Grado has unveiled two new pairs of audiophile-friendly wired headphones, and the premium audio brand is boldly claiming that their new flagship Statement GS3000x is the best-sounding sound they’ve ever made.
Grado’s high-end line eschews what most headphone wearers expect from modern features like noise cancellation and voice assistants, focusing instead on detailed wired models that offer pristine audio fidelity and the same top-tier asking price.
The GS3000x features new 52mm drivers, the largest in the company’s history and 2mm larger than the speakers found in Grado’s previous flagship GS3000e headphones.
The new driver design also features a more powerful magnetic circuit and a voice coil with reduced effective mass, as well as an overhauled diaphragm.
As we’ve come to expect from the Brooklyn brand, the GS3000x has a wood finish, with an outer shell made of a tropical hardwood called cocobolo.
The drivers are specifically tuned to maximize the resonance of the wood, and the nature of cocobolo means that no two headphones will look the same due to the different grain and tone of the wood.
Below the GS3000x is Grado’s just-announced successor to the wildly popular GS1000e headphones.
The new Statement GS1000x features a similar retro open design, first seen by Grado combining mahogany and ipê wood.
The family-run company claims this combination brings together the best qualities of two tone woods, with mahogany for warmth and texture, while ipê helps maintain the structural integrity of the sound as it moves through the grain of the shell.
Much like its flagship sibling, the main difference is that the GS1000x’s 8 – 35,000Hz frequency response is slightly narrower than the 4 – 51,000Hz frequency response offered by the GS3000x.
Both earphones have exposed grilles on the back of the case for each case to allow more free movement of sound and air. These earphones are primarily designed for listening to music at home, as their output leaks keep them in Not ideal in an office environment, or on a crowded train.
Both new Statement lines feature an “improved” 12-conductor braided cable as well as new redesigned headbands, and both will go on sale next month.
The Grado Statement GS1000x is priced at $1,195/$1,295 or $1,365/$1,495 with balanced XLR connectors, while the flagship Grado Statement GS3000x is priced at $1,995/$2,195 or $2,165/$2,395 with balanced XLR connectors device).
