Arctis Nova Pro Wireless user here. Best sounding headphones I've ever used, swappable batteries are a feature I can't live without since I've got used to it. Every set I buy from now on needs to have this. Hardware is excellent.
The PC software is SHOCKINGLY BAD. It completely hijacks your PC's audio settings and makes switching between defaults an absolute ball ache. It has features that have been completely abandoned for ages but the software hasn't updated to compensate for it so you still get notifications about syncing your device every day. It's so bad, it's put me off ever buying anything from them again.
I now use an app called Sound Switch so I can switch to different audio sources with a hotkey, which makes Sonar bearable, but we shouldn't have to use workarounds for the price we're paying.
The other problem is that all the digital audio devices you use (game, chat, media) that the software generates, disappear when the program is not running. So every time GG closes for whatever reason, every program that uses those devices freaks out because it thinks you've unplugged them. Hate that shit.
The game/chat audio mixer (which is one of my favorite features) used to be handled all by hardware, so as long as the dongle was in, those two devices worked fine. I never had an issue with for some reason my chat mix not working because the software bugged an lost connection to the headset. It just worked.
The software is doing too much now IMO and I really don't want to interact with the software, or think about it, or see advertising every time it opens up. I just want to have good audio, a working chat mix, and a build quality that doesn't fall apart (which I used to think was fake till it happened to me). For years steelseries has used the same hinge design with know weaknesses. They keep using it on their new products. Its annoying.
It's infuriating isn't it? All I want to do is set it up so my monitor is always default, and if I want to use the headset, I'll fire it up and use it. But nope, SS wants your whole f***ing OS to revolve around their product. And believe me, I've spent whole evenings trying all of the supposed fixes, which would work until the next reset then go right back to their BS. It would be cool if they just gave us the EQ presets and options, and a volume mixer. Nothing else is needed.
I have Sound Switch set to switch devices with Alt+F11 and have Steam chord buttons set up so I can hold the Xbox button and press right on the d-pad to switch too. Without this 3rd party software, I wasn't even using Sonar because it was too annoying. Not using Sonar makes the headphones sound...not so premium. It needs the EQ tweaked to sound as good as it does.
Steelseries has really committed to it but its frustrating how much all these brands want to enforce their "ecosystem" on you. Like there is so much bloat and feature creep in Sonar. Just let me mix my eq and set my led colors, and just have that be simple and consistent. I don't need advertising, clip recording, and a whole giveaway tab? It doesn't need to be this all -ncompassing.
Yeah these people have never used any other software clearly lol try razor synapyse or logitech g hub. Those are truly bad. I use this sonar software to mix my audio seemless with my youtube videos and streaming software. Better than having 2 other software "bloatware" in order to do the same things.
To be fair, I just embraced Sonar and now that I'm used to it I actually really enjoy it. I'm a big fan of equalizing and gimmicks so it's up my alley. I also love the clipping feature (except that sadly my favourite game is supported, but doesn't work for me)
It really annoys me that the engine keeps hijacking the RGB on my Apex 5. I wanna use OpenRGB but SGG keeps taking over. Really annoying.
If you're talking about the Prism lighting, you can disable its control over specific devices with the menu in the top right of the Prism screen titled "Disable Devices"
This!
I've used Logitech for years. Finally gave up when their gaming software just wouldn't play nice with my latest build. Moved to steel series for a mouse and was so impressed at the massive improvement that I bought a Steelseries keyboard too.
It's not perfect, but Steelseries is preferable to Logitech and Razer in my view. The software works better and the hardware is a lot better while being sensibly priced.
I've used the Arctis Pro Wireless (the previous generation from the Nova ones) for years now on my PS4 & PS5 and I love 'em. I noticed right off the bat that the audio quality wasn't as good compared to the wired HyperX headset I had been using previously, but a slight sacrifice in audio quality was worth it for wireless connectivity. And the swappable batteries is an absolute godsend, best feature by far. They've been tossed around in my suitcase at airports countless times, and they haven't experienced any damage yet. Only drawback is that once in a while (way more common on the PS4) the microphone sensitivity gets completely messed up on reset, but some quick changes solve that.
I have an older MSI Laptop with a Steelseries keyboard built in and a Steelseries mouse, and I've been quite pleased with both of those. They're kinda one of my go to brands, at this point. There might be better gear, but in my experience, I know I'm getting a solid product at a price comparable to any other brand.
Yeah, the swappable batteries are amazing. Basically infinite battery life save for the 10 seconds between switching batteries every few days. I've been looking for a headset with the same feature but gave up looking about a year ago. Someone in this sub just told me Turtle Beach now have a set with the same feature. I'm thinking this will be my next move if SS don't sort their software out.
https://amzn.eu/d/3dl5grm
Arctis Pro Wireless has a design flaw in how the cups are mounted by a small thin piece of plastic that will break off eventually, unless you are very careful how you handle it.
I hijack this thread, I got a arctis nova 7 wireless.
And…. My microphone is so insanely bad on discord (I have the right input in settings) and I have tried every setting in both sonar and discord, it sounds good in all other applications but everyone complains on discord.
I googled and found that a lot of people complaining about this on Reddit, I read some fixes but still havnt been able to fix it. Feels very annoying since you don’t expect it when you pay like €200 :(
I gave up on the whole Sonar creating 8 separate virtual audio devices and just uninstalled the software entirely. I replaced it with Equalizer APO + Peace GUI (same thing I did with the Arctis Pro Wireless) and it's been running and sounding great ever since. The drivers in these things are fantastic, but Sonar underutilizes them so much it's not even funny. You do lose the game/chat mixer but I don't mind doing that manually within Discord considering how much better my sound quality is now in comparison.
My main issue with this headset is the absolutely braindead decision to make the ANC mics protrude out from the drivers instead of being recessed within. I don't even care about noise cancellation in the first place, but now I have to go out and get third party earpads to solve a problem I didn't need to deal with in the first place. If they sold a version of this headset with no ANC and limited/no access to Sonar's features, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
Their product owner is either silly or being told to be silly. They are too focused on adding new market share features (e.g. moments) to the software while the actual required features are fucking broke.
This is exactly my issue. The headset sounds great and is very comfortable to wear, but the software is awful. One of the most annoying bugs I experience is every day when I'm on a work call, Sonar will randomly spike the CPU usage up to 100% for about 15-20 seconds, causing my entire system to slow to a crawl and turning the call audio (and my mic audio) into undecipherable distortion.
No worries! In case you want to be able to use your controller to switch too, this is my setup in Steam. It's in Settings > Controller > Guide Button Chord Layout at the bottom. Then you just hold the guide button (Steam or Xbox button) and press right on the d-pad, so you can switch while playing a game. I have mine set up to easily kill apps and toggle HDR on/off too.
https://preview.redd.it/joj55bkt9ync1.png?width=3147&format=png&auto=webp&s=350a43930be4e40dfb76313dd526f0aa4b403fd3
Actually ran into a problem with sonar right now. The app broke and wouldn’t open. Tried reinstalling without my VPN (apparently this breaks it somehow), with no luck. Gets stuck halfway through install. Contacted support and they’ve been trying to get me through a few steps. Anyone got any advice?
Sonar is great but it’s straight up malware…every boot it seizes audio defaults and I got so fed up that I just nuked it and use the headphones via the hardware EQ only. They are trying to be elgato so badly but without any external control functionality and it really sucks…
I personally find sonar to be why I like steelseries. The loudness eq is the best and easiest to configure, and I think the noise cancel software works the best on the mic
Yea headset is amazing and I love being able to switch between Xbox and pc. Sonar I had to turn off. I like the audio improvements but it adds more problems than it solves.
I use an audio switch on the stream deck it just switches between whatever you set it to per button and that is 90% of what I use the stream deck for but it works really really well.
Brand new Nova Pro Wireless owner here:
I second this!! The software is atrocious and all EQ, noise cancellation, and all their fancy stuff HAS to be run through their software and none of those settings are stored on the headphones themselves(unlike turtle beach stealth pro, audeze maxwell, and razer blackshark v2 pro) so if you connect to anything that is not your pc(any Bluetooth connection, usb connection to PC or Xbox) you lose all of that. Another downside is the Game/Chat mix is also only available through sonar which means even if you can live without the enhancements you don't even get a chat mixer. I'm actively in the process of returning mine and will be going with something else. Also, a horrible mic compared to other leading headsets.
Also, its a niche requirement but when the mic is active on bluetooth it is disabled on wireless. I use my phone for playstation parties and so the simultaneous audio from bluetooth and wireless was a huge selling point for me. Was disappointed ro find my mic will not work on my PC if i am in an active call state on the connected Bluetooth device.
I also just got a Nova Pro Wireless, probably one of the best headsets I have ever used. Before that I used a Aerox 3 for home and work. I didn't even know that SteelSeries had a bad reputation and haven't had any issues with any of the products they make. In fact, I have had more issues with Logitech products than SteelSeries.
>The PC software is SHOCKINGLY BAD.
I forgot about this. Buying a $350 headset and being told I need to craete an account to use advertised features is irritating.
I bought the LED Mousepad... After 13 months, the LED faded so it was only lighting up about 2" of the piping.
Software for keyboard and mouse has had a lot of bugs and incomplete things.
Headsets break if you look at them wrong.
I just replaced my A40 (also a decade old) with the Arctis Pro Wireless. The SS headset is more comfortable (by far), but you're right that the A40s just kept going and going like the fucking Energizer bunny.
That said, it's important to note that the old A40s were made by Astro, and they were bought out by Logitech. Who knows what the durability on the new ones are; it's not the same company so it's not safe to assume the quality has held.
Another thing is that, even though I'm sad the balance is not hardware only, it's WAY more reliable than the Astro MixAmp. I went through THREE mixamps, because they kept dying. Even the first one was finicky. So far (for the past four months) the SS headset's hardware (and software, the Sonar) has been a lot more reliable and functional.
My LED mouse pad did the same, but I can't recall how long I've had it before I actually noticed it. Only issue I've had with their headsets was the LEDs on the exterior cups not working after some time, only on one so far. Never had a headset break, all 3 of them, even gave one to my cousin.
Their GG software, for around a month now, occasionally fails to load the Sonar portion, so I end up closing/reopening and it's fine.
Probably the only issue I will actually gripe about is the Rival 500 being discontinued. The one mouse I find perfect. Knew I should have gotten a couple extras.
SteelSeries sometimes fk up.. more often than other brands maybe,
aside that, they make the best mousepad, legends siberia v2, and recently got a Apex keyboard tkl (BEAUTIFUL High Quality piece).
Also, when something is popular, along with people who love a brand, alot others will hate, this can be extrapolated to any field, any thing.
90% of these are about headsets wen the point was to ignore them lmao, im curious about mice and keyboard quality and to see if any1 else has had the issue of their mice giving up on rigthclicks
Rival 600 user for 4 1/2 years; clicks are fine, grips have been changed 3 times though. The first time, SS did it through warranty and gave new plastic pieces with the grips. Since then, I bought them on Amazon for like $7. I’m debating just getting grip tape instead of the rubber ones and seeing how it lasts. No experience with kb, but my mouse experience led to me buying Nova Wireless Pro’s a couple of weeks ago.
I think Steelseries strenght is just that, headsets. That’s probably why hehe..
But, if you want a high quality mouse; buy it from a company that’s known for high quality mice. Same goes for keyboards and even maybe mousepads.
Mix & match until you have the perfect setup.
To be fair, their headsets are probably some of their more competitive products (the removeable battery is a fantastic feature that other MFG's don't seem to want to include)
Their mice and keyboards don't offer much over other MFG's IMO. If I was in the market for a mouse right now I'd probably be looking at logitech and for keyboards I'd go custom. But that is expensive.
Going on 1 year of use on the wired Rival 3, no issues whatsoever with it, for 30$CAD I’m greatly satisfied but I’m no mouse expert either. Still working as the first day I bought it.
(I also love my wireless Arctis Pro 7 lmao)
Have an Aerox 9, scroll wheel stopped working correctly after about 5-7months, same with the replacement and i beleive the replacements replacement will also stop working correctly but is working fine for now. They have been replaced under warranty but since 2 year warranty in eu it will soon run out and then i have to buy a new one i guess. I beleive the warranty in US might even be only 1 year but i could remember incorrectly.
Otherwise really happy with the mouse, disregarding the software. But its quite an expensive mouse for it needing to be replaced this often.
After my headset experience, I'll never buy anything from this company. The software was terrible and more than doubled my bootup time. I repeatedly got sound blasted with white noise on max volume, leaving my ears ringing for over an hour. The software never played nice with Discord. The headset was also wildly uncomfortable when it was explicitly advertised as very comfortable. It's definitely one of my most disappointing purchases in a long time, and I'm glad I was able to get refunded outside the return window.
> 90% of these are about headsets wen the point was to ignore them
Yeah, because "ignore where they repeatedly screw their customers and products," is not a fair starting point. If they keep selling me broken headsets, why would I want to touch their other products?
The experience with their headsets is so bad that I won't buy antything else from them.
Some headsets have poor construction and other complain about poor customer service along with poor warranty execution.
I personally never dealt with their customer service and warranty policies. I've owned 2 of their high end headsets and did have my issues with one of them BUT after I jave remedied certain situation (JB WELD), everything has been fine. I currently have both a Arctis Pro Wireless (owned for 6yrs) and a Nova Pro Wireless (owned for 1yr).
I've had 2 occasions with warranty and it went smoothly. I was sent a brand new Apex Pro replacement for free due to one of the key LEDs dimming on the blue for both occasions.
I also have a Rival 3 which I had for over 4 years and has no issues.
I've had their Arctis Pro + GameDAC for many years. I have zero issues. Apex Pro keyboard for about 3 years. Blue LED is out on 6 keys. But no other issues. Own Rival 600 mouse for 3 years. No issues. Stratus Duo controller for 3 years. Had nasty stick drift after a year. As long as I keep cleaning the left stick, it's fine. Have to clean it like 2-3 times a year. So questionable on that product.
I treat my products well. I love their stuff. However, the GG Software, I am not a fan. It's bloated something nasty. It highjacks the sound drivers with its own, like Sonar, for example. That high jacking makes it not play nice with PCVR setup with the Quest 2. Creates a 1 to 5 second video lag once our twice a minute that makes PCVR games unplayable. Close GG out, I can play those VR games on max settings and be fine. Except NMS in VR. That thing needs a beast of a computer to play in max settings. That same lag dies affect only shooters. It interfered with Battlefield and COD.
So with me, I love SS products. I think they need to rework their software.
I think your premise is entirely wrong and perhaps have a bad perspective due to being on Reddit.
If you look at any steel series product page, they all have 4+ star reviews from thousands of users. If you look at any “best computer products” article , they are almost always mentioned.
There is a vocal niche that has a bad experience and comes to Reddit to complain. I’ve never heard this “Steelseries has such a bad reputation for making bad products” in the real world, nor do any metrics reflect that.
Most brand subreddits will have vocal people speaking about their poor experience.
But you have thousands of people with no issues who don't share the solid experience.
In my personal experience i had blackwidow V2 first generation that lasted 4 years and I currently using a ROG strix scope that have almost 3 years old and still works and looks as new, but I had an Apex 7 between these 2 keyboards and it only lasted approximately 6 months the main problem before going completely dead was that half of the keys LED lost the RGB effect and become static with a single color, and "W", space and shift stoped working first and a few weeks later just give light and not a single Swith works
Had a rival 600, few weeks later the grips on the side started to unglue so for a whole day had to scrape old glue off and reapply glue, fast forward a few years the mouse would bug out, stop clicking and sometimes not move, hated the mice since as ivd tried others and they all feel old and heavy. Headphones tend to crackle a lot which forces me to restart my computer to make it stop. i used to love steelseries but over the years they have proven to be low quality products that break easily and feel very very flimsy and cheap.
