SteelSeries Arctis 9 – Dual Wireless Gaming Headset – Lossless 2.4 GHz Wireless + Bluetooth – 20+ Hour Battery Life – For PC, PlayStation 5 and PS4, Black
ARCTIS 9
High Performance Wireless + Bluetooth
The Arctis 9 dual wireless headset combines high performance 2.4 GHz wireless for premium gaming audio on PC and PlayStation, with the convenience of simultaneous Bluetooth connectivity for everything else.
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Tuned to reveal every detail
The soundscape of Arctis emphasizes subtle, critical sounds to give you an advantage.
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Discord-certified microphone
The Arctis ClearCast bidirectional microphone has superior noise cancellation and clarity.
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DTS Headphone:X v2.0
DTS Headphone:X v2.0 provides incredibly accurate surround sound positional cues for PC.
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On-ear ChatMix control
Dial in your balance of game and chat audio right from the headset without pausing your game.
More battery means more gaming
An optimized battery provides up to 20+ hours of nonstop wireless usage, so you can game all day and night on a single charge.
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Premium woven ski goggle fabric
The elastic fabric perfectly contours across your entire head, comfortably distributing the weight and eliminating pressure points.
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AirWeave ear cushions
Athletics-inspired performance fabric AirWeave ear cushions keep your ears cool and dry.
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Durable steel headband
Premium lightweight steel headband construction for build quality you can feel.
Compare Headsets
| | 2.4 GHz Wireless | |
| | Bluetooth | |
| | DTS Surround (PC) | |
Hi-Res Audio Drivers | | |
Swappable Battery | | |
Retractable | Mic Type | Retractable |
PC, PS5, PS4 | Compatibility | PC, PS5, PS4 |
| | 2.4 GHz Wireless | |
| | Bluetooth | |
| | DTS Surround (PC) | |
Hi-Res Audio Drivers | ||
Swappable Battery | ||
Retractable | Mic Type | Detachable |
PC, PS5, PS4 | Compatibility | Multi-platform |
- Arctis Pro Wireless
- Arctis 1 Wireless
| Weight: | 367 g |
| Size: | Arctis 9 |
| Dimensions: | 16.9 x 9.2 x 19.2 cm; 367 Grams |
| Model: | 61484 |
| Colour: | Black |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Polymer batteries required. (included) |
| Colour: | Black |
| Size: | Arctis 9 |
charge time and battery time
so after a few months of using I’ve noticed that the battery is not as good as it used to be maybe getting 10-12 hours use on full charge on low volumes for 200 id expect a bit longer personally also i don’t know why on such an expensive headset they wouldn’t have usb type c it does annoy me a little, although the comfort of these headphones are phenomenal along with the quality of sound although sometimes for in game chat my audio is noticeably poorer than when i use discord all in all a great headset and would recommend if on sale.
Pros:
The design is very smart; mainly white with a couple of black and blue accents.
The way it sits on the head makes it very comfortable and it can be easily adjusted.
Really good button placements make it fairly quick to get familiar with the headset thus easy to adjust settings without looking.
Audio quality is fantastic: Dialogue being clear, decent audio range, nice bass and 3D audio works very well too (superb for games like CoD).
I got instant compliments when I switched to this headset; my friends said my voice was crisp and easy to understand.
I LOVE the sidetone feature and how easy it is to adjust the sensitivity.
With the battery life lasting around 30 hours, makes this headset very reliable.
Neutral:
Quite an odd shape for the wireless dongle; it’s a bit impractical and I don’t get why they shaped it in such a way.
Cons:
When the dongle is inserted to the PS5, the console automatically thinks a headset is connected even when the headset is not powered on, so you have to manually switch over to TV audio on the PS5 or unplug the dongle.
Best headset I've used, but not without its flaws.
This review is based on usage with an Xbox Series X via Xbox Wireless Protocol and a PC/Phone via Bluetooth
Pros:
Excellent sound quality
Direct Xbox connection with Wireless Protocol (same as Xbox Controller)
Dual Input via BT&XBWP simultaneously works well
Premium materials
Excellent battery life
Cons:
Can sometimes randomly stutter and turn off, either immediately after turning on or after a period of usage
Cup brackets can snap internally and become flimsy/click, potentially affecting usage while being worn
Ear cups are not too deep, so bigger ears will touch the speaker covers
I wanted a wireless headset because I killed my old headset wire with my desk chair wheels. This appeared a cheap alternative from a reputable brand and it came with a usb a to usb c converter so I could use it on my toaster of a pc. The sound quality is good, better than a cheap no name headset but it does lack a certain clarity and base if you’re into that. But the sound is very clear and bright, good for late night lofi and sims sessions, terrible for punchy gunfire.
Battery life is frankly amazing, I’ve owned the headset two months using it daily and I’ve charged it twice?? I believe they may be using magic.
The sheer amount of dials, buttons and wheels on the headset issss a little annoying, you hit the wrong dial a lot. Also for us smaller headed people, the ear cups are m a s s i v e and after a while the headset can feel quite heavy. That said it’s pretty well made and I’ve yet to encounter any issues that others have spoken off. If you wear glasses though this headset will introduce you to a new level of pain, it presses the arms into what feels like your brain itself
The drivers for this headset do ‘drive’ me mad. The ai surround deadens all sounds and makes the headset a mushy sounding mess. The discord/game function means you will have 5 different audio devices in your sound centre and my PC doesn’t run audio through any of them except the bog standard headphone channel. The ability to tune your mic is good though, especially the preset options which can make you sound like a guy, 10/10 less weird comments when I’m using it.
Tldr: if you need a cheap wireless headset, this is a good option. Unless you have glasses, then don’t bother.
Good headset, but...
Headset is good and comfortable, good sound and all, no issues with it when its working.
The only thing i hate about it, is that when my battery runs out, almost 90% of the time it wont work after, even when connecting it to charging cable, it simply wont start charging, or it will and when i try to turn it on after charging for some time, it will go in random broken mode where the power led isnt on, but the mic mute led will be on and it gets stuck in this. After that i need to spend like 30 minutes fixing it by pressing the factory reset button, but since it wont always work, i need to repeat the process like 10 times until it does. The only thing the customer support were able to help with was “do factory reset” and I’ve opened 2 tickets about the same issue already and after that i just found it pointless. It is really furstrating having to always keep battery in check out of fear that the headset one day wont just turn on and having to remember every time i leave it to turn it off is a drag. Its wireless for a reason and battery running out should break the whole headset. I am wondering if to give 3 or 4 stars just because of this issue i keep encountering.
This issue aside, headset is 5/5 for me (when you get it on sale for at least 120 and under, as earcups are shallow and will need some extra money to buy a replacement, but i already had one so it was no biggie for me), and since this the only minus i have with them is the battery issue, which honestly sometimes just makes me want to throw the headset out of the window and buy something else instead, so I am giving it a 4/5.
Works well on both Xbox wireless and Bluetooth
Got this on a like new from Amazon warehouse.
Got a bit of a tangle on the pricing but that is not the point in this review.
Moving onto the review.
Box is easy to get into. In there I found only a headset and a micro usb cable.
My use case is use Xbox wireless dongle to connect to PC for gaming and Bluetooth for work calls.
Xbox wireless dongle connection is simple. Start pairing on dongle and hold power button on headset for 6 seconds. Paired immediately. Zero drop or lag on a 2 hours session on Destiny 2.
Bluetooth connection is similar, but turn on headset first then hold Bluetooth button for 6 seconds. Showed up immediately on my Google pixel. Minimal drops (counted 3 times over 8 hours).
Sound quality wise, there is quite a bit of bass. Good for shooting games I guess. Also pretty good for the RPG music scores.
No report from my work colleagues on not hearing me clearly so I presume mic is working fine.
This ticked all the boxes for me.
I can foresee the hinges on the rotator is likely to break in the future. Time will tell how it long lasts.
For now I ll enjoy the headset.
Die Tonqualität könnte etwas besser sein bei hohen tönen wenn man Musik hört kratzt es ein wenig
Die Tonqualitt knnte etwas besser sein bei hohen tnen wenn man Musik hrt kratzt es ein wenig
KEIN USB-C Eingang... aber sonst alles TOP!!
ALLES passt perfekt aber zum laden wird kein USB-C verwendet wie bei der ARCTIS 7+….
Deswegen ist dieser hier wieder retourniert. Alles was nicht USB-C ist versuche nicht zu kaufen….
Damit alles einheitlich zuhause ist aber das Produkt ist top.
Deswegen gebe ich 5 Sterne.
Fürs Gaming perfek
Wie bereits gesagt, frs Gaming ist das Headset perfekt. Wer damit aber vor allem Musik und andere Sound basierte DInge tun will ist hiermit weniger bedient. War am Anfang verwirrt es zu verbinden mit dem Pc da ich es ohne Anleitung gemacht habe doch als es dann schluss endlich funktionierte hatte ich keine Probleme und die Verbindung hatte keine Faxen gemacht. Das Headset zu tragen ist sehr angenehm aufgrund der weichen Stoffpolster und somit auch fr eine lngere Session geeigent.
Zum Schluss und alles in allem kann ich meine berschrift nur wiederholen.
super Sound beim Spiele
ich kann das Headset nur empfehlen, jedenfalls beim Gaming. Man kann natrlich auch andere Gerte wie TV oder PC damit verbinden aber dies ist bei mir nicht der Hauptnutzen. Der Sitz am Kopf ist perfekt und geht auch nach 6-8 Stunden ohne Nebenerscheinungen einher. Toll ist die Empfindlichkeit des Mikrophones, hier hrt man in der richtigen Einstellung auch uere Gerusche wie Telefonklingeln oder Trklingeln. Dies kann man auch abstellen aber es ist sehr ntzlich. Bei mir hlt das Set fast 10 Stunden ohne nachladen.
Casque intéressant mais des choses à améliore
Pour ce prix je m’attendais plus d’autonomie, le logiciel ne permet pas de connatre le niveau de batterie et le casque peu devenir inconfortable sur des longues sessions de jeu.
Sinon facile installer et utiliser. Et une bonne qualit de son et micro
Sehr gute Kopfhörer/Headse
Ich probiere gerade verschiedene Headsets an meiner PS5. Dieses gefllt mir sehr gut.
Ton ist super, Mikrofon ist gut und die Bluetooth Funktion finde ich mehr als Spitze!
Man kann dieses Headset auch gut in der ffentlichkeit tragen ohne wie ein richtiger Nerd auszusehen 😀
Einen Starn habe ich abgezogen da es mir nach weniger Zeit schon etwas auf den Ohren drckt.. Ich wei nicht ob sich das mit der Zeit gibt bzw. das Material etwas nachgibt. Etwas schade.
Sonst bin ich wie gesagt zufrieden.
Ps. ber die Homepage lassen sich smtliche Ersatzteile und andere Ohrpolzter kaufen. Ist auch fr mich einen Blick wert.
Best headset i’ve ever had
had it for about a year now. still like new, been thrown about loads and still crispy.
