AKG K612 Pro vs Grado SR80x: which needs more amplifier?

The AKG K612 Pro is 120Ω at 91.8 dB/mW; the Grado SR80x is 38Ω at 98.0 dB/mW. 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 AKG K612 Pro needs 6.2 dB more than the Grado SR80x to reach the same loudness — 6.6 mW against 1.6 mW.

The numbers that decide it

SpecificationAKG K612 ProGrado SR80x
Impedance120 Ω38 Ω
Sensitivity91.8 dB/mW98.0 dB/mW
Sensitivity (voltage)101.0 dB/V112.2 dB/V
Power for 100 dB6.6 mW1.6 mW
Voltage for 100 dB0.89 V0.25 V
Current for 100 dB7.4 mA6.5 mA
Highest source impedance
that leaves them alone (one-eighth rule)
15.00 Ω4.75 Ω
Sources that reach 100 dB
out of 280
277280

Where the two part company

3 of the 280 sources have the power for the Grado SR80x but not for the AKG K612 Pro — Apple USB-C dongle (EU), Steinberg UR22C, Sony NW-A306.

17 sources are low enough in output impedance for the AKG K612 Pro under the one-eighth rule but not for the Grado SR80x (Zoom AMS-22, Arturia MiniFuse 2, Arturia MiniFuse 1, 14 more).

277 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 K612 Pro and Grado SR80x. Every figure on this page comes from what AKG and Grado published, or is derived from it — what AKG publishes and what Grado publishes, both counted.