Empire

Explore Empire vintage audio equipment in the Vintage Technology Archive.

Models

2000E — Empire 2000E moving-iron phono cartridge — 20-20,000 Hz, 4.5 mV, 0.2 x 0.7 elliptical, factory-fit on countless 1970s turntables.

1000-ZE — Empire 1000-ZE top-of-line phono cartridge 1971-1972, $99.95, marketed for 4-channel; documented mainly through Empire's own ads.
2000Z — Empire 2000Z: a late-1970s phono cartridge praised in High Fidelity for its neutral character and exceptionally smooth frequency response.
4000D — The Empire 4000D (mid-1970s) was a four-channel/super-stereo phono cartridge for the CD-4 era, documented mainly through Empire's own ad claims: 1/4g tracking and 5 Hz-50 kHz response.
888P — Empire 888P phono cartridge (mid-1960s), known through ads and one HiFi/Stereo Review test: 1-gram tracking, 5.7 mV output, +1.25 dB to 14 kHz.
M55E — No confirmed Empire M55E exists in the record — M55E in period sources is a Shure model. An identification-gap entry, not a spec page.

598-III — Empire 598-III turntable: known from its 1975–76 ad campaign — hysteresis synchronous motor, −63 dB rumble. Independent reviews scarce.

7500M — Empire 7500M Grenadier (1971–1973): 75-lb cylindrical three-way with downward-firing 15-inch woofer, 25–20,000 Hz, $169.95–$184.95.
808E — Empire 808E stereo phono cartridge, documented in HiFi/Stereo Review's July 1969 lab test: good but slightly older, 14 kHz peak, strong separation.
999-VE — Little independent documentation survives for the Empire 999-VE, a top-of-the-line stereo phono cartridge from the late 1960s. What the record mostly

100S — Empire 100S moving-iron phono cartridge — the $40 budget entry in Empire's 1981 line, below the 2000E/III and 300 ME. Thin specs, real history.
500 ID — Empire 500 ID moving-iron cartridge — boron-vapor cantilever, Samarium-Cobalt magnets, two-year warranty. Specs unconfirmed; 1981 advertising documented.
880PE — Empire 880PE elliptical moving-magnet cartridge (1964): 8–30,000 cps, 8 mV output, 30 dB separation, ½–4 g tracking. The 880P with an elliptical tip.
EDR.9 — Empire EDR.9 — Extended Dynamic Response phono cartridge with L.A.C. stylus, load-independent design, 20 Hz–35 kHz ±1.75 dB.
MODEL-108 — Empire Model 108 — a 1950s two-way speaker system sold as components: 12BW-1 woofer, T-10 tweeter, 8-HD horn, 800 cps crossover, $160 less cabinet.