SteelSeries Arctis 3 Gaming Headset

Product Description

Arctis challenges everything you know about gaming headsets with completely overhauled audio, a new mic design with unmatched clarity, and improved comfort with materials inspired by athletic clothing. Arctis 3 brings pure performance and style, featuring SteelSeries 7.1 Surround Sound.

NOTE: Warehouse Deals purchases may not come with the Product Code required to activate the Surround Sound Software on the Arctis 3 headsets. Please contact SteelSeries customer service at at support.steelseries.com if needed.

Features

• Designed for everywhere you game, with remarkable sound, comfort and style on all gaming platforms
• Exclusive Clear Cast mic delivers studio-quality voice clarity and background noise cancellation
• S1 speaker drivers are engineered to produce a detailed, balanced soundscape with ultra-low distortion, for your games, music, movies and more
• Arctic headsets feature athletics-inspired performance fabric Airwave ear cushions and a ski goggle suspension headband for lasting comfort
• Arctic headsets won the Red dot Product Design Award, Tom's guide “best overall gaming headset, ” PC Magazine editors’ Choice and Nerd Reactor says it's “the best headset I have ever used for gaming”

Top Reviews

Flaky mic and Proprietary cables prevent this from being a decent headset
by Aj (2 out of 5 stars)
September 7, 2018

This is a review for the Arctis 3 - Cabled Version

PROs:
- Decent sound quality. Very consistent with mids and lows. Full and well balanced
- Very comfortable for my head. The headset hugs the sides just enough to keep them firmly planted, but are still comfortable for longer sessions.

CONS:
- Flaky MIC. Often times every 2-3 words spoken were picked up by other players. As I got more use out of the headphones the volume of my voice degraded to a point where I could barely be heard. This is after adjusting the volume through the consoles settings.
- Proprietary cables means if you lose or damage the cable that plus into the headset (8 pin to 8 pin) or the controller (8 pin to 4-pole), as they are separate cables, you're out of luck until you can order new cables from SteelSeries. They are rarely in stock. I tried some 3rd party adapters and extensions that simply don't work.

Based on the flaky mic and the poor design choice for the cables, I would never recommend this headset
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If you suffer from dumbo ears, these might be the headphones for you
by Fossil (5 out of 5 stars)
June 2, 2017

I normally don't review something for weeks or months down the road, purposefully forgetting about it until I've had ample time to get a feel for said product, but I'm honestly so impressed with the Arctis 3 from the first few minutes of use that I can't help it. I came from an older pair of Siberia V2 that I bought in 2010-11, so they served me well, but after the sound stopped working in the left side I decided it was time for something new.

I'm that guy with giant dumbo ears who always gets pain from wearing headphones for prolonged periods of time. Even the Siberia V2's bothered me after a while. They always felt like they applied just a little too much pressure around the head from wearing them. This isn't true for the Arctis 3 at all. The ear cushions have more than enough room to fit my ears, which is such a damn relief, you have no idea. The way the headset sits around my head? Good gosh, I never thought I'd see the day where I almost forgot I was wearing them. It really is that comfortable. The adjustable suspension band helps get that "perfect" fit so they don't sit too high or low.

They finally did away with that silly volume adjustor halfway down the cord and incorporated the controls into the side of the right earphone. Easy to adjust volume and mute the microphone on the fly. The cords are great quality and plug in nice and firm, nothing shoddy about it (you can sit 10+ feet away too). I honestly like the way they designed it. There are two separate spots for the cord to disconnect itself incase you forgetfully pull away or someone trips over the cord, etc. Less likely to damage something. The overall quality of the headset is just superb. I really am impressed with Steelseries right now. The Siberia V2 felt like garbage when you held them, like you could snap them into a million pieces. I literally have nothing bad to say about the Arctis 3.

Last but not least they finally, FIIIINNNAALLLLYYYY made it possible to fold the damn things up for easy storage/transport. They sell a soft/hard case as well, which I've since purchased that is excellent to have when traveling. There's plenty of room to store a mouse, external hard drive, etc. I cram everything in this bad boy.

Oh and sound quality? Just perfect for me. If you want an audiophile's review on things they pretend to perceive differently, then this review was not for you.
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Great Gaming Headset for Xbox One
by Amazon Customer (5 out of 5 stars)
July 28, 2017

Xbox One Review. Writing this review a day after use and two days after returning the Turtle Beach 800X headset. First, the Steelseries headset fits and feels AMAZING. I have a large head, so I was skeptical after using the Turtle Beach headset (which felt terrible on my head). These are lightweight and feel fantastic. In case you weren't sure, these plug directly into the Xbox One controller via the 3.5 mm jack. There is no base transmitter or batteries for the headset; your controller powers the headset. You can plug these straight into the controller without any adapter and be satisfied. Mute and volume can be toggled directly on the left ear cup, and mic monitoring can be adjusted via the Xbox settings. If you prefer to have a adapter with volume and mute controls on the controller, I recommend he Turtle Beach adapter so you can retain the mic monitoring feature. The sound on these is excellent. I tried with games and music and everything sounds great. These do not block all noise in the background, but I think they do the job just fine. The microphone slides out of the left ear cup easily, and it sound great with Xbox party chat. Overall, 10/10.
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Great Headphones
by Savage (5 out of 5 stars)
November 22, 2016

Admittedly my only basis for comparison is a pair of Turtle Beach headphones I bought for over $100, which didn't particularly wow me, and they weren't very comfortable and were clunky. I also dont often play with headphones as I've got a pretty decent home stereo set up that I enjoy.