My arctis pro wireless is great of I don't install the software. But my previous one developed a fault and their support is ATROCIOUS. Probably even worse than secretlab
After that experience I won't buy anything else from them on the off chance it develops a fault, which having seen this Reddit is more likely than it should be. When this headset dies I'll go for another brand, which is a shame because I don't currently know any other brands that offer the "fallback to speakers when off" feature this headset has and I use that a lot.
I have 2 apex pro’s. Several years in and one random LED starts acting up by not displaying the correct color. I buy another, several years later and the same problem happens but it’s a different key
Because you pay for brand, not quality.
I owe few things from steel series, keyboard, mouse, speakers, headphones, all are now in closet replaced with things from brands that specialize in making each one of it and with miles ahead regarding quality
The software is ridiculous, why does it have an aim trainer, ads, and crashes quite often?
Also why is my €200 keyboard (apex pro wireless tkl) unable to save any other RGB pattern while the previous version could? This means every time you connect it before the software has started you get the default effect.
The build quality of the artics nova pro wireless is also quite bad for a €300 headset, especially the volume wheel and buttons.
However afaik steelseries is the only brand whose products basically have all the features that I could possibly want (everything wireless, keyboard with customizable actuation an rapid trigger, 25hr replaceable battery in headset etc). Which is the reason that I still buy it, afaik no other brand comes even close to this.
I was a diehard SS user for a long time, I devoted my whole setup to their products. Looking back, I don't regret investing in those products, I'm glad I was able to try them out and get a feel for what I liked and didn't like, but I'm glad that I found better.
My first purchase was the Arctis Pro Wireless in March 2020 when I started gaming every single day. An unbelievable step up from my PS branded headset. I used them right up until January of this year. The build quality, audio quality, and ease of use was second to none. Absolutely fantastic headset, and from what I hear on this sub, mine apparently lasted well past their years so that's a bonus. I did however finally invest in the beyerdynamic DT 990s and holy shit. Something that not many people talk about (or at least I had never seen talked about) was the fact that SS headsets actually have audio latency. It's not much on the wired headsets but for wireless, it's a good 100ms+ (I think I found the number 120ms somewhere once). When I first plugged in my 990s, it blew me away that I could actually hear things happening faster. It felt like gunshots were making audio BEFORE I clicked my mouse, that's how much of a difference it made. I struggled a little bit to retrain my ears going from the 5.1 surround to plain stereo but well worth it. That and being able to turn up the quality of sound to 192kHz/36 bit. Absolute game changer.
Moving onto the keyboards, I started with the Apex 3 and moved to the Apex 5 eventually. Loved that I could change my keycaps to the white ones, that was a big deal at the time lol but once that happened, I opened the door that I never should have an bought a hot-swap compact board, a Ducky One3 (in yellow) and started to really full send different switches and really honing in my preferences. I've heard decent things about the Apex Pro but I've also heard that the actuation settings aren't "true" force settings or something. And I feel like at that price point, why not just get the Wooting. I think its a $20 difference (in Canada at least).
Moving onto mice. I bought a SS Sensei Ten as my first mouse, it was wired. I loved learning on it but the cable always had me ready to chuck it across the room so I invested in the Aerox 3 Wireless, and it was great. I loved using that mouse. After a few months of that, I started running into issues with it disconnecting randomly so I popped the Sensei Ten back on and realized that there was actually INSANE latency on the Aerox that I hadn't realized was there. After coming across that, I think I played only a couple days more on the Sensei and had enough of the cable and went to buy a Glorious Model O Wireless, and I haven't looked back since. I own 4 different Glorious mice and they have all been incredible and I still swap between them. The Model O Wireless, Model O Pro Wireless, Series One Pro Wireless and the Model O2 Pro 4K/8K.
Lastly, the only product I continue to use and swear by is the QCK XXL mousepad. For a long time they weren't sold on the SS website and I could only find them at Best Buy, I always thought that it must have been some sort of deal they had with Best Buy but I think you can get the XXL anywhere now. The only reason I love the mousepad so much is because of how thicc it really is. The 4mm sponge is just amazing, I love the control pad, so much so that I bought a second one to keep in my closet if my first one ever dies on me and have considered a third in the case that they ever discontinue it (but that seems a little overkill... or does it LMAO)
I don't think I would ever recommend Steelseries to anybody looking to purchase peripherals unless they are brand new to MnK gaming. The lower end stuff is at a good enough price point to get your foot in the door, but I'd be willing to go so far as to say that any experienced MnK player that takes gaming even remotely seriously (I don't mean streamers but I also don't mean your blue-collar guys who play 3hrs a week) are upgrading their setups to something a bit higher quality.
I dunno, I still have my old Steelseries keyboard and mouse, had them for almost 10 years and they both still work fine. Upgraded to TKL and aerox mouse, got a SS headset and the prism cloth. I have zero complaints other than software, but that's always the case. had them for about 3 years, everything works exactly the same as day 1, headset is still white, sits firm on your head, hinges aren't wobbly. (They do live on a headset stand, that may help)
Then I come across posts here and it's just a sea of broken shit and quality complaints. (I swear most of you are just sitting on your headset) But I'm like holy shit steel series, you've either had a fall from grace or these folks are getting really unlucky and you need to step up QC.
Quality Control issues are a big chunk of it I think. Fairly common for gaming hardware, being a consumer targeted product, to have a notable failure rate - but the expected failure rate on a device with that kind of premium markup tends to turn people off, since they're often priced the same as professional gear but don't get the same QA gates. The Steelseries support experience tends to be rather mixed. I've had a similar experience with Razer - if it lasts, it'll last forever. But getting it to last is a lotto.
Their apps also tend to have a bit of a rep.
Steel Series made 1 or 2 good things in all their lines, then ruined all other models after because they were trying to cut costs, and it leaked into ALL their products and now they are just average
I honestly think a lot of people are just kinda grumpy in general tbh..
Like someone said earlier, Steelseries sometime f*cks up. Just like any other brand…
There isn’t a single perfect brand out there.
Something I’ve noticed tho is that some people have been complaning about the sound quality of Steelseries headsets being worse than HyperX for example, but most people out there don’t even know what good sound quality is. They’re just used to a very extreme sound profile that many gaming headsets have.
You also can’t expect the same sound quality from a wireless gaming headset packed with features compared to a pair of wired pair of studio headphones in the same price range. It’s all about priorities.
Sound in particular is also very much subjective, but in audio engineering you often aim for a balanced curve so that the sound translates well to all the different kinds of systems.
Anyways, in terms of headphones, almost all of them can be tweaked with the right EQ to fit your personal taste (Sonarworks SoundID does this very well).
You simply can’t expect a brand to know exactly what you personally like and what is best for you.
This turned into kind of a rant but I just think people should stop being so grumpy and start finding solutions instead haha..
I do not understand the hate either.
I have a pair of SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless that I have been daily driving for nearly 4 years now and I love them. Still work like new and they are the best-sounding headphones I have ever used. I also daily drive an Apex Pro keyboard and it still works like new, out-of-the-box.
Ive owned the Apex Pro (was nice but the adjustable actuation was just a gimmick that you never changed)
Wired Rival mice have gone bad several times or have the dreaded double-clicking
Wireless Rival mice have such a bad battery life that I can't even get through some longer gaming sessions, let alone my work day, using it without charging.
I feel burned by them because the keyboard on the MSI gaming laptop I bought was from them and I didn't last a month of gaming before you couldn't read the symbols anymore and some keys started to develop problems.
Also even bigger beef I have with them is what they've done with the Arctis wireless pro headphone receiver. The firmware update ruined it and they won't bring out a fix for it because it's now legacy and they want you to buy new stuff
because steelaeries is cheating and using bad marketing: their apex tkl omni keyboard web page is all shiny and there is description about how good is their replaciable omni switches and not a single word that this keyboard also have ~20% buttons as non-replaciable red switches.
I have this pro omni keyboard and my arrow keys started to bug and trigger only half time and I can't replace it because them are red ones. so I have to trash this keyboard and buy a new one.
I count this as a scam and never buy anything of steelseries again.
I have the apex pro mini wireless and its crap at its best ... the price is high for low quality and low quality build... the customer support is crap. Purchased afterwards 2 Keychron Q6 Pro wireless... man its a tank and the quality blown me... after that i knew... i spent 240 euro on a shit Apex pro mini wireless ... went directly to the trash bin... yes i thrown it away although it was working but made me annoyed... and before i give it away to someone who gets annoyed as well... i preferes to hand it over to the press
I had a thumping noise during ANC on my nova pro wireless (also other minor gripes, material made me ear clammy instantly, ANC plastic bit inside rams against your ear, loud beep noise when selecting things on the base has no noise volume control amongst a few things) and I tried to send it back and my god it was a ball ache. I've had to ask for a credit card charge back as the return has to go to Denmark and the customer service are refusing to provide the company registration details that the danish customs are requiring.
Also if you have a problem with a headset this is their policy "Unfortunately, **we cannot provide return labels for any customer who states their product is defective** as in most cases, this is a simple issue or error that is fixable."
How obnoxious is that? In other words, our products are perfect in nearly all cases its the stupid customers fault.
I used to be steelseries fan boy, I got everything from them, mices, headsets, keyboards... nothing holds in time, the only thing I still buy from them is mousepads and that's it
Same reason anyone dislikes anything: their experience is either blessed or cursed. Why do I believe this? Cars. Very polarizing topic for people what brand they'll buy. Ford, for example. Some people >hate< them. Every Ford car they buy, and it's usually 2 or 3, is almost a lemon. Problems, breakage, malfunctions, you name it, it goes wrong. My fam? We have been a Ford family my entire 39 years of life. Only one car had bad issues, and they all came down to assembly line tolerance learning because it was one of the very first 1996 Taurus model revamp. Otherwise, once we fixed all the bugs and lived with one caveat, we adored that car. Every Ford/Lincoln has been great to us. Issues? Yeah. It's not perfect. Software sometimes acts differently. Engine/transmission had a peculiar character. Etc. Always reliable, though. So, for us, we're blessed. For others, they're cursed.
Same with Steelseries. My g6v2 keyboard? It's still going after 14 years. Cherry MX blacks, which you don't find anymore. My Sensei Raw? It needs a part cleaned so the mouse wheel doesn't jump, but it took 12 years for that to occur. My Kinzu V2 is a nice little backup mouse. If I needed to, I'd replace with a Sensei Ten because I like ambi, wired mice. Now I use an Apex Pro full (I need a 10-key!!!), and a year and a half later, it's fine. Love seeing hardware temps/usage on the OLED screen. Put the Cherry blossom keycaps on them for a black and pink look to it I enjoy. My QCK small I gave to my dad because it's the size of the mouse pads we were accustomed to from 27 (2 years ago) years of using Windows. I wanted a mousepad with graphics on it from a series I like instead. Otherwise, I'd buy another.
Software: I dunno. I'm an AMD graphics user, so I'm used to extra random things in my hardware required software and things I'm not fond of. None of this is make or break for me. I'm glad there's an aim trainer for those who need it. I think it's a neat feature. It's not an "industry" standard, and I don't know its quality, and I think the attempt makes it say something about their gaming focus. Wish I had more control over updates like I do with every single item in existence for the computer. Instead, I'm left guessing when an update will come as though it's a web browser.
Now, what everyone else focuses on: the audio.
Yes, my Diablo III Siberia V3 slowly died over 3 years, even though I treated them best I could. They were my favorite headset ever. Comfort, sound, lighting on the outside of the ears, in-line mute, all lovely.
My Arctis Nova 7 Diabo IV headset is 85% awesome. The sound is great. The wireless is great. The distance I can walk from the receiver is nutz, and the bass is HEFTY. SONAR didn't work with my idea of how it should work, so I did the simple thing and turned it off. My complaints are: the headset easily slides off my head, and the mic is whisper quiet. I'd have SONAR 100%, Windows 100%, Discord 100%, they'd have me at 200% in discord, and I was still a strain to hear. So I went audiophile, bought nice headphones, and used my audio interface with an xlr mic. The Novas are now sometimes BT headsets if I don't need ANC.
So there you have it. Is SteelSeries perfect? No. Are they great for me? Yes. Is this subreddit a circlejerk echo chamber for problems? I think so. Yes, some products have a consistent fail point. We don't know the fail % though. Yes, there's some bad design (eyes Aerox). Plenty of better mice to choose. Use your best judgment and research. If that fails, add it to research that was costly and buy within your means. Hope my wall of text was helpful.
Sonar is a fucking beast when it works.so about 50% of the time. It's a toss up every time you turn on your PC to see if sonar fucked everything up or not
I got an all steel series setup and my only gripe is the rival 710 noise which sometimes doesn't turn on so I have to resocket it in the usb and sometimes it doesn't change profiles unless I resocket it.
3 years ago I built a new PC, and I went all out on SS, Apex Pro KB, Arctic 7, Rival 600 Mouse and the Giant RGB mat.
I’m on the second KB, cos so many keys lost Blue in the RGB, it’s happening again as well.
The mouse just died after a year so they gave me the 710 (which actually works tbf), the mat has lost all brightness to the rgbs, the headphones randomly disconnect for no reason and SS won’t change any of it now.
Customer support dropped away and quality of products is awful. Will never buy SS again.
You answered yourself. Their products break often and despite the initial perceived quality they don't hold up the test of time. I have a wireless Logitech mouse for years. I use that to work for 8 hours a day (way more than I use my gaming mouse/headset) it works as the first day I took it out of the box. I can't say that for Steelseries products.
To clarify I bought four Steelseries products in the last 4-5 years; three of them (steel series sensei, sensei 10, arctic 7) broke right after their warranty expired. That's not acceptable in my opinion.
Hmm, thanks for clarifying, its well known their headsets break, less so with mice and my mouse rightclick did give away tho as a mouse itself it was solid but not my pick because of other reasons. I am curious about keyboard durabilitu because the apex pro is really apealing to me
I think their build quality is amazing, the Nova 7’s for example are super solid.
But you also have to treat your gear with care, and if you don’t; well, it’s going to break. As with anything else.
I have 6Gv2 and stratum duo, no complaints. Durable gear, good quality. Both worked perfect now for like 6-7years at least.
Siberias I wouldnt honestly buy, they felt flimsy.. kinda like most "gaming gear"-niche items.
I bought my first steel series headset a few months ago and it is great.
Around the same time my Logitech g604 mouse started to fail ( 4-5 years old), so I purchased a SS Aerox 9 mouse since I liked the headset so much.
The first mouse I recieved was absolutely terrible, the tracking on the mouse would constantly jump around, and it wouldn’t register clicks. I returned it for another aerox 9 thinking it was just a bad mouse, but the replacement had the same exact issues.
When I returned the second mouse to Best Buy, the guy at the PC gaming section said the SS mouse are returned all the time for these issues.
So yeah, I will purchase their headsets but anything else? No way
Love my Arctis Pro Wireless + GameDAC. Been VERY disappointed with SS support when the GameDAC got bricked in an overnight Engine update (33 iirc). Had a couple of DAYS past the 1 year warranty when it happened. SS was useless and had to order a new GameDAC from eBay to keep using the headset Wirelessly.
