Credit to Ewing33855 on their deal for the 7x which is now OOS.
I've been looking at the Arctis SteelSeries 9x for a while now due to its ability for audio and microphone on Xbox Series X and PC via Bluetooth, and audio (only but no microphone) via Playstation 4/5. The discount finally pushed me to buy one for myself.
Regular Price: $199.99
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FORM at checkout: $24.00
Total: $175.99 +tax and FS
ARCTIS 9X
Wireless Gaming Headset for Xbox
Discord-certified ClearCast noise canceling microphone for clear, natural-sounding voice communication on all platforms
Arctis signature soundscape emphasizes critical sounds to give you an audio advantage.
Play all day with athletics-inspired performance fabric AirWeave ear cushions that keep your ears cool and dry
Windows Sonic surround compatible on PC, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox One
https://steelseries.com/gaming-he.../arctis-9x
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I personally love non-gaming headphones, my absolute favorite are Sennheiser MOMENTUM Wireless 2, but they won't work on your xbox series x, or xbox one, at least not wirelessly. They can be used with a 3.5mm jack directly to your xbox controller, however they don't sound very good that way, as there is not enough power being fed from the controller to the headphones.
Hoping that SteelSeries make some adjustments their 7x line, fixing what seems to be engineering design flaws. Not sure if they would change their drivers to 50mm, but that is less of an issue than just having one side of the 7x headphones break, as that seems to be an issue for the owner's I have seen over on reddit.
The 9x obviously would give you wireless and bluetooth so it does have it's advantages in connectivity. It would have software + multichannel virtualization as well.
I will say I do like my arctis 5, I thought the build quality was good and they are very comfortable, but the audio quality is pretty mediocre. I do not use the arctis 5 for gaming, instead I just use them for work meetings. I'm sure the 9x would be better but no idea how much.
That said, I did think the SHP9500 were honestly pretty weak for sound quality for music, but they were exceptional for use with gaming due to their great sound stage + imaging and when combined with dolby or dts virtualization software, made a great combo for fps gaming.
Great headset: does Xbox wireless with console and PC, simultaneous Bluetooth (I use it for listening to podcasts from the iPad when playing on the Xbox), and has a 3.5mm jack if your computer has neither Xbox wireless nor Bluetooth.
Two issues: charging is via micro-USB and not USB-C, and wireless range with the Series X (and possibly all Xboxes) is pretty terrible - works fine when I'm on the couch some 10ft from the Xbox and TV, but if I move to the kitchen about 20ft away I get interruptions in audio. Even Bluetooth has better range and consistency.
My Sony 3D Pulse sound fantastic when they aren't cutting out. Per usual it's blamed on interference however the only thing in my gaming room is the couch, tv, desk it's sitting on and the ps5 the usb dongle is on the front.
The monstrous amount of threads complaining about the random cutting out shows it's not a minor issue.
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I bet... I'm not a fan of using adapters on electronics that output video or audio due to that exact reason, degradation of signal output.
First of all, as others have mentioned, it's a usb micro for charging which are absolutely horrible. Second, their website says that it is possible to unpair them from a previous xbox, but it's not. You can only do so if you are pairing it with a new xbox or xbox wireless adapter. So if I want to bluetooth connect them to my phone for instance, turning them on will also turn on my xbox at the same time. The controls for turning bluetooth on and off are finnicky at best and extremely unreliable. They say these are also supported for PC play, but their equalizing software does not support them? Wtf? Their software literally only supports one model. I will never purchase another steel series headset again because my experience with these in comparison with my Kraken 7.1 v2's is extremely poor.
I should point out some of the pros of the headset as well. The construction feels very sturdy. They actually feel good to put on. I expected them to be heavy on the head, but somehow they balance that weight nicely. The mic seems to prevent unwanted external noise well. The party chat mix is a nice feature on the headset although it doesn't work in xbox party on PC no matter what setup you have.
The 9x obviously would give you wireless and bluetooth so it does have it's advantages in connectivity. It would have software + multichannel virtualization as well.
I will say I do like my arctis 5, I thought the build quality was good and they are very comfortable, but the audio quality is pretty mediocre. I do not use the arctis 5 for gaming, instead I just use them for work meetings. I'm sure the 9x would be better but no idea how much.
