Millions of years ago, I do retail work gaming headset (among other things) in the PS3 era. Even then, I was annoyed that most headset manufacturers had versions of headsets that were nearly identical, differing only in whether they were compatible with Xbox or PlayStation. The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5X Wireless may not be the first headset to eliminate this annoyance, but it’s my favorite.
The core of this particular issue lies in the way different console manufacturers handle wireless audio. Bluetooth is the default system for wireless audio on most devices, but there are still enough latency issues that gamers will notice. Especially if you play competitive online games, where seconds matter.
Both Microsoft and Sony have their own proprietary wireless audio systems to solve this problem, but surprisingly, they don’t interact with each other. Worse yet, it frequent It’s too expensive to bother adding support for both to a single headset, since most gamers tend to have one of each console. Luckily, Arctis Nova 5X Wireless There is a convenient solution to this problem.
Enter Dongle
The Arctis Nova 5X headset is designed for the Xbox Series X/S (as indicated by the “X” in its name), but the 2.4GHz USB-C connector has a little switch that lets it toggle between Xbox compatibility and… everything else. You can use this headset with PlayStation 5, Nintendo SwitchPC, even your phone just by plugging this little device in.
Photo: Eric Ravenscraft
This isn’t the first SteelSeries headset to feature this—my previous top gaming headset recommendation for Xbox, Arctis Nova 7Xincludes the same dongle. However, it’s still rare for a wireless gaming headset to support so many devices. Usually, the Xbox is the odd one out on the compatibility list.
Additionally, the Arctis Nova 5X Wireless has a dedicated Bluetooth connection, so you can pair it with your phone or other devices to answer calls, listen to music, or stream your favorite podcast. While the 7X can output audio from both Bluetooth and 2.4GHz at the same time, the 5X only lets you listen to one or the other, although there’s a handy button on the right earcup to switch between them. In my experience, the switching was almost instantaneous. While it won’t help you listen to music while gaming, it’s incredibly useful for switching tasks.
More power
The Arctis Nova 7X Wireless has been a formidable contender for a while, but the battery life on the 5X puts it to shame. SteelSeries advertises around 60 hours of battery life on a single charge (compared to just under 40 hours on the 7X), though that can be cut quite a bit if you switch to Bluetooth mode. In my testing, I was able to get close to 40 hours of mixed use, which is still longer than most (though not all) gaming headsets on the market.
The headset also supports fast charging via USB-C, and can get an impressive amount of battery life in just 15 minutes of charging. SteelSeries claims you’ll get six hours of gaming on such a short charge. I popped mine on the charger and walked away long enough to make a sandwich and watch a short episode of Netflix. When I returned, the battery was close to 50 percent, more than enough to get me through the rest of the day and beyond.
The Arctis Nova 5X is also the first SteelSeries headset to support the company’s new technology. Mobile Companion App. I say “first” not because SteelSeries has promised to support other headsets, but because I really hope it happens. SteelSeries GG App for PC can be a powerful tool for customizing your game audio, but I find the accompanying app simpler and more enjoyable to use.
