ATH-ADX5000 vs ATH-R70xa: which needs more amplifier?

The Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000 is 420Ω at 100.0 dB/mW; the Audio-Technica ATH-R70xa is 470Ω at 97.0 dB/mW. This page covers what they ask of an amplifier, not how they sound.

The ATH-R70xa needs 3.0 dB more than the ATH-ADX5000 to reach the same loudness — 2.0 mW against 1.0 mW.

The numbers that decide it

SpecificationATH-ADX5000ATH-R70xa
Impedance420 Ω470 Ω
Sensitivity100.0 dB/mW97.0 dB/mW
Sensitivity (voltage)103.8 dB/V100.3 dB/V
Power for 100 dB1.0 mW2.0 mW
Voltage for 100 dB0.65 V0.97 V
Current for 100 dB1.5 mA2.1 mA
Highest source impedance
that leaves them alone (one-eighth rule)
52.50 Ω58.75 Ω
Sources that reach 100 dB
out of 280
280275

Where the two part company

5 of the 280 sources have the power for the ATH-ADX5000 but not for the ATH-R70xa — Apple USB-C dongle (EU), FiiO BTR11, Steinberg UR22C, 2 more.

275 of the 280 sources here reach 100 dB on both.

What each one needs from 80 to 105 dB

The ATH-R70xa is more demanding than 98% of the 567 non-electrostatic models in this database; the ATH-ADX5000 than 93%.

dB SPLATH-ADX5000 powerATH-ADX5000 voltageATH-R70xa powerATH-R70xa voltage
800.01 mW65 mV0.02 mW97 mV
850.03 mW0.12 V0.06 mW0.17 V
900.10 mW0.20 V0.20 mW0.31 V
950.32 mW0.36 V0.63 mW0.54 V
1001.0 mW0.65 V2.0 mW0.97 V
1053.2 mW1.15 V6.3 mW1.72 V

The cheapest source that satisfies both

SourcePriceHeadroom, ATH-ADX5000Headroom, ATH-R70xaOutput impedanceNoise
JadeAudio JA11$203.6 dB0.1 dB0.5 Ω1.7 µV
FiiO KA11$2912.0 dB8.5 dB0.7 Ω1.7 µV
FiiO BTR13$598.5 dB5.1 dB0.6 Ω1.0 µV

Of the 280 sources here, 275 reach 100 dB on both. 71 of them also publish an output impedance low enough for both under the one-eighth rule and a noise figure that stays below the audible-hiss threshold with both.

The cheapest of the 71 is the JadeAudio JA11, at $20. It leaves 3.6 dB of headroom on the ATH-ADX5000 and 0.1 dB on the ATH-R70xa, its output impedance is 0.5 Ω against a one-eighth limit of 52.50 Ω and 58.75 Ω, and its noise figure puts the hiss floor 32 dB and 35 dB below the 20 dB SPL this site treats as the point where a quiet room stops hiding it.

Try any other source.

What each sheet prints, and what it is worth

ModelAs printedToleranceStandard
ATH-ADX50005 – 50,000 Hznot printednot printed
ATH-R70xa5 to 40,000 Hznot printednot printed

Audio-Technica prints 5 – 50,000 Hz for the ATH-ADX5000 and 5 to 40,000 Hz for the ATH-R70xa.

Neither range has a tolerance printed beside it, so a wider range on one sheet is not deeper bass or more treble.

Not a measurement; maker by maker.

Both pages in full

Both have a page of their own. In full: Audio-Technica ATH-ADX5000 and Audio-Technica ATH-R70xa. Every figure on this page comes from what Audio-Technica published, or is derived from it — what that maker publishes, counted.

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