Wish I'd bought soone
Fantastic quality, amazing sound, easy to set up. Work seemlessly with my series x.
le top
casque trs trs performant et de trs bonne qualit le seul bmol a ce casque seraient des roulettes pour le son et le rglage pc ou Play mal placs de chaque cots et sensibles ds qu’ on le prend en main pour le mettre ou l enlever tous se drgle mais c est vraiment pour chipoter.
je recommande vraiment, mme si le prix en en consquence.
Les points forts:
+ lger,
+ autonomie trs correcte,
+ son trs bon, mais trop de basse.
Les points ngatifs :
– pas de rglage de la position des couteurs,
– il est lger mais la sangle finit par se sentir,
– la position des touches ! C’est juste n’importe quoi ! Des qu’on le prend on appuie dessus, soit on l’teint, soit on passe en blutooth.
En moyen:
~ le logiciel de rglage qui n’est pas trs user-friendly,
~ pour le prix, il manque le noise cancellation,
~ le volume du micro est une purge rgler.
En conclusion, en promo, vous pouvez y aller, sinon bof.
They are very good and light but don’t extend unless you loosen the headband
They are good and if you can get them for 30 they are a good steal compared to any other headphones you could get for the same price. Awesome
Je m’attendais à clairement mieux
Alors pour commencer, le casque fait le taff. Lger, agrable, rien redire sur le produit de ce ct l.
En revanche, la configuration c’est laborieux !
Le logiciel semble tre intuitif mais ne semble pas prendre en compte les rglages qu’on effectue.
J’ai mis plus d’une heure trouver LE RGLAGE modifier pour avoir du son sur la sortie audio GAME et non CHAT. Il faut dsactiver puis ractiver le DTS.
Sinon bon produit.
Bought as a gift no complaints
This was purchased as a gift however from what I hear they have got no complaints with this headset. Used primarily with a Stadia controller which plugged straight in, and comms seems to be very clear as is the sound quality.
Amazing- best I’ve ever had
Broke my turtle beach stealth 700 gen 2 and decided to make a change.
This headset is leaps and bounds ahead of the turtle beach. The sound is noticeably better from the off and everyone I speak to comments on how much better my mic is.
Can’t recommend enough!!!
Very great gaming headse
I’ve been using this headset for almost a year and so far it’s amazing, the sound quality is fab and the noise cancellation is good. The built in mic is very good quality and easy to get out the way there is also an app you can use to customise the colour and the sound I recommend this headset for a more pricey but worth option.
Must have
Been using for a few weeks, lovely sound and mic is great. Don’t know about the quality issues with these as to early to tell. But YouTube them and see yourself. I out it down to being thrown down or something along those lines as all my headset have lasted till the next purchase so 50/50 for me to tell you the truth
Incredible
I’ve been through some headsets in the past and I can honestly say these are the best by far! The sound on them is just unreal. I bought them solely for gaming but I use them for on the move all the time now too. I thought I’d spend a bit more money this time and I have not regretted it AT ALL!! Definitely recommend these!
Overall Great well balanced headset for Gaming!
Everything is great with this headset except the price is still quite high. I have had 1 particular problem with it and that is that it randomly just loses all sound and I have to turn it off and then turn it back on but sometimes I must plug it in to be sure it is not low battery. I would say I do / recommend the Arctis 7 rather than the Arctis 9, unless you need the extra features like bluetooth and console connectivity. I love the headset overall but sometimes when in a game that you need sound and it just goes, then it is not great.
Hope this helps and I never had a single issue with my Arctis 7 headset.
super qualite
ce casque le steelseries actis 9 est completement incroyable il depasse largement le 7 qui est tres bien pour sont prix ! moi qui a pu avoir tous les actis ils ont tous une difference de gamme et de son du 1 au 9 ( hors nova ) le casque a un VRAI 7.1 avec un VRAI SON 3D apres avoir tester avec 3 music 8d ou meme utiliser pour l asmr qui est encore plus fou !!! je recommande ce casque pour usage GAMING et pas que pour le son car le casque dispose d un micro de bonne qualiter avec un super noise gate ( son anti bruit ) qui fonctionne tres bien sur 7 et aussi sur le 9 une fois que vous avez le casque vous devez obligatoirement installer le logiciel du casque alors la le logicel ….!
le logiciel vous permez d avoir plusieur ” types” de son que vous pouvez avoir
plus de basse aigu grande piece etc etc
et si vous cree un compte vous debloquer l accee au logiciel ” sonar” et alors la CE logiciel et totalement incoyable pour moi ce casque depasse largement 90% des casque sur le marche
Amazing sound quality, incredible wireless range (I can use from 2 stories below with zero problems), amazing software that comes with it, EQ customisation, customisable sidetone (being able to hear yourself), mixing of chat (Discord) and game sounds meaning you can tune in to one channel more than another. Just all-round best headset I’ve used. Quality is on par with my studio quality pair of Sony’s and the range is better than my Sony MX3s. Just incredible, absolutely outstanding
Amazing headphones clear and comfortable perfect for gaming
Love the Steel series 9, as usual extremely comfortable to wear I wasn’t too sure about the headband at first but definitely change my mind when I was wearing it. Clamping force is good in the sense that I could comfortably wear these with earphones.
It has great sound quality, sounds were clean, clear and crisp which is exactly what I need for games but it still has the treble and bass when needed. Microphone quality is one of the weaker point but it does the job and is sufficient for my needs as I’m no professional and only use it casually. What I love about the later generations is that it works with the Steel series app so you can adjust and get more from these headphones.
The headphones does feel strong and sturdy despite only being connected to one link which was my worry but having used these for a while I’m comfortable with the build quality and how well they hold up.
Battery life holds up well, I used these a few hours a day and can get a weeks usage from one charge which is impressive. It has multi functional connectivity so I can also work via Bluetooth or 3.5mm jack.
Overall, not much I can fault here I love the steel series headphones and these and one of my favourite thus far. Recommended.
Hope you found my review useful.
Overall great headphones
Bought them as my HyperX Cloud Stinger started to mess up, 2nd pair that I’ve owned which broke in about 2 years, really loved them but were breaking too often, so went for these. Have them for about 3 weeks and can’t complain at all. Seem more comfortable, sound is more premium, hidden microphone with a button to mute is such a good feature. The earbud material seems better and hope it doesn’t peel off after 6 months of use like it did on the Cloud Stinger. Recommended!
At factory settings they are fine after you go into the arctis engine and tweak audio they are perfect and the most comfortable headset I have had
Great headset, the pass through to speakers is brilliant.
Windows is bad at the two audio channels and I had to change the windows quality settings to get it working but very happy with it.
I use this for surround sound in games and the quality is immaculate. The mic echos a bit but other than that the headset is in perfect conditio
It’s so comfortable with the band resting on your head not the headphones themselves, very comfortable around the ears, sound quality is great tho when bass boosted with music there’s a little bit of feedback/static sound when on max volume, the volume can get very loud and it’s great for gaming, plus there’s an option to be able to hear everything around you and your voice through the mic so you can still hear around your surroundings.
Very comfortable and good 3d sound
Very comfortable headset and the sound is perfect for me the only thing I find a little annoying is I can hear myself echo a little when talking but a few hrs of chatting I was used to it, definitely a good headset and would recommend .
Been using these for a few weeks now and I’m very happy with them.
The controls on the headset are easy and convenient to use. The LED light to indicate you mix is muted is a great feature to have. No more talking to myself not realising I’m on mute.
Being able to connect my phone at the same time means I can have game sound and music playing at the same time which is great for those more casual relaxed games.
The surround sound is great making it easy to quickly identify the direction of sounds. Great for competitive games.
Pairing them is easy and once done they automatically connect to both the Xbox and my iPhone as soon as I turn them on. Just set it up once and your good to go.
Yes they are pricy but definitely worth it if you can afford them.
This is a brilliant headset with good quality sound and one of the most comfortable headset so I have worn.
However, I bought these for the PlayStation 5, set up was nice and easy but to get the full 7.1 surround and adjust the EQ settings you are required to download an app on a PC and change these settings through the app. The instructions does not tell you this or even how to connect the to the PC one you have the app. Both dongle and headphones need to be plugged on via usb.
Once I got them set to my liking though I was more then happy with them.
Make sure it’s for the correct console if you accidentally purchase the wrong type using the warehouse purchase anyway use an aux cable for the connection if you don’t wanna go through the return process either way you got a headset for when or if you get the other console type
Good headse
BluTooth capability sealed the deal on these headphones versus the competition. Good fit, no discomfort during long gaming sessions. Good surround sound (once you’ve installed the drivers). No problems with battery life (at least 12 hours, so I believe their 20 hour claim). Don’t use the mic, so it’s good that it tucks away. I took a star off the rating due to a number of irritants:
1. USB micro
2. Weird wired dongle that’s an encumbrance on a laptop
3. Sometimes they just “drop out” and need re-starting, as if they are power-saving…. Half way thru a gaming session.
After using this headset I will not probs buy any other product after this one dies on me. So far its been brilliant, comfy, easy to use and sound quality is superb. Can’t talk about the mic as I don’t use i
So pleased with these. I no longer hear if my wife is shouting me from another room. I dont need to remove my headset if i receive a call, that being the biggest selling point for me. Great depth of sound and great easy to use software. Comes highly recommended.
Affordable Flagship
I was apprehensive at first on spending so much on a new gaming headset, as my previous set was another set of Steel Series’, however they were only a few months old and granted, I had lost the removable mic, but they had died after just a month of use, and I stored them safely every night in their own drawstring bag. Now, having purchased the series 3, I can miles more impressed than the series 1 I had previously. Though I’ve had these nye a fortnight, the sound quality is far superior, as is the bull quality. The weight feels premium, in that it’s not too heavy to be cumbersome, but also not too light to feel cheap. And a bonus for me, is that the microphone is retractable, so it doesn’t always have to stick out of the ear cup, and doesn’t have to be removed as with the 1, and as such, I can rest assured knowing I will never lose this one!
A fantastic high quality, premium and reasonably priced gaming headset.
The dual wireless feature worked flawlessly which is fantastic when working from home as it allows me to send/receive audio for my personal PC and work laptop! Highly recommended.
very comfortable and its ok if you wear glasses with these
This headset is good when you first get it, sound quality is great etc, mostly a console player my self so it did enhance games. My issue is that it’s broken after before a year of use, this was my first poke-out of buying Razer for WoW many years ago and trying to expand the from buying the same gaming peripherals after playing new stuff like CoD wz/vg and other random PS5 titles. I have no idea what’s wrong with my headset, its been taken care of fully, I cant find any other advice other than just to ‘reset’ it which hasn’t worked. It will take a charge but wont power on.
;—–D
Amazing sound quality, comfort and easy to connect. Expensive but you get what you pay fo
This is perhaps one of the most versatile headsets I have ever owned. Not only does it use lossless wireless, it also supports a bluetooth connection so you can connect directly to your phone or laptop without needing the transmitter base.
