The Verum Audio Verum 2 is 8Ω with a sensitivity of 96.0 dB/mW, which is 117.0 dB/V. To reach 100 dB SPL — genuinely loud, louder than most people listen — it needs 2.5 mW, or 0.14 V across the drivers.
That puts it in the easy category. A phone, a laptop headphone jack or the cheapest USB dongle will drive it to painful levels. Of the 280 sources in the database, 223 have at least 10 dB of headroom and another 51 have enough. The cheapest portable source that does the job is the Apple USB-C dongle (US) at $9.
Sensitivity here is in dB per milliwatt. Why the unit matters.
Verum Audio publishes this directly as 96 dB/mW (none stated (bare dB/mW, no frequency or reference point given)), per milliwatt, so nothing was converted.
The maker adds a power recommendation of its own: Verum Audio publishes a recommended amplifier figure verbatim as "Recommended amplifier: 0.5w@8 ohm" — i.e. 0.5 W INTO THE STATED 8 ohm load, which is one of the rare cases where the manufacturer gives both the power and the load.
Source: verum-audio.com, verum-audio.com. How this data was built.
Verum Audio prints no frequency range for the Verum Audio Verum 2 at all. Source: verum-audio.com.
Only what the maker printed; maker by maker.
| Level | What it is | Power | Voltage | Current |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 85 dB SPL | quiet background listening | 0.08 mW | 25 mV | 3.2 mA |
| 95 dB SPL | normal listening | 0.79 mW | 80 mV | 10.0 mA |
| 100 dB SPL | loud listening | 2.5 mW | 0.14 V | 17.7 mA |
| 105 dB SPL | very loud | 7.9 mW | 0.25 V | 31.5 mA |
| 110 dB SPL | peaks on dynamic music | 25 mW | 0.45 V | 56.0 mA |
Most people listen between 75 and 85 dB; the 100 dB row leaves room for peaks.
The 15 cheapest of the 280 sources here that reach 100 dB SPL into 8Ω with at least 10 dB of headroom and no known hiss or output-impedance problem with these headphones. All 280 sources, judged for these headphones.
| Source | Type | Price | Power into 8Ω | Headroom | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FiiO SnowSky Tiny B | USB dongle | $22 | 34 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Tanchjim Stargate II | USB dongle | $40 | 41 mW | +12 dB | Comfortable |
| ddHiFi TC35AL | USB dongle | $46 | 52 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| ddHiFi TC35Air | USB dongle | $46 | 52 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| Fosi Audio N3 | Bluetooth receiver | $50 | 34 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| FiiO BTR13 | Bluetooth receiver | $59 | 60 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| EPZ TP35 Pro | USB dongle | $70 | 28 mW | +10 dB | Comfortable |
| Tanchjim Space | USB dongle | $70 | 31 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Aiyima A2 Pro | desktop DAC/amp | $75 | 37 mW | +12 dB | Comfortable |
| ddHiFi TC44 Pro E2 | USB dongle | $99 | 63 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| Onix Alpha XI1 | USB dongle | $109 | 45 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| JDS Labs Atom Amp 2 | desktop amplifier | $129 | 662 mW | +24 dB | Comfortable |
| Hidizs S9 Pro Plus | USB dongle | $139 | 34 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Tanchjim LUNA | USB dongle | $140 | 88 mW | +15 dB | Comfortable |
| Topping L30 II | desktop amplifier | $149 | 1.8 W | +28 dB | Comfortable |
Hiss. At 117.0 dB/V these are sensitive enough to reveal a source's own noise floor. The noisiest source in the database, the Schiit Mjolnir 3, would put its hiss at roughly 25 dB SPL in these headphones — clearly audible in quiet passages. Check your own source.
Output impedance. At 8Ω these want a source output impedance below 1.00Ω to satisfy the one-eighth rule; 50 of the 192 sources that publish one miss it. Check yours here.
8Ω · 107.0 dB/mW · Easy
See requirements →16Ω · 99.0 dB/mW · Easy
See requirements →20Ω · 100.0 dB/mW · Easy
See requirements →20Ω · 100.0 dB/mW · Easy
See requirements →32Ω · 102.0 dB · Easy
See requirements →32Ω · 102.0 dB · Easy
See requirements →Compared with its stablemates: vs Verum 1.