iBasso DX340 vs Sony NW-WM1AM2

Short answer

  • More power: the iBasso DX340, with 550 mW into 32 Ω; the Sony NW-WM1AM2 has 30 mW (balanced: 2.15 W against 125 mW). The iBasso DX340 drives 14 headphones to 100 dB that the Sony NW-WM1AM2 cannot (Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω), Beyerdynamic DT 990 Edition (600Ω), HiFiMAN HE-6se V2, 11 more).
  • Hiss with sensitive IEMs: cannot be compared — the maker of the iBasso DX340 publishes no noise figure.
  • Price: the iBasso DX340 costs $300 more; what that buys on these numbers is set out further down, under What the price difference buys.

Both are portable players, $1699 against $1399.

The iBasso DX340 reaches 100 dB on 566 of the 567 models here, the Sony NW-WM1AM2 on 552.

Every published figure, next to each other

SpecificationiBasso DX340Sony NW-WM1AM2
Power into 32Ω550 mW30 mW
Power into 150Ω117 mW6.4 mW
Power into 300Ω59 mW3.2 mW
Power into 600Ω29 mW1.6 mW
Output impedancenot published1 Ω unverified
Output noisenot published3 µV unverified
Price$1699$1399
Headphones it reaches 100 dB on
out of 567
566552

Not published means the maker leaves it out, so that axis cannot be compared.

The 4.4 mm or XLR socket, rated on its own

BalancediBasso DX340Sony NW-WM1AM2
Socket4.4mm4.4mm
Power into 32Ω2.1 W125 mW derived
Power into 300Ω229 mW derived13 mW derived
Output impedancenot publishednot published
Output noisenot publishednot published
Headphones it reaches 100 dB on
out of 567
567561

Through the balanced sockets the iBasso DX340 reaches 100 dB on 567 of the 567 models here and the Sony NW-WM1AM2 on 561. Derived figures are worked out from the loads the maker did publish.

Where each power figure comes from

LoadiBasso DX340Sony NW-WM1AM2
32 ΩPublishedDerived
150 ΩDerivedDerived
300 ΩDerivedDerived
600 ΩDerivedDerived

Only one of these two columns starts from a power rating. iBasso DX340 publishes one at 32 Ω; Sony NW-WM1AM2 publishes none at any of these four loads, so its column is worked out from power it published at other loads. Both are arithmetic on a maker’s own figures rather than guesses, and the method used for the Sony NW-WM1AM2 understates rather than flatters — but at 32 Ω is the only load here at which its maker can be held to a figure.

What the labels mean.

The headphones that tell them apart

14 headphones reach 100 dB on the iBasso DX340 but not on the Sony NW-WM1AM2 — Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω), Beyerdynamic DT 990 Edition (600Ω), HiFiMAN HE-6se V2, 11 more.

552 of the 567 models here reach 100 dB on both.

Headroom and hiss on 8 models, both sources

Headroom is at a 100 dB SPL peak.

The widest gap on the list is the Sennheiser HD 600: iBasso DX340 has +9 dB of headroom there against -3 dB. 13 dB is about 18 times the power, which matters for peaks rather than for how loud the music sits.

The hiss columns are empty for iBasso DX340 and Sony NW-WM1AM2 because neither maker publishes no output noise figure.

HeadphoneImpedanceNeedsiBasso DX340 headroomSony NW-WM1AM2 headroomiBasso DX340 hissSony NW-WM1AM2 hiss
Shure SE8469 Ω0.04 mW+36 dB+29 dBnot publishednot published
Campfire Audio Andromeda 20209 Ω4.0 mW+16 dB+9 dBnot publishednot published
Audeze LCD-2 Classic70 Ω0.79 mW+25 dB+12 dBnot publishednot published
Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro (250Ω)250 Ω0.63 mW+20 dB+8 dBnot publishednot published
HiFiMAN HE400se25 Ω7.9 mW+17 dB+7 dBnot publishednot published
Audio-Technica ATH-R70X470 Ω1.6 mW+14 dB+1 dBnot publishednot published
Sennheiser HD 600300 Ω6.6 mW+9 dB-3 dBnot publishednot published
HiFiMAN Susvara60 Ω50 mW+8 dB-5 dBnot publishednot published

The gap in dollars, against the gap in numbers

The iBasso DX340 costs $300 more than the Sony NW-WM1AM2. Out of the 567 models here, that difference buys 14 more models driven to 100 dB.

Nothing runs the other way: there is no axis here on which the cheaper of the two does better.

Only published figures count here; blank axes are counted separately.

Both pages in full

Each in full: iBasso DX340 and Sony NW-WM1AM2.

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