Grado Reference The Hemp Open-Back Headphones (Limited Edition)

The Grado The Hemp is an open-back over-ear headphone from a limited run, whose housing is made from pressed hemp and maple.

Hemp was new territory for Grado: a material that had never carried a headphone housing before. Combined with maple, it produces a sound that stays warm yet precise – and a housing that looks like nothing else in the Grado range.

Why The Hemp?

Hemp and maple damp resonances each in their own way. Grado combines both to balance warmth and precision instead of committing to just one. The Hemp also introduced the large F-cushion to the range: it keeps the ear at a distance, opens up the soundstage and gives the sound room to breathe.

What you hear

A full, warm foundation, the famous Grado midrange, and an open soundstage with clear localisation. The frequency response spans 13 to 28,000 Hz. The hemp-maple housing gives the presentation an organic, slightly earthy character that no other Grado quite has.

Who is The Hemp for?

For enthusiasts and collectors after a warm, characterful Grado outside the regular models. Straight talk: it's built open, with no isolation whatsoever – on the train, on the bus or in a shared office it's out of place. And if you're after analytical neutrality, The Hemp isn't the right choice either.

Our verdict

The Hemp is a charming one-off: warm wooden sound from an unusual material, with the large F-cushion and a look that starts conversations. A Grado for anyone who'd rather have something individual on the shelf than the model everyone already knows.

Technical data

• Type: Open-back over-ear headphone (Open-Back, dynamic), Limited Edition
• Series: Grado Reference
• Operating principle: Open Air
• Driver: 44 mm, dynamic
• Driver matching: 0.05 dB
• Housing: Hemp and maple
• Frequency response: 13–28,000 Hz
• Nominal impedance: 38 Ω
• Cushions: F-cushion
• Cable: 8-conductor, permanently attached
• Headband: Padded leather with white stitching
• Connector: 3.5 mm jack, 6.3 mm adapter included
• Manufacturing: Hand-assembled in Brooklyn, NY
• What's included: Headphones, 6.3 mm jack adapter

Frequently asked questions

What makes the Grado The Hemp special?

The housing: Grado presses hemp and combines it with maple, giving the sound its own organic character. Add to that the large F-cushion, which gives the ear space and opens up the soundstage. The model was released as a Limited Edition.

What are the technical specs of the Grado The Hemp?

It runs on a 44mm dynamic driver, matched to 0.05 dB, covers 13 to 28,000 Hz and sits at 38 Ω nominal. The fixed 8-conductor cable ends in a 3.5mm jack, with the 6.3mm adapter included. It's hand-built in Brooklyn.

Does the Grado The Hemp need a headphone amplifier?

Not required. At 38 Ω, The Hemp works fine from mobile sources and the headphone output of an integrated amplifier too. With its own headphone amplifier or DAC, though, it gains audibly in calm, control and bass definition – the large F-cushion rewards you for it.

Why buy the Grado The Hemp from HD Zürisee?

Because a special edition needs someone who knows the whole series. HD Zürisee in Wädenswil is an authorised Grado dealer; we'll place The Hemp sonically against the rest of the Reference models and give you an honest recommendation. Get in touch by phone, email or WhatsApp.

Goes well with

A good headphone amplifier is worth it for The Hemp. Replacement F-cushions and extension cables are in our headphone accessories, and the rest of the range is under headphones.