Short answer
Both are Bluetooth receivers, $179 against $199.
The Shanling UP6 reaches 100 dB on 566 of the 567 models here, the Shanling UP5 on 561.
| Specification | Shanling UP5 | Shanling UP6 |
|---|---|---|
| Power into 32Ω | 112 mW | 626 mW |
| Power into 150Ω | 24 mW | 134 mW |
| Power into 300Ω | 12 mW | 67 mW |
| Power into 600Ω | 6.0 mW | 33 mW |
| Output impedance | 0.6 Ω unverified | not published |
| Output noise | 4 µV unverified | not published |
| Price | $179 | $199 |
| Headphones it reaches 100 dB on out of 567 | 561 | 566 |
Not published means the maker leaves it out, so that axis cannot be compared.
| Balanced | Shanling UP5 | Shanling UP6 |
|---|---|---|
| Socket | 2.5mm+4.4mm | no separate rating |
| Power into 32Ω | 240 mW | — |
| Power into 300Ω | 26 mW derived | — |
| Output impedance | not published | — |
| Output noise | not published | — |
| Headphones it reaches 100 dB on out of 567 | 565 | — |
Only the Shanling UP5 has a separate balanced rating from its maker; through it, it reaches 100 dB on 565 of the 567 models here. The Shanling UP6 may still have a balanced socket — its spec sheet simply gives no figure for one, so there is nothing to put beside it. Derived figures are worked out from the loads the maker did publish.
| Load | Shanling UP5 | Shanling UP6 |
|---|---|---|
| 32 Ω | Published | Published |
| 150 Ω | Derived | Derived |
| 300 Ω | Derived | Derived |
| 600 Ω | Derived | Derived |
Both makers publish a power rating. Shanling UP5 publishes at 32 Ω; Shanling UP6 at 32 Ω. The other rows are worked out from those.
The two publish at the same loads, which is the one case where the rows of this table can be read straight across.
5 headphones reach 100 dB on the Shanling UP6 but not on the Shanling UP5 — Moondrop COSMO, Moondrop PARA, Symphonium Crimson, 2 more.
561 of the 567 models here reach 100 dB on both.
Headroom is at a 100 dB SPL peak.
The widest gap on the list is the Sennheiser HD 600: Shanling UP6 has +10 dB of headroom there against +3 dB. 7 dB is about 5.6 times the power, which matters for peaks rather than for how loud the music sits.
The hiss columns are empty for Shanling UP5 and Shanling UP6 because neither maker publishes no output noise figure.
| Headphone | Impedance | Needs | Shanling UP5 headroom | Shanling UP6 headroom | Shanling UP5 hiss | Shanling UP6 hiss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shure SE846 | 9 Ω | 0.04 mW | +29 dB | +36 dB | not published | not published |
| Campfire Audio Andromeda 2020 | 9 Ω | 4.0 mW | +9 dB | +16 dB | not published | not published |
| Audeze LCD-2 Classic | 70 Ω | 0.79 mW | +18 dB | +26 dB | not published | not published |
| Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro (250Ω) | 250 Ω | 0.63 mW | +14 dB | +21 dB | not published | not published |
| HiFiMAN HE400se | 25 Ω | 7.9 mW | +10 dB | +18 dB | not published | not published |
| Audio-Technica ATH-R70X | 470 Ω | 1.6 mW | +7 dB | +14 dB | not published | not published |
| Sennheiser HD 600 | 300 Ω | 6.6 mW | +3 dB | +10 dB | not published | not published |
| HiFiMAN Susvara | 60 Ω | 50 mW | +1 dB | +8 dB | not published | not published |
The Shanling UP6 costs $20 more than the Shanling UP5. Out of the 567 models here, that difference buys 5 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.
Each in full: Shanling UP5 and Shanling UP6.