It is very comfortable thanks to the strap that at first I almost did not want to buy it due to the strap. However, strap was easy to adjust (far easier than I expected) and it only took me two attempts to get it just right. The strap also makes the headset feel a lot lighter on the head as you do not have anything hard pressing resting on the top of your head. The earpads bend all sorts of ways so you can get that perfect angle you want to have it on your ears to suit the shape of anyone’s head.
Comfort aside, the hot swap batteries work so well, shockingly I do get the advertised +-10 to 9 hours of usage per charge per battery. The batteries charge very fast in the transmitter base and tend to be fully charged long before your current charge is empty on the battery you are using (fun fact: the design of the batteries is pretty much identical to that of the much loved G7 Logitech gaming mouse, so if you have used that then this will feel all too familiar!)
In terms of sound quality this is far better than any headset I have ever owned and I think you actually will not be able to find a headset that can beat the sound quality on this device!
The reason I say that is that the drivers in this headset are clearly designed to perform well regardless what you toss at them – music, movies or games it just can take it and then some!
Using the official SteelSeries software you can get the most out of it though and can setup mutiple set sound profiles so if you prefer it one way for one game or for music and then another way for a different game or for movies for example you can just rightclick on the SteelSeries app and select the profile you have setup in advance.
The sound really changes drastically depending on the settings you put in the app but regardless of settings you can really hear how well these drivers perform. The output is just such a high fidelity regardless of what you are listening to that nothing can outperform this headset.
There is also a clear distinction when you enable and disable the surround sound not just in games but also even in music. If you are listening to any music that has an orchestral background for example the surround really helps you hear the depth of the orchestra versus the surround off it will sound a lot more bland.
This is also why this headset shines in that any audiophile headset a- will not have a built in microphone (which all my friends on Discord say sounds extremely clear) and b- will not perform equally good on all sound usage. Audiophile headsets tend to perform best at music but then if you give them a game or a movie their performance just is not as good as a gaming headset.
But where previous gaming headsets failed at music, this one really shines especially with the simulated surround sound using DTS X v2.0 it just somehow processes the stereo sound in such a way that your ears perceive it as being far deeper than a regular stereo headset.
I have used other surround headsets but DTS-X v2.0 just is a massive improvement in the technology over previous surround headsets.
The specs speak for themselves if you compare them to audiophile headsets you really see how great the drivers are in this headset added on to this what DTS X v2.0 can get out of them is why so many people rave about this product.
Will update as I go along and will show images in the future:
So, I’ll start with the connectivity. The Bluetooth connection works completed fine before and after you update the software on your headphones. But here’s a catch, if your headset isn’t showing up on any of your Bluetooth devices, just hold down the Bluetooth connection more than 6s (10s I would say) untill the blue light starts blinking faster and check again as this unpairs your headset.
Yea it doesn’t tell you this on any instructions and had to physically find it out myself.
Charging: currently I don’t know myself as it arrived with 70+ battery life and only used 30% in a week so I’m currently testing it right now.
I can see how these headset earpieces can break but they’re quite reasonably strong ( I haven’t tried bending them bc high value item but in my eyes they do look a little more sturdy then what people are talking about)
Dongle: I love the dongle idea because they say Bluetooth has some lag and not the best for gaming. So they designed the dongle for pc and PS just need to flick the switch (after it’s plugged in (u may want to download the software on pc for pc) and press connect after you chose either pc or ps)
Dual connectivity: I love the idea of these, I could be playing I don’t know, warzone for example and my phone recieves a phone call, you wouldn’t be looking at your phone or even hear it if you are playing. However this headset once connected to your phone and pc/PS4 it’ll let you know when someone is calling you or receiving a notification that’s important.
The microphone: ok Im not a massive fan with sidetone as I personally hate my own voice but I can see why it’s a feature, some people would check if their voice is being heard before streaming or gaming and you can always turn it off in the software too. The microphone is really clear and picks up the slightest sound you make (as I tested it with side tone)
Overall I love these headset because when I’m outside, I can hide the mic because having a massive microphone can be a bit weird when your walking around with them and they’re nice and easily tucked away. Would I pay this price? Hmm well with some of the Bluetooth problem I would say probably not but I’m happy that I did because it has everything I love about this product and hopefully it’ll last years
Pros:
* Great for playstation 5, had no issues so far
* really really comfortable in every way possible
* connectivity (Bluetooth and dongle)
* battery life.
* easy adjustment
* good mic
* good dual connectivity
* connectivity with dongle is good
* reasonably sturdy but can see how you can get cracks within them
Cons:
* can get an annoying constant beeping noise (headset low on charge or to far away from your dongle if connected)
* clearer instructions for example the Bluetooth unpair and repair problem that I faced.
* not a type c charger as I was kinda expecting it to have due to the “high end product”
* not much bass but can be toggled
This is my first time buying a decent set of headphones so I couldn’t compare to other similar products. Compared to the cheap ones I’ve been using in the past, these are lightyears ahead. In general, I’m really happy with the headphones, but there are some minor niggles, which is why I say they’re 9/10 headphones for me.
What I like:
– sound quality is pretty good. I’m not an audiophile, but I don’t notice anything wrong with the sound.
– I like having the volume control wheel
– It presents as 2 audio devices, so you can have sound from 2 sources and individually control the volume. The cross-fade wheel on the headset for this is quite nice. The manual describes this as for game and chat, but for me I’ll probably use it for game and youtube, since I like to watch youtube while playing some games and only sometimes turn up the game audio.
– retractable mic with a hardware mute button. When muted, the button is raised and the mic is lit up red so you know.
– wireless with PC and bluetooth to phone works at the same time.
– range seems decent – at least within my flat I haven’t lost signal
– comfort is ok
– sound from microphone seems decent enough
– plugging in the charging cable doesn’t switch them off (I’ve had a set of headphones where they did)
What I don’t like:
– high price – tbh, for this sort of price I would expect them to be almost perfect in the execution of the features it has.
– the crossfade wheel doesn’t affect bluetooth audio & the software doesn’t allow this to be configured. There’s also no way to adjust the bluetooth volume separately, only the master volume and the crossfade of the other sources.
– they’re quite warm on the ears
– the analogue audio input is on the USB dongle rather than the headset itself, so you can’t use a 3.5mm jack without USB power
– the USB dongle is pretty big and on a long cable. Fine if you’re on a desk, but not so good with a laptop.
– I installed the steel series software and found it was missing the 1 feature I installed it for: to decide which audio inputs are affected by the crossfade and which is which.
What I haven’t tried yet:
– moving the dongle to another PC – I would hope there wouldn’t be a need to re-pair them
– connecting to a 2nd bluetooth device – how is the experience swapping over, etc? can it remember both devices at the same time? or do we need to re-pair each time we want to switch?
– noise cancelling on the mic – in one of the promo videos it looks pretty good, but I’ve yet to try.
– battery life/charging time
So would I recommend these headphones? Maybe – if you’re ok with the price and it meets your needs. I suspect there may be better deals out there though. Saying that, I am happy with them and will keep them without regret.
Edit:
I’ve tested:
– the noise cancellation on the mic in the car. It’s not as good as I expected from the promo video. You could hear my voice fine, but you can also hear a lot of the sounds from driving.
– switching the USB dongle to another PC. it was pretty seamless and I didn’t have to pair it agai
They are good headphone yeah but fake advertise ment it does not work on PS4 and it says it does on the box. Well annoyed
Bought them for my son who’s is an avid gamer. He loves them. But dearer than his last pair but he says the quality is a lot better.
Tras usarlos durante unos meses es la mejor compra que he hecho en mi vida. El precio est completamente justificado.
Auriculares Wireless con batera para 2-3 sesiones de largas horas de vicio a juegos.
Bluetooth de la mejor calidad no pierde nada y buena distancia mxima.
Tambin tienes opcin de usar Jack cmodamente en vez de bluetooth.
El micrfono es de los mejores que existen incorporados en auriculares, obviamente no tiene la misma calidad que un micrfono de mesa pero tiene muy buena supresin de ruido y buen ajuste de volumen.
La calidad de sonido envolvente 7.1 e incluso con ello desactivado es sinceramente otro mundo comparado a otros auriculares con precios parecidos estoy tan cmodo que no tengo casi motivos para quitarme los auriculares de la cabeza.
Respecto a gaming, tiene la mejor calidad que se pueda encontrar. No te vas a perder ni un solo sonido todo se escucha como los desarrolladores de cada juego quieren que se escuche. En Shooters es una pasada activar el sonido envolvente es una inmersin total en la experiencia del juego.
El nico contratiempo que le encuentro es al engine de SteelSeries que tiene suficientes opciones customizables de los auriculares, como volmenes, acentuacin de bajos, escuchar tu voz y el sonido envolvente, pero no incluye un equalizador para que puedas personalizar bien el tema de los graves y agudos. An as se nota bastante y es muy gratificante escuchar ciertos gneros electronicos con acentuacin de graves.
En fin, que no le encuentro rival a estos auriculares, la marca SteelSeries cada vez saca mejores modelos y tienen precios asequibles.
If you have big ears you will have to buy bigger ear pads!! But the build and sound quality are fantastic!!!
Having gone through a few gaming headsets I can honestly say is the one, set up was simple, went to steel series website got software and no hassle installing, presets are very good and the overall UI for the software is 10/10, as for gaming it is a real game changer, the surround sound is outstanding, I will update review once I have gone through mixture of games but so far I am very happy with this headset. The mic quality I’m told is very good via discord, the headset is also the most comfortable and really feels like it’s been made with real care. 10/10 cannot recommend anything other headset steel series ftw!
Edit 10/11/2021
Ok so since getting this head set I can give a complete 10 out of 10 here is why.
I am PC Gamer and have been for many years, I have never had a headset that really captures immersion like this beauty, I have been playing DayZ quite a bit as of late and being able to completely know where my enemy is due to the excellent 7.1 surround sound really gives you the advantage, I have also used this headset for watching movies and listening to music and the pre sets for all uses is absoultely outstanding, if gaming is your thing and you are looking for a really good head set then look no where else.
Ser muy honesto, he estado buscando un par de auriculares inalmbricos durante ms de un mes. En el pasado, tena un par de g773, pero tenan un zumbido de tierra (un ruido extrao como un zumbido), y tema que todos los auriculares inalmbricos tuvieran esto.
Entonces, de todas las opciones que estaba buscando, esta se ajusta mejor a mis necesidades, y debo decirles que son increbles.
Pros:
– sin zumbido de tierra, solo ruido blanco leve (puede vivir con l, apenas se nota)
– inalmbrico + bluetooth al mismo tiempo, por lo que puede conectarse a ps5, por ejemplo, y su telfono, o PC y otra computadora porttil
– es muy modular, puedes cambiar los cables si se rompen, tambin los cascos y la diadema
– gran sonido, vengo de un Razer Kraken Pro V2, no soy un audifilo pero suenan bien
– son muy cmodos, crame, la banda para la cabeza es una caracterstica imprescindible
Contras:
– el cable del transmisor est fijo, por lo que debe comprar otro transmisor si el cable frena
– el precio es un poquito demasiado, sobre todo que estamos en Espaa, en otros pases son mucho ms baratos
– tiene un micro-usb en lugar de un puerto de cable tipo c
– Encontrar informacin sobre cmo configurar / recomendaciones / qu hacer y qu no hacer es muy difcil
As que si ests buscando unos auriculares como este, te recomiendo los arctics 9, pero si no necesitas bluetooth te recomiendo que busques en Corsair HS80, son 50 euros ms baratos, pero ten en cuenta que tienen un adaptador usb no un transmisor, por lo que puede haber un zumbido de tierra.
