The era of the audiophile gaming headset has been a long time coming. When I started reviewing them around 2018, the average “premium” gaming headphones cost somewhere between $150 and $250. In the years since, a whole range of super-premium headsets have emerged, from Bang & Olufsen’s stylish Beoplay Portal headphones to the original Audeze Mobius, which combined head tracking and spatial audio for dynamic, VR-friendly sound. Some of these headsets have been worth the spend—pushing new technologies and high-fidelity audio that was rare in dedicated gaming gear. Some were merely flashes in the pan. But the fact remains that, for folks who love games and care deeply about sound, the price ceiling on headsets has shattered.

The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite, an upgraded revision of its revolutionary Arctis Nova Pro, is the first headset from a mainstream gaming-first brand that I would argue might be worth such a crazy spend. At $600, it is extremely expensive—more than a PlayStation 5 or a Nintendo Switch 2—but you get a true multi-platform headset that sounds good enough to double as your everyday ANC headphones. If the Arctis Nova Pro is the headset that can do everything, then this is one that can do everything and more. And that maybe, just maybe, might justify the cost.

From Pro to Elite

Most of the things that make the Nova Elite great either build on or fill in holes from the Arctis Nova Pro, which launched in 2022. So before we talk about the Elite, we need to talk about what made (and still makes) that headset so great. Both the Nova Pro and Elite serve as two of a small handful of true multi-platform wireless gaming headsets. Because PlayStation and Xbox have always used separate wireless protocols, most headsets have to be made to support one platform or the other. The Nova Pro, and now the Elite, solve this problem by routing both platforms through a “GameHub” receiver, which has hardware to support both. Switching between platforms is as easy as pressing a button on the hub.

The GameHub also opens a lot of doors for console players who want to adjust settings and EQ without connecting to a PC. Where most headsets only offer limited adjustment using a companion app, the Arctis Nova Pro and Elite allow you to swap between EQ profiles and make fine adjustments directly on the hub. It definitely isn’t the best way to make these adjustments. SteelSeries’s Sonar app is much nicer to look at, and you can make test adjustments more quickly. But there are times when I’d rather mess around hastily than make a chore out of tinkering.

The Nova Elite improves this multi-platform capacity by adding a third USB-C port to its new and improved “OmniPlay GameHub,” so now you can plug in a PS5, Switch 2, and an Xbox at the same time. (Or two consoles and a PC, if you prefer.) And you can listen to audio from up to four of those devices at once. The hub will mix the audio on the fly so you can keep everything straight. Using two is helpful either for Discord or, if you’re like me, mainlining a podcast as you veg out on your 99th Hades 2 run. Using three or four is going to be overkill for most people unless you’re streaming or recording audio.

Active noise-canceling (ANC), while far from new, is also a rarity among gaming headsets and another place where the Nova Pro excels. But the Elite shines even brighter. It doesn’t achieve the same depth as, let’s say, Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra 2. But I’ve worn these out and about in New York and had them comfortably drown out subway noise and Midtown traffic.

Lastly, I have to shout out the “infinite” battery system that originated on the Nova Pro. The headset comes with a pair of hot-swappable batteries that, on the Elite, last a bit longer—up to 30 hours on a single charge, according to SteelSeries. (I’d say I swap batteries once every three to four weeks with heavy use, which syncs up with that number.) When one battery dies, you simply pop the backup out of the charging port on the side of the GameHub and put it in the battery slot inside the right can. While there are some headsets that make it feel as if you never have to charge, like the HyperX Cloud Alpha 2 with its 250-hour battery life, there has never been an easier way to deal with a dead battery on a headset.

Setting a New High Bar for Gaming Audio

The biggest difference with the Arctis Nova Elite over the Pro, however, is pure sound quality. On a technical level, the Nova Elite adds support for 96-kilohertz/24-bit audio over both 2.4-gigahertz WiFi or Bluetooth. It is the first wireless gaming headset to earn an official Hi-Res certification and one of the first I’ve seen that supports lossless audio. The headset also features redesigned 40mm carbon fiber drivers, which SteelSeries claims will enable a faster frequency response and cleaner sound generation across the board.

