I do not have experince with Grado Black but played with Green for over a year on my Pioneer PL1000, and it was amazing compared to Stanton DJ cartridge I used to use. I would go for Green since QC on Black may be questionable, but I would seriouly doubt that Grado would sell any Green cartridge that didnt meet it's standard as Black. For that assumption, I went w/ Grado Silver instead of Gold. Honestly, I cannot tell much or any difference between Green and Silver. It is hard for me to perform A/B comparision since I only spin the same record only once a day. Sounds pretty anal but I feel like I need to rest my groove for at least 12 hours, and 1 day rule is easier to follow. Plus, this allows me to listen more indepth.

When I purchased my Pro-Ject table, it came with $40 Oyster cartridge and I HATED it. It sounded like Nina Simone was singing through a cardboard tube w/ fabric softer on the end. I could almost her Nina saying "blow it thru the tube, man" like some college kids living in a dorm.

Either Green or Black it would be a great choice, especially for the money.

Have fun

So, for either Green or Black I think you should go for it.