SteelSeries - Arctis 5 Wired 7.1 RGB Gaming Headset for PC, Mac, PlayStation, Xbox, VR, Mobile - Black

I have been a fan of Steelseries since the original Siberia headset. Coming from the Siberia v2, I was really eager to give the Arctis 5 a try and I am glad I did. Overall, I am very satisfied with this headset. It seems like it is built with quality and I really enjoy the look and feel of it. Before I start my review, I just want to clarify that I am using this headset for Xbox One and have used it for about 15-20 hours so far. The most important aspect of a gaming headset to me, besides sound of course, is comfort. Coming from the Siberia v2, which was a great headset but somewhat squeezed my head, the Artcis 5 seemed a little loose initially. I adjusted the headband, and it definitely seemed to help. Once I adjusted it to feel like it wasn't going to fall off, the headset became more comfortable the more I used it. They are light and very comfortable around the ears especially after hours of gaming. On my previous headset, my ears would sweat and I would get a headache after hours of gaming. With the Arctis 5, i dont have that issue at all. Your ears stay cool and there is very little pressure from the headset. The mic has a very clear sound according to my friends that I chat with on Xbox. You can also test it out using the Steelseries Engine 3, which I did and was very impressed. So far so good. I have only used this headset on Xbox and I have not played around with the audio settings using the Steelseries Engine 3 yet. That being said, I think sound is excellent. It is definitely an improvement over the Siberia v2's that I was using previously. It is very clear and I've had nothing but positive experiences so far. My only disappointment so far is that the LED lighting does not work on Xbox One. Since the console does not currently support USB headsets and you connect it using the 3.5mm adapter, the LED lights dont work. You need to connect the headset to a PC to make them work. I love the customization, but I just wished it worked on console. Since I have not tried and tested many headsets, I wont tell you this is the best headset out there. I will say that for $100, this is great headset and definitely worth the money. After more use, I will update my review.