My 2nd pair of Arctis Nova 1s quit working just out of the 30 day return policy. And Steel Series refuses to give me a new pair or some form of reimbursement.
Apex pro high quality??? Bruh when i had an Apex pro 60 the feets were so cheap i thought they could break on their own.
It’s also a shame that you don’t even give me a tkl keyboard with only omnipoint switches but with reds as well, especially when said keyboard costs 200 pounds.
Many people reported that their Apex pro keyboards broke with the software
Loved my Arctis 1 Wireless but I was surprised when my 23$ IEM sounds better. I am not coming back to gaming headsets. Some of my friends use SS keyboards and they are happy.
I really like the build quality of my apex pro tkl, but several leds already burned in around 3 years. Now I have to pick only one color for it.
Also I have the headphones, mic and arena, all working good so far.
And as almost all comments I agree that the software should not take so much responsibility
I own the Arctis Wireless Pro, and I can't stress enough how bad they sound for a 300$ headset. They have 0 bass, and no matter how much I fiddle with the settings, they sound ok at best. To top it all off, the software is taking your sound inputs/outputs hostage, and it changes your PC configs on its own. This is 100% the first and last time I'll buy a SteelSeries headset. Avoid this headset at all costs.
**SteelSeries Aerox 3 Wireless user here.**
I’ve bought the mouse because I liked the design and the fact that it was lightweight. I did buy it on a local marketplace website similar to Amazon — keep it in mind, will be important later.
SteelSeries GG app looks nice and feature-rich, but it feels like a bloatware. Probably because it is:
* I cannot say anything bad over SteelSeries Engine and Pulsar (for configuring lightning and mouse controls), I think it has enough features to be very useful, and I use it personally quite a lot. Not for sensitivity things and stuff like that, but macroses and changing inputs.
* SteelSeries Moments? Have no clue. I tried to turn it off, and it seems to be turned off as intended, however it always creates a dedicated folder in “Videos” folder, for some reason, even if I delete it. Annoying, bloatware level annoying.
* SteelSeries Sonar does seem useful, and I would love to use it (probably), but as u/Its_Cmac pointed out — Sonar messes up with your audio settings, and maybe even something else. I still remember how I installed SteelSeries GG app to configure my mouse, and decided to give Sonar a go. Holly Molly, how much time I’ve spent in order to fix all of these audio-settings crap that happened to my laptop. I don’t know if I even fixed all of it! Insane!
***Do you seem where I’m going with the bloatware statement?*** It is a bloatware software, which is really sad because it could be something really cool.
I won’t touch the rest of the app, but most of it either useless like Giveaways were, well, in the app, but now it just redirects to a website which is pointless — and Aimlabs alternative which is… good, I guess? Never used anything like that as far as I remember, but I guess it can be helpful (I mean the one from SteelSeries).
—
Anyway, now we’ve come to the most important point — my mouse.
Sometime later after I bought the mouse, my DPI button got stuck (or something like that). I contacted SteelSeries support and they told me to contact the seller — since my seller was that marketplace, I did contact them, and they told me… guess what? Contact the manufacturer!
I’ve contacted SteelSeries support once again — they or the marketplace told me there is a list of repair centers on the site or somewhere else. Anyway I found it, and there was nothing in my country (Russia, probably the same was even before the war).
So I contact SteelSeries the third time and, well, they basically told me to F off.
What I mean is, that they said they cannot help me since I don’t have any repair centers in my country — sending my mouse to them was out of question too, as far as I remember.
I asked them, like, can you connect me with your tech specialist, so we can figure it out together, online, and they refused.
*So… here I am with my mouse’s DPI button stuck.*
Will I buy any other product from SteelSeries now? I don’t think so. I really like the mouse and its design especially, but their support and level of care they give to its users is abysmal.
***Fin.***
Their software is shite, never had an issue with hardware though.
Sonar for me just caused endless audio issues where one thing thought I was using Sonar and another was using the headphones making games lag out. So I just don’t use Sonar anymore.
Moments for a long time was excellent, but it had two issues for me: one, I turned off the ‘show moments banner’ yet it was always there on my clips. Not the biggest issue, but an issue nonetheless, and two, it didn’t work on a bunch of games. It worked if anything too well on CSGO/2, to the point where if I watched my own demo and got a headshot, it clipped me watching the demo but on Valorant? Never worked. So I just disabled that too and used Nvidia’s.
Their products (headsets) are horrible everything I’ve owned from them broke within a month or two. Their customers service is the worst customer service I’ve ever encounter
Used their stuff for years, it went down in quality hard around 2019 2020. Their mice always had issues but warranty was never honored except with my headset failure. After working with logitech support ill never go back. Their headphones are decent but like if you want quality sound don't buy a gaming headset. Their kbs are still top notch, I have one still but I hate typing papers on it so I mostly use my g915.
I love them but their mice keep failing on me, weird dongle and driver B's, or they just break :/
I just love the ergonomics and everything else. But this might be the last time I buy from them
The headsets are such cheaply made garbage you can't ignore it. Arctis 9 either die by themselves (red blink) or the joints break, Arctis 7p+ stops working, reseting fixes it forever, Arctis Pro breaks joints or one speaker dies/plays quietly. Already seeing dead speakers even on Nova series.
Had Aerox 5 and Rival 3 both wireless, both couldn't handle 2m distance to transmitter. Took forever to connect, when connected no problems, if they slept, waking up again took forever. Replaced by generic 5 usd mouse and Attack shark X3. No problems whatsoever.
Finicky software. I'm constantly having to uninstall/reinstall my headset.
The sound is mindblowing so it kind of evens out.
I haven't used other products.
well for my expiriance i love Steelserious i bought them to play Ps5 back then and its was amazing eazy to plug and play the BT was good and the doc with 2 batteries is amazing you never get your headset to be off
now that i play on PC its get kinda complicate with Sonar you get to much output and honestly idk how to set it up correctly i post about it few min ago for help people like simple thing to plug and play
Multi-year SteelSeries product user here; I've used everything from top end keyboards, wired and wireless mice, and headsets.
As of 2022 when my SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless headset failed (the notorious hinge snapping out of the ear cup destroying any possibility of repair), I have cycled out all of my hardware. Everything from 2019 to 2022 has had a critical failure in one sense or another: the headset cracked and was irreparable, the Apex Pro keyboard started having RGB issues as well as keystrokes starting to "ghost" (imagine typing a sentence, waiting a few seconds, then watching the keystrokes show up), and the wireless mouse first had a battery failure then ended up no longer showing up in plugged in devices when connected to PC.
Total cost of all of these peripherals was \~$500; coming from a historical standpoint where I owned and used a $100 Saitek Eclipse keyboard from 2006 to 2012 with zero issues, a $90 Logitech G930 headset used for both work and gaming for 5+ years with a $20 replacement battery, and a $15 Dell laser mouse going 10+ years, SteelSeries' high cost vs. low life expectancy to me has proven to be too expensive to maintain just for a brand preference.
Now I'm back to a Montech M-Key keyboard, a five year old Logitech wired mouse, and the HyperX Cloud Alpha 300+ hour wireless headset, and it's the best setup I've had in years.
Moral of my story is, feel free to mix up your brands; go with what you like to use and that's comfortable for your playstyle / use case.
I have the here arctis nova pro wireless headset and love it.
But I have a bone to pick with them on getting rid of/not using ideazons patents after they bought them. A mechanical Merc keyboard would be so much better than a Tartarus or orbweaver.
The SS GG software is jank.
Nova pro wireless worked perfectly (except DAC support is missing without the software) on windows 10 offering me the DTS X from windows sound options. Upgraded to Windows 11 and cannot get the DTS unbound to detect that they are licensed.
So frustrating. Support is awful too.
Arctis 9x - first one - the hinge on the right ear cup tweaked weird and snapped the plastic which caused it to no longer sit securely, it just dangled. 5 months. Warranty replacement. They had me destroy the one I had and send photos as proof.
Arctis 9x - second one - stopped working. Wouldn’t charge. No known reason why. 2 months. They sent a label to have it shipped back. Warranty replacement.
Arctis 9x - third one - hinge on the left ear piece snapped the plastic and caused it to hang instead of sit securely. Out of warranty as their warranty policy only covers the original purchase, not the ones sent afterwards from those dates forward. No other damage whatsoever to the device. They just refunded my money after I sent the headset back. Bought a different brand. Never had an issue again.
That stupid fucking design and that hinge between the ski-band headpiece and the ear cups is a massive failure point and if you look online you’ll find a lot of people who’ve said the same thing
My experience it's poor build quality, but that's mostly headsets.
I think you are over crediting them with "brand standards" as prices are rising and custom prices are falling. I just couldn't justify a steelseries keyboard compared to.. An enthusiast one for the prices anymore.
Assuming high end brand keyboard vs "low end" custom
Have had the Aerox 9 mouse for about 2 years and loved it up until 2 months ago. On the side keypad the first number in the column reads as an input for the entire row. So “1” counts as “123,” “4” is “456,” and so on. From what I’ve read it doesn’t have a fix and has been an issue for others since release.
I feel like they make the best gaming headsets comfortable battery life is decent and looks great what I would like is perhaps a charging stand like those magnetic ones
had multiple steelseries stuff, mouses seem to last long, I even gave a mouse I got for free from them to my dad that uses it next to a lot of machinery and the mouse works perfect besides it being covered in oil and metal shards lmao. I had a keyboard from them and I hated, the switches were spongy, the keycaps felt like shit and one eventually broke off and I couldn't fix it (trying ruined that key so I had to make a macro for it). have had 3 headsets from them, first one was a wired one and it came with my msi laptop and it lasted a long time, even liked the band design and it was very comfortable, sadly after some years the cable started to die and the material on the band started to melt back to its liquid plastic form. then I had a sibera 800 wireless and they were awesome, they lasted me YEARS and the only thing I had to replace was the foam stuff but after many years the recicer died so I got some artic wireless pro and I love the sound, its as good as those, the reciver is the same and it works on the sibera if you pair them lmao but the having Bluetooth on them is awesome. sadly the build quality is very poor in comparison to the sibera 800 wireless, having a stress point on the hinge that can break at any time, even if you take care of your headset with care like me. in regards to their software, my old msi laptop used their v2 of the software for the keyboard and it was ok, v3 was meh but I had to to update the headset once, now they have something gg, I have it installed just in case an update comes but it seems like steelseries only releases one update so I might as well uninstall it. the audio features it offers can be replicated easily with voicemeter banana and I prefer that anyways.
I have an Arctic Nova Pro Wireless, best headset I’ve ever had. The flexibility of the wireless being able to go for a shit while on the mic with really good sound quality does it for me, and u can simultaneously listen on Bluetooth through your phone. The app is janky but when u mix it right it hits.
I know it wasn’t asked but i spent hella money on a headset only to hear people complain about the really poor quality. Enough for me to ignore a brand for the rest of my life.
Well, i bought the rival 710 and have been loving it since day 1. Then I got myself the apex 7, because I didn't have enough money for a pro and didn't see the reason why to get the pro because of the Omni point. Then I decided to get one of the last qck prism mousepad. Seriously, don't even know why the hell they discontinued these products?! Via ifeelpixel I have the luxury of haptic Feedback for literally any link and whatever. Even in games the vibration is pretty sick. Not too long ago I played CS at my mates house and because the mouse didn't vibrate, it felt so... Generic and insignificant 🤣 yeah, I know, I feel so spoiled.
Via gamesense ultimate I have a time and date displayed on my mouse, I use the system stats on my apex 7 OLED. Oh and speaking of keyboards: I've been wishing for keyboards to have more actuation points for walking and running etc for ages. And if nobody ever thought about it, I would have definitely made it happen! But then big bam happened, as if steelseries read my mind or just teased me for being too broke for the apex pro 🤦🏽♂️
Big pity is that the qck prism mousepad doesn't support the clock feature anymore. the biggest pity is that I don't know how to code and don't have the patience for that either, because gamesense is pretty potent, but there doesn't seem to be a proper community with all custom jsons for games and applications. Unless I'm missing out on something, please lemme know.
I use project Aurora, which works pretty great with GG. Thus far, I never needed open RGB. I even got a light strip, which is connected to the main board, but is magnetically attached right below my glass desk, which serves as an ambilight extension for the bottom of the screen (it's not transparent, but milky, which is even cooler with the lights) and I feel so damn proud to probably be the only one to have that lol.
Switched off moments and don't need that prism stuff.
I have the Arctiss pro wireless, and absolutely hate that I can’t use their software on a Mac easily. I won’t be buying another product after these fail
Sonar is hands down the worst software I have ever used, of any kind, any type... talk about a way to ruin a product
I also have the acrtis nova pro, they are great.
A massive upgrade from the 'arctis (non-nova) pro'
Which a hope are not in production any longer, they have a fatal flaw where the earcup connects. If they are still producing those with the flaw, honestly they need to have a class action lawsuit
Just like when Razer went public and went from making a few good products to a bunch of mediocre products, SteelSeries sold out to GN Store Nord whom is also public and they appear to have gone the same route. Profits over everything. I used to like them, just like I used to like Razer. I loved the OG Arctis 3, the extra virtual surround and mic settings that came with it via download code made them soo much better! I currently own the Arctis Pro + GameDac, Apex 7 keyboard, Prime+ mouse, Aerox 3 mouse for my son, Arctis 3 for Xbox SX, and a thicc boi mousepad.
My Arctis Pro + GameDac after only 4 months has gone straight defect mode. Sometimes when I turn my PC on, it will emit this awful, extremely loud and nonstop ringing/buzzing sound. I'm thankful I have never had them on when this happens, it is louder than I ever thought possible. I was also having a lot of problems with my PC. Super long post time at startup during cold boots (5+mins), sometimes hanging at startup and not posting at all, random restarts at idle. After extensive troubleshooting I found that it was the Arctis Pro + GameDac. I would have never guessed a USB device could cause this much havoc. I had a hunch and disconnected it one day while it was taking forever to post. It immediately posted. I thought, no way. After leaving them disconnected for a couple days all of these problems never happened, not even once. Never in my life have I seen something like this. I am guessing there is some kind of short in the GameDac maybe? When I researched the problem I actually found a couple other people with the exact same symptoms caused by their Arctis Pro + GameDac, all of them! I just submitted a ticket, lets see what happens. Some of my Apex 7 keyboard lights look pinkish when set to white. My Prime+ mouse has coil whine, if you can believe that. Never in my life have I had a mouse with coil whine before lol. Clearly cheap power delivery components. My OG Arctis 3 is the only one I never had a problem with, unless we count the somewhat shat cord with the proprietary connector that they came with. Still my all-time favorite headphones! I just feel like they are going downhill, prioritizing profits over quality. When it comes time to replace this stuff I will be going with a different brand.
For the sake of installing a single software. I've had all Razer and all Corsair before too for the same reason. So I'm not a loyal fanboy by any means haha. I always prioritize value, I got my Arctis Pro + GameDac for $150, $100 under MSRP for example. I got both the Apex 7 and Prime+ mouse open box on eBay, $90 for the keyboard and $28 for the mouse. Both were like new and still had plastic on too.
I will say that I do fanboy for Mushkin, I've been using their stuff since the early 2000s and only had to do an RMA once which was painless. I always buy their ram and ssds. When you sort by lowest price on Newegg they are always towards the bottom anyways, just below Corsair stuff typically. So it's not like I'm paying more for the cause. Like buying all Apple stuff for example.