Okay, so those are specs. Specs are great. But what does that mean when you put the cans on your head? I’ve been using the Arctis Nova Elite on and off for the last six months or so. And I’ve found that there is a subtle but distinct difference in the quality of my game audio, especially in single-player experiences with a lot of atmospheric noise. The dread-inducing background sounds of Returnal, a PS5-first shooter I frequently return to for audio testing, creep in and out of focus seamlessly, as noise can enter and fade from your ears with less distortion. And in competitive games like Marathon, where it’s important to listen for players’ footsteps, you can track an enemy's movements with incredible precision.

The Nova Elite also features a redesigned mic with AI-enhanced noise canceling. In testing, I wouldn’t say that the difference was enormous compared to other mics with similar tech, but that may be because mic audio isolation has reached a point where it’s pretty great across the board. SteelSeries claims the technology can block out planes flying overhead. I did not test that out. But if you’re looking to take calls on the move, this is an excellent option, and certainly better than most headphones that rely solely on beamforming mics. (Beamforming microphones, used often in headphones and earbuds, use multiple microphones to isolate a beam of sound between your mouth and a microphone inside the body of your headphones. It’s incredible technology, but rarely matches a good ol’ fashioned boom mic right up against your lips.)

But, in truth, the Nova Elite’s improved fidelity shines most when you use it for music, film, and TV. Listening to your favorite songs, you’ll notice more detailed texture in each instrument, like the force of individual drum strikes, or how a guitar string reverberates as it's plucked or strummed. As with any lossless-equipped audio gear, your music generally feels more full and vibrant because you are literally getting small details that aren’t in the compressed version of the song. Most gaming headsets don’t give you that kind of fidelity, which is why, in most cases, I wouldn’t recommend a gaming headset as a substitute for a proper pair of headphones.

That said, there’s still room for improvement. While the detail and clarity is top-notch, I didn’t find that it achieved the same level of audio isolation as premium headphones. In an audiophile-grade pair, you can mentally focus on a single instrument or element of a song, and the rest of the music seems to almost fall away because each channel is clear and gives you enough “space” for you to hear it on its own. Listening to songs like “Hook”by Blues Traveller or “Bullet with Butterfly Wings” by The Smashing Pumpkins, my soundscape felt a bit crowded. It’s still very clear and sweet-sounding compared to Bluetooth headsets playing compressed audio, but I can’t say I’ve never heard better.

Ultimately though, I’d still contend this is best-in-class sound for a gaming headset. And, better yet, it’s in the same ballpark as a premium headset like the AirPods Max if you’re listening in ideal conditions (with lossless audio via 2.4 GHz). That’s a new high for SteelSeries—and for the headset world in general.

What It’s Like Wearing a $600 Headset

When I spoke to SteelSeries about the Arctis Nova Elite last year, the brand told me the vision for this headset was “quiet luxury.” I’d agree that it feels luxurious, with its steel and aluminum hardware and pillowy memory foam earcups. But the look is more “subtle flash.” You aren’t going to mistake its seafoam green and gold as belonging to any other headset. It is fashionable, though. More importantly, since this is a gaming headset, you can wear it all day and won’t feel it in your neck. The Nova Elite weighs less than a pound and, thanks to a suspended headband that distributes its weight across the top of your head, you barely feel it.

So What’s the Deal? Are We Buying This Thing?

If audio is important to you, though, and you want a headset that sounds as good as your soundbar that works across every device that you might use to play a game, I think the Arctis Nova Elite offers the best synthesis of technology and fidelity. The Arctis Nova line has so many unique, tightly designed features; it’s simply hard to compete, and that’s before factoring in sound quality. The mere fact that I thought to compare it to some of our favorite ANC headphones puts it in a rarefied air.

All that said, this is going to be overkill for most people. Despite the fact that the Arctis Nova Elite improves so many areas of the headset, I still think most people will be best served by going with the “more affordable” SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro, which is still on the expensive side for a headset at $300. I’m not going to tell you that you need to spend $600 on a headset. That’s crazy. But if you’re willing to spend whatever it takes to get the best, this is where I’d put my money right now.