This will be my in depth pros and cons review for the steelseries Arctis 5 gaming headset. We will go over the glowing pros and existing cons in this headset. Before we begin I would like to add this note that I went from a 300 dollar headset, being the astro a50, to this headset. I honestly feel like I upgraded, and you will see why in this pros and cons review. Pros: Comfort - THIS is the single most glowing positive in this headset. The Astro a50 headset I previously owned actually left a dent on my head where the headband was. This was because 1) The headband was thin, 2) The headband was not plush, and 3) the headband was not evenly distributing weight on my head. I mean this seriously when I say this is the single most comfortable headset I have worn, ONLY because of the headband. The patented air circulating earcups are wonderful, but the headband on this headset is something to praise. It will distribute the weight of the headset perfectly on your head and actually give you a desire to wear the headset, rather than the desire to take it off. Sound - It was tough for this 100 dollar headset to compare to my previous 300 dollar headset. I will admit it is not as loud as the Astro a50 would get, but the Astro a50 would reach a volume point where you'd have to be deaf to need that kind of volume. I was very impressed with the sound quality of this headset especially when coming from a 300 dollar headset. The bass is not as booming, but enough for the everyday gamer or music head. The speakers are actually ingeniously designed with a bulge to face toward your ears when wearing the headset, this is something steelseries doesn't mention but I appreciate this detail. Setup - Not much to say here, this headset is very easy to set up with a simple USB port to plug to the chat volume mixer, which then has a cable that plugs into your headset. (Yes the cable is removable from the headset which is perfect for travel). Software - Although the headset is plug and play, you will be missing out on a lot when you opt to not get the steelseries engine software. This software is one of the best I've seen across the gaming market, (And I use razer software for my other peripherals). In this software you can control the lightning in many ways, like breathe speed, colors, patterns, and more. You can control how much background noise the mic will eliminate, and there is even an Equalizer in the software for those who would like to fine tune their sound. In this software you will find a special add on labeled 'Gamesense' Where the lighting on your headset will react to certain things in the game you are playing. (For example, you can set the lighting to display your health in CS:GO). Of course, this is just a fun thing steelseries has added and served no real efficient use, unless you have a mirror pointed at you at all times I guess. Chat Volume mixer - Again, I did own the Astro a50 headset before this one and I must say having a physical volume wheel instead of pressing buttons on the earcups is a huge difference. The mixer works great and is easy to use, it is especially handy when there are explosives going off in your game and your friend is trying to tell you something important. The microphone - This headsets microphone greatly exceeded my expectations. I don't like to talk about microphones too much because the sound card on your computer will be the more deciding factor on your voice quality. Overall design - This is just my opinion here, but i love the fact that steelseries kept this headset simple, sleek, and very elegant. The headset itself contains a smooth rubber feel to the touch, and the lighting on this headset is not too much and not too little. Props to the design team on this headset, they did a great job. Cons: Mic mute light - This is the biggest con I could find personally, although it may only effect a certain group of people, specifically those who wear glasses. The mic shines a very bright red light when muted that can get extremely distracting unless you detract it back into its earcup. With glasses on, the glare is almost unbearable from this bright red light. I do wish this light was dim-able or disable-able. Retractable mic - I am one that prefers flip up mics mostly because of its ease of use and they usually come with a great mute when flipped up feature. The mic on this headset does not go back into its earcup easy, and will push the left earcup off your ear if you try to place it back inside without backward support. So you do need 2 hands to detract the microphone, which wouldn't be so bad for me if it wasn't for that mic mute light I mentioned earlier. Rubber cable - This is more whining than anything else, but I was surprised to see steelseries not opt for a braided cable for this headset. I can only assume they wanted to keep the headset at its 100 dollar price point. You will get rubber cables on this headset. Conclusion: I absolutely love this headset, and the cons mentioned in this review can be easily overlooked. I would definitely reccomend this product to anyone, it is very comfortable, sounds great, and has a very reasonable price tag. Pick this headset up, I don't think you will regret it. If you want, you can just impress your friends with the cool lighting effects. I am very pleased with my purchase and will be upgrading to the Arctis 7 wireless when it is released at Best buy. (At the time of this review, the Arctis 7 was not yet released on Best buy). I hope this review helped you in your decision on purchasing this headset, thank you and have a good one!

I've been a fan of SteelSeries headsets ever since the original Siberias, but since their recent offerings were a little underwhelming I was excited to see that they were looking to revamp their line with the Arctis series. The earcups are made of easily the best feeling material I've ever had the pleasure of using on a PC gaming headset. They're essentially made of a very soft and plush foam covered by what they call their "airweave" fabric, which feels like the type of material you'd have on an athletic shirt/jersey. It stays very cool, so if in your experiences you tend to get overheated around your ears, these guys should help keep those ear temps down. Wearing glasses with them on also did not impact the comfort of this headset for me, which is a major bonus. Even though they're made of the foam/fabric material, they still did a decent job at isolating outside sound/noises. The ski mask head strap also helps with the comfort and can be adjusted to your liking. Note that you can purchase leather or velour replacement earcups from SteelSeries' website if you prefer those earcup materials over the ones that come with these or just want better sound isolation via the leather earcups (the ski mask head strap is also replaceable/customizable, as SteelSeries offers a nice selection of colors and designs on their website as well) My favorite feature with this headset is definitely the chat/game audio mixer, which allows you to adjust how loud one channel is in relation to the other at the same time. The USB interface allows the headset to show up as two distinct audio outputs (one labeled Game and the other Chat), so all you would have to do is make sure all your game audio is outputting to the Game channel and all your VOIP/in-game voice chat outputs to the Chat channel (some games may already do this by default). Rather than constantly manually adjusting game volume vs. chat volume from the sources, I just use the included dial to make the adjustments. Brilliant! Sound quality is pretty decent - I had to adjust the EQ settings within the SteelSeries Engine software because the defaults were pretty flat in my opinion, but things sounded pretty great afterwards (I'm currently using the "Performance" EQ at this time). The software allows the headset to also simulate DTS 7.1 surround, though I haven't had to turn that feature on since a lot of my games have simulated surround built into them already. Build quality is great overall as well. The entire headset is made of a very sturdy plastic material, and the earcups are on a nice, smooth swivel. It's a pretty lightweight headset, so I've been able to have long gaming sessions without having that weird extra head weight feeling. I'd definitely recommend this headset if you're looking for something that's a little lighter feeling and more comfortable without sacrificing sound quality. The game/chat mixer might improve your quality of life when it comes to gaming, and you'll wish SteelSeries had come up with that earcup material much, much sooner (seriously, I found it THAT comfortable).