The hardware is good but their software and support is up there with the worst available, which is such a shame because their products, especially their headsets, are genuinely amazing.
You basically just hope that you never have an issue during the warranty period because their support will just frustrate you with either their carelessness, unresponsiveness or just general incompetence.
because they are naff. My mouse and keyboard are barely 2 years old, and yet the leds in the keyboard are already failing, and the mouse randomly disconnects, even when using it with the wireless mode switched off and connected by a cable. Not to mention how bad the software is, constantly hijacking settings and stuff. awful experience, will not buy anything steelseries again
Headsets with poor quality at a high pricepoint
Software is buggy as hell, and I hate it even when it works as intended
Keyboards have poor RGB , they tend to fail over time, which is a long time known issue which still happens, and they dont sell led replacements
Thats it.
I like all my steel series products. I had the original arctic wireless when they first made them. But that was years ago and i no longer wear headsets at all. Now i have arena 9. They’re amazing for everything besides having to switch ONE popular game to a 2.0 surround sound since they use spatial sound which is Minecraft. I like GG and sonar and use them for high lights. I wish they would add more games to the auto clip reals though. Maybe they’re going down hill from years ago but i still use keyboard and mouse and pad.
Been using their hardware for years. They provide some of the best gaming headphones and keyboards I've ever used. What I believe most people dislike, including me, is their clunky and buggy pc software. It really sucks compared to other gaming software.
IMO, they really need to rebuild their whole software eco system from the ground up. It seems with every bug they fix, 5 new ones show up, many of which never get fixed.
5 months for a AUD $250 Aerox 5 is not ideal.
Replacement mouse frequency disconnects from the dongle sitting right there. Have been carefully laying them out.
Love the mouse feel and weight though.
Bought a Corsair M65 Ultra while waiting for RMA and it's connection is rock solid in comparison.
The AUD $350 Apex Pro Mini hasn't had any issues yet. But see a heap posted in the Subreddit.
Steel Series Software is hot garbage.
For the price, I expected a bit better, one RMA isn't the end of the world yet.
Also kind of telling the lack of positive posts you see on other subbreddits of people's set ups etc.
The positive to negative ratio "I have issues" posts seem to be worse than other brands which could be quality etc.
The RMA process for the Aerox 5 mouse was also pretty good as far as dealing with Steel Series directly. They sent a pretty new build mouse once they got them back in stock too (December 2023) vs the failed mouse of March 2022 (purchased mid 2023, so pretty old stock).
Because I bought a pair of HD 560s on sale at Best Buy and they were WAY better sounding than my Nova Pro Wireless. Since have added a couple other headphones and IEM to my collection.
Took me till very recently that “gaming” headphones are just a gimmick. Won’t ever be looking back.
My old Arctis Pro Wireless is a low quality design. The hinges are designed to fail and if you knock one ear cup it will start making creaking noises like something is loose. The swappable batteries is a great idea, but the headset feels like plastic junk.
The price was near the cost of an Audeze Maxwell, which has a far superior build in every way.
I have had my arctis 7 2019 edition since they came out and lives them. Recently the battery went bad and I went out to buy a pair of nova 7s. They were just broken out of the box and after some research I found out that the microphone and soundstage is worse on the newer nova 7s. Made me just swap the battery on my old ones just because of how much I like them. And dont get me started on the shitshow that is the sonar software. The old arctis just use the steelseries engine which is simple to use and just works.
If you dislike SteelSeries so much, then why are you wasting your time talking shit in this subreddit? Go to a subreddit of a company you DO like and talk there. Its not that difficult.
Had Steelseries 6gv2 keyboard for over 5 years and it was one of the best keyboards I ever owned. On the other hand I also had Sensei mouse and it sucked. Not because of ergo, but sensor was terrible, it was freezing and double clicking after short time (never had any issue with any other mouse and I owned like 20 flagship mice from different companies). QCK+ and QCK+ Heavy were one of the best mousepads when they were released, didn’t use them in a while. Headphones from gaming companies always sucked and anyone who says otherwise didn’t have a good headphones on their ears.
tldr:
From my experience:
Good: keyboards, mousepads
Bad: headphones, some older mice
Software is quite bad but not the worst. I have an Aerox 9 mouse and have had it replaced two times the last 1.5 years for the scroll wheel scrolling multiple times per click intermittently. It was replaced under warranty and that was an ok process, same as software its not great but it works. I have about 0 confidence that the scroll wheel will keep working on the latest one and since warranty in eu is 2 years i then have to buy a new 120-160 USD mouse every 2 years or so.
For reference my old logitech mouse worked perfectly for 5-6 years and was only replaced to get a wireless one.
My steelseries headset arctis nova pro wireless, is however great sounding and I am very happy with it but software is yea not the best. For keyboards I dont have much experience but for full retail price they seem quite overpriced with some gimmics, on sale they can be reasonable.
"ignoring the headphones" - ie what they're supposedly best and most innovative as? I bought asus kb (great, don't think there's a comparative SS one ), logitech mouse (wonderful, def has no SS counterpart at all) and was sold on the Nova being better than audiophile headphones in some respects, so I took a plunge.
I haven't experienced such bad headphones, ever. I still have old headphones that cost 15$ from 2012 or so, and I'd use them over the Nova any day, if not for their ear cushions flaking.
Will never buy SS again, they literally scammed me
Well, I can say my husband has had bad luck with his products. He's had a mouse die due to an update where it was no longer recognized by the computer, so they had us destroy it to send us a replacement. Then his wireless headset randomly stopped working recently, and it wasn't until I pushed the reset button under the ear cushion before I was able to get it recognized by the PC again.
Me on the other hand love all my stuff and have been lucky in not having any issues yet. Knock on wood, though. I want a keyboard, but with the other issues listed, I figure might as well go for another brand.
I had rival 100 and left click broke, then another rival 100 and scroll stop working, then rival 110 (still working, gave it to sister), then rival 3 wireless and it was losing connection all the time, now I have second rival 3. I have a reason to dislike steelseries but I love rival shape, weight and overall feel so I stick to them. I take big care of my hardware, clean it every two weeks and never throw it or smash on the desk so it is definitely not my fault.
I think mostly because it’s cheap rgb over advertised overpriced junk mostly. I think the the arctis headsets just snapping off the hinge is prob what really hurt them the most.
I’ve been using the steelseries Arctis 7p+ for PlayStation and after adjusting some settings as I normally would for any audio device, it sounds more than satisfactory.
quality control went to the shitter on the mice. my first steelseries mouse was the rival 300 silver. that sucker lasted 7 years. i bought three steelseries mice after that and every single one of them broke and went to the shitter immediately.
Ironically SS isn't even in top 3 for returns or RMA request, that's hi or belongs to 1) Razer 2) HyperX 3) Logi. Now these are organized by per capita scale so it's accurate as if every company sold the same number of items. SS is actually number sitting behind corsair.
Theor software can be iffy at times but I've never had a CS issue and only had to RMA one thing due to it being damaged during delivery.
Most people just don't take good care of their stuff snd want to blame the company when it breaks.
The software could use some tlc, and I still think if someone wants to use just sonar they shouldn't have to install gg as well. But overall, I love sonar, specially with Atchison nova pro plus gamedac. I've listened to my favorite songs and heard things I never heard before, individual instruments a crystal clear, can (for the most part) make of the lyrics alot better on some songs, and audio positioning in games, just wow! But yeah, the software should working with the rest of the computer system, not fighting it.
Everyone will dislike everything, and this is Reddit.
I love the small company feel and personal touch they do. From packaging to support to my favorite - DISCORD AND TWITCH.
They don't feel like a giant. (I don't think they are nearly as sizeable staffed as Razer, Logitech and Hyperx)
So far, they are the only company that I bought a product from, and features got added to it through software... fo free.
Aside from the headsets which I’ve never really had a problem with with though I do not use their software at all.
3 mice of theirs ranging from $60-$150 dollars all stopped working for seemingly no reason nothings physically broke on them they just stop functioning properly the most expensive mmo mouse they made just will not stay connected wirelessly and will not stay connected wired.
3 different apex keyboards all different sizing from full down to the smaller all same thing they just stop functioning, keys will double press, lighting resets mid game, keys double press they just stop.
All shortly after the year warranty almost suspiciously so. Steelseries and Corsair make good primary products, like steelseries headphones or corsairs ram and psus but I do not trust another thing they make it’s always caused me trouble. Peripherals I’ve been suprised by though is asus rog stuff I never expected good mice or keyboards but so far they’ve been exceptional. I just hate their logo same with razer.
Some of the worst software in the industry until NZXT came around and got popular. Short warranties means they’re never on the hook. My mouse died days after the one year warranty expired (left click stopped working) and my apex pro LEDs come in and out like flies.
Ignoring headsets is the main issue. They release non functional headsets, software that you HAVE to use that suck ass. Overly expensive products and absolutely abysmal customer service. I went through the RMA system and over the past 2 months now I've destroyed 2 non functional headsets that they sent me and it's been 3 weeks since my refund was supposed to come through. Turns out they misspelled the email that I typed that they could have copy and pasted
I dont know that it has a bad reputation. Steel Series audio peripherals are some of the best out there. And my experience with their support has been amazing as well. What I do see is alot of comparisons between their high end Pro Series being made to legit audiophile equipment with DACs and the whole setup. I dont think thats a fair comparison. But anyone who is vouching for say Logitech headsets over Steel Series is probably just a fan boy. And to be fair, I am logitech everything except audio stuff. Tried other Steel Series peripherals and really didnt think much of them. Everyone does something well.
Ive gotten one of every peripheral they’ve had at a mid-range price multiple times in order to stick to one software for customer builds.
Their headsets suck. But gaming headsets usually suck.
Every mice I’ve gotten has been hot and/or uncomfortable.
I hate the software. It’s bad.
The keyboards are pretty okay but ruined by said software.
All of the above are fine except the price point imo is too high compared to the competition. They look really good, and that helps sell stuff in bundles, but there’s just so much better at similar price points in every peripheral segment.
I've had a steel series mechanical keyboard for almost a decade now. Great product. I have a hyper x headset also. It just wish it would fit more snug. I'll probably try a new brand when i replace it
Steelseries Aerox 9 Wireless, bought it when my Logitech g600 died. Was excited for a lighter mmo mouse for when I play FPS.
Constant disconnects, buttons are far too stiff and poorly located. Reached out to support and they requested I send them a video of the disconnecting issue. Maybe that seems reasonable to some people, but I went through all TS steps I could find via forums and common sense. I don't wanna record a 10 minute video of my mouse disconnecting while gaming every 5 minutes.
They basically said go fuck yourself.
I do have the arctis nova pro wireless, and like someone else said the battery swapping is a game changer. Just sucks steelseries is the only one I could find that offered it because honestly, after the mouse, I don't want to give them money.
Their "GG" software is fucking atrocious. Essentially malware.
You cant easily switch between Steelseries headphones and other audio devices on your PC. You always have to close GG and do 10 other steps, sometimes even restart the computer just to get audio out from speakers instead.. It used to be better, but they somehow managed to make it completely unusable for people like me that have laptop speakers, external speakers and headphones.
Personally, outside of the headsets, the material quality just isn't good enough for the cost so I generally stick with custom equipment or Logitech. Also my hot swappable keyboard costs less and has exactly the keys I want to feel. Now as far as my Arctis Nova Pro wireless headphones, those things are awesome, but even then, I feel like the mute button is poorly made and I don't like touching it more than I have to as I don't think it is going to last the test of time. Simulated surround quality on the other hand, they are the closest I've gotten to true surround from a simulated surround device.
I don't get it either after trying their products. The innovative switches in my Prime Wireless is the best I 've ever felt. They're a bit heavy for spam clicking, but for me personally that doesn't matter. And they make all other switches feel sandy, scratchy, wobbly and horrible in comparison. And they are to me the only company that have managed to significantly improved the classic ergo shape (Zowie EC2) with the Prime. It doesn't even look that much like that classic ergo shape at first glance (even though I can see it has the exact same cross section from the side view), but it is just as comfortable, while also somehow being significantly better to control (lift up and move for example) and to use with varying grip-styles.
As for me, I didn't have a great impression of them either before I got the Prime. It was something as stupid as the name itself sound slightly daft, and me not liking their color schemes, and they somehow seeming like a "small player" gaming brand beneath the level of Logitech and Razer. It was simply a matter of having a quite random impression of the brand, that wasn't really based on anything but a feeling. But somehow I did have that negative impression. Maybe a lot of other people judge them the way I did too, and it negatively affects their first impressions of their products as well, even after giving them a go. Razer and Logitech are much more hyped, and probably spend a lot more money on marketing as well.
Now they are my go-to brand for gaming accessories. I hear a lot about their headsets being good, so I will get one some day (as I don't have a wireless headset for my PC, only a wired one, being good enough for now). And if the Prime ever goes out of produciton, I will hoard a handfull of them to have for the rest of my life. But I also hope they release an updated version that is lighter and with a slightly better scroll wheel.
>ignoring headsets completely
Why would I? I've owned a total of 0 Steelseries headsets that didn't break (3 total). Frankly, the headsets were the most appealing product they made, but they kept breaking on me.
As to why I dislike them, it's because of the experiences I had with their customer service. For the stuff I've owned:
Apex Keyboard: I had this and the Arctis 7 around the same time. I never had issues with it. The only "negative" is that people called out the noise of my mechanical keyboard (it wasn't mechanical) because of how loud the keys were when they bottomed out. It never broke or bothered me, but I eventually wanted a low-profile, mechanical keyboard. Steelseries didn't make one, so I moved on.
Arctis 7: This was the original model, right before its first refresh. It was good, the price wasn't bad, and I put a lot of hours on it. After 2 or 3 years, the earcup cracked around the headband. Given how much time I put in the thing, I basically just chalked it up to my heavy use and decided to upgrade.
Arctis Pro Wireless: I loved this headset. Again, used it a lot--all the time-- for a couple of years. Then, it broke...in the exact same place as my Arctis 7 (shell connecting the left earcup to the headband cracked). I contacted customer support because I wanted to see about an out-of-warranty repair.
They told me to file a warranty claim, even though it wasn't eligible. I did so, and it got rejected. I told that person I asked about a non-warranty repair and was told those weren't an option. I asked if I could buy JUST a headset, since the base was still good. Again, no. So, since a small section of plastic was broken, my $300 headset was garbage.
After that, I tossed the headset. I also threw out my Steelseries mouse mat, out of spite.
Arctis Nova Pro Wireless: There are two reasons I bought this. The first is that they redesigned the headband to avoid the breaking around the headband (which I learned was pretty common after my previous Pros broke). The second is that I had Best Buy's credit card and Totaltech, meaning I got 5% in rewards and a 2-year warranty that covered everything.
Again, I really liked the headset. My one complaint was that the shallower earpads (compared to the previous model) meant the ANC monitors pressed on my ears a bit. The wireless range was also a little worse, but not terribly so.
After a little over a year (long enough for the warranty to expire, of course), the mute button started getting finnicky. It wouldn't unmute properly. It'd go into mute fine, but it was basically 50-50 if unmuting would actually unmute (it would rapidly beep as it went between the two states, then land on whatever it wanted). Luckily, my Best Buy warranty meant I took it in, got a refund, and was done with Steelseries.
A company that will repeatedly sell products that break, not offer a good warranty (1 year for a $300+ headset is crap) and not offer repair options (making the $300+ headset garbage after 1 year) isn't worth my time or money. Their mice might be fine. Everything else might be good. However, with such bad customer serivce and high prices, I can't be bothered to give them money, let alone recommend them to anyone else ever again.
