Both are desktop amplifiers, $349 against $289. 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 SMSL SH-9 reaches 100 dB on 567 of the 567 models here, the Schiit Valhalla 2 on 561.
| Specification | Schiit Valhalla 2 | SMSL SH-9 |
|---|---|---|
| Power into 32Ω | 115 mW | 3.0 W |
| Power into 150Ω | 426 mW | 741 mW |
| Power into 300Ω | 800 mW | 440 mW |
| Power into 600Ω | 450 mW | 220 mW |
| Output impedance | 14.0 Ω | <0.1 Ω |
| Output noise | not published | 1.5 µV unverified |
| Price | $349 | $289 |
| Headphones it reaches 100 dB on out of 567 | 561 | 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.
6 headphones reach 100 dB on the SMSL SH-9 but not on the Schiit Valhalla 2 — Moondrop COSMO, Moondrop PARA, Symphonium Crimson, 3 more.
522 headphones are left alone by the SMSL SH-9 under the one-eighth rule but coloured by the Schiit Valhalla 2 (64 Audio Aspire 1, 64 Audio Fourte, 64 Audio Nio, 519 more).
561 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: Schiit Valhalla 2 and SMSL SH-9. Or put either against your own headphones in the source comparison tool.