Muy buenos auriculares
Muy contento con el producto, pero tengo un problema y un tema de gustos: el problema es que tengo alguna que otra desconexion inexplicable (se apaga mejor dicho). No se si ser el producto en gral o este me habr salido rana, pero tampoco llega a ser molesto (pero tampoco 5 estrellas). Lo de gustos, que para ser un producto de 200, se me hace un pelin soso el plstico utilizado para los altavoces (la carcasa de por fuera. No me resultan slidos, pero en general, no descepcionan. Buena seal (aunque extraamente el Bluetooth tiene mejor recepcin que con el adaptador para 2.4ghz bridge.- mejor recepcin o se corta menos, verlo como uno quiera), son cmodos (tengo cabeza grande y an as) y no cansa la nuca tras una sesin prolongada. Los uso tanto para el trabajo como para multimedia; se me escucha bien en reuniones an con el micrfono sin estar extendido y el sonido es bueno para pelculas y juegos. De batera no est mal, pero no quiero decir bien o mal ya que yo los utilizo con Bluetooth y el bridge encendido (el bridge no se puede apagar, una pena porque sera un ahorro en batera) y ah si que se come la batera, pero aun as me aguanta unos 3-4 das (dira yo, no he medido), sin Bluetooth se le agrega digamos 1-2 das. De todas maneras, se puede utilizar mientras carga, aunque ah suelta una leve resonancia que si bien no es molesto, no es agradable. En fin, si se me rompen en algn momento, no tendra problema en volver a comprarlos
Having Bluetooth headphones is the most comfortable thing at a chair with arms and these certainly do not sacrifice in any departments, i use them 70% of my awake day if not more and they have never felt uncomfortable the range is also really good as i can walk around the house without issues battery life is absolutely amazing, they always last me a full day of usage (10-16 hours) and if i forget to charge them they can sometimes last me two, they sound just as good as my old arctis 5 wired (if not better) and are alot more snug and comfy on my head, had them for about 6 months now and the only thing i can complain about is sometomes out of no where (im talking about 10 times total) they will just bleep and disconnect, and you just have to turn them off and on again, another reason for not giving 5 stars is the steelseries gg software doesnt seem to like my headphones and doesnt work with them though i suppose this is a one time issue with me and most likely wont be the same for others, this doesnt bother me too much as i can use external software instead, in general id say they’re worth the price and would reccomend to anyone.
I bought these as a replacement for my Razer Nari Ultimate that had started to cut out intermittently on one ear. Compared to them the sound quality is like night and day, these sound like high end headphones, maybe not as good as the pro but up there with some of the best gaming headset. They’re also comfortable due the the ski goggle band type strap that rests on your head. My only niggles (and they small ones) are that the bass is a little underwhelming, but that could be because I’ve come over from a pair with haptic feedback that do exaggerate the bass a little, and I didn’t think much of the DTX Positional Audio. I ended up buying Razer’s THX Spatial Audio, which, in my opinion is worlds apart in terms accuracy and worth the 19.99 extra if you play a lot of games like Warzone or Black Ops Cold War. The mic is crystal clear and natural sounding and loud, unlike some of the mic’s you get on a cheaper headset. All in all though, it’s a cracking little headset and after a little tweaking it’s almost perfect for me. Definitely worth considering if you’re looking for a new headse
I had been on the hunt for a replacement of my aged Astro A50’s that I’ve been using for the past 6 years. I did try the Sony Pulse 3D’s but really couldn’t get on with them and returned them for a refund; I found that they didn’t have enough adjustment for me, they got really uncomfortable after a short period of time and the ear cup material made my ears sweat, it was like my head was being gripped by a troll . Although the 3D sound on them may be a new thing for some people, it really wasn’t that impressive compared with what I was used to on the Astro A50’s. But, I suppose I was asking a lot compared with the price between the two.
Anyway, after reading a few reviews and recommendations, I opted to try the Steelseries Arctis range, I’ve gone with the Arctis 9’s over the 7P’s for a few reasons that I won’t go into at this point, but for me they deliver the whole package. Connecting? They’re straight forwards plug ‘n’ play on the PS5 and immediately I could feel the comfort, I felt like my ears were being kissed by angels , rather than being gripped by trolls. There’s no discomfort, sweating, or ear fatigue from wearing them for long periods of time. This said, anything over 6-8 hours then I can get a little discomfort where my glasses are behind my ears with these.
As regards the sound; brilliant, approaching audiophile region when it comes to sound quality. I found that turning off the 3D option on games that have it and letting the Arctis 9’s take over was a better option, the sound was actually a lot better.
As regards the controls; all very easily navigated whilst wearing the headphones, something that cannot be said for the Sony Pulse 3D’s which left me fumbling about to adjust.
On the Arctis 9’s, the left ear-cup contains the Chat-Mix control wheel and the retractable mic – which I must say has amazing background noise cancellation and also lights up red when muted, a feature that I do find very useful. The right ear-cup holds the power button, Bluetooth pairing button, mic mute and a volume control wheel, all of a decent size. There are also the ports for charging and an analogue connection.
One thing I would have preferred, if the charging port to have been ‘C’ type to make things slightly easier, rather than the one that’s on them which can be a little awkward to plug in. Also, there’s no stand/hanger with them, which for the price I would have thought they could have included one.
Battery life is exceptional, around 20 hours from a single charge.
Price; Ok, so the price tag is in the upper reaches of the gaming headset market. What is quality worth to you? You decide.
If you can afford it though, I would go for the Astros for the maximum comfort.
UPDATE: 2 extremely important things to be aware of that are not specified in the listing;
The Chat-Mix feature only works on PC – It is NOT available on PlayStation or Switch.
Also: The Arctis 9 will only work on Nintendo Switch while in docked mode.
Kontext vorab:
ich bin ein PC-Gamer, der seit langem dieses eine Headsetkabel loswerden will und dessen altes treues Headset nun endlich den Geist aufgegeben hat. Ich habe mich im Freundeskreis umgehrt und dieses Produkt empfohlen bekommen (besser als Arctis 7, billiger als Arctis Pro fr 300).
Das tolle:
best-in-class sound fr wireless headsets, mit 2.4GHz und meiner meinung nach WIRKLICH NULL Latenzunterschied zum Kabel, super bequemes und flexibles Design mit dual-channel Bluetooth (auch wenn der sound bei Einsatz von bluetooth wesentlich leidet und latenzprobleme auftreten). Der Surroundsound ist 1A und Frequenzen werden wundervoll detailliert und gleichbleibend hochwertig abgespielt. Das Headset lsst sich flexibel mit switch, PC und android handy nutzen.
Das weniger tolle – und die realitt:
Der Klang ist best-of-class fr !wireless headsets!. Ich habe den Eindruck, dass mein 40 wired USB-headset von einem noname Hersteller das bereits toppt. Zwar ist die Sounddynamik bei diesem eindeutig weniger einheitlich und in dieser hinsicht weniger qualitativ, aber der Bass kommt durch und die Kopfhrer haben genug Leistung, damit gute Musik an der Ohrmuschen auch noch gut klingt. Im Headset von SteelSeries klingt das ganze etwas “muffig”, ggf. aufgrund von zu kleinen Lautsprechern, um Akku zu schonen und die 20h Laufzeit zu erreichen. Es ist auch mit Abstand das bequemste headset, das ich bislang getragen habe.
Das Mikrofon ist, ohne es schnzureden, unter aller Sau. Meine Soundaufnahme klingt genau so, wie man es von schlechten Rezensionen eines wireless headsets gewohnt ist – das Headset deckt genau den Frequenzbereich ab, um die stimme gut und deutlich zu verstehen und ist damit perfekt fr voicecalls… nur klingt die stimme halt bld, weil alles unntige in der stimme fehlt (so wie bei einem alten, robusten Klapphandy! 😀 ). Ich habe mich informiert und bedauerlicherweise ist das normal und eine limitation der technik (Die Bandbreite des aufnehmens/Encoding/Senden/Decoding fr input [mikro] und output [lautsprecher] mit minimaler latenz ist winzig, und dafr werden blich Abstriche beim mikro gemacht, um die qualitt von abgespielten sounds hoch zu halten). Daher wahrscheinlich auch die guten Reviews dieses Headsets; fr diesen Zusammenhang ist es eine klasse Tonqualitt!! Nur leider toppt meine drei Jahre alte Actioncam fr damals 39,99 mit ihrem kleinen fast nutzlosen Mikro die Qualitt dieses Gerte-Inputs. Leider!
Das ist fr mich mit diesem Preislabel echt nicht ausreichend. Mit der Quali von Sound, der bei mir als headset-trger ankommt, knnte ich leben, und mit allen weiteren Features ist dieses Headset klasse. Nur msste ich mir zustzlich ein alternatives Mikrofon kaufen, damit mich meine Teammates im Voicechat nicht fr die miese Audioquali mobben. Und es schmerzt mich zu sagen, dass die mikro-quali mir dieses produkt versaut – trotz dessen, dass sie nahezu best-in-class ist, wie das steel series wireless pro. Ich werde die Tage noch testen, ob sich das bei einer analogen Kabelverbindung anders verhlt. Ich komme irgendwann vielleicht zu steelseries zurck, wenn die Technik soweit ist. Das Kabel wird eines Tages verschwinden und durch so ein geiles Headset ersetzt werden, aber erst, wenn die in- UND output-quali stimmt.
________
Schade! Ein super Kauf, wenn man wei und akzeptiert, wie schlecht wireless headsets leider immernoch gg. Kabelgerten sind. Fr den Komfort und die Quali ist es verlockend. Aber die Soundquali bekommt man mit Kabel schon ab ~40. Bedauerlicherweise.
Als “Funktionstool” allein super fr gaming… aber zumindest ich will doch auch was von der musikalischen Quali haben und meine Mitspieler nicht mit einer Radiostimme aus 2002 zudrhnen. Muss jeder fr sich entscheiden. 🙂
Yes for me this is a little expensive but worth every penny.. Sound quality is best I’ve heard and when testing the surround sound it literally blew me away! I actually thought someone was knocking on the door haha. Thank you seller. Amazing to have dual connection for my PS4 and Bluetooth for everything else. All the controls you need on the headphones itself. Sometimes can slide off. But it’s really really good. And you can wear it out and nobody knows it’s a gaming headset. Thank you
So the sound quality is good. It’s not awesome, or as good as I expected after watching all the raving reviews, but it’s good. Nothing to scoff at, nothing to write home about. What I love about them is zero latency. And I mean… yeah, you can play fast games and hear perfectly accurate sound without the annoying bluetooth lag. Great, great stuff. And the battery life is awesome, too. They’re comfortable, no fatigue after long sessions, solid five stars.
