The HiFiMAN HE-6se V2 is 50Ω at 83.5 dB (no reference unit printed); the HiFiMAN HE5XX (Drop) is 18Ω at 93.5 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 HE-6se V2 needs 10.0 dB more than the HE5XX (Drop) to reach the same loudness — 45 mW against 4.5 mW.
| Specification | HE-6se V2 | HE5XX (Drop) |
|---|---|---|
| Impedance | 50 Ω | 18 Ω |
| Sensitivity | 83.5 dB | 93.5 dB |
| Sensitivity (voltage) | 96.5 dB/V | 110.9 dB/V |
| Power for 100 dB | 45 mW | 4.5 mW |
| Voltage for 100 dB | 1.49 V | 0.28 V |
| Current for 100 dB | 29.9 mA | 15.8 mA |
| Highest source impedance that leaves them alone (one-eighth rule) | 6.25 Ω | 2.25 Ω |
| Sources that reach 100 dB out of 280 | 240 | 280 |
One caution before reading the rows. HiFiMAN HE-6se V2 and HiFiMAN HE5XX (Drop) printed a decibel figure with no reference unit, so this page reads it as per milliwatt. If it is really per volt, each of them needs far more than the table says. Why the two readings differ by so much.
40 of the 280 sources have the power for the HE5XX (Drop) but not for the HE-6se V2 — Apple USB-C dongle (US), Apple USB-C dongle (EU), Generic CX31993 dongles, 37 more.
1 source is low enough in output impedance for the HE-6se V2 under the one-eighth rule but not for the HE5XX (Drop) (Shanling H5).
240 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.
Each model has a page of its own with the full source list, the hiss estimate and the provenance of every figure above: HiFiMAN HE-6se V2 and HiFiMAN HE5XX (Drop). Each figure on this page is labelled on those pages with where it came from, including the ones HiFiMAN never published — what that maker publishes, counted.