The Moondrop Moonriver 2 Ti is a USB dongle at $190. It delivers 280 mW into 32Ω and 53 mW into 300Ω, which ranks it 137 of 280 for raw power among the sources in this database.
Measured at 100 dB SPL it has comfortable headroom on 549 of the 567 dynamic and planar headphones catalogued here, enough but not generous on 13, only marginal on 3 and not enough power for 2. Titanium shell, fully balanced discrete output stage. Aimed at people who want a dongle that feels like a piece of hi-fi.
The manufacturer publishes 280 mW into 32Ω, 53 mW into 300Ω. The rest of the table is worked out from those.
The published figures describe the balanced output. A single-ended jack on the same unit will put out less — usually about half the voltage and a quarter of the power.
Derived rows hold output voltage steady, as an amplifier does (method).
Source: moondroplab.com.
| Load | Power | Status | How it was arrived at |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32 Ω | 280 mW | Published | the manufacturer publishes this figure at this exact load |
| 150 Ω | 79 mW | Derived | worked out between two published loads, holding output voltage linear between them |
| 300 Ω | 53 mW | Published | the manufacturer publishes this figure at this exact load |
| 600 Ω | 26 mW | Derived | beyond the published loads, holding output voltage constant — which understates rather than flatters |
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 | +33 dB | Comfortable audible hiss |
| 64 Audio U12t | 12.6 Ω | 108.0 dB/mW | 0.16 mW | +28 dB | Comfortable audible hiss |
| Shure SE215 | 17 Ω | 107.0 dB/mW | 0.20 mW | +29 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Moondrop Aria | 32 Ω | 107.1 dB/mW | 0.19 mW | +32 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Audeze LCD-X 2021 | 20 Ω | 103.0 dB/mW | 0.50 mW | +25 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Truthear Hexa | 20.5 Ω | 103.1 dB/mW | 0.49 mW | +26 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Sennheiser IE 200 | 18 Ω | 101.6 dB/mW | 0.69 mW | +24 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Sony MDR-7506 | 63 Ω | 106.0 dB/mW | 0.25 mW | +28 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Meze 99 Classics | 32 Ω | 103.0 dB/mW | 0.50 mW | +27 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Focal Clear MG | 55 Ω | 104.0 dB/mW | 0.40 mW | +26 dB | Comfortable faint hiss |
| Philips SHP9500 | 32 Ω | 101.0 dB | 0.79 mW | +25 dB | Comfortable |
| Focal Utopia | 80 Ω | 104.0 dB/mW | 0.40 mW | +25 dB | Comfortable |
| Meze Empyrean | 32 Ω | 100.0 dB | 1.0 mW | +24 dB | Comfortable |
| Campfire Audio Andromeda 2020 | 9 Ω | 94.0 dB | 4.0 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| Etymotic ER2SE | 15 Ω | 96.0 dB/mW | 2.5 mW | +17 dB | Comfortable |
| AKG K371 | 32 Ω | 99.1 dB/mW | 1.2 mW | +24 dB | Comfortable |
| Audio-Technica ATH-M50X | 38 Ω | 99.0 dB/mW | 1.3 mW | +23 dB | Comfortable |
| Beyerdynamic DT 900 Pro X | 48 Ω | 100.0 dB/mW | 1.0 mW | +23 dB | Comfortable |
| Audeze LCD-2 Classic | 70 Ω | 101.0 dB/mW | 0.79 mW | +22 dB | Comfortable |
| Grado SR80x | 38 Ω | 98.0 dB/mW | 1.6 mW | +22 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser HD 560S | 120 Ω | 100.8 dB/mW | 0.83 mW | +20 dB | Comfortable |