I picked these up after chatting with one of the Steel Series staff (I live in their hq city) and was impressed. For the price point they are spectacular headphones, and their fit and finish is so much better than Razor or Turtlebeach. The small touches of this product, like the cool art stickers that come in the box ( i think those were made by a local artist!), and the minimalist and clean feel of the instructions make this set of headphones feel like it was made for the professional gamer and the the discerning "adult" customer. The finish of the headphones themselves is clean, the retractable, inset microphone is fantastic, and having all the controlls On then headphones along with the raised mute button are genius! Also love that I can use them for my PS4, my XBone, OR for casual listening on my iPhone.

As for sound quality, music sounds fantastic. Crisp sound and heavy thump when appropriate without being over bearing. I've only been playing Rainbow Six Siege with them so far, but the ability to tell where enemies are bases on hearing has been game changing.
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Not too bad for what you pay
by Michael L (4 out of 5 stars)
August 16, 2018

For my PC gaming, I use a pair of Sennheiser headphones with a Blue microphone, but when I bought my Switch, I needed something portable, as well as something reasonably priced that I wouldn't have to worry about getting knocked around in my bag. I needed a headset with a four-pole connector, as Fortnite on the Switch does support in-game voice chat via a supported headset. Not as easy as I had thought, as most gaming headsets are either two 3.5mm jacks, or require a USB connection. There were plenty of off-branded headsets available, but in my experience, those brands have really hit-or-miss QA. I wanted one from a reputable brand that I had heard of.

Build: Though constructed from plastic, everything feels pretty rigid. A nice soft-touch plastic on the cans themselves and on the headband. The pivot points for the earcups are chunky, and look like they will be able to withstand some neglect for years to come. The microphone hides away neatly when it's needed, and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the cord is replaceable. The ones you get in the box seem to be an odd connector, a sort-of USB that I'm not familiar with to 3.5mm jack, but just below that is a standard headphone port that it seems you could connect an Aux jack to. I've not yet tested this, but a nice feature none the less in case your included cable breaks. Volume wheel and microphone mute are both pretty solid, no complaints on this front.

Fit/Comfort: The adjustability is different, for sure. Rather than your typical slidey-clickey adjustment on the headband that you usually get, the ski-goggle head strap adjustment is actually kind of nice. It took some finagling to get the right amount of tension to fit just right over my ears, but once I did, I've never had to adjust it since. The good bit about this is on a traditional headset, you usually wind up accidentally making small adjustments to normal headsets when taking them off/putting them on, but with the headband on the Arctis, it's a non-issue. Unless the velcro comes undone, it will keep it's fit. Nice! As far as comfort goes, well that is one area that lets me down slightly. Like many other gamers, I do wear glasses, and with pretty thick frames at that. The actual earcups provide a decent amount of padding, but after a while, it does start to get irritating. My ears will hurt from the headset pushing against the arm of my glasses, meaning longer gaming sessions will start to lead to some discomfort. Perhaps a slightly larger inner diameter for the earcups would have made this a little more comfortable. Compared to my Bose Quiet Comforts, the earcups fit nicely around my ears so they don't have the same issue, and I can wear those literally all day.

Sound Quality: For the price, I can't complain too much about the sound. These obviously are not audiophile grade speakers in the device, but the drivers do a good job of balancing out sounds. Bass is not overly exaggerated to where explosions drown everything out, and mids and highs are both at pretty acceptable levels. As far as other content consumption goes like watching movies or listening to music, I still prefer using my Bose, but these provide an acceptable, if not exceptional, listening experience. The microphone, once properly adjusted, is the same story. Plugging into my laptop and opening up audacity, I gave it a test run. Setting the fans of my gaming laptop to full blast and sitting at my usual distance, the background noise was completely inaudible. Voice quality was OK, but since there's no windshield on the microphone, it will take some adjusting to make sure you're not breathing directly into the microphone and attempting to do the world's worst ASMR. All in all, I've paid more for worse sound quality on gaming headsets.