This is a good headset for the price point. They're spiffy and feel pretty solid. There are better headphone options for the money when it comes to music and movies, but compared to other over-ear mic/headphone combos they fit the bill. The software is buggy and its equalizer is very limited. When it was installed a lag developed that would come and go, along with a slight latency crackle. I uninstalled the software and rebooted, allowing the headset to be picked up by Windows as a generic headset. I then installed Equalizer APO, a freeware title. I highly recommend it to people who are serious about sound. Granted, without the SteelSeries software you probably won't be able to use DTS, set custom RGB colors, or mic noise reduction settings, but that's a small price to pay, for me. I'd rather have a decent graphic EQ and smooth performance. With the above setup, the sound is decent and the mic is clear. A clear mic is essential to me, as I participate in regular online meetings for work. Many cheaper gaming headsets have pretty lights and lousy mics, and I have to say this mic is impressive. It's often a bit too sensitive, picking up the slightest movement of my lips and tongue. But better too sensitive than not sensitive enough. Ear cups are comfortable, the whole headset is lightweight, it has a luxurious look and feel, and the smooth RGB fading is very pretty and tasteful. I took off a star for the following: - Horrendous software, as described above. - I'm also gonna complain a little about the headband, which, while comfortable, isn't very snug and allows for too much shifting. You will not be able to head-bang or work out with these on. The tiny bit of velco stitched on for adjusting is so small they might as well not be adjustable at all (and my head isn't particularly small either -- I'm a big guy with a big head, yet these still feel sorta loose). I might add some more velcro to the band, to give it some more room for tightening. - Also, while the sound output is ok, it's still not great. I'm something of an audiophile though, so take that with a grain of salt. Most consumers will probably be satisfied. All in all, I feel this is a good buy, but only because of the sad state of the gaming headset market these days. My Samsung S5 phone audio with its cheap little included earbud headset out-performs most $70 gaming headsets on the market right now. The SteelSeries Arctis offers a decent bang for your buck in comparison.

Bought these on a whim, without really doing any research as I was actually in my local Best Buy looking for another product that wasn't in stock. The sales associate recommended these over another pair that I was comparing them to and I am glad he did. The sound quality is excellent, far better than I had any right to expect in this price range, with superb surround. Highs are good, lows are good. Mids are really, really good. Bass is better than you would expect. Pretty good, actually. None of the ranges will blow your mind, but I didn't expect them to at $89. The telescopic mic works great, and while she used the new headset I was able to hear my wife clearly during our Path of Exile game sessions without any drops or over-modulation. Maybe most importantly, at least for me, is that this is a lightweight set that fits my ginormous nugget without inducing nuclear-grade migraines. The cans are adjustable, with an elastic strap that lines the inside of the headband and connects at each end with velcro, for a perfect fit that can be a bit of a chore to find the sweet spot on, but is absolutely worth it. I can wear these bad boys for hours, and I have. Much to my shame. I can't say it enough, I have never worn a more comfortable headset. The one con, and it is sort of a big one, is that the volume control-wheel on the headphones is large, juts out so far and is located in such a spot that will often make contact with whatever you rest your head on while wearing them: pillows, armrest, the headrest on your couch, the floor, your dog, your girlfriend's thigh. Whatever. It will find it, and will either inadvertently turn your volume down to levels that will make you think you have begun to go deaf, or will crank your volume up so high as to ensure that you do. For this, these headphones lose a star. They'd lose only half a star if that were an option, but, boohoo, it's not. Blame Best Buy.com for that. Overall, these are really good cans at $89, which is what I paid for them. Just about perfect at that price if it weren't for the touchy, poorly designed volume control.