| HiFiMAN Edition XS | 18 Ω | 92.0 dB | 6.3 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| HiFiMAN Arya Stealth | 32 Ω | 94.0 dB | 4.0 mW | +18 dB | Comfortable |
| Dan Clark Audio AEON 2 Closed | 13 Ω | 90.0 dB/mW | 10 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Audeze LCD-5 | 14 Ω | 90.0 dB/mW | 10 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Beyerdynamic DT 1990 Pro (250Ω) | 250 Ω | 102.0 dB/mW | 0.63 mW | +20 dB | Comfortable |
| HiFiMAN HE400se | 25 Ω | 91.0 dB | 7.9 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| HiFiMAN Sundara | 32 Ω | 92.0 dB | 6.3 mW | +16 dB | Comfortable |
| Dan Clark Audio Stealth | 23 Ω | 90.0 dB/mW | 10 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| Fostex T50RP MK3 | 50 Ω | 92.0 dB/mW | 6.3 mW | +15 dB | Comfortable |
| AKG K702 | 62 Ω | 92.9 dB/mW | 5.1 mW | +15 dB | Comfortable |
| ZMF Verite Closed | 300 Ω | 99.0 dB/mW | 1.3 mW | +16 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser HD 650 | 300 Ω | 97.8 dB/mW | 1.7 mW | +15 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser HD 800S | 300 Ω | 96.8 dB/mW | 2.1 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro (250Ω) | 250 Ω | 96.0 dB | 2.5 mW | +14 dB | Comfortable |
| Audio-Technica ATH-R70X | 470 Ω | 98.0 dB/mW | 1.6 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| ZMF Atrium | 300 Ω | 96.0 dB/mW | 2.5 mW | +13 dB | Comfortable |
| Abyss AB-1266 Phi TC | 50 Ω | 88.0 dB/mW | 16 mW | +11 dB | Comfortable |
| Sennheiser HD 600 | 300 Ω | 91.8 dB/mW | 6.6 mW | +9 dB | Enough |
| HiFiMAN Susvara | 60 Ω | 83.0 dB | 50 mW | +5 dB | Enough |
At 1.5 µV of output noise, here is where that noise lands in the five most revealing in-ears in the database.
This one hisses. With the most sensitive in-ears in the database its own noise lands around 24 dB SPL, which you will hear between tracks and in quiet passages.
| In-ear | Impedance | Sensitivity | Hiss level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simgot EA500 | 16 Ω | 141.0 dB/V | 24 dB SPL |
| Tanchjim EA FORCE | 17 Ω | 137.7 dB/V | 21 dB SPL |
| Shure SE846 | 9 Ω | 134.5 dB/V | 18 dB SPL |
| Campfire Audio Clara | 13.3 Ω | 134.1 dB/V | 18 dB SPL |
| 64 Audio Fourte | 10 Ω | 134.0 dB/V | 18 dB SPL |
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 |
| FiiO BTR13 | Bluetooth receiver | $59 | 10.0 mW | 0.6 Ω | 1.0 µV |
| FiiO KA3 | USB dongle | $79 | 14 mW | 0.5 Ω | 1.7 µV |
Of the 280 sources here, 10 do everything the Moondrop Moonriver 2 Ti does as a headphone output: reach 100 dB on every headphone it reaches and stay under the audible-hiss threshold wherever it does. The cheapest of them is the FiiO KA11 at $29, against this one’s $190 — $161 less.
The cheaper one also publishes an output impedance, which the Moondrop Moonriver 2 Ti 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.
$189 · 120 mW into 32Ω · 0.4 Ω out
Compare →$199 · 118 mW into 32Ω · output Ω not published
Compare →$200 · 124 mW into 32Ω · 0.2 Ω out
Compare →$179 · 125 mW into 32Ω · 2.0 Ω out
Compare →$210 · 121 mW into 32Ω · output Ω not published
Compare →$219 · 125 mW into 32Ω · 0.9 Ω out
Compare →Compared with its closest rivals: vs Astell&Kern HC3 · vs ddHiFi TC44 Pro · vs ddHiFi TC44Grip · vs EPZ TP50 · vs iBasso DC07 Pro · vs Moondrop Dawn Pro.