruments with superlative tonal balance, dynamics, imaging, and realism. The Epoch3’s reproduction of low frequency pitch information is second-to-none, while the bass dynamics are solid and authoritative. Harmonics are extremely faithful, giving the recording the correct color, and the mid-range is plush with resolution.

    "It's Remarkable

    "The Epoch did things I hadn't heard any cartridge do," raves analog expert John Fremer in Stereophile magazine. "Put on an LP of the right music, sit down…and you're done. It's remarkable."

    "Audiophiles should not miss the chance to audition the contender for the title of 'Best Cartridge Money Can Buy,'" reports Dr. Tsai, Audio Art magazine.

    "If you have the money and are looking for an amazing cartridge for your record collection, the Grado Epoch is the one," urges audiophile remastering engineer Steve Hoffman.

    The Sound of Wood

    The flagship Epoch3 is nestled inside a Honduran cocobolo wood housing, adding solid mass and a bold yet revealing signature sound. Cocobolo, known for fine instruments and those chess sets that look too nice to touch, is some of the most beautiful and tonally pleasing woods Grado has ever used. This specially selected species of cocobolo goes through a variation of thermal aging processes and enhances its ability to better dampen and control the resonant frequencies throughout the cartridge. Its denseness and grain are primary reasons why it produces such a unique sound.

    The Finest Materials

    A major step forward in phono cartridge design, the sapphire, gold, diamond, and cocobolo work in harmony to bring this cartridge to life. The specially designed diamond stylus, for the first time in a Grado, is mounted on a sapphire cantilever that connects to the stylus generating system. The Epoch3 features a unique generating system that has the lowest effective moving mass of any cartridge, tracking accurately on vinyl. Grado's patented Flux-Bridger generator design creates a superior balance throughout the full frequency spectrum with superb resolution and clarity, which produces an overall truer picture of the music.

    Extreme Precision

    Grado has combined newly developed coil winding techniques with decades-old disciplines. All of the internal magnetic circuit parts are Swiss screw machined or molded metal, which have tolerances on the order of the best Swiss-made watches. A new four-step shielding process brings not only exact unison between the four coils, but also an unobstructed path for the cleanest signal in any phono cartridge. This creates precise balance between channels and accurate stereo imaging. The Epoch3 is wound with the finest properly sized and annealed 24-karat solid gold wire, which is the ultimate conductor for the transmission of the music from your record.

    Hand Assembled in Brooklyn, USA

    Each Epoch3 built sees final assembly by John Grado himself on his workbench, fine tuning them for the best turntable and hi-fi setups. Every experience in Grado's history has led to the creation of the Lineage Series. The Epoch3 represents the craftsmanship and unwavering dedication to sound that has been Grado’s main focus since 1953.

    Choose the Low Output or the Mono version of the Epoch3.

    Product Features

    • Hand Assembled in Brooklyn, USA
    • Cocobolo Wooden Housing
    • 24k Gold
    • Sapphire Cantilever
    • Elliptical Diamond
    • Twin Magnet System
    • Patented Flux-Bridgeâ„¢
    • Ultra High-Purity Copper Coil
    • Four Coil Unison
    • Swiss Screw Machined
    • Choose Low Output or Mono version

    Product Specs

    • Output: 1.0mV @5 CMV (45)
    • Inductance: 8mH
    • Resistance: 95 ohms
    • Input Load: 10k-47k ohms
    • Cartridge Weight: 12 grams
    • Tracking Force: 1.6-1.9 grams
    • Compliance: 20μm/mN
    • Channel Separation: Average 35db - 10-30k Hz
    • Controlled Frequency Response: 5-70 kHz
    • Non-sensitive to capacitance load

    Product Warranty

    1 Year Parts & Labor Grado Warranty Information

    "The Epoch3 will bring the musical performance into your listening space, if your system is up to the task. Superior in most ways to the original, it is, in my opinion, the best cartridge in the world."

    "Expensive, but worth getting a loan. I tip my hat to the awesome John Grado for the Epoch3. Live long and prosper!"

    - Robert H. Levi, Positive Feedback, February 17, 2020


    2022, 2023 Recommended Components - Stereophile

    "The Epoch did things I hadn't heard any cartridge do… Put on an LP of the right music, sit down…and you're done. It's remarkable."

    - Michael Fremer, Stereophile


    "Audiophiles should not miss the chance to audition the contender for the title of 'Best Cartridge Money Can Buy.'"

    - Dr. Tsai, Audio Art magazine


    "If you have the money and are looking for an amazing cartridge for your record collection, the Grado Epoch is the one."

    - Steve Hoffman

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