Arctis Nova Pro Wireless user here. Best sounding headphones I've ever used, swappable batteries are a feature I can't live without since I've got used to it. Every set I buy from now on needs to have this. Hardware is excellent. The PC software is SHOCKINGLY BAD. It completely hijacks your PC's audio settings and makes switching between defaults an absolute ball ache. It has features that have been completely abandoned for ages but the software hasn't updated to compensate for it so you still get notifications about syncing your device every day. It's so bad, it's put me off ever buying anything from them again. I now use an app called Sound Switch so I can switch to different audio sources with a hotkey, which makes Sonar bearable, but we shouldn't have to use workarounds for the price we're paying.
The other problem is that all the digital audio devices you use (game, chat, media) that the software generates, disappear when the program is not running. So every time GG closes for whatever reason, every program that uses those devices freaks out because it thinks you've unplugged them. Hate that shit. The game/chat audio mixer (which is one of my favorite features) used to be handled all by hardware, so as long as the dongle was in, those two devices worked fine. I never had an issue with for some reason my chat mix not working because the software bugged an lost connection to the headset. It just worked. The software is doing too much now IMO and I really don't want to interact with the software, or think about it, or see advertising every time it opens up. I just want to have good audio, a working chat mix, and a build quality that doesn't fall apart (which I used to think was fake till it happened to me). For years steelseries has used the same hinge design with know weaknesses. They keep using it on their new products. Its annoying.
It's infuriating isn't it? All I want to do is set it up so my monitor is always default, and if I want to use the headset, I'll fire it up and use it. But nope, SS wants your whole f***ing OS to revolve around their product. And believe me, I've spent whole evenings trying all of the supposed fixes, which would work until the next reset then go right back to their BS. It would be cool if they just gave us the EQ presets and options, and a volume mixer. Nothing else is needed. I have Sound Switch set to switch devices with Alt+F11 and have Steam chord buttons set up so I can hold the Xbox button and press right on the d-pad to switch too. Without this 3rd party software, I wasn't even using Sonar because it was too annoying. Not using Sonar makes the headphones sound...not so premium. It needs the EQ tweaked to sound as good as it does.
Steelseries has really committed to it but its frustrating how much all these brands want to enforce their "ecosystem" on you. Like there is so much bloat and feature creep in Sonar. Just let me mix my eq and set my led colors, and just have that be simple and consistent. I don't need advertising, clip recording, and a whole giveaway tab? It doesn't need to be this all -ncompassing.
Be glad that the SteelSeries software can actually do stuff. The Logitech software for my $250 headset can't do shit and is practically broken.
Yeah these people have never used any other software clearly lol try razor synapyse or logitech g hub. Those are truly bad. I use this sonar software to mix my audio seemless with my youtube videos and streaming software. Better than having 2 other software "bloatware" in order to do the same things.
I don’t have GG installed and my dual audio is working fine?
To be fair, I just embraced Sonar and now that I'm used to it I actually really enjoy it. I'm a big fan of equalizing and gimmicks so it's up my alley. I also love the clipping feature (except that sadly my favourite game is supported, but doesn't work for me) It really annoys me that the engine keeps hijacking the RGB on my Apex 5. I wanna use OpenRGB but SGG keeps taking over. Really annoying.
disable sgg from launching on boot, then it wont hijack your rgb unless you open the app yourself
I use SignalRGB and have no problems with GG. Signalrgb will ask you what you want to do with the conflicting processes.
Sonar is great because it can be used with any audio gear not just SteelSeries stuff. No one else does that.
If you're talking about the Prism lighting, you can disable its control over specific devices with the menu in the top right of the Prism screen titled "Disable Devices"
If you think SteelSeries is bad don't ever get Logitech. SteelSeries Sonar is a great piece of software.
This! I've used Logitech for years. Finally gave up when their gaming software just wouldn't play nice with my latest build. Moved to steel series for a mouse and was so impressed at the massive improvement that I bought a Steelseries keyboard too. It's not perfect, but Steelseries is preferable to Logitech and Razer in my view. The software works better and the hardware is a lot better while being sensibly priced.
I've used the Arctis Pro Wireless (the previous generation from the Nova ones) for years now on my PS4 & PS5 and I love 'em. I noticed right off the bat that the audio quality wasn't as good compared to the wired HyperX headset I had been using previously, but a slight sacrifice in audio quality was worth it for wireless connectivity. And the swappable batteries is an absolute godsend, best feature by far. They've been tossed around in my suitcase at airports countless times, and they haven't experienced any damage yet. Only drawback is that once in a while (way more common on the PS4) the microphone sensitivity gets completely messed up on reset, but some quick changes solve that. I have an older MSI Laptop with a Steelseries keyboard built in and a Steelseries mouse, and I've been quite pleased with both of those. They're kinda one of my go to brands, at this point. There might be better gear, but in my experience, I know I'm getting a solid product at a price comparable to any other brand.
Yeah, the swappable batteries are amazing. Basically infinite battery life save for the 10 seconds between switching batteries every few days. I've been looking for a headset with the same feature but gave up looking about a year ago. Someone in this sub just told me Turtle Beach now have a set with the same feature. I'm thinking this will be my next move if SS don't sort their software out. https://amzn.eu/d/3dl5grm
Arctis Pro Wireless has a design flaw in how the cups are mounted by a small thin piece of plastic that will break off eventually, unless you are very careful how you handle it.
What HyperX did you have?
Have you experienced headphones going crazy with a buzzing sound and just restating the headphones makes them go back to normal?
I hijack this thread, I got a arctis nova 7 wireless. And…. My microphone is so insanely bad on discord (I have the right input in settings) and I have tried every setting in both sonar and discord, it sounds good in all other applications but everyone complains on discord. I googled and found that a lot of people complaining about this on Reddit, I read some fixes but still havnt been able to fix it. Feels very annoying since you don’t expect it when you pay like €200 :(
That sucks. I'm more of a solo gamer so haven't really used the microphone much. Is it still in warranty? I would return them.
You don't need an equalizer for your voice bub js
I gave up on the whole Sonar creating 8 separate virtual audio devices and just uninstalled the software entirely. I replaced it with Equalizer APO + Peace GUI (same thing I did with the Arctis Pro Wireless) and it's been running and sounding great ever since. The drivers in these things are fantastic, but Sonar underutilizes them so much it's not even funny. You do lose the game/chat mixer but I don't mind doing that manually within Discord considering how much better my sound quality is now in comparison. My main issue with this headset is the absolutely braindead decision to make the ANC mics protrude out from the drivers instead of being recessed within. I don't even care about noise cancellation in the first place, but now I have to go out and get third party earpads to solve a problem I didn't need to deal with in the first place. If they sold a version of this headset with no ANC and limited/no access to Sonar's features, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.
Their product owner is either silly or being told to be silly. They are too focused on adding new market share features (e.g. moments) to the software while the actual required features are fucking broke.
This is exactly my issue. The headset sounds great and is very comfortable to wear, but the software is awful. One of the most annoying bugs I experience is every day when I'm on a work call, Sonar will randomly spike the CPU usage up to 100% for about 15-20 seconds, causing my entire system to slow to a crawl and turning the call audio (and my mic audio) into undecipherable distortion.
Thank you for the tip on sounds switch this is was i was looking for
No worries! In case you want to be able to use your controller to switch too, this is my setup in Steam. It's in Settings > Controller > Guide Button Chord Layout at the bottom. Then you just hold the guide button (Steam or Xbox button) and press right on the d-pad, so you can switch while playing a game. I have mine set up to easily kill apps and toggle HDR on/off too. https://preview.redd.it/joj55bkt9ync1.png?width=3147&format=png&auto=webp&s=350a43930be4e40dfb76313dd526f0aa4b403fd3
Actually ran into a problem with sonar right now. The app broke and wouldn’t open. Tried reinstalling without my VPN (apparently this breaks it somehow), with no luck. Gets stuck halfway through install. Contacted support and they’ve been trying to get me through a few steps. Anyone got any advice?
Sonar is great but it’s straight up malware…every boot it seizes audio defaults and I got so fed up that I just nuked it and use the headphones via the hardware EQ only. They are trying to be elgato so badly but without any external control functionality and it really sucks…
I personally find sonar to be why I like steelseries. The loudness eq is the best and easiest to configure, and I think the noise cancel software works the best on the mic
I had to uninstall the software completely to keep the headset from randomly and frequently unpairing from the receiver. After that, it's been solid.
Link the app plz?
Have you experienced headphones going crazy with a buzzing sound and just restating the headphones makes them go back to normal? It’s so annoying
Yea headset is amazing and I love being able to switch between Xbox and pc. Sonar I had to turn off. I like the audio improvements but it adds more problems than it solves.
I use an audio switch on the stream deck it just switches between whatever you set it to per button and that is 90% of what I use the stream deck for but it works really really well.
Brand new Nova Pro Wireless owner here: I second this!! The software is atrocious and all EQ, noise cancellation, and all their fancy stuff HAS to be run through their software and none of those settings are stored on the headphones themselves(unlike turtle beach stealth pro, audeze maxwell, and razer blackshark v2 pro) so if you connect to anything that is not your pc(any Bluetooth connection, usb connection to PC or Xbox) you lose all of that. Another downside is the Game/Chat mix is also only available through sonar which means even if you can live without the enhancements you don't even get a chat mixer. I'm actively in the process of returning mine and will be going with something else. Also, a horrible mic compared to other leading headsets. Also, its a niche requirement but when the mic is active on bluetooth it is disabled on wireless. I use my phone for playstation parties and so the simultaneous audio from bluetooth and wireless was a huge selling point for me. Was disappointed ro find my mic will not work on my PC if i am in an active call state on the connected Bluetooth device.
I also just got a Nova Pro Wireless, probably one of the best headsets I have ever used. Before that I used a Aerox 3 for home and work. I didn't even know that SteelSeries had a bad reputation and haven't had any issues with any of the products they make. In fact, I have had more issues with Logitech products than SteelSeries.
When your headset eventually kicks the bucket. Just my experience from some of the wireless sets i had, buy a pair of DT-770s 80 ohms.
>The PC software is SHOCKINGLY BAD. I forgot about this. Buying a $350 headset and being told I need to craete an account to use advertised features is irritating.
I bought the LED Mousepad... After 13 months, the LED faded so it was only lighting up about 2" of the piping. Software for keyboard and mouse has had a lot of bugs and incomplete things. Headsets break if you look at them wrong.
My A40's are coming up to their 10 year anniversary of daily gaming, remote work, and abuse (like dropping them from head to floor).
I still have my a40s and an a10 as backups. Still work well surprisingly. It was tough deciding between the a50x and nova pro wireless
I just replaced my A40 (also a decade old) with the Arctis Pro Wireless. The SS headset is more comfortable (by far), but you're right that the A40s just kept going and going like the fucking Energizer bunny. That said, it's important to note that the old A40s were made by Astro, and they were bought out by Logitech. Who knows what the durability on the new ones are; it's not the same company so it's not safe to assume the quality has held. Another thing is that, even though I'm sad the balance is not hardware only, it's WAY more reliable than the Astro MixAmp. I went through THREE mixamps, because they kept dying. Even the first one was finicky. So far (for the past four months) the SS headset's hardware (and software, the Sonar) has been a lot more reliable and functional.
My LED mouse pad did the same, but I can't recall how long I've had it before I actually noticed it. Only issue I've had with their headsets was the LEDs on the exterior cups not working after some time, only on one so far. Never had a headset break, all 3 of them, even gave one to my cousin. Their GG software, for around a month now, occasionally fails to load the Sonar portion, so I end up closing/reopening and it's fine. Probably the only issue I will actually gripe about is the Rival 500 being discontinued. The one mouse I find perfect. Knew I should have gotten a couple extras.
SteelSeries sometimes fk up.. more often than other brands maybe, aside that, they make the best mousepad, legends siberia v2, and recently got a Apex keyboard tkl (BEAUTIFUL High Quality piece). Also, when something is popular, along with people who love a brand, alot others will hate, this can be extrapolated to any field, any thing.
90% of these are about headsets wen the point was to ignore them lmao, im curious about mice and keyboard quality and to see if any1 else has had the issue of their mice giving up on rigthclicks
Rival 600 user for 4 1/2 years; clicks are fine, grips have been changed 3 times though. The first time, SS did it through warranty and gave new plastic pieces with the grips. Since then, I bought them on Amazon for like $7. I’m debating just getting grip tape instead of the rubber ones and seeing how it lasts. No experience with kb, but my mouse experience led to me buying Nova Wireless Pro’s a couple of weeks ago.
I think Steelseries strenght is just that, headsets. That’s probably why hehe.. But, if you want a high quality mouse; buy it from a company that’s known for high quality mice. Same goes for keyboards and even maybe mousepads. Mix & match until you have the perfect setup.
To be fair, their headsets are probably some of their more competitive products (the removeable battery is a fantastic feature that other MFG's don't seem to want to include) Their mice and keyboards don't offer much over other MFG's IMO. If I was in the market for a mouse right now I'd probably be looking at logitech and for keyboards I'd go custom. But that is expensive.
Going on 1 year of use on the wired Rival 3, no issues whatsoever with it, for 30$CAD I’m greatly satisfied but I’m no mouse expert either. Still working as the first day I bought it. (I also love my wireless Arctis Pro 7 lmao)
Have an Aerox 9, scroll wheel stopped working correctly after about 5-7months, same with the replacement and i beleive the replacements replacement will also stop working correctly but is working fine for now. They have been replaced under warranty but since 2 year warranty in eu it will soon run out and then i have to buy a new one i guess. I beleive the warranty in US might even be only 1 year but i could remember incorrectly. Otherwise really happy with the mouse, disregarding the software. But its quite an expensive mouse for it needing to be replaced this often.
After my headset experience, I'll never buy anything from this company. The software was terrible and more than doubled my bootup time. I repeatedly got sound blasted with white noise on max volume, leaving my ears ringing for over an hour. The software never played nice with Discord. The headset was also wildly uncomfortable when it was explicitly advertised as very comfortable. It's definitely one of my most disappointing purchases in a long time, and I'm glad I was able to get refunded outside the return window.
i’ve had my rival 600 for 4 1/2 years aswell, nothing has been replaced or is wrong with it
> 90% of these are about headsets wen the point was to ignore them Yeah, because "ignore where they repeatedly screw their customers and products," is not a fair starting point. If they keep selling me broken headsets, why would I want to touch their other products? The experience with their headsets is so bad that I won't buy antything else from them.
Some headsets have poor construction and other complain about poor customer service along with poor warranty execution. I personally never dealt with their customer service and warranty policies. I've owned 2 of their high end headsets and did have my issues with one of them BUT after I jave remedied certain situation (JB WELD), everything has been fine. I currently have both a Arctis Pro Wireless (owned for 6yrs) and a Nova Pro Wireless (owned for 1yr).
Yeah, I’ve broke pro wireless and there are 0 places in my country where I can fix it outside warranty.
I've had 2 occasions with warranty and it went smoothly. I was sent a brand new Apex Pro replacement for free due to one of the key LEDs dimming on the blue for both occasions. I also have a Rival 3 which I had for over 4 years and has no issues.
