The Audient NERO is an audio interface at $720. It delivers 86 mW into 32Ω and 13 mW into 300Ω, which ranks it 222 of 280 for raw power among the sources in this database.
Measured at 100 dB SPL it has comfortable headroom on 479 of the 567 dynamic and planar headphones catalogued here, enough but not generous on 73, only marginal on 7 and not enough power for 8. Power is published at 30Ω, 60Ω, 600Ω; the rest of the table is derived from those figures. Output impedance is not published. Output noise is not published, so the hiss estimate cannot be run. Audient prints a peak voltage, an RMS voltage and a power on the same line, and the power is about twice what its own RMS voltage gives. The figures here are the ones Audient printed; the <a href="/amp-spec-audit/">amplifier audit</a> works through the discrepancy.
The manufacturer publishes 90 mW into 30Ω, 56 mW into 60Ω, 7.3 mW into 600Ω. The rest of the table is worked out from those.
Derived rows hold output voltage steady, as an amplifier does (method).
Source: audient.com.
| Load | Power | Status | How it was arrived at |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 Ω | 90 mW | Published | the manufacturer publishes this figure at this exact load |
| 32 Ω | 86 mW | Derived | worked out between two published loads, holding output voltage linear between them |
| 60 Ω | 56 mW | Published | the manufacturer publishes this figure at this exact load |
| 150 Ω | 23 mW | Derived | worked out between two published loads, holding output voltage linear between them |
| 300 Ω | 13 mW | Derived | worked out between two published loads, holding output voltage linear between them |
| 600 Ω | 7.4 mW | Published | the manufacturer publishes this figure at this exact load |
Easiest to hardest to drive, with headroom at a 100 dB SPL peak.
| Headphone | Impedance | Sensitivity | Needs | Headroom | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shure SE846 | 9 Ω | 114.0 dB/mW | 0.04 mW | +28 dB | Comfortable |
| 64 Audio U12t | 12.6 Ω | 108.0 dB/mW | 0.16 mW | +24 dB | Comfortable |
| Shure SE215 | 17 Ω | 107.0 dB/mW | 0.20 mW | +24 dB | Comfortable |
| Moondrop Aria | 32 Ω | 107.1 dB/mW | 0.19 mW | +26 dB | Comfortable |
| Audeze LCD-X 2021 | 20 Ω | 103.0 dB/mW | 0.50 mW | +21 dB | Comfortable |
| Truthear Hexa | 20.5 Ω | 103.1 dB/mW | 0.49 mW | +21 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser IE 200 | 18 Ω | 101.6 dB/mW | 0.69 mW | +19 dB | Comfortable |
| Sony MDR-7506 | 63 Ω | 106.0 dB/mW | 0.25 mW | +23 dB | Comfortable |
| Meze 99 Classics | 32 Ω | 103.0 dB/mW | 0.50 mW | +22 dB | Comfortable |
| Focal Clear MG | 55 Ω | 104.0 dB/mW | 0.40 mW | +22 dB | Comfortable |
| Philips SHP9500 | 32 Ω | 101.0 dB | 0.79 mW | +20 dB | Comfortable |
| Focal Utopia | 80 Ω | 104.0 dB/mW | 0.40 mW | +20 dB | Comfortable |
| Meze Empyrean | 32 Ω | 100.0 dB | 1.0 mW | +19 dB | Comfortable |
| Campfire Audio Andromeda 2020 | 9 Ω | 94.0 dB | 4.0 mW | +8 dB | Enough |
| Etymotic ER2SE | 15 Ω | 96.0 dB/mW | 2.5 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| AKG K371 | 32 Ω | 99.1 dB/mW | 1.2 mW | +18 dB | Comfortable |
| Audio-Technica ATH-M50X | 38 Ω | 99.0 dB/mW | 1.3 mW | +18 dB | Comfortable |
| Beyerdynamic DT 900 Pro X | 48 Ω | 100.0 dB/mW | 1.0 mW | +18 dB | Comfortable |
| Audeze LCD-2 Classic | 70 Ω | 101.0 dB/mW | 0.79 mW | +18 dB | Comfortable |
| Grado SR80x | 38 Ω | 98.0 dB/mW | 1.6 mW | +17 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser HD 560S | 120 Ω | 100.8 dB/mW | 0.83 mW | +15 dB | Comfortable |
