The HiFiMAN Susvara is 60Ω at 83.0 dB (no reference unit printed); the Philips SHP9600 is 32Ω at 102.0 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 HiFiMAN Susvara needs 19.0 dB more than the Philips SHP9600 to reach the same loudness — 50 mW against 0.63 mW.
| Specification | HiFiMAN Susvara | Philips SHP9600 |
|---|---|---|
| Impedance | 60 Ω | 32 Ω |
| Sensitivity | 83.0 dB | 102.0 dB |
| Sensitivity (voltage) | 95.2 dB/V | 116.9 dB/V |
| Power for 100 dB | 50 mW | 0.63 mW |
| Voltage for 100 dB | 1.73 V | 0.14 V |
| Current for 100 dB | 28.9 mA | 4.4 mA |
| Highest source impedance that leaves them alone (one-eighth rule) | 7.50 Ω | 4.00 Ω |
| Sources that reach 100 dB out of 280 | 231 | 280 |
One caution before reading the rows. HiFiMAN Susvara and Philips SHP9600 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.
49 of the 280 sources have the power for the Philips SHP9600 but not for the HiFiMAN Susvara — Apple USB-C dongle (US), Apple USB-C dongle (EU), Generic CX31993 dongles, 46 more.
1 source is low enough in output impedance for the HiFiMAN Susvara under the one-eighth rule but not for the Philips SHP9600 (Shanling H5).
231 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 Susvara and Philips SHP9600. Each figure on this page is labelled on those pages with where it came from, including the ones HiFiMAN and Philips never published — what HiFiMAN publishes and what Philips publishes, both counted.