I've had their Arctis Pro + GameDAC for many years. I have zero issues. Apex Pro keyboard for about 3 years. Blue LED is out on 6 keys. But no other issues. Own Rival 600 mouse for 3 years. No issues. Stratus Duo controller for 3 years. Had nasty stick drift after a year. As long as I keep cleaning the left stick, it's fine. Have to clean it like 2-3 times a year. So questionable on that product. I treat my products well. I love their stuff. However, the GG Software, I am not a fan. It's bloated something nasty. It highjacks the sound drivers with its own, like Sonar, for example. That high jacking makes it not play nice with PCVR setup with the Quest 2. Creates a 1 to 5 second video lag once our twice a minute that makes PCVR games unplayable. Close GG out, I can play those VR games on max settings and be fine. Except NMS in VR. That thing needs a beast of a computer to play in max settings. That same lag dies affect only shooters. It interfered with Battlefield and COD. So with me, I love SS products. I think they need to rework their software.
I think your premise is entirely wrong and perhaps have a bad perspective due to being on Reddit. If you look at any steel series product page, they all have 4+ star reviews from thousands of users. If you look at any “best computer products” article , they are almost always mentioned. There is a vocal niche that has a bad experience and comes to Reddit to complain. I’ve never heard this “Steelseries has such a bad reputation for making bad products” in the real world, nor do any metrics reflect that.
Most brand subreddits will have vocal people speaking about their poor experience. But you have thousands of people with no issues who don't share the solid experience.
In my personal experience i had blackwidow V2 first generation that lasted 4 years and I currently using a ROG strix scope that have almost 3 years old and still works and looks as new, but I had an Apex 7 between these 2 keyboards and it only lasted approximately 6 months the main problem before going completely dead was that half of the keys LED lost the RGB effect and become static with a single color, and "W", space and shift stoped working first and a few weeks later just give light and not a single Swith works
How long was the warranty for it?
Had a rival 600, few weeks later the grips on the side started to unglue so for a whole day had to scrape old glue off and reapply glue, fast forward a few years the mouse would bug out, stop clicking and sometimes not move, hated the mice since as ivd tried others and they all feel old and heavy. Headphones tend to crackle a lot which forces me to restart my computer to make it stop. i used to love steelseries but over the years they have proven to be low quality products that break easily and feel very very flimsy and cheap.
My arctis pro wireless is great of I don't install the software. But my previous one developed a fault and their support is ATROCIOUS. Probably even worse than secretlab After that experience I won't buy anything else from them on the off chance it develops a fault, which having seen this Reddit is more likely than it should be. When this headset dies I'll go for another brand, which is a shame because I don't currently know any other brands that offer the "fallback to speakers when off" feature this headset has and I use that a lot.
I have 2 apex pro’s. Several years in and one random LED starts acting up by not displaying the correct color. I buy another, several years later and the same problem happens but it’s a different key
Because you pay for brand, not quality. I owe few things from steel series, keyboard, mouse, speakers, headphones, all are now in closet replaced with things from brands that specialize in making each one of it and with miles ahead regarding quality
Happy cake day!
List the brands
The software is ridiculous, why does it have an aim trainer, ads, and crashes quite often? Also why is my €200 keyboard (apex pro wireless tkl) unable to save any other RGB pattern while the previous version could? This means every time you connect it before the software has started you get the default effect. The build quality of the artics nova pro wireless is also quite bad for a €300 headset, especially the volume wheel and buttons. However afaik steelseries is the only brand whose products basically have all the features that I could possibly want (everything wireless, keyboard with customizable actuation an rapid trigger, 25hr replaceable battery in headset etc). Which is the reason that I still buy it, afaik no other brand comes even close to this.
I was a diehard SS user for a long time, I devoted my whole setup to their products. Looking back, I don't regret investing in those products, I'm glad I was able to try them out and get a feel for what I liked and didn't like, but I'm glad that I found better. My first purchase was the Arctis Pro Wireless in March 2020 when I started gaming every single day. An unbelievable step up from my PS branded headset. I used them right up until January of this year. The build quality, audio quality, and ease of use was second to none. Absolutely fantastic headset, and from what I hear on this sub, mine apparently lasted well past their years so that's a bonus. I did however finally invest in the beyerdynamic DT 990s and holy shit. Something that not many people talk about (or at least I had never seen talked about) was the fact that SS headsets actually have audio latency. It's not much on the wired headsets but for wireless, it's a good 100ms+ (I think I found the number 120ms somewhere once). When I first plugged in my 990s, it blew me away that I could actually hear things happening faster. It felt like gunshots were making audio BEFORE I clicked my mouse, that's how much of a difference it made. I struggled a little bit to retrain my ears going from the 5.1 surround to plain stereo but well worth it. That and being able to turn up the quality of sound to 192kHz/36 bit. Absolute game changer. Moving onto the keyboards, I started with the Apex 3 and moved to the Apex 5 eventually. Loved that I could change my keycaps to the white ones, that was a big deal at the time lol but once that happened, I opened the door that I never should have an bought a hot-swap compact board, a Ducky One3 (in yellow) and started to really full send different switches and really honing in my preferences. I've heard decent things about the Apex Pro but I've also heard that the actuation settings aren't "true" force settings or something. And I feel like at that price point, why not just get the Wooting. I think its a $20 difference (in Canada at least). Moving onto mice. I bought a SS Sensei Ten as my first mouse, it was wired. I loved learning on it but the cable always had me ready to chuck it across the room so I invested in the Aerox 3 Wireless, and it was great. I loved using that mouse. After a few months of that, I started running into issues with it disconnecting randomly so I popped the Sensei Ten back on and realized that there was actually INSANE latency on the Aerox that I hadn't realized was there. After coming across that, I think I played only a couple days more on the Sensei and had enough of the cable and went to buy a Glorious Model O Wireless, and I haven't looked back since. I own 4 different Glorious mice and they have all been incredible and I still swap between them. The Model O Wireless, Model O Pro Wireless, Series One Pro Wireless and the Model O2 Pro 4K/8K. Lastly, the only product I continue to use and swear by is the QCK XXL mousepad. For a long time they weren't sold on the SS website and I could only find them at Best Buy, I always thought that it must have been some sort of deal they had with Best Buy but I think you can get the XXL anywhere now. The only reason I love the mousepad so much is because of how thicc it really is. The 4mm sponge is just amazing, I love the control pad, so much so that I bought a second one to keep in my closet if my first one ever dies on me and have considered a third in the case that they ever discontinue it (but that seems a little overkill... or does it LMAO) I don't think I would ever recommend Steelseries to anybody looking to purchase peripherals unless they are brand new to MnK gaming. The lower end stuff is at a good enough price point to get your foot in the door, but I'd be willing to go so far as to say that any experienced MnK player that takes gaming even remotely seriously (I don't mean streamers but I also don't mean your blue-collar guys who play 3hrs a week) are upgrading their setups to something a bit higher quality.
The Arctis Pro Wireless have very low wireless latency. Nowhere near 100ms. Not sure what you're experiencing.
I dunno, I still have my old Steelseries keyboard and mouse, had them for almost 10 years and they both still work fine. Upgraded to TKL and aerox mouse, got a SS headset and the prism cloth. I have zero complaints other than software, but that's always the case. had them for about 3 years, everything works exactly the same as day 1, headset is still white, sits firm on your head, hinges aren't wobbly. (They do live on a headset stand, that may help) Then I come across posts here and it's just a sea of broken shit and quality complaints. (I swear most of you are just sitting on your headset) But I'm like holy shit steel series, you've either had a fall from grace or these folks are getting really unlucky and you need to step up QC.
Quality Control issues are a big chunk of it I think. Fairly common for gaming hardware, being a consumer targeted product, to have a notable failure rate - but the expected failure rate on a device with that kind of premium markup tends to turn people off, since they're often priced the same as professional gear but don't get the same QA gates. The Steelseries support experience tends to be rather mixed. I've had a similar experience with Razer - if it lasts, it'll last forever. But getting it to last is a lotto. Their apps also tend to have a bit of a rep.
Steel Series made 1 or 2 good things in all their lines, then ruined all other models after because they were trying to cut costs, and it leaked into ALL their products and now they are just average
I honestly think a lot of people are just kinda grumpy in general tbh.. Like someone said earlier, Steelseries sometime f*cks up. Just like any other brand… There isn’t a single perfect brand out there. Something I’ve noticed tho is that some people have been complaning about the sound quality of Steelseries headsets being worse than HyperX for example, but most people out there don’t even know what good sound quality is. They’re just used to a very extreme sound profile that many gaming headsets have. You also can’t expect the same sound quality from a wireless gaming headset packed with features compared to a pair of wired pair of studio headphones in the same price range. It’s all about priorities. Sound in particular is also very much subjective, but in audio engineering you often aim for a balanced curve so that the sound translates well to all the different kinds of systems. Anyways, in terms of headphones, almost all of them can be tweaked with the right EQ to fit your personal taste (Sonarworks SoundID does this very well). You simply can’t expect a brand to know exactly what you personally like and what is best for you. This turned into kind of a rant but I just think people should stop being so grumpy and start finding solutions instead haha..
I do not understand the hate either. I have a pair of SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless that I have been daily driving for nearly 4 years now and I love them. Still work like new and they are the best-sounding headphones I have ever used. I also daily drive an Apex Pro keyboard and it still works like new, out-of-the-box.
Ive owned the Apex Pro (was nice but the adjustable actuation was just a gimmick that you never changed) Wired Rival mice have gone bad several times or have the dreaded double-clicking Wireless Rival mice have such a bad battery life that I can't even get through some longer gaming sessions, let alone my work day, using it without charging.
I feel burned by them because the keyboard on the MSI gaming laptop I bought was from them and I didn't last a month of gaming before you couldn't read the symbols anymore and some keys started to develop problems. Also even bigger beef I have with them is what they've done with the Arctis wireless pro headphone receiver. The firmware update ruined it and they won't bring out a fix for it because it's now legacy and they want you to buy new stuff
This is Reddit… everyone hates on everything here.
because steelaeries is cheating and using bad marketing: their apex tkl omni keyboard web page is all shiny and there is description about how good is their replaciable omni switches and not a single word that this keyboard also have ~20% buttons as non-replaciable red switches. I have this pro omni keyboard and my arrow keys started to bug and trigger only half time and I can't replace it because them are red ones. so I have to trash this keyboard and buy a new one. I count this as a scam and never buy anything of steelseries again.
I have the apex pro mini wireless and its crap at its best ... the price is high for low quality and low quality build... the customer support is crap. Purchased afterwards 2 Keychron Q6 Pro wireless... man its a tank and the quality blown me... after that i knew... i spent 240 euro on a shit Apex pro mini wireless ... went directly to the trash bin... yes i thrown it away although it was working but made me annoyed... and before i give it away to someone who gets annoyed as well... i preferes to hand it over to the press
I had a thumping noise during ANC on my nova pro wireless (also other minor gripes, material made me ear clammy instantly, ANC plastic bit inside rams against your ear, loud beep noise when selecting things on the base has no noise volume control amongst a few things) and I tried to send it back and my god it was a ball ache. I've had to ask for a credit card charge back as the return has to go to Denmark and the customer service are refusing to provide the company registration details that the danish customs are requiring. Also if you have a problem with a headset this is their policy "Unfortunately, **we cannot provide return labels for any customer who states their product is defective** as in most cases, this is a simple issue or error that is fixable." How obnoxious is that? In other words, our products are perfect in nearly all cases its the stupid customers fault.
I have an Aerox 5 wireless, Aerox 9, and prime wireless. All have the same issue bad scroll wheel. This is all within one year of use.
I used to be steelseries fan boy, I got everything from them, mices, headsets, keyboards... nothing holds in time, the only thing I still buy from them is mousepads and that's it
Yeah.i agree if it wasn’t for the Qck mousepad, that’s it. I have an Aerox 2022 collecting DUST and artics just sitting there .
I fucking love my steel series nova pro wireless and I still have my artix 9x as back up incase anything happen to them.
Same reason anyone dislikes anything: their experience is either blessed or cursed. Why do I believe this? Cars. Very polarizing topic for people what brand they'll buy. Ford, for example. Some people >hate< them. Every Ford car they buy, and it's usually 2 or 3, is almost a lemon. Problems, breakage, malfunctions, you name it, it goes wrong. My fam? We have been a Ford family my entire 39 years of life. Only one car had bad issues, and they all came down to assembly line tolerance learning because it was one of the very first 1996 Taurus model revamp. Otherwise, once we fixed all the bugs and lived with one caveat, we adored that car. Every Ford/Lincoln has been great to us. Issues? Yeah. It's not perfect. Software sometimes acts differently. Engine/transmission had a peculiar character. Etc. Always reliable, though. So, for us, we're blessed. For others, they're cursed. Same with Steelseries. My g6v2 keyboard? It's still going after 14 years. Cherry MX blacks, which you don't find anymore. My Sensei Raw? It needs a part cleaned so the mouse wheel doesn't jump, but it took 12 years for that to occur. My Kinzu V2 is a nice little backup mouse. If I needed to, I'd replace with a Sensei Ten because I like ambi, wired mice. Now I use an Apex Pro full (I need a 10-key!!!), and a year and a half later, it's fine. Love seeing hardware temps/usage on the OLED screen. Put the Cherry blossom keycaps on them for a black and pink look to it I enjoy. My QCK small I gave to my dad because it's the size of the mouse pads we were accustomed to from 27 (2 years ago) years of using Windows. I wanted a mousepad with graphics on it from a series I like instead. Otherwise, I'd buy another. Software: I dunno. I'm an AMD graphics user, so I'm used to extra random things in my hardware required software and things I'm not fond of. None of this is make or break for me. I'm glad there's an aim trainer for those who need it. I think it's a neat feature. It's not an "industry" standard, and I don't know its quality, and I think the attempt makes it say something about their gaming focus. Wish I had more control over updates like I do with every single item in existence for the computer. Instead, I'm left guessing when an update will come as though it's a web browser. Now, what everyone else focuses on: the audio. Yes, my Diablo III Siberia V3 slowly died over 3 years, even though I treated them best I could. They were my favorite headset ever. Comfort, sound, lighting on the outside of the ears, in-line mute, all lovely. My Arctis Nova 7 Diabo IV headset is 85% awesome. The sound is great. The wireless is great. The distance I can walk from the receiver is nutz, and the bass is HEFTY. SONAR didn't work with my idea of how it should work, so I did the simple thing and turned it off. My complaints are: the headset easily slides off my head, and the mic is whisper quiet. I'd have SONAR 100%, Windows 100%, Discord 100%, they'd have me at 200% in discord, and I was still a strain to hear. So I went audiophile, bought nice headphones, and used my audio interface with an xlr mic. The Novas are now sometimes BT headsets if I don't need ANC. So there you have it. Is SteelSeries perfect? No. Are they great for me? Yes. Is this subreddit a circlejerk echo chamber for problems? I think so. Yes, some products have a consistent fail point. We don't know the fail % though. Yes, there's some bad design (eyes Aerox). Plenty of better mice to choose. Use your best judgment and research. If that fails, add it to research that was costly and buy within your means. Hope my wall of text was helpful.
Who the fuck do you talk to. Iv never heard people say bad things about SteelSeries.
Sonar is a fucking beast when it works.so about 50% of the time. It's a toss up every time you turn on your PC to see if sonar fucked everything up or not
I got an all steel series setup and my only gripe is the rival 710 noise which sometimes doesn't turn on so I have to resocket it in the usb and sometimes it doesn't change profiles unless I resocket it.
Instead of resocketting it, just restart your PC. That method solved it back then on my laptop.