Second pair of Steel Series, and even better then the last set (Siberia Prism). This company usually offers a great collection of headsets for excellent prices...more like affordable. The Steel Series Engine software makes it easy to change the RGB color, pattern, and sound range. PROS PRICE: For what you get from this set, there's not much to complain about. At a mid range price for quality headsets, it matches, if not better, than its competitors. FEATURES: this set eliminates side head rest extensions or rail extenders, and created non-extending swivel joints. They inserted a bungee band with a velcro attachments, that makes the set extremely comfortable and fits to any size head. The side pieces are as usual flimsy foam, however, still comfy, sits perfectly on your ear where it is not too far and not overly close. Multiple volume adjust settings for precision volume control. A fashionable-adjustable-retractable microphone with an illuminating mute light when activated. SOUND: The sound quality is moderately, and has little to none residual static playback at it's highest volume. The volume itself is outstandingly loud and delivers ample noise, which has 2 points of volume control...a separate adjustable desktop game-volume to chat- volume knob, as well as a turn knob on the headset. CONS Though an excellent set for the price and features, the one thing that plagues Steel Serious is the overall structure material. Plastic! In order to make Steel affordable, it uses plastic, which as you know is subject to fast wear and tear, and accident prone cases if not handle carefully. Another point, is this is not a wireless set. Though the wire is removable when not in use or need to adjust the lengthy cable, and it fits securely into the set, but, again, not careful, there's potential to snap it. Overall, structure quality maybe impeded by the material used, one should take caution with all equipment. Therefore, as long as the quality in sound, features, and even price supersedes it majority cons, then you have a winner. So, Artic 5's are a winner for mid-range shoppers

My Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma's, which were decidedly mediocre themselves, gave up the ghost today, and after hours of sifting through headset reviews, I bought these based on the great reviews. I was looking forward to an improved sound experience with these, but now that I have them, I'm definitely not getting what all the fuss is about. The sound is flat and uninspiring regardless of the EQ settings, the bass is pretty much non-existent and no amount of tweaking will rectify it, and the sound has a coming through a tunnel aspect to it (with and without 7.1 DTS turned on). Additionally, after wearing them for a couple of hours, they actually are bugging my ears and head. (I have a normal sized head and ears, and wear a size 7 hat). Searching online about the flat sound issue after buying these today and being seriously unimpressed with the sound, I came across several threads about similar complaints with this headset. Based on recommendations in one of them, I tried uninstalling the SteelSeries software and device drivers, and using Windows default driver's/sound settings and turning on bass boost for punchier sound. It made it more bass heavy, but then they just sounded muddy and thick, with no crispness at all. There doesn't seem to be a sweet spot with these, despite hours of tweaking settings, and installing, uninstalling, and re-installing the software. (Yes I have done the firmware update as well). I'm sorely disappointed with these cans, and befuddled by the great reviews. They aren't comfortable, don't sound good, and I will be taking them back to Best Buy tomorrow, and picking something else.

I have an XXL head, 24 inches around. I have had to wear earbuds forever because nothing is big enough that's decently priced. Either my ears get crushed or my head gets put in a vice just above the ears. I once snapped a pair of my friend's Skull Candy's in half just trying to fit it on my head. I got these and immediately noticed that there is no kung fu grip on my skull like every other pair out there. If I can feel pressure while putting it on, I'll feel pain 15 minutes later. Not with these puppies. No pressure on the skull and my ears aren't smashed against something. I don't even feel the headband due to the way it distributes weight across the top of the head, and the ear cups are very comfy and breathable. I got them last night and put in several hours of Destiny on PS4 without a problem (something I have never been able to do with any other headphones I've ever seen at this price point.) As for sound quality, I have the same thoughts as everyone else really. Sound doesn't favor any particular range, and isn't bad. It's by and large better than any earbuds you'll find anywhere near this price. In summary: thank Odin for these headphones. I hope SteelSeries keeps this line going because when these wear out, I'll be looking for another.