I’ve had the Steelseries Arctis 9 for a few days now, and I’ve come across one flaw so far, that flaw in it’s software settings for the headset. Hence the 4 Stars – ideally I’d give it 4.5 Stars.
I can honestly say that this product is of excellent quality. The sound quality is excellent too. My missus actually questioned why I was paying so much for a gaming headset – once she heard the quality she actually understood why they were worth getting and paying the price.
However, the Steelseries App has its flaws which will prevent the headset from connecting to the transmitter. The main flaw being in the SteelSeries App > Configuration > Settings > Power Options. You can change the duration time for inactivity to save on battery usage. If you select “Never” on the Power Option setting the headset will not connect to the Transmitter once the headset is turned off, it will consistently fail to reconnect. This is either a bug or poor design.
I have attached an image to display where you should go if you are having this same issue, just adjust the setting back to 90 minutes etc and your headset will connect again to the transmitter. Don’t panic, the headset is not faulty, it’s just the Power Option setting [NEVER] which is preventing the headset connecting to the transmitter.
he steel series Arctic 9 wireless headset is the most comfortable I have ever used and have tried quit a few of the popular brands. This set does the lot, PS4 and 5, Laptop, Desktop, Nintendo Switch compatibility with wireless and Bluetooth simultaneously. Press button once for wireless and second button alongside to enable Bluetooth to get multiply connections.
I have also read that there is an issue with firmware, yes momentarily headset did nothing after latest firmware, just press reset within ear cup (place hand flat press on ear cup and spin to release) then use paperclip or the like to reset, and all is good again.
What completes the great sound is you can download the Steel series software and tweak the preferred sound profile and store, and when listening to music just use an app with equalizer and its as good as any top of the range.
Last point I never originally considered initially was that parts like the dongle and ear cups and headband can be replace at minimal cost.
Not the cheapest but I would say one of, if not the best for comfort and quality sound whatever you are doing.
Lance
This headset is brilliant – microphone seems to be really clear and sound quality is good for games, okay for music. But it’s not a music / multimedia headset, so this makes sense.
Pretty light, comfortable, and even provides two channels to the PC that you can fade in/out with the left ear slider. Very clever.
Can also connect and play Bluetooth at the same time.
Excellent sound quality didn’t give five stars because sometimes it’s not a straight forward connection with my PS4 sometimes I have to plug out the dongle provided to reconnect headset to get sound
Love it, great to be gaming and answer phone calls with the same headset.
Bought from Amazon Warehouse for 142.95 and described as “used-good” but aside from the outer sleeve of the box missing, they were literally untouched!
As for the headset itself, they’re comfortable, connect to Ps4 pro instantly and fully support Sony 3D audio. Comfort and sound wise, they vastly outshine the Sony Paltinum headset I was previously using. Crisp and clear with deep enough bass for me (I’m not a massive bass head) and feel great even with gaming glasses in place.
Highly recommended for FPS games such as COD Black Ops Cold War! The mic is a little quiet but is easily adjusted through Ps4 audio settings.
It’s quite likely you are reading this review playing up the risk and rewards of Astros, versus Audeze versus Steel Series. And maybe, you, like me, are still reeling from the overpriced and poor build experience of Astro ownership. 2 years and battery death, endless issues with volume control, all for the tidy price of 300 of your English pounds. Surely, there must be better right? Well. Honestly, I am not sure.
These headphones feel lightweight but with cheap material the feel on ear is not that pleasant. The ski band is a good touch though. But all that pales to nothing when it comes to audio quality, and the Steel Series is ok, I got these at 120 quid and frankly they are just about worth the money BUT if you are expecting them, naively as I was to deliver Astro a40/a50 sound quality they don’t, not even close. The sounds is clear, sharp, good for PvP but you loose the richness of sound that Astros provide that creates that immersive gaming experience.
My search continues, these will do fine while I continue my search for something that delivers the sound and build quality that should come with high end gaming headsets.
Great all around headset, plenty of options for me to adjust the sound. Also having the option of Bluetooth is a nice bonus.
Can’t fault the sound quality and no complaints from my friends about my voice being too quiet.
I’ve heard some stories about the swivelling earcups being fragile or easily broken but not seen any sign of that yet.
Excellent battery life and easily charged, although I would have preferred USB C over micro.
Magnificent headset. Well worth the money. As for sound quality well with myself being a big snob when it comes to sound quality well after getting them tuned on the computer. They are amazing. I’m heRing a lot more than I thought I would. Using a PS5. Thank you great headset.
Does exactly what it says on the tin. Great quality and simple to use
Pros:
-Really solid feel, well made
-Great features such as Bluetooth and dial to switch between chat and game volume
Cons
-microphone quality is poor for 150 headse
Bought these headphone to use with ps5, I’ve been using Astro A50 for gaming on pc and ps5. I fancied a separate set for the os5 and bought these, I wasn’t disappointed. Great headphones and very comfortable. Sound is great in game chat and game sound with 3D audio which fir games like Call of Duty.
Good build quality, low latency but audio slightly flat and muddy not worth 180… not made for competitive but good for all round headphones
This is my first gaming headset as a daily driver. Been using it for about a month now and so far it’s serving me pretty well. There’s a lot to like about this headset, though it is far from perfect.
The ski-band headstrap allows great comfort especially during prolonged use, rests nicely on my head and the earcups feel nice as well.
The wireless connectivity is outstanding, almost no lag when connected and there’s a great sense of freedom when moving around the house without a wire connecting the headset to the PC, although it does lose signal when I’m downstairs.
Some great perks include the chat dial volume (alters voice call volume and game volume), bluetooth, reasonable battery life and microphone mute.
The sound quality is superb for gaming but for listening to music, maybe not so much, and this is the biggest complaint I have with this headset, especially given the price. A decent workaround is to mess with the equalizer settings in the Steelseries Engine software. I messed with the settings until I got a decent sound setting for music listening.
While I don’t use the headset microphone, the quality is decent at best. It’s not groundbreaking or professional but it’s enough for voice communication during gaming. The microphone is retractable, which is appreciated as it’s nicely tucked away without any interference.
Overall, it’s a great wireless headset and worth the investment. While I don’t use half of the features it offers, for my purposes it has served me well.
A friend recommended these to me when I was waiting for the pulse 3D headset. I wanted something good for my ps5 that would make the most of the new sound from the ps5. They have amazing sound. They also have Bluetooth so that I can attach my phone at the same time I’m playing a game which is great for talking to someone on my friend list cross platform. I hate game chat so just call them via the phone and away you go. Yes they are expensive but I feel there worth the money.
A big console + PC crossplay grievance at the moment is the fact you cannot intergrate Discord chat, but this headset solved it for me! Firstly, outstanding sound quality, range, volume. Everything you need when playing Battle Royale games, FPS, and games where sound is key thing, especially COD Warzone (with its terrible sound at times).
I have a PS5, I simply connect the 2.4Ghz reciever in the console and is a case of plug and play to get game sound. Then I pair and connect to my phone/PC via Bluetooth in tandem with my PS5, and open up Discord and chat to my PC buddies! I can then hear game sound and comms in Discord! A big problem solver and saves the hassle of getting audio mixers, adapters etc to do something as simple as this.
I highly recommend this to anyone looking for this type of solution. Even if this is not the feature you are looking for, I’d say without doubt one of the best gaming headsets on the market for sound and microphone performance/quality.
Amazing don’t let bad reviews mess with ur choice if u have the money get i
My first gaming headset.
Also my first over ear headset since I was a nugget.
Not used the mic yet.
I got these because I needed a more versatile pair of headphones. I have unreasonable noisy neighbours, which is hell on my autism, so headphones became a necessity.
You can use them wired with any device, wireless with many devices, the mic can be detached, they last all day.
They really have all the things that I need.
Good sound. Good range too. When listening to stuff on my PC, I can go downstairs to the room below and I barely get any signal drop.
The downsides, after a year of use, are:
*They don’t grip my head as tightly as they used to. They slip off if I’m moving around too much. But I’m mostly sitting when I use them so that’s not a huge problem.
*The cushioning on the band is sort of unsticking a little. It won’t fall apart though. Unlike the outer coating on the leatherette material.
*The audio dial, which is extremely useful, is having a spot bother. At certain positions it doesn’t give even sound to both ears and I’m going to have to go to the manufacturer to have them repaired probably.
All in all though, if you need a gaming headset these are pretty worth the money. Unless you want to spend a teensy bit more on one of their better pairs. Look at the cost of the other sets that this company does.
I bought a 2nd pair a 18 months later so I have a spare pair while I see about getting the first pair serviced. Using a program called “VoiceMeeter” you can run 2 pairs of headphones simultaneously. You’ll need both dongles connected tho.
Excellent headset I’ve also got the arctis pro wireless in my opinion can’t beat steelseries headsets
Bought for my son who normally uses turtle beach….. his words…..these are by far the best sound ever, theyr class!!
I’ve been researching headphones to use with gaming and Skype calls for a while. I read all the reviews on a number of different headphones and decided on the Arctis 9 wireless headphones. They cost more than I originally wanted to spend but I feel they were worth the money. The range doesn’t seem great but I just wanted some headphones without a cord so they do the job very well as I don’t need to roam the house when gaming or in meetings unless I pop to the fridge in a meeting but it cuts out :/
The build quality is great. They have a nice texture and feel comfortable on. They do not feel poor quality to hold. Maybe more on the large size than expected but they don’t feel to heavy when wearing them. The hideaway mic is brilliant as you can use them with your mobile phone and not look a wally. Again a tad big but worth it for the quality. If I had the money and knew the quality was better I would have probably gone for the top of the range but they cost around 250. The volume buttons on the earpieces can easily be knocked when putting them on and taking them off which can be a little annoying. Really cool that the mic lights up red to indicate it’s off. Really helpful when you need to tell the kids to shut up!! 😀
Battery life seems really good. You can use them with the USB cable plugged in.
I would recommend a soft case for storing when not in use. keeps dust off them and stops them from getting damaged.
The only thing I would complain about is the lack of usb type c charging making it take longer time to charge but as I usually leave plugged in over night it’s not an issue for me. Other than that great product!
This is my first steelseries headset review I was torn between these, the razer blackshark v2 pro & the steelseries arctis pro wireless(bit pricey) so far these seem good they work on ps5 fine no problems so far, the mic seems clear enough had no complaints. Easy to set up & not badly priced either, the wireless connection seems like its got a decent range on it! Haven’t had it discount or any interference, the sound quality’s good i think haven’t got much to compare it to be honest!
Overall I’m happy with these the build quality’s good, & i find them comfortable for the most part! Not everyone will i think & i haven’t tired them for a long period of time.
