AKG K371 vs Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω): which needs more amplifier?

The AKG K371 is 32Ω at 99.1 dB/mW; the Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω) is 600Ω at 96.0 dB (no reference unit printed). This page is only about what they ask of an amplifier — not how they sound, which no specification on either sheet can tell you.

The Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω) needs 3.1 dB more than the AKG K371 to reach the same loudness — 2.5 mW against 1.2 mW.

The numbers that decide it

SpecificationAKG K371Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω)
Impedance32 Ω600 Ω
Sensitivity99.1 dB/mW96.0 dB
Sensitivity (voltage)114.0 dB/V98.2 dB/V
Power for 100 dB1.2 mW2.5 mW
Voltage for 100 dB0.20 V1.23 V
Current for 100 dB6.2 mA2.0 mA
Highest source impedance
that leaves them alone (one-eighth rule)
4.00 Ω75.00 Ω
Sources that reach 100 dB
out of 280
280266

One caution before reading the rows. Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω) printed a decibel figure with no reference unit, so this page reads it as per milliwatt. If it is really per volt, that model needs far more than the table says. Why the two readings differ by so much.

Where the two part company

14 of the 280 sources have the power for the AKG K371 but not for the Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω) — Apple USB-C dongle (US), Apple USB-C dongle (EU), JadeAudio JA11, 11 more.

34 sources are low enough in output impedance for the Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω) under the one-eighth rule but not for the AKG K371 (Zoom AMS-22, Audient EVO 4, ART HeadAmp 4 Pro, 31 more).

266 of the 280 sources here reach 100 dB on both. That count is about power only — the output-impedance and hiss lines above are separate questions, and a source can pass this one and fail those.

Both pages in full

Each model has a page of its own with the full source list, the hiss estimate and the provenance of every figure above: AKG K371 and Beyerdynamic DT 880 Edition (600Ω). Each figure on this page is labelled on those pages with where it came from, including the ones AKG and Beyerdynamic never published — what AKG publishes and what Beyerdynamic publishes, both counted.