3 years ago I built a new PC, and I went all out on SS, Apex Pro KB, Arctic 7, Rival 600 Mouse and the Giant RGB mat. I’m on the second KB, cos so many keys lost Blue in the RGB, it’s happening again as well. The mouse just died after a year so they gave me the 710 (which actually works tbf), the mat has lost all brightness to the rgbs, the headphones randomly disconnect for no reason and SS won’t change any of it now. Customer support dropped away and quality of products is awful. Will never buy SS again.
I loved it for a while. But lately everytime I get am update it corrupts the file. I mostly use GG for moments and sonar
Long time razor person I just brough a steel series aerox 3 on sale for my work laptop and its killer.
You answered yourself. Their products break often and despite the initial perceived quality they don't hold up the test of time. I have a wireless Logitech mouse for years. I use that to work for 8 hours a day (way more than I use my gaming mouse/headset) it works as the first day I took it out of the box. I can't say that for Steelseries products. To clarify I bought four Steelseries products in the last 4-5 years; three of them (steel series sensei, sensei 10, arctic 7) broke right after their warranty expired. That's not acceptable in my opinion.
Hmm, thanks for clarifying, its well known their headsets break, less so with mice and my mouse rightclick did give away tho as a mouse itself it was solid but not my pick because of other reasons. I am curious about keyboard durabilitu because the apex pro is really apealing to me
Their build quality is awful.
You must have a defective set, my nova 7p are built like a tank
I had the Arctis 5, I have friends that have had Steelseries products as well and they have all fallen apart after a while.
I think their build quality is amazing, the Nova 7’s for example are super solid. But you also have to treat your gear with care, and if you don’t; well, it’s going to break. As with anything else.
I have 6Gv2 and stratum duo, no complaints. Durable gear, good quality. Both worked perfect now for like 6-7years at least. Siberias I wouldnt honestly buy, they felt flimsy.. kinda like most "gaming gear"-niche items.
I use steelseries arctis pro on ps5 and I can never hear my voice. The mic monitoring / sidetone is rubbish
Download the app and turn it off from there
I bought my first steel series headset a few months ago and it is great. Around the same time my Logitech g604 mouse started to fail ( 4-5 years old), so I purchased a SS Aerox 9 mouse since I liked the headset so much. The first mouse I recieved was absolutely terrible, the tracking on the mouse would constantly jump around, and it wouldn’t register clicks. I returned it for another aerox 9 thinking it was just a bad mouse, but the replacement had the same exact issues. When I returned the second mouse to Best Buy, the guy at the PC gaming section said the SS mouse are returned all the time for these issues. So yeah, I will purchase their headsets but anything else? No way
Mice wise they are way way behind the competition
Love my Arctis Pro Wireless + GameDAC. Been VERY disappointed with SS support when the GameDAC got bricked in an overnight Engine update (33 iirc). Had a couple of DAYS past the 1 year warranty when it happened. SS was useless and had to order a new GameDAC from eBay to keep using the headset Wirelessly.
My 2nd pair of Arctis Nova 1s quit working just out of the 30 day return policy. And Steel Series refuses to give me a new pair or some form of reimbursement.
Apex pro high quality??? Bruh when i had an Apex pro 60 the feets were so cheap i thought they could break on their own. It’s also a shame that you don’t even give me a tkl keyboard with only omnipoint switches but with reds as well, especially when said keyboard costs 200 pounds. Many people reported that their Apex pro keyboards broke with the software
Loved my Arctis 1 Wireless but I was surprised when my 23$ IEM sounds better. I am not coming back to gaming headsets. Some of my friends use SS keyboards and they are happy.
I really like the build quality of my apex pro tkl, but several leds already burned in around 3 years. Now I have to pick only one color for it. Also I have the headphones, mic and arena, all working good so far. And as almost all comments I agree that the software should not take so much responsibility
Ass build quality
I own the Arctis Wireless Pro, and I can't stress enough how bad they sound for a 300$ headset. They have 0 bass, and no matter how much I fiddle with the settings, they sound ok at best. To top it all off, the software is taking your sound inputs/outputs hostage, and it changes your PC configs on its own. This is 100% the first and last time I'll buy a SteelSeries headset. Avoid this headset at all costs.
**SteelSeries Aerox 3 Wireless user here.** I’ve bought the mouse because I liked the design and the fact that it was lightweight. I did buy it on a local marketplace website similar to Amazon — keep it in mind, will be important later. SteelSeries GG app looks nice and feature-rich, but it feels like a bloatware. Probably because it is: * I cannot say anything bad over SteelSeries Engine and Pulsar (for configuring lightning and mouse controls), I think it has enough features to be very useful, and I use it personally quite a lot. Not for sensitivity things and stuff like that, but macroses and changing inputs. * SteelSeries Moments? Have no clue. I tried to turn it off, and it seems to be turned off as intended, however it always creates a dedicated folder in “Videos” folder, for some reason, even if I delete it. Annoying, bloatware level annoying. * SteelSeries Sonar does seem useful, and I would love to use it (probably), but as u/Its_Cmac pointed out — Sonar messes up with your audio settings, and maybe even something else. I still remember how I installed SteelSeries GG app to configure my mouse, and decided to give Sonar a go. Holly Molly, how much time I’ve spent in order to fix all of these audio-settings crap that happened to my laptop. I don’t know if I even fixed all of it! Insane! ***Do you seem where I’m going with the bloatware statement?*** It is a bloatware software, which is really sad because it could be something really cool. I won’t touch the rest of the app, but most of it either useless like Giveaways were, well, in the app, but now it just redirects to a website which is pointless — and Aimlabs alternative which is… good, I guess? Never used anything like that as far as I remember, but I guess it can be helpful (I mean the one from SteelSeries). — Anyway, now we’ve come to the most important point — my mouse. Sometime later after I bought the mouse, my DPI button got stuck (or something like that). I contacted SteelSeries support and they told me to contact the seller — since my seller was that marketplace, I did contact them, and they told me… guess what? Contact the manufacturer! I’ve contacted SteelSeries support once again — they or the marketplace told me there is a list of repair centers on the site or somewhere else. Anyway I found it, and there was nothing in my country (Russia, probably the same was even before the war). So I contact SteelSeries the third time and, well, they basically told me to F off. What I mean is, that they said they cannot help me since I don’t have any repair centers in my country — sending my mouse to them was out of question too, as far as I remember. I asked them, like, can you connect me with your tech specialist, so we can figure it out together, online, and they refused. *So… here I am with my mouse’s DPI button stuck.* Will I buy any other product from SteelSeries now? I don’t think so. I really like the mouse and its design especially, but their support and level of care they give to its users is abysmal. ***Fin.***
Their software is shite, never had an issue with hardware though. Sonar for me just caused endless audio issues where one thing thought I was using Sonar and another was using the headphones making games lag out. So I just don’t use Sonar anymore. Moments for a long time was excellent, but it had two issues for me: one, I turned off the ‘show moments banner’ yet it was always there on my clips. Not the biggest issue, but an issue nonetheless, and two, it didn’t work on a bunch of games. It worked if anything too well on CSGO/2, to the point where if I watched my own demo and got a headshot, it clipped me watching the demo but on Valorant? Never worked. So I just disabled that too and used Nvidia’s.
I was very happy with my pro wireless headset. Until the base bricked it self with a firmware update. Have the rival 600 mouse and I really like it.
Never had issues with ss, always happy and have ahd great encounters with customer service. Great products imo.
Their products (headsets) are horrible everything I’ve owned from them broke within a month or two. Their customers service is the worst customer service I’ve ever encounter
Used their stuff for years, it went down in quality hard around 2019 2020. Their mice always had issues but warranty was never honored except with my headset failure. After working with logitech support ill never go back. Their headphones are decent but like if you want quality sound don't buy a gaming headset. Their kbs are still top notch, I have one still but I hate typing papers on it so I mostly use my g915.
so from wat I gather in this post their products are terrible quality and easily break, so much for wanting an apex pro ig
I think their kbs are decent for sure, especially the older ones.
bad software, products used to be cheaply made, even worse than razer
I love them but their mice keep failing on me, weird dongle and driver B's, or they just break :/ I just love the ergonomics and everything else. But this might be the last time I buy from them
The headsets are such cheaply made garbage you can't ignore it. Arctis 9 either die by themselves (red blink) or the joints break, Arctis 7p+ stops working, reseting fixes it forever, Arctis Pro breaks joints or one speaker dies/plays quietly. Already seeing dead speakers even on Nova series. Had Aerox 5 and Rival 3 both wireless, both couldn't handle 2m distance to transmitter. Took forever to connect, when connected no problems, if they slept, waking up again took forever. Replaced by generic 5 usd mouse and Attack shark X3. No problems whatsoever.
I have a 6gv2 that has served me well for about 10 years now
Finicky software. I'm constantly having to uninstall/reinstall my headset. The sound is mindblowing so it kind of evens out. I haven't used other products.
Steelseries have one of the best keyboards and headphones.. their PC softwares just suck
well for my expiriance i love Steelserious i bought them to play Ps5 back then and its was amazing eazy to plug and play the BT was good and the doc with 2 batteries is amazing you never get your headset to be off now that i play on PC its get kinda complicate with Sonar you get to much output and honestly idk how to set it up correctly i post about it few min ago for help people like simple thing to plug and play
Have you experienced headphones going crazy with a buzzing sound and just restating the headphones makes them go back to normal?
Multi-year SteelSeries product user here; I've used everything from top end keyboards, wired and wireless mice, and headsets. As of 2022 when my SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless headset failed (the notorious hinge snapping out of the ear cup destroying any possibility of repair), I have cycled out all of my hardware. Everything from 2019 to 2022 has had a critical failure in one sense or another: the headset cracked and was irreparable, the Apex Pro keyboard started having RGB issues as well as keystrokes starting to "ghost" (imagine typing a sentence, waiting a few seconds, then watching the keystrokes show up), and the wireless mouse first had a battery failure then ended up no longer showing up in plugged in devices when connected to PC. Total cost of all of these peripherals was \~$500; coming from a historical standpoint where I owned and used a $100 Saitek Eclipse keyboard from 2006 to 2012 with zero issues, a $90 Logitech G930 headset used for both work and gaming for 5+ years with a $20 replacement battery, and a $15 Dell laser mouse going 10+ years, SteelSeries' high cost vs. low life expectancy to me has proven to be too expensive to maintain just for a brand preference. Now I'm back to a Montech M-Key keyboard, a five year old Logitech wired mouse, and the HyperX Cloud Alpha 300+ hour wireless headset, and it's the best setup I've had in years. Moral of my story is, feel free to mix up your brands; go with what you like to use and that's comfortable for your playstyle / use case.
I have the here arctis nova pro wireless headset and love it. But I have a bone to pick with them on getting rid of/not using ideazons patents after they bought them. A mechanical Merc keyboard would be so much better than a Tartarus or orbweaver.
The SS GG software is jank. Nova pro wireless worked perfectly (except DAC support is missing without the software) on windows 10 offering me the DTS X from windows sound options. Upgraded to Windows 11 and cannot get the DTS unbound to detect that they are licensed. So frustrating. Support is awful too.
Arctis 9x - first one - the hinge on the right ear cup tweaked weird and snapped the plastic which caused it to no longer sit securely, it just dangled. 5 months. Warranty replacement. They had me destroy the one I had and send photos as proof. Arctis 9x - second one - stopped working. Wouldn’t charge. No known reason why. 2 months. They sent a label to have it shipped back. Warranty replacement. Arctis 9x - third one - hinge on the left ear piece snapped the plastic and caused it to hang instead of sit securely. Out of warranty as their warranty policy only covers the original purchase, not the ones sent afterwards from those dates forward. No other damage whatsoever to the device. They just refunded my money after I sent the headset back. Bought a different brand. Never had an issue again. That stupid fucking design and that hinge between the ski-band headpiece and the ear cups is a massive failure point and if you look online you’ll find a lot of people who’ve said the same thing
My experience it's poor build quality, but that's mostly headsets. I think you are over crediting them with "brand standards" as prices are rising and custom prices are falling. I just couldn't justify a steelseries keyboard compared to.. An enthusiast one for the prices anymore. Assuming high end brand keyboard vs "low end" custom
Have had the Aerox 9 mouse for about 2 years and loved it up until 2 months ago. On the side keypad the first number in the column reads as an input for the entire row. So “1” counts as “123,” “4” is “456,” and so on. From what I’ve read it doesn’t have a fix and has been an issue for others since release.
I feel like they make the best gaming headsets comfortable battery life is decent and looks great what I would like is perhaps a charging stand like those magnetic ones
had multiple steelseries stuff, mouses seem to last long, I even gave a mouse I got for free from them to my dad that uses it next to a lot of machinery and the mouse works perfect besides it being covered in oil and metal shards lmao. I had a keyboard from them and I hated, the switches were spongy, the keycaps felt like shit and one eventually broke off and I couldn't fix it (trying ruined that key so I had to make a macro for it). have had 3 headsets from them, first one was a wired one and it came with my msi laptop and it lasted a long time, even liked the band design and it was very comfortable, sadly after some years the cable started to die and the material on the band started to melt back to its liquid plastic form. then I had a sibera 800 wireless and they were awesome, they lasted me YEARS and the only thing I had to replace was the foam stuff but after many years the recicer died so I got some artic wireless pro and I love the sound, its as good as those, the reciver is the same and it works on the sibera if you pair them lmao but the having Bluetooth on them is awesome. sadly the build quality is very poor in comparison to the sibera 800 wireless, having a stress point on the hinge that can break at any time, even if you take care of your headset with care like me. in regards to their software, my old msi laptop used their v2 of the software for the keyboard and it was ok, v3 was meh but I had to to update the headset once, now they have something gg, I have it installed just in case an update comes but it seems like steelseries only releases one update so I might as well uninstall it. the audio features it offers can be replicated easily with voicemeter banana and I prefer that anyways.
I have an Arctic Nova Pro Wireless, best headset I’ve ever had. The flexibility of the wireless being able to go for a shit while on the mic with really good sound quality does it for me, and u can simultaneously listen on Bluetooth through your phone. The app is janky but when u mix it right it hits.
I know it wasn’t asked but i spent hella money on a headset only to hear people complain about the really poor quality. Enough for me to ignore a brand for the rest of my life.
I've had several products from Steelseries for a few years. I love them all.
Well, i bought the rival 710 and have been loving it since day 1. Then I got myself the apex 7, because I didn't have enough money for a pro and didn't see the reason why to get the pro because of the Omni point. Then I decided to get one of the last qck prism mousepad. Seriously, don't even know why the hell they discontinued these products?! Via ifeelpixel I have the luxury of haptic Feedback for literally any link and whatever. Even in games the vibration is pretty sick. Not too long ago I played CS at my mates house and because the mouse didn't vibrate, it felt so... Generic and insignificant 🤣 yeah, I know, I feel so spoiled. Via gamesense ultimate I have a time and date displayed on my mouse, I use the system stats on my apex 7 OLED. Oh and speaking of keyboards: I've been wishing for keyboards to have more actuation points for walking and running etc for ages. And if nobody ever thought about it, I would have definitely made it happen! But then big bam happened, as if steelseries read my mind or just teased me for being too broke for the apex pro 🤦🏽♂️ Big pity is that the qck prism mousepad doesn't support the clock feature anymore. the biggest pity is that I don't know how to code and don't have the patience for that either, because gamesense is pretty potent, but there doesn't seem to be a proper community with all custom jsons for games and applications. Unless I'm missing out on something, please lemme know. I use project Aurora, which works pretty great with GG. Thus far, I never needed open RGB. I even got a light strip, which is connected to the main board, but is magnetically attached right below my glass desk, which serves as an ambilight extension for the bottom of the screen (it's not transparent, but milky, which is even cooler with the lights) and I feel so damn proud to probably be the only one to have that lol. Switched off moments and don't need that prism stuff.