I researched these before buying as couldn’t get any of the Ps5 ones . Fab reviews so went on that . For my son and he has had no complaints
They are very expensive
Bought these as an Xmas gift for my other half, I’ve gotta say, I’m JEALOUS. Having semi-shunned the wireless Arctis headphones of the past (plus many other wireless HP brands), I’m really happy to report, these are a PHENOMENAL! Comfy, sturdy, light, great battery life, shall I go on? With the same drivers and readily admitted better connectivity then a pair of older Arctis 7s, these puppies sound top-notch and are highly usable to boot! I’m soo glad I chose them, my beautiful lady is going to have an absolute ball with this gem of a product!
Thank you SteelSeries for smashing my skeptical expections, once again!
Edit: Here are some more thorough additions. Even considering their cheaper price, apparent downgrade from the lack of SS’s trademark adjustable ski band system, comfort isn’t an issue, if anything, they stay on your head a bit more securely, even with a mass of hair! The microphone is as clear as it has ever been, bonus for removability just, be careful not to lose it, it’s easily done… the arrival of a type-C dongle is something I thought was restricting, apart from taking up the charging slot on your phone or Switch for example, it keeps the connection steadier then I’ve even seen with other wireless gaming headsets, no latency at all (i.e. no laggy music/out of sync audio). The future is now guys n’ gals, affordable, reliable wireless gaming headphones/headsets are here, these in particular blast out fantastic, high fidelity sound that is just hard to beat at this price point. If you’re on the fence, don’t be, aslong as you have type-C devices, hop off that proverbial partition and it frolick through the golden, cascading fields of STEELSERIES products
Edit 2.0: I forgot to mention, easily tweaking these headphones with decent surround sound software on your computer is a MUST. The free, built-in ‘Windows Sonic’ is a great choice for games and movies. For music, is your lucky enough to be able to use a decent equaliser, please tweak to taste, you won’t regret it.
I have had these for about 2-3 weeks now. When i first got them I have to say that I was very dissapointed in the comfort. They were very tight and the ski head band was like if someone stuck a giant elastic band around your head, it just felt like there was this big pressure on the top of my head that was giving me a massive headache after an hour of use.
I stuck the headset on a box that was larger than my head over night to stretch out the band and since that these have been amazing from a comfort perspective. I wear them for about 12 hours a day no problem.
Speakers are a good quality and the mic is decent. Overall I would reccomend if you have the cash.
Sits perfectly on my head and hardly noticeable after long sessions, large battery and ability to use while charging is amazing. Surround sound isn’t really noticeable to me but great sound quality beyond that.
I don’t like spending a lot of money on headsets but given these times and the amount of time I spend on the internet getting a decent headset was challenge. My last headset was a Plantronics and the mic was starting to fail. I wanted wireless but with decent sound. That pretty much makes anything under a hundred pretty much a non-runner. After looking at countless reviews I settled on the Arctis 7.
I’m glad I did. They have some weight to them, which given the batteries is understandable but are not too heavy. On my head the grip is not entirely good enough to keep them on if I lean my head more than 45 degrees but I don’t do that very often and it’s worth it for the comfort.
They certainly are comfortable. I’ve done over ten hours with them on and while you do feel them they don’t irritate in the slightest. The headband balances the pressure evenly on the top of the head and the cups surround the ear without pinning it back. Said cups have a soft cloth feel and the plastic body isn’t a fingerprint magnet.
Charging is quick and a charge lasts around the time advertised, I generally leave them plugged in at my desk and the cable isn’t annoying at all as it’s long enough so that sometimes I’ll forget I’m plugged in.
I’m no audiophile so all I say about the sound is that, to my ears, they’re fantastic. Music is great, movies are epic and the stereo works well. I play a good amount of FPS’s were audio positioning is important and these help a lot with that.
Microphone quality is good. It tucks away inside while not in use and muting it is easy with the button on that side. If you need to silence a sneeze in a hurry these headphones provide.
Battery life is great. I use them a lot so I need to recharge every two days or so but with lighter use you could probably stretch it to a week.
Another nice touch was the inclusion of a cable to plug into a 3.5mm jack. This means I can plug them into my phone and use them as passively powered cans. I don’t use that a lot as I have earbuds for travelling but a nice option to have.
It’s been a good few months since I bought them and they still look pretty new, they still work great and I’m very happy I bought them.
Very nice headset. Works good gor ps4 and great on pc.
Only issues are earcups are very shallow. My ears aren’t that big but were still lightly touching the inner speakers when I move, very annoying. Had to buy different ear cups
Other issue is mic volume is very low on playstation. I have turned everything to max in the arctis app and playstation menus to be heard properly. I don’t like that I have no more wiggle room shoukd I need it
Besides that it’s great, audio quality for games is fantastic, music is decent and the bluetooth thing works well.
Just do the app stuff before you use them and turn all the stuff on, etc. or they won’t sound right.
Superb I every way
Great fit for use with oculus rift s
Bit expensive but worth it if you game a lot
And great for listening to music on iPhone
It’s a great headset that works great wirelessly like I hoped. The game sound quality is great, however, the sound quality for music isn’t great but if you are buying it for just gaming then that shouldn’t be a problem, just keep that in mind. The sound quality can be adjusted in Steelseries headset software, it works pretty well and it can be adjusted to different sound profiles based on what you are looking for. The mic quality itself is good for a wireless headset. The headset itself is really comfortable on, the cushions fit around your ear and don’t put much pressure on the side of your head. I’ve worn them mostly every day for a couple hours in the last two months and have no complaints about the comfort. Battery life seems to be good too, I don’t have to charge them all too often.
*Pros*
– Good gaming sound
– Good wireless connectivity
– Comfortable to wear
– Looks good aesthetically
– Steelseries software works well with it
– Good battery life
*Cons*
– Music quality isn’t the best out of the box (due to a lack of bass)
I tried this headset and I liked quite a lot of the features.
– The ChatMix dial is a brilliant feature, and combined with the connectivity options this headset provides really adds value.
– Bluetooth, 2.4GHz and cable connections make this a really versatile headset, and as it’s not as brash as many of it’s competitors you can genuinely use it as just headphones without it being obvious they’re anything more.
– The retractable mic is another feature that I wish more headset designers included, both to protect the mic when not in use and for when in use just as headphones as mentioned above.
– The ski style headband really is very comfy and makes the headset feel very light, and I’m sure that it would remain comfortable over many hours of use. For me personally I like my headset to feel a bit more planted on my head though and this headset felt like it was going to move around on my head quite a bit, as it has very little pressure on the side of the head. For some people this will be what they are looking for, for me it’s not unfortunately.
– The sound quality was good but not amazing, and I feel that for a headset that costs this much the sound really should be very good. Some of this is I’m sure is down to the use of 40mm speaker drivers where most competitor use 50mm drivers. This was to replace a Razer Man’O’War headset that I’ve had for some years where the plastic has broken on one of the ear cup connectors, and to me the sound from the Razer headset had more volume and was a bit more rounded.
– One thing I was wary of is the earcup hinges as this is where my old headset failed and I found that there was more play around the hinge than I felt comfortable with. The ear cup itself rubbed against the hinge relatively easily which put me off too.
Ultimately I returned this headset as it just wasn’t as good as I wanted for the cost, which is a shame as I really like Steelseries ki
This is what I was looking for. My 2nd arctis purchase.(arctis 5 wired as my first)
I’ve actually purchased Logitech g533 wireless at first but after using it for a day I immediately returned it and purchased this instead.
Pros
– the obvious one, wireless as my arctis 5 is wired and the wire is quite long and abit messy as you might be able to see on the photo
– Bluetooth. My main reason of getting this over arctis 7. So easy to connect and it’s instant
– even tho it’s metal, it doesn’t feel heavy. When you put on your head it feels just nice
Con
– for me it was slightly tighter at first than my arctis 5. But it will get better the more you use it
To sum it up, it is perfect for my use (gaming/workout) Superb sound quality(need to set it up on pc to your liking).wireless and bluetooth, win!
Overall the headset is great and I like the sound quality better than my hyper x cloud. There are a lot of options to tweak the sound settings to get it how you like but I find the surround sound is clearer which is great in fps games.
The sound quality has a nice richness to it and makes listening to music very enjoyable. A nice deep base that doesn’t drown out the rest of the sounds.
Based on sound quality alone I’d recommend.
The downsides, I wouldn’t say I have a big head but my god this thing clamps down hard. One thing I hated about the hyper x was it felt so weird and loose on my head and now these ones are the complete opposite. I find that long gaming sessions are uncomfortable due to the way it sits on my ears and head. I did have a similar issue with some logitech headset in the past but overtime it got better so I’m hoping the same happens here.
The mic is retractable into the headset, although you do have to have it quite close to your mouth when in use, but apparently the quality is pretty good.
I like the dial that comes with it, it’s not a volume dial but a mixer (not sure if that’s the right word for it) it allows you to hear more of the game or more of the chat for example like discord. I find it really useful when playing games that require teamwork but also listening for audio clues. I use it all the time.
It’s a fantastic headset but a little uncomfortable for people with larger heads.
Pros
+ great sound quality
+ lots of tweaks
+ sound priority dial
Cons
– uncomfortable out of the box
– lighting options are a little on the scarce side
– requires some work initially to get the sound how you like i
UPDATE: I had to return these headphones and lucky for me they were just inside warranty. The reason they had to go back was the hinge had broken loose from the housing. There was a piece of plastic rattling around inside the cup and the headset became a little uneven when place don my head. Really disappointed in having to return them. I would also like to mention I have never dropped these, neither have they ever been thrown down. I have no idea how this fracture came about as I try to look after all my kit. I am reluctant to get another pair, so keeping my eye on the market for a replacement ,tried 2 sets of ASTRO A50 were but they were rife with issues on the series X. The Base station kept freezing and switching off at random (was fine on PC though).
Purchased these so I would have a dedicated pair of wireless headphones for my XBOX X. Previously used Sennheiser Game One (wired). But time and time again the jack port on the controller would end up cutting out the sound. So wireless it was. I looked at numerous products, bought a set of Plantronics RIG 800LX, they were DOA so returned them. Then I looked at gaming DACS to use with my Sennheiser. No dice as feedback was they were great but didn’t work with XBOX chat (unless using on your phone?) So naturally ended up looking at top of the range solutions. So AS50’s were my next port of call. Numerous reviews with people trashing them and others saying they were interstellar sound. My finger must have hovered over the purchase button numerous times. I thought no, 300 quid for some headphones just not paying it.
BUILD QUALITY & AESTHETICS
So I looked at Steelseries. Various products and many reviews later I opted for the 9x. For my first steel series headset must say very impressed with it. Build quality is excellent, A metal headband frame, with a velcro adjusted elastic support band (this comes into contact directly with your head). Almost like a ski goggle band. I think these can be swapped out for other designs if you like to change things up.