| HiFiMAN Edition XS | 18 Ω | 92.0 dB | 6.3 mW | +9 dB | Enough |
| HiFiMAN Arya Stealth | 32 Ω | 94.0 dB | 4.0 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| Dan Clark Audio AEON 2 Closed | 13 Ω | 90.0 dB/mW | 10 mW | +6 dB | Enough |
| Audeze LCD-5 | 14 Ω | 90.0 dB/mW | 10 mW | +6 dB | Enough |
| Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro (250Ω) | 250 Ω | 102.0 dB/mW | 0.63 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| HiFiMAN HE400se | 25 Ω | 91.0 dB | 7.9 mW | +10 dB | Enough |
| HiFiMAN Sundara | 32 Ω | 92.0 dB | 6.3 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Dan Clark Audio Stealth | 23 Ω | 90.0 dB/mW | 10 mW | +8 dB | Enough |
| Fostex T50RP MK3 | 50 Ω | 92.0 dB/mW | 6.3 mW | +10 dB | Enough |
| AKG K702 | 62 Ω | 92.9 dB/mW | 5.1 mW | +10 dB | Comfortable |
| ZMF Verite Closed | 300 Ω | 99.0 dB/mW | 1.3 mW | +10 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser HD 650 | 300 Ω | 97.8 dB/mW | 1.7 mW | +9 dB | Enough |
| Sennheiser HD 800S | 300 Ω | 96.8 dB/mW | 2.1 mW | +8 dB | Enough |
| Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro (250Ω) | 250 Ω | 96.0 dB | 2.5 mW | +8 dB | Enough |
| Audio-Technica ATH-R70X | 470 Ω | 98.0 dB/mW | 1.6 mW | +7 dB | Enough |
| ZMF Atrium | 300 Ω | 96.0 dB/mW | 2.5 mW | +7 dB | Enough |
| Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC | 50 Ω | 88.0 dB/mW | 16 mW | +6 dB | Enough |
| Sennheiser HD 600 | 300 Ω | 91.8 dB/mW | 6.6 mW | +3 dB | Marginal |
| HiFiMAN Susvara | 60 Ω | 83.0 dB | 50 mW | +0 dB | Marginal |
The manufacturer does not publish an output noise figure for this source, so there is no hiss estimate here. If you have a measured figure, the hiss calculator takes it.
The manufacturer does not publish an output impedance for this source. Without it, nothing here can say how this source will behave with a multi-driver in-ear.
With a measured figure, the checker works out the consequence.
| Source | Type | Price | Into 300 Ω | Output impedance | Output noise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FiiO KA11 | USB dongle | $29 | 22 mW | 0.7 Ω | 1.7 µV |
| ddHiFi TC35AL | USB dongle | $46 | 22 mW | not published | not published |
| ddHiFi TC35Air | USB dongle | $46 | 22 mW | not published | not published |
Of the 280 sources here, 143 do everything the Audient NERO does as a headphone output: reach 100 dB on every headphone it reaches. The cheapest of them is the FiiO KA11 at $29, against this one’s $720 — $691 less, and a USB dongle rather than an audio interface.
The cheaper one also publishes an output impedance and a noise figure, which the Audient NERO does not — so on the paperwork it is ahead, not merely level.
This counts the headphone output only; inputs, converters, the volume control and the build are outside it.
$699 · 55 mW into 32Ω · 11 Ω out
Compare →$699 · 471 mW into 32Ω · 1 Ω out
Compare →$750 · 87 mW into 32Ω · 50 Ω out
Compare →$649 · 1.2 W into 32Ω · 0.5 Ω out
Compare →$809 · 190 mW into 32Ω · 50 Ω out
Compare →$599 · 119 mW into 32Ω · 50 Ω out
Compare →Compared with its closest rivals: vs Apogee Duet 3 · vs Audient EVO 16 · vs Audient EVO 4 · vs Audient EVO 8 · vs Audient Horizon 8P · vs Audient iD14 MkII · vs Audient iD24 · vs Audient iD4 MkII · vs Audient iD44 MkII · vs Audient iD48 · vs Audient ORIA · vs Focusrite Scarlett 18i20 4th gen · vs MOTU UltraLite-mk5 · vs SSL 12 · vs Universal Audio Volt 876.