The Thieaudio Hype 10 is 18Ω at 87.6 dB/mW; the Thieaudio Monarch MKIV is 10Ω at 100.0 dB (no reference unit printed). This page covers what they ask of an amplifier, not how they sound.
The Hype 10 needs 12.4 dB more than the Monarch MKIV to reach the same loudness — 17 mW against 1.0 mW.
| Specification | Hype 10 | Monarch MKIV |
|---|---|---|
| Impedance | 18 Ω | 10 Ω |
| Sensitivity | 87.6 dB/mW | 100.0 dB |
| Sensitivity (voltage) | 105.0 dB/V | 120.0 dB/V |
| Power for 100 dB | 17 mW | 1.0 mW |
| Voltage for 100 dB | 0.56 V | 0.10 V |
| Current for 100 dB | 31.1 mA | 10.0 mA |
| Highest source impedance that leaves them alone (one-eighth rule) | 2.25 Ω | 1.25 Ω |
| Sources that reach 100 dB out of 280 | 264 | 280 |
One caution before reading the rows. Thieaudio Monarch MKIV 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.
16 of the 280 sources have the power for the Monarch MKIV but not for the Hype 10 — Apple USB-C dongle (US), Apple USB-C dongle (EU), JadeAudio JA11, 13 more.
8 sources are low enough in output impedance for the Hype 10 under the one-eighth rule but not for the Monarch MKIV (FiiO KA13, Schiit Vali 2+, Astell&Kern HC3, 5 more).
1 source stays below the audible-hiss threshold with the Hype 10 but crosses it with the Monarch MKIV (Schiit Mjolnir 3).
264 of the 280 sources here reach 100 dB on both.
The Hype 10 is more demanding than 88% of the 567 non-electrostatic models in this database; the Monarch MKIV than 32%.
| dB SPL | Hype 10 power | Hype 10 voltage | Monarch MKIV power | Monarch MKIV voltage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80 | 0.17 mW | 56 mV | 0.01 mW | 10 mV |
| 85 | 0.55 mW | 99 mV | 0.03 mW | 18 mV |
| 90 | 1.7 mW | 0.18 V | 0.10 mW | 32 mV |
| 95 | 5.5 mW | 0.31 V | 0.32 mW | 56 mV |
| 100 | 17 mW | 0.56 V | 1.0 mW | 0.10 V |
| 105 | 55 mW | 0.99 V | 3.2 mW | 0.18 V |
| Source | Price | Headroom, Hype 10 | Headroom, Monarch MKIV | Output impedance | Noise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FiiO KA11 | $29 | 11.3 dB | 21.9 dB | 0.7 Ω | 1.7 µV |
| FiiO BTR11 | $36 | 3.8 dB | 14.5 dB | 0.5 Ω | 8.0 µV |
| FiiO BTR13 | $59 | 8.2 dB | 18.8 dB | 0.6 Ω | 1.0 µV |
Of the 280 sources here, 264 reach 100 dB on both. 64 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 64 is the FiiO KA11, at $29. It leaves 11.3 dB of headroom on the Hype 10 and 21.9 dB on the Monarch MKIV, its output impedance is 0.7 Ω against a one-eighth limit of 2.25 Ω and 1.25 Ω, and its noise figure puts the hiss floor 30 dB and 15 dB below the 20 dB SPL this site treats as the point where a quiet room stops hiding it.
Both have a page of their own. In full: Thieaudio Hype 10 and Thieaudio Monarch MKIV. Each figure on this page is labelled on those pages with where it came from, including the ones Thieaudio never published — what that maker publishes, counted.