The ear cups are closed cup design (I’m used to the soundstage of open back) I prefer open back but these are great at reducing sound bleed so if playing in a room with other people it prevents others hearing them. The microweave cushion is very very soft and so comfortable long gaming sessions and no ear-ache from headphones pressing on your ears (you can buy velour or pleather replacements) . I imagine that depends on the size of your ears. But as a whole my ears fit within the ear cups. As per the headband you can change up the design on the outer part of the cups (purchased separately). Closed cup also prevent external sound getting in, not completely but enough. The earcups swivel so they can be laid flat on a table/shelf when packed away, which is a nice design feature.
The battery life states 20 hours which is pretty accurate. I do have quite long gaming sessions at weekends, 3-4 hours during the day and possibly another 5/6 in the evening. So a single charge will hold. However you will need to keep on top of it. The XBXOX dash has an icon on battery along with the controller.
SOUND
The sound itself, at least to me is very good. I’m no audiophile but for gaming they work well. I use DOLBY ATMOS (sonic works just as well) with them and no complaints. There are 4 presets; Flat, Bass Boost, Smiley, Performance. I tweaked these to my liking, as we all look for something different in sound. A lot of people say the sound is poor on these until they tweak the profiles. In all honesty the ‘Smiley setting’ is a happy medium. You will however need to plug these into a Laptop or a Computer to adjust EQ within the ‘Steelseries Engine software’. If you don’t have a computer to do so the smiley setting is the all round setting. Nice clarity and not too muddy bass. I have sensitive ears from years of diving so keep the bass quite neutral. Which is also why I prefer open back headphones.
MICROPHONE & EAR CUP CONTROLS
The Microphone has an adjustable wire neck which coils up into the ear cups. Unlike other gaming sets where you flip the MIC boom up to mute the mic you have a button on this set. The mic has a red LED which illuminates once muted. If I am totally honest the MIC works and is very sensitive. However I think it could do with a foam microphone cover as it can be a little too sensitive. You can adjust this in the Software as well as the side tone. The sidetone allows you to hear yourself through the MIC, this is great so you don’t end up shouting whilst using the MIC. As mentioned close cup headphones reduce the sound around you this includes your own voice.
The Headphone volume is a small dial on the right earcup. The layout of the dials is clear and after a few uses you will navigate to them with ease. It is functional and works but from a design point of view, the actual dials could be bigger and less sensitive. More like click on each volume level would be better. Every time I take off the headset it is always at a different volume. So it is easy to move it by accident. A minor gripe but a gripe none the less. The EQ presets are on the right ear cup these are a single click of a button. You get a clear beep in the ear ranging from one to four to indicate the appropriate profile.
The headsets works on the same tech as the XBOX X controller and pairs the same. It also powers the XBOX X on when the headset is powered up. The bluetooth works parallel to it so you can receive calls or listen to music via phone or ipad. This is a feature I didn’t think I would use much but have actually really started to use it more with Lockdown. I stream music from my phone whilst training. Works really well, connection wise it is seamless and have no issues at all.
The Chat volume/Game volume ratio is on the left earcup and this is a great feature. You can adjust the balance of the two on the fly. So if you have someone in your chat who is really quiet you can increase the chat bias or vice versa.
Overall I would say this is a really good headset, now and then when powering on the connection can be a little funny. But nothing a headset restart doesn’t fix. This isn’t all the time maybe one every ten times I use it. The sound quality has a fair bit of depth and can be adjusted to your liking, coupled with Windows sonic or if you wish to buy ATMOS. There isn’t much between them really. But they do make a difference and some games specifically support ATMOS. The price point, hmm I would say yeah maybe a little steep but they do have some decent features and wireless is great coupled with bluetooth. If you can pick them up for 150 even bette
Bought these for Xbox One S and the clarity and sound is amazing. Especially with Dolby Atmos installed on the Xbox, you can’t beat the sound. Only had Turtle Beaches before but these are way louder (than they actually need to be infact) and you can hear everything you need to. Be it footsteps or gunfire, gives you the best directional sound I’ve heard on a headset. The mic is crisp and crystal clear, again maybe too clear. I had to retract it so it was only hanging out of the cup by about an inch to be not too loud to my party members. Only gripe with this headset is the rollers for volume are super sensitive. One on the left for game chat and game sound balance, one on the right cup for overall volume. One flick and you’ll shit yourself the next time someone even farts, it gets that loud.
Now the disappointing part. CONSTANT DISCONNECTION. Halfway through Team Deathmatch with your pals having a right laugh about targeting a particularly annoying camper and boom, all sound is off. Cue the part you have to turn them off, get up, hold the connection button on the Xbox then hold the button on the headphones and wait for the “Headphones Assigned” banner to pop up.. only for it to do it again!! SteelSeries say it’s due to the 5Ghz Router, so I switched to 2.4Ghz and guess what? Same story. Turns out it’s the Laptop, the Nintendo Switch, my damn phone which is disrupting the connection. Cons of living in a 1 bed flat I guess. Frustrated me so much I returned these after a mere 36hours.. back to the Turtle Beaches until the Razer Kraken TE turn up. Going to have to stick to wired! Not their fault, hence the 4 stars.
In my opinion, Buy these if you live far enough away from ANYTHING that produces ANY kind of frequency. Otherwise Stick with wired.
Disclaimer: I don’t like gaming headsets.
I own several pairs of superb headphones for music, and reference – and every time I don a set of “gaming” headphones they tend to feel like a toy – that said, I felt these warrant a review.
The build quality on the Arctis 9X are great – the sound quality is also very nice, but at this price point – you expect that. Different pre-sets subtly change the sound from more natural, through to some that are more bassy which are good for movies – but on the whole, they don’t have any gimmicky features like my old turtle beach set, which branded “saturated midtones that make my ears bleed, as a trade off for hearing footsteps louder” as “Superhuman hearing” or something similar.
Connectivity:
On my Xbox One X – I don’t think these have ever dropped out other than one time I forgot to charge them.
Whilst my One. was being repaired, I temporarily re-used my old regular Xbox one. I noticed a fair few dropouts, needing me to turn the headset off and on again.
– This was an issue I had read in some reviews after buying the headset, and I was concerned – I was never able to recreate the issue until I used an OG Xbox One, so in my personal experience. Perfect on the OneX – frustrating on a standard Xbox One.
Volume: 10/10
They are not deafeningly loud, (except in COD – which has the worst sound mix of a game ever.) but they definitely dont suffer with being too quiet. If they don’t go loud enough for you, then you’ve probably already done some damage to your hearing.
Sound Quality: 8/10
Comparing them to a set of high end reference headphones is unfair, they don’t reproduce a huge wide soundstage, with intricate highs mids and lows, however… after burn in – ive found that they perform better than most closed back headphones I own, the mids are far clearer on these for example, than on HD25s, HD280Pros, or aiaiai DJ headphones.
Overall – I was surprised at how good these sound.
Comfort: 10/10
Aside from a pair of AKG702s i own – which is like wearing a pair of pillows on your head – these are the most comfortable headphones I own. I can play games in them for hours on end, and then settle into a movie before taking them off. Being over ear they are comfortable as they dont put pressure on you, the elasticated headband makes a clever snug fit to your head, without being tight – and they are heavy enough that you trust them not to fall apart, but not so heavy that they induce fatigue.
Sound isolation: 8/10
No complaints here, the isolation is really good, so if someone is sleeping next to you, and you are watching tv – you probably wont disturb them unless you have it cranked right up, or take them off to break the seal to your head.
Battery Life: 10/10
Incredibly long battery life. Since covid kicked in and we’ve all been working from home, ive had these on all day every day almost – as they pair to your phone to be a bluetooth headset too. There is an indicator light that changes colour depending on how much battery you have left.
Connectivity: 9/10
Being able to play games and listen to music off your phone, or take phone calls whilst gaming is almost seamless (with 1 caveat ill address in the downsides).
Microphone: 10/10
I’ve had several people join parties and query what mic I have because its so clear, they assume im using a dedicated mic like streamers use. It’s also very easy to mute the mic with the button just behind your right ear, and the mic has a light on it so you can see in your peripheral vision if you are muted.
Price: 6/10
I paid 130ish for these on Amazon in the sale. There are better “headphones” available for that pricerange, but in terms of gaming headsets, I dont know. they are feature rich, with a long battery life, and great reliability, but for 190 that they are currnetly listed at, Id rather they were more than just a gaming headset, which they could have done with some aesthetic changes – which would have pushed this score up to a 9 or 10.
Ergonomics: 7/10
On either headset cup at the back,there is a jogwheel, the left one changes chat+game mix (very useful when your super loud friend crashes the party) and the overall volume on the right one. The chat mix also has a marker point for the mix at 50:50 that you can feel without looking. The power button is convex, and the bluetooth/answer call buttons is convex. Without looking, you can easily feel exactly what is what.
In principle – everything about the design is perfect.. Until you lean back against the sofa/pillow, and the jogwheel catches the seat/pillow behind you, and either turns the sound off, or cranks the volume to the max.
Placing these controls under the earpieces, or on top of them instead of at the back would have made them perfect.
Aesthetics: 6/10
They nearly got this perfect, the earcups are minimally styled, and the matte black looks sleek – however they have a truly gharish green pattern to the headbands that makes them look a bit childish. It is also a real shame that the microphone doesnt sit flush when it retracts into the headset. This would be the difference between them being a set of headphones that never leave the house, and being a set of headphones that never leave my side… I just dont want to be on the tube in a set of headphones with a boom mic, and a gharish pattern on the headband.
Charging: 7/10
The problem I have with the charging isnt that it takes long, they seem to charge really fast! The issue is that if you are using them and put them on charge without turning them off, I dont really understand what they do.. but it doesnt seem to charge. Ive found that once i finish using them I either have to turn them off, then plug them in, or plug them in, and immediately remove the charger, and plug them in again. This could be by design so that when you first plug a usb in it works to connect to a PC or something, but it does mean that occasionally if you forget, you can plug your headset in – but it doesnt charge. Once you realise you need to see the slow pulsing light to know its charging, then you’ll probably be ok.
Overall: 9/10
My first headset from this company, due to the build quality I cant see myself replaceing them any time soon, and if in the same position again I wouldnt hesitate to get these. If you are looking for a great gaming headset thats comfortable to wear, these are my shout.
If you want a set that doubles up as something you would use as wireless headphones out and about – the non-detachable/hidden mic might put you off, as it did me. If you are less vain than I am, then youll have a nice sounding set of headphones for your travels too. 🙂
After doing a lot of research on wireless Xbox One X headsets the decision came down to these (Arctic 9X) or Astro A50’s.
After owning a pair of wireless turtle beaches which packed up within a month I was a bit skeptic although of how well these would perform, but I’m not disappointed.
Sound quality is good, I’m no sound engineer but these work great and I was able to tell roughly what direction an enemy was coming from just from footstep sound on CoD, I can also hear friends clearly in chat and have yet to have anyone complain about my mic quality so I think it’s safe to say the mic is good too. You can buy Dolby Atmos through an app on Xbox store too if you want a change of sound which I have tried out on a free trial and it made a minor difference to the ‘out of the box sound’. Work really well with music too.
