Danish brand Gryphon Audio Designs has made a striking debut in the world of turntable cartridges with the launch of its very first model — the Black Diamond DLC.
Marking a significant milestone in the company’s 40-year legacy, the Black Diamond DLC represents Gryphon’s first cartridge released under its own name. Based on the highly acclaimed Ortofon MC Diamond, this new creation doesn’t merely borrow from an industry benchmark — it reimagines it, with a series of technical and material upgrades that aim to redefine what’s possible in analog playback.
Gryphon Audio Black Diamond DLC – the first cartridge from Gryphon Audio Designs
At its core, the Black Diamond DLC retains the extraordinary fundamentals of the Ortofon MC Diamond: a diamond cantilever, an Ortofon Replicant 100 stylus, and a precision-crafted titanium body made using advanced Selective Laser Melting (SLM) technology. These elements have already earned the MC Diamond a reputation as one of the most refined and technically advanced cartridges available today. But Gryphon saw room for evolution — and innovation.
What sets the Black Diamond DLC apart, both visually and sonically, is Gryphon’s proprietary diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating, developed in collaboration with the Danish Technological Institute. The result is a deep, lustrous black finish — more than just aesthetic — that dramatically improves the cartridge’s acoustic performance. Thanks to this DLC-TR SLM-treated titanium, the speed of sound transmission through the material has been doubled from 9,000 to 18,000 meters per second. According to Gryphon, this leap translates directly into unprecedented levels of clarity, resolution, and musical realism.
The innovations go well beyond the surface. Internally, the traditional copper coil wire has been replaced with gold-plated copper, offering enhanced conductivity and greater long-term durability. The coil architecture itself has been redesigned into a new six-layer configuration, with 2 x 84 turns per channel, engineered to optimize signal integrity and fidelity.
Upgraded front and rear rubber bearings are now made from a specially developed rubber compound that delivers previously unattainable levels of strength, performance and durability.
Further upgrades include newly developed front and rear rubber bearings, formulated from a bespoke compound to offer superior mechanical stability, longevity, and resistance to wear. This contributes to smoother performance and extended operational life — all with minimal need for maintenance.
With these enhancements, Gryphon’s Black Diamond DLC positions itself not just as a refinement of an existing masterpiece, but as a cartridge capable of pushing the envelope of analog audio performance.
Full technical specifications, pricing, and availability details for the Black Diamond DLC will be revealed soon.