That said, I did think the SHP9500 were honestly pretty weak for sound quality for music, but they were exceptional for use with gaming due to their great sound stage + imaging and when combined with dolby or dts virtualization software, made a great combo for fps gaming.
The RIG 800LX has always been my favorite headset but they're riddled with issues. I've owned three sets and most people that I''ve recommended it to have issues. After a third set breaking and the original makers (Plantronics) sold the line to Nacon, a company that doesn't provide any customer support, I decided I can't give them any more of my money.
I first looked to the Arctis 7x due to compatibility with the Series X and PS5. Unfortunately I found the microphone to be far too sensitive, even after adjusting settings. Reviews state the 9x has a better microphone so perhaps you won't have that issue.
Returned those and bought the Astro A50s. Love them and no real complaints other than you have to fumble around getting them on the charger dock in order for them to actually charge. Supposedly this was improved on for this Gen4 set so I don't even want to know how bad it was before. But $300 is so much for a headset that doesn't really feel like $300, if that makes sense. Decided to try one more set which is the Turtle Beach 700 Stealth Gen2, and then return the pair I liked the least.
Overall the 700 Stealth is a great headset, and the mic seems to be slightly better than the A50's in terms of not picking up background noise, but it's significantly less comfortable than the A50s, and also much heavier. The ear pieces are made up of a more leather-type of material that makes me ears/head moist/almost sweaty, whereas the A50s have a super soft suede/felt-like material (probably isn't those, just not sure what to call it). Very soft. I'm now wishing that I didn't try the Astros in the first place...an extra $150 over the TBs is a ton of money, and they probably aren't worth that must extra in terms of added value, but damn is it just so much more comfortable. Night and day. Think I might bite the bullet and keep the A50s.
Summary - if you have the money, go with the Astros 100%. If you're more on a budget (not that any of these are really cheap), I'd say the TB 700 Stealth Gen2 are your best bet. Now keep in mind I didn't try the 9x myself, so if the mic really is better than the 7x's, that could be better over the TBs. Honestly I'm just not too big on the loose/pull out/flimsy type of mics in general, so that's why I didn't look at the 9x more (both console compatibility was a big draw for me with the 7x)
Good luck!
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The RIG 800LX has always been my favorite headset but they're riddled with issues. I've owned three sets and most people that I''ve recommended it to have issues. After a third set breaking and the original makers (Plantronics) sold the line to Nacon, a company that doesn't provide any customer support, I decided I can't give them any more of my money.
I first looked to the Arctis 7x due to compatibility with the Series X and PS5. Unfortunately I found the microphone to be far too sensitive, even after adjusting settings. Reviews state the 9x has a better microphone so perhaps you won't have that issue.
Returned those and bought the Astro A50s. Love them and no real complaints other than you have to fumble around getting them on the charger dock in order for them to actually charge. Supposedly this was improved on for this Gen4 set so I don't even want to know how bad it was before. But $300 is so much for a headset that doesn't really feel like $300, if that makes sense. Decided to try one more set which is the Turtle Beach 700 Stealth Gen2, and then return the pair I liked the least.
Overall the 700 Stealth is a great headset, and the mic seems to be slightly better than the A50's in terms of not picking up background noise, but it's significantly less comfortable than the A50s, and also much heavier. The ear pieces are made up of a more leather-type of material that makes me ears/head moist/almost sweaty, whereas the A50s have a super soft suede/felt-like material (probably isn't those, just not sure what to call it). Very soft. I'm now wishing that I didn't try the Astros in the first place...an extra $150 over the TBs is a ton of money, and they probably aren't worth that must extra in terms of added value, but damn is it just so much more comfortable. Night and day. Think I might bite the bullet and keep the A50s.
Summary - if you have the money, go with the Astros 100%. If you're more on a budget (not that any of these are really cheap), I'd say the TB 700 Stealth Gen2 are your best bet. Now keep in mind I didn't try the 9x myself, so if the mic really is better than the 7x's, that could be better over the TBs. Honestly I'm just not too big on the loose/pull out/flimsy type of mics in general, so that's why I didn't look at the 9x more (both console compatibility was a big draw for me with the 7x)
Good luck!
The mic is one of the strongest points of the 7x. Crystal clear.