The pads are comfy and I can play for a long time without needing to remove the headset. Buttons are easy enough to use but do take some getting used to to make sure you don’t knock the volume rocker switches when taking the headset off etc. Battery life isn’t too bad either.
On to the bad bit..
Since owning the headset (approx 2 months at time of review) I’ve experienced a few cut outs of audio, I only sit about 2 1/2 metres away from my Xbox so I don’t think it’s a distance issue or a WiFi overlap issue. The only thing I have noticed is it usually happens when the battery gets below around 50%. But it’s that inconsistent that I don’t believe it’s a fault with the headset (yet).
Overall I would recommend these for anyone looking for a wireless gaming headset that’s actually pretty decent, gives you a slight advantage, couples up well with music, comfy and has good battery life and connects quickly with your Xbox.
Also check the reviews and which model people review, so many are on the Arctis 7 giving it bad reviews even though they’re listed under the Arctis 9x.
I’ve had this headset for a while and used it for listening to music, watching movies and most importantly online gaming on a PC where I’ve used the microphone extensively. I’ve broken my review out into different sections so it’s easier to read.
PHYSICAL OVERVIEW AND IMPRESSIONS:
Out of the box I was impressed with the look and feel of the headset, the ear cups feel very comfortable and I appreciate that they’re fabric covered and not imitation leather which I’ve found tends to disintegrate rather quickly.
The adjustable top worked great for me, I was able to find the perfect level of comfort with only a minor adjustment out of the box. It maintains the size you set the headset at perfectly so you won’t need to keep altering it.
The Microphone being retractable and also adjustable to any position around the left side of your face is really a nice feature and the Microphone includes a light visible in your peripheral vision which only shines when you have the Mic muted (using the tactile button on the rear of the left ear cup) this is a nice touch.
The headset feels quite light considering it contains two large drivers, batteries and no doubt a lot of electronics. SteelSeries have done well to choose construction materials and methods that are light so that there is some weight budget left over for those heavier electronic components.
With those good aspects out of the way there are a few downsides to the physical parts of the headset which I will now list.
1. It doesn’t have a USB-C charging port and instead opts for Micro USB.
2. There are so many buttons and dials on the ear cups (both sides!) that you will almost always click a button or move a dial inadvertently when putting the headset on or off. This is annoying especially if you put them back on only to have the volume now set much higher than before.
So with that out of the way lets get to the meat and potatoes. How do they sound, what’s the battery life like and how good is the wireless performance.
OUTPUT SOUND QUALITY:
Firstly sound, out of the box these sound like garbage. And I’m not mincing words here, they sound very tinny and everything you listen to sounds like it’s coming through an FM radio. I’m no audiophile and I only own one other pair of headphones which are strictly intended for music but even I can tell that these sound very poor out of the box.
But it is mostly fixable. Firing up an application like EqualizerAPO (Free and Open Source) and searching online for an appropriate Equaliser profile (or dialling one in yourself if you’re feeling adventurous) changes the sound quality on these immensely. It’s like a night and day difference. They really do go from sounding bad to sounding great. Not excellent or perfect, but great.
MICROPHONE SOUND QUALITY:
The microphone is the main reason that I needed such a headset to begin with, to be competitive in online games you need to be able to converse with your team mates. I play my games in quite a noisy room and so a Microphone close to my mouth with some kind of noise cancelling was paramount.
In this regard the headset delivered exactly what I wanted. I recorded myself speaking and it sounds to me crystal clear. It will of course pickup wind noise if you have a fan blowing directly at your face but that’s to be expected. Overall I’d give the Microphone audio quality a solid 8 out of 10 and the noise cancelling is more than adequate.
Something to note here is if you install the SteelSeries 3 software you can set it so that the headset will broadcast what it hears on your Microphone directly into the headset so you can hear yourself talking. This is a must-have feature for a closed back over-ear headset like this one which will assist you in talking at a normal sound level to your team mates. I found this worked without any kind of discernible delay, it’s a faultless implementation.
The last thing to mention about the Microphone is that the headset does have a dial on the right ear cup which allows you to adjust the mix between the system/game sounds and the chatter from your team mates. This feature relies on the game or software you’re using being able to send game/software audio to one audio source and the chat audio to another.
For the games I play we use Discord chat which is able to send the voice chat to the chat channel of the headset and then any game I’m playing can target the game channel. These audio channels are clearly defined in all the software you use once you install the SteelSeries 3 software and this is a clever feature for quickly adjusting your audio balance without having to minimise a game to alter audio settings and it too works faultlessly.
BATTERY LIFE:
The headset boasts 24 hour wireless battery life and I’ve found that to be a completely accurate statement. The battery life is great and if the headset does happen to run out of power you can simply plug it in with the included cable and keep using it while it charges.
The headset doesn’t get noticeably warm even while being used during charging so the only inconvenience to charging it while playing is the cable dangling down your left side.
WIRELESS PERFORMANCE:
Whenever purchasing a wireless anything (Keyboard, Mouse, Headset etc) it’s often been the case that the manufacturers stated performance and range estimates are wildly optimistic. It seems most companies idea of testing consists of placing the product in an open field with no other wireless transmitting devices or perhaps any trace of civilisation at all.
So it will come as no shock to say that the stated 12 meters is likely only possible with a direct line of sight between the headset and its transmitter/receiver unit. I found through obstacles (one floor or a single wall) the range is about 3 to 4 meters.
But I will say if you’re staying in line of sight of the transmitter/receiver or you’re within those 3 to 4 meters the sound quality (when adjusted as noted above) is perfect. It suffers from no drop-outs or quality degradation. That is to say the bitrate remains high and the latency low.
So I have no concerns about the wireless performance of the headset for any of its stated usage scenarios (PC or Gaming Console). If you’re in the same room as your gaming machine you shouldn’t have any problems at all.
CONCLUSION:
I like this headset a lot when taking its cost into consideration and while its out of the box sound quality is poor after a few tweaks to your audio equaliser it does sound great. I think the price at 119.99 (as of review) is about right for this headset. Just keep in mind you may only be able to adjust your equaliser settings on a computer. You may not have that capability on a games console like an XBOX or Playstation.
Now if you were to spend that same amount of money on a wired headset you will definitely get better sound quality (especially out of the box) but the convenience that the wireless feature provides is to me at least, worth the sound quality sacrifice.
If there was one addition I would like to see in the package it would be some kind of carrying case. Just a drawstring cloth bag to store the headset in when not in use to keep it from getting dusty would be a nice value addition in my opinion.
PROS:
+ Good value for a wireless headset with Mic
+ Great sounding microphone
+ Tactile buttons that are easy to feel for
+ Quite light and feels comfortable for extended play sessions
+ Great wireless performance
+ Great battery life
CONS:
– Out of the box sound output quality is very poor
– Volume dial placement can lead to unintended adjustments
– No USB-C port on the headset for charging
I’m very fussy about my audio set-up as I stream, game, love to watch movies, create music, and video edit. However, I’ve not just bought another 400 pair of headphones, so my review is based on the quality for value.
BAD: (Because it’s not that bad)
These ARE NOT actually 7.1 (which I knew) but simulated. However, at least in windows, they only show up as a 2 channel device, which means some software will downmix the audio to the headphones, losing detail. I’m hoping this is fixable in future software.
I can’t be certain if this is why the surround isn’t as good as other DTS headphones that do show as multi-channel but for this price and what I’m using them for (gaming, some music, some Netflix) there is an acceptable difference with simulated DTS on.
The microphone suffers a little from being a bit too happy at picking up high frequency ‘S’ sounds, whch is typical of most noise cancelling mics I have tested. I don’t know if this is tunable in the software but if it is, I promise to try and remember to update this review.
The software isn’t really helpful for set-up, perhaps there is a manual there somewhere but some tooltips would be nice!
GOOD:
Let’s start with the EQ presets. I should hate them but coming back to price, and that EQ is hard (for some) the ‘out of the box’ software EQ settings are really rather good! The EQ is fully adjustable, even from a preset, so you can fine tune it.
The chat/voice game mixer is also fantastic in the way it works. In the operating system, you actually get two devices, one for the actual game/video/windows sound and a mono device that you can set discord/teamspeak/mumble/skype (etc) to use. After that, the dial on the headset is a fader which you can then put the bias from full game to full voice comms.
The microphone is very flexible and gives a good range of placement and the noise cancelling really does seem good. What’s also fantastic is the microphone mute is a proper on/off type pushbutton, rather than a press to toggle.
The extra band that suspends the frame is elastic and very comfortable, I don’t feel the weight of these headphones on the top of my head that much at all. Also, the foam of the ear pads isn’t too hard, so I don’t feel pressure on my ears (and I’ve not got small ears, and also wear glasses and I’m not feeling my ears pressed into the glasses but outside sound is nicely removed)
There is a ‘live preview’ feature available in the software itself, which is useful for setting up your levels, rather than having to do this in the operating system. However, this lets you know what your operating system hears, there is a small amount of latency. So there is a ‘party trick’ in the software. A feature called ‘Mic Sidetone’ routes the microphone directly inside the headphones, with 4 levels from off to high, meaning you can test, or always get to hear yourself, without needing to set this in the OS)
On the subject of controls, you can adjust the auto power off setting from the software from 5, 10, 30, 60, or 90 minutes and, of course, disable this function)
A quick final note, the software allows you to save multiple configurations, which means you can fine tune your audio environment for different usage (games/video/video conferencing) and recall these settings quickly, rather than needing to find a ‘one setting for all’ or having to tweak the settings every time!
GREAT, but how do they sound?
Well, they don’t sound like a 400 set of headphones and they have no right to at this price! However, even without all the extra utility and gaming features, the sound is better than some playback only headphones I have bought at this price and up to the 200 mark. If you’re happy (and able) to play around with the EQ settings I think you’ll find a sound that fits what you want, I certainly have and in a fairly short space of time. I’ve already done some gaming, movie play back (Star Wars Episode 2 sounded really good after a couple of minutes creating a movie profile) and made my brain light up with some Prodigy, Disturbed, and Beethoven (yes, I’m that nerd!)
Final Notes:
The USB sound card is very clean, I’m not seeing any noise coming through that shouldn’t be there. The USB cable for this is about 1.5m so is long enough for anywhere I need it, without having too much cable to worry about. It also has a fairly effective anti-slip rubber ring on the base. There are line in and line out ports, which I have yet to test, so no idea if this just plays to/from the headphones, or if that sound goes in/out of the operating system as well.
You get an OK length USB charge cable, which is just long enough for me as I have my PC close to my chair but if you need something longer, go buy a good long Anker cable for it. You also get a ‘smart phone’ 3.5mm (if you’ve still got a phone with a 3.5mm) that connects stereo and mic to a usb input on the headphones, meaning you can go analogue if you need to (but again, I’ve not tested this as I don’t really need to)
VERDICT
Well, when my wife finally gives up on her Logitech ‘real DTS’ headset, she’s already said she wanted a pair of these and while I’d happily let her pay more, or buy her something more expensive myself, I think we’ll be owning a second pair of these in the not too distant future, so yes, I’m very happy with them!