Both are desktop DAC/amps, $2050 against $1999. This page puts them side by side on the only three things a maker can be held to — power, output impedance and noise — and then asks the question that actually matters: which headphones do they treat differently?
The Questyle CMA18 Master reaches 100 dB on 567 of the 567 models here, the Ferrum ERCO on 566.
| Specification | Ferrum ERCO | Questyle CMA18 Master |
|---|---|---|
| Power into 32Ω | 1.1 W | 1.5 W |
| Power into 150Ω | 580 mW | 344 mW |
| Power into 300Ω | 300 mW | 188 mW |
| Power into 600Ω | 150 mW | 94 mW |
| Output impedance | 0.3 Ω | not published |
| Output noise | not published | not published |
| Price | $2050 | $1999 |
| Headphones it reaches 100 dB on out of 567 | 566 | 567 |
A figure marked not published is missing from the maker’s own material, which is not the same as being good or bad. Where one of these two publishes a number and the other does not, the comparison on that axis cannot be made at all — and saying so is more useful than guessing.
1 headphone reaches 100 dB on the Questyle CMA18 Master but not on the Ferrum ERCO — Symphonium Titan.
566 of the 567 models here reach 100 dB on both. That is a power count and nothing more; whether either source suits a given headphone also depends on the two lines above.
Each has a page of its own with every power figure traced to what the maker published and a full headphone list: Ferrum ERCO and Questyle CMA18 Master. Or put either against your own headphones in the source comparison tool.