So the verdict: If you're in the market for a good, all in one gaming solution, this is a good buy. While a setup like audiophile grade headphones and a good quality stand-alone mic is superior, these will get the job done in a pinch, and pretty affordably at that.
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The mic doesn't work
by curvyone (1 out of 5 stars)
October 3, 2018

I really want to like this headset. It's really comfortable - it hugs my head without being too tight, and the cushions are soft enough to prevent any discomfort with my glasses. The sound seems fine, but I haven't really tested that very much, since I can't make the mic work. My computer detects a mic, but after much trial and error, it appears to be dead. Also, the SteelSeries website keeps prompting me to download their Engine 3, insisting that it can support my headset, but it doesn't detect it, despite the fact that I have sound playing through it. I have the Arctis 5, which I also liked, except for the bulky and weird and.. weird cable system, with the control thing in the middle that moves if I even think about breathing near it. But I stopped using that headset a while back because.. yeah, the mic died. I will be returning this one, and I guess it's time to look at other brands.
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Great, Entry-Level Headphones for Games & Music
by mindxfoam (4 out of 5 stars)
May 10, 2018

I've been a loyal, SteelSeries for 4 years now when I owned my first pair of Steelseries Siberia v2 (still works btw, but I gave them to my nephew). I learned about the Arctis when it came out, but I was skeptical with the new changes from the Siberia series. I use these headsets almost every day, ranging from playing FPS games to just music on the go w/ my phone. So far, I'm impressed. Here's the breakdown:

Delivery & packaging: bought from Steelseries vendor and the headsets arrived on time with no visible damages. The Arctis comes w/ two aux jacks: one for your pc and another for your mobile. Very cool how you can switch, easily, between both jacks. However, the mobile jack does not come w/ the microphone.

Aesthetics: my first impressions were filled w/ excitement as i opened the cool, designed packaging. The frame is made of a black matte & hollowed plastic, the headband is entirely made of velcro w/ hexagonal designs and the ear pads are soft, yet very flimsy microfoam. The headphone cords are made of thin, flexible rubber. Microphone is plastic, but still carries the traditional, retractable cord for easy storage into the headset.

Comfort: In comparison to the Siberia, the Arctis is slightly less comfortable as for Steelseries replaced the light aluminum frame & thick microfoam earpads that was previously used w/ the now matte plastic frame & thin microfoam earpads. This decision may have reduced production costs for the headsets, but it greatly affected the comfort & functionality. I have a small-head frame and the Arctis adds more pressure on top of my head, so I have to adjust the Arctis at a slight angle to reduce the pressure. With the Siberia, I spent over 4 hours with no fuss, but now I have to take frequent breaks w/ the Arctis as they get uncomfortable after long use.

Software: To fully unlock all the features such as 7.1 Surround Sound, one must download and register their product to the Steelseries engine from their official site. At first, the engine is very tricky to use and I couldn't find anywhere on the packaging that the headsets needed to be used w/ the Steelseries engine. After some time later, i finally figured out how to link Arctis Headsets w/ the Engine on my own. The official, Youtube tutorial is not very helpful at all because it generalizes rather than actually demonstrating the product that you have. I actually enjoy how the Engine can be used for other devices such as your pc speakers or a DAC amplifier. The engine comes with an equalizer and profiles can be made customized, individually, for your games.

Communication: The microphone is an improvement from the Siberia v2. It has less static and sensitivity. However, the quality of the microphone is still decent and there are other headsets that have better microphones than this one does. They work mediocre, but not as great as they should be.

Overall, the Arctis 3 is a great headset for many uses. I haven't found any drastic faults or errors within the last 4 months of owning them, but I will definitely point it out if needed. Although not as comfortable as the Siberia v2, the Arctis worth trying for closed back headphones. They still do a great job with noise cancellation and surround sound just like its predecessor did. Highly recommended!
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Microphone doesn't work
by Theresa (1 out of 5 stars)
September 10, 2018

The microphone doesn't work. I bought this for my nephew as a birthday present and had to send it back for a replacement. Then the second one came and the microphone worked for 1 day. For how expensive these are, that's absurd. I could have bought a 15 dollar headset if I wanted it to work for a day. It was such a hassle to give him a present, send it back for a replacement, then have him tell me the replacement didn't work either. After all the research I did to try to find him a cool gaming headset for his birthday, now I just feel stupid and he's left with no working headset at the moment. He plays games online with his friends basically daily, so it's a bummer this didn't work out.
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Buy it!!
by MsBeautiful (5 out of 5 stars)
April 26, 2018

These headphones are amazing!! So if your up for reading a long review you have one! First and foremost; I'm the type of person that believes packaging says it all! I look at the quality of everything and the quality of the manufacturer box it came in was so well thought out and put together that I was happy about the box as well as the headphones haha! Secondly; but definitely not last; the headphones. As soon as I took them out of the box I put them on and I love how snug they are! They are so cozy on the ears! The band on top is adjustable to your head size so you can feel more snug if needed! I love how the microphone hides away inside of the headset as if it's not even there! That's a plus! Then we have the sound.... the sound ladies and gentlemen it's like being in a movie theater! I use this for gaming and I hear everything! I would recommend this to everyone!
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Made for small heads.
by Barrett (1 out of 5 stars)
July 21, 2018

The headset will not seal around my ears properly. They push tight at the top and the bottom is separated a fraction from my head. I can even fit my finger in the space. If I press them against my head the bass is very well balanced and the sound is great. But with the gap there, the bass fall away completely and it sounds like a tin can.

The reviews said these were good for large heads. But mine must be even larger than most. Sending them back to get something different.

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