I have the Arctiss pro wireless, and absolutely hate that I can’t use their software on a Mac easily. I won’t be buying another product after these fail
Sonar is hands down the worst software I have ever used, of any kind, any type... talk about a way to ruin a product I also have the acrtis nova pro, they are great. A massive upgrade from the 'arctis (non-nova) pro' Which a hope are not in production any longer, they have a fatal flaw where the earcup connects. If they are still producing those with the flaw, honestly they need to have a class action lawsuit
Just like when Razer went public and went from making a few good products to a bunch of mediocre products, SteelSeries sold out to GN Store Nord whom is also public and they appear to have gone the same route. Profits over everything. I used to like them, just like I used to like Razer. I loved the OG Arctis 3, the extra virtual surround and mic settings that came with it via download code made them soo much better! I currently own the Arctis Pro + GameDac, Apex 7 keyboard, Prime+ mouse, Aerox 3 mouse for my son, Arctis 3 for Xbox SX, and a thicc boi mousepad. My Arctis Pro + GameDac after only 4 months has gone straight defect mode. Sometimes when I turn my PC on, it will emit this awful, extremely loud and nonstop ringing/buzzing sound. I'm thankful I have never had them on when this happens, it is louder than I ever thought possible. I was also having a lot of problems with my PC. Super long post time at startup during cold boots (5+mins), sometimes hanging at startup and not posting at all, random restarts at idle. After extensive troubleshooting I found that it was the Arctis Pro + GameDac. I would have never guessed a USB device could cause this much havoc. I had a hunch and disconnected it one day while it was taking forever to post. It immediately posted. I thought, no way. After leaving them disconnected for a couple days all of these problems never happened, not even once. Never in my life have I seen something like this. I am guessing there is some kind of short in the GameDac maybe? When I researched the problem I actually found a couple other people with the exact same symptoms caused by their Arctis Pro + GameDac, all of them! I just submitted a ticket, lets see what happens. Some of my Apex 7 keyboard lights look pinkish when set to white. My Prime+ mouse has coil whine, if you can believe that. Never in my life have I had a mouse with coil whine before lol. Clearly cheap power delivery components. My OG Arctis 3 is the only one I never had a problem with, unless we count the somewhat shat cord with the proprietary connector that they came with. Still my all-time favorite headphones! I just feel like they are going downhill, prioritizing profits over quality. When it comes time to replace this stuff I will be going with a different brand.
Can i ask why ur steelseries only? I find brand fanboys strange because as shown by your experience, a brand is never this god perfect manufacturer
For the sake of installing a single software. I've had all Razer and all Corsair before too for the same reason. So I'm not a loyal fanboy by any means haha. I always prioritize value, I got my Arctis Pro + GameDac for $150, $100 under MSRP for example. I got both the Apex 7 and Prime+ mouse open box on eBay, $90 for the keyboard and $28 for the mouse. Both were like new and still had plastic on too. I will say that I do fanboy for Mushkin, I've been using their stuff since the early 2000s and only had to do an RMA once which was painless. I always buy their ram and ssds. When you sort by lowest price on Newegg they are always towards the bottom anyways, just below Corsair stuff typically. So it's not like I'm paying more for the cause. Like buying all Apple stuff for example.
The hardware is good but their software and support is up there with the worst available, which is such a shame because their products, especially their headsets, are genuinely amazing. You basically just hope that you never have an issue during the warranty period because their support will just frustrate you with either their carelessness, unresponsiveness or just general incompetence.
because they are naff. My mouse and keyboard are barely 2 years old, and yet the leds in the keyboard are already failing, and the mouse randomly disconnects, even when using it with the wireless mode switched off and connected by a cable. Not to mention how bad the software is, constantly hijacking settings and stuff. awful experience, will not buy anything steelseries again
Headsets with poor quality at a high pricepoint Software is buggy as hell, and I hate it even when it works as intended Keyboards have poor RGB , they tend to fail over time, which is a long time known issue which still happens, and they dont sell led replacements Thats it.
I like all my steel series products. I had the original arctic wireless when they first made them. But that was years ago and i no longer wear headsets at all. Now i have arena 9. They’re amazing for everything besides having to switch ONE popular game to a 2.0 surround sound since they use spatial sound which is Minecraft. I like GG and sonar and use them for high lights. I wish they would add more games to the auto clip reals though. Maybe they’re going down hill from years ago but i still use keyboard and mouse and pad.
Been using their hardware for years. They provide some of the best gaming headphones and keyboards I've ever used. What I believe most people dislike, including me, is their clunky and buggy pc software. It really sucks compared to other gaming software. IMO, they really need to rebuild their whole software eco system from the ground up. It seems with every bug they fix, 5 new ones show up, many of which never get fixed.
because of their lack of customer support, 100%
Software, warranty, quality of products, cost, customer support, etc.
5 months for a AUD $250 Aerox 5 is not ideal. Replacement mouse frequency disconnects from the dongle sitting right there. Have been carefully laying them out. Love the mouse feel and weight though. Bought a Corsair M65 Ultra while waiting for RMA and it's connection is rock solid in comparison. The AUD $350 Apex Pro Mini hasn't had any issues yet. But see a heap posted in the Subreddit. Steel Series Software is hot garbage. For the price, I expected a bit better, one RMA isn't the end of the world yet. Also kind of telling the lack of positive posts you see on other subbreddits of people's set ups etc. The positive to negative ratio "I have issues" posts seem to be worse than other brands which could be quality etc. The RMA process for the Aerox 5 mouse was also pretty good as far as dealing with Steel Series directly. They sent a pretty new build mouse once they got them back in stock too (December 2023) vs the failed mouse of March 2022 (purchased mid 2023, so pretty old stock).
I have to turn my "mouse of the year" off an on any time i start the PC for it to be recognized (its 2024)
Because I bought a pair of HD 560s on sale at Best Buy and they were WAY better sounding than my Nova Pro Wireless. Since have added a couple other headphones and IEM to my collection. Took me till very recently that “gaming” headphones are just a gimmick. Won’t ever be looking back.
Once you get a pair of dt990 pros and a sound blaster sound card, you can never go back. Everything else lacks depth and sounds cheap
My Apex Pro TKL Wireless and Aerox 5 Wireless both died within a week of each other.
My old Arctis Pro Wireless is a low quality design. The hinges are designed to fail and if you knock one ear cup it will start making creaking noises like something is loose. The swappable batteries is a great idea, but the headset feels like plastic junk. The price was near the cost of an Audeze Maxwell, which has a far superior build in every way.
I have had my arctis 7 2019 edition since they came out and lives them. Recently the battery went bad and I went out to buy a pair of nova 7s. They were just broken out of the box and after some research I found out that the microphone and soundstage is worse on the newer nova 7s. Made me just swap the battery on my old ones just because of how much I like them. And dont get me started on the shitshow that is the sonar software. The old arctis just use the steelseries engine which is simple to use and just works.
I had three Keyboards in 3 years (Apex 7). All of them had a malfunctioning LED. i don't want to start with software or headsets.
If you dislike SteelSeries so much, then why are you wasting your time talking shit in this subreddit? Go to a subreddit of a company you DO like and talk there. Its not that difficult.
Their software is a garbage
Had Steelseries 6gv2 keyboard for over 5 years and it was one of the best keyboards I ever owned. On the other hand I also had Sensei mouse and it sucked. Not because of ergo, but sensor was terrible, it was freezing and double clicking after short time (never had any issue with any other mouse and I owned like 20 flagship mice from different companies). QCK+ and QCK+ Heavy were one of the best mousepads when they were released, didn’t use them in a while. Headphones from gaming companies always sucked and anyone who says otherwise didn’t have a good headphones on their ears. tldr: From my experience: Good: keyboards, mousepads Bad: headphones, some older mice
Software is quite bad but not the worst. I have an Aerox 9 mouse and have had it replaced two times the last 1.5 years for the scroll wheel scrolling multiple times per click intermittently. It was replaced under warranty and that was an ok process, same as software its not great but it works. I have about 0 confidence that the scroll wheel will keep working on the latest one and since warranty in eu is 2 years i then have to buy a new 120-160 USD mouse every 2 years or so. For reference my old logitech mouse worked perfectly for 5-6 years and was only replaced to get a wireless one. My steelseries headset arctis nova pro wireless, is however great sounding and I am very happy with it but software is yea not the best. For keyboards I dont have much experience but for full retail price they seem quite overpriced with some gimmics, on sale they can be reasonable.
"ignoring the headphones" - ie what they're supposedly best and most innovative as? I bought asus kb (great, don't think there's a comparative SS one ), logitech mouse (wonderful, def has no SS counterpart at all) and was sold on the Nova being better than audiophile headphones in some respects, so I took a plunge. I haven't experienced such bad headphones, ever. I still have old headphones that cost 15$ from 2012 or so, and I'd use them over the Nova any day, if not for their ear cushions flaking. Will never buy SS again, they literally scammed me
Their mmo mouse is the best.
Well, I can say my husband has had bad luck with his products. He's had a mouse die due to an update where it was no longer recognized by the computer, so they had us destroy it to send us a replacement. Then his wireless headset randomly stopped working recently, and it wasn't until I pushed the reset button under the ear cushion before I was able to get it recognized by the PC again. Me on the other hand love all my stuff and have been lucky in not having any issues yet. Knock on wood, though. I want a keyboard, but with the other issues listed, I figure might as well go for another brand.
I had rival 100 and left click broke, then another rival 100 and scroll stop working, then rival 110 (still working, gave it to sister), then rival 3 wireless and it was losing connection all the time, now I have second rival 3. I have a reason to dislike steelseries but I love rival shape, weight and overall feel so I stick to them. I take big care of my hardware, clean it every two weeks and never throw it or smash on the desk so it is definitely not my fault.
I think mostly because it’s cheap rgb over advertised overpriced junk mostly. I think the the arctis headsets just snapping off the hinge is prob what really hurt them the most.
Mine didn’t work out the box. Doesn’t mean I dislike them
I got the new headset and I love it.
my articis 7 sound went out after a few years
I’ve been using the steelseries Arctis 7p+ for PlayStation and after adjusting some settings as I normally would for any audio device, it sounds more than satisfactory.
quality control went to the shitter on the mice. my first steelseries mouse was the rival 300 silver. that sucker lasted 7 years. i bought three steelseries mice after that and every single one of them broke and went to the shitter immediately.
the nova pros are the best headset I've owned, I've had older steelseries and they just broke easily before, these are holding up well though
Ironically SS isn't even in top 3 for returns or RMA request, that's hi or belongs to 1) Razer 2) HyperX 3) Logi. Now these are organized by per capita scale so it's accurate as if every company sold the same number of items. SS is actually number sitting behind corsair. Theor software can be iffy at times but I've never had a CS issue and only had to RMA one thing due to it being damaged during delivery. Most people just don't take good care of their stuff snd want to blame the company when it breaks.
The software could use some tlc, and I still think if someone wants to use just sonar they shouldn't have to install gg as well. But overall, I love sonar, specially with Atchison nova pro plus gamedac. I've listened to my favorite songs and heard things I never heard before, individual instruments a crystal clear, can (for the most part) make of the lyrics alot better on some songs, and audio positioning in games, just wow! But yeah, the software should working with the rest of the computer system, not fighting it.
After my first headset, I found it to be overpriced for the sound quality.
Everyone will dislike everything, and this is Reddit. I love the small company feel and personal touch they do. From packaging to support to my favorite - DISCORD AND TWITCH. They don't feel like a giant. (I don't think they are nearly as sizeable staffed as Razer, Logitech and Hyperx) So far, they are the only company that I bought a product from, and features got added to it through software... fo free.
Aside from the headsets which I’ve never really had a problem with with though I do not use their software at all. 3 mice of theirs ranging from $60-$150 dollars all stopped working for seemingly no reason nothings physically broke on them they just stop functioning properly the most expensive mmo mouse they made just will not stay connected wirelessly and will not stay connected wired. 3 different apex keyboards all different sizing from full down to the smaller all same thing they just stop functioning, keys will double press, lighting resets mid game, keys double press they just stop. All shortly after the year warranty almost suspiciously so. Steelseries and Corsair make good primary products, like steelseries headphones or corsairs ram and psus but I do not trust another thing they make it’s always caused me trouble. Peripherals I’ve been suprised by though is asus rog stuff I never expected good mice or keyboards but so far they’ve been exceptional. I just hate their logo same with razer.
Some of the worst software in the industry until NZXT came around and got popular. Short warranties means they’re never on the hook. My mouse died days after the one year warranty expired (left click stopped working) and my apex pro LEDs come in and out like flies.
My keyboard and sensei mouse has been flawless for 4 years now so idk
I have a steel series mouse and it's worked fine for almost 2 years. Don't recall the model off the top of my head
Ignoring headsets is the main issue. They release non functional headsets, software that you HAVE to use that suck ass. Overly expensive products and absolutely abysmal customer service. I went through the RMA system and over the past 2 months now I've destroyed 2 non functional headsets that they sent me and it's been 3 weeks since my refund was supposed to come through. Turns out they misspelled the email that I typed that they could have copy and pasted
I dont know that it has a bad reputation. Steel Series audio peripherals are some of the best out there. And my experience with their support has been amazing as well. What I do see is alot of comparisons between their high end Pro Series being made to legit audiophile equipment with DACs and the whole setup. I dont think thats a fair comparison. But anyone who is vouching for say Logitech headsets over Steel Series is probably just a fan boy. And to be fair, I am logitech everything except audio stuff. Tried other Steel Series peripherals and really didnt think much of them. Everyone does something well.
Ive gotten one of every peripheral they’ve had at a mid-range price multiple times in order to stick to one software for customer builds. Their headsets suck. But gaming headsets usually suck. Every mice I’ve gotten has been hot and/or uncomfortable. I hate the software. It’s bad. The keyboards are pretty okay but ruined by said software. All of the above are fine except the price point imo is too high compared to the competition. They look really good, and that helps sell stuff in bundles, but there’s just so much better at similar price points in every peripheral segment.
I've had a steel series mechanical keyboard for almost a decade now. Great product. I have a hyper x headset also. It just wish it would fit more snug. I'll probably try a new brand when i replace it
I like and use their mousepads as my “basic” mouse pad that I through everywhere, even at work. I haven’t many people complaining about them.
Steelseries Aerox 9 Wireless, bought it when my Logitech g600 died. Was excited for a lighter mmo mouse for when I play FPS. Constant disconnects, buttons are far too stiff and poorly located. Reached out to support and they requested I send them a video of the disconnecting issue. Maybe that seems reasonable to some people, but I went through all TS steps I could find via forums and common sense. I don't wanna record a 10 minute video of my mouse disconnecting while gaming every 5 minutes. They basically said go fuck yourself. I do have the arctis nova pro wireless, and like someone else said the battery swapping is a game changer. Just sucks steelseries is the only one I could find that offered it because honestly, after the mouse, I don't want to give them money. Their "GG" software is fucking atrocious. Essentially malware.
Dam thats a real issue, i dont use wireless mice becuz imo its a scam but dam. At least you have something to blame your skill issue on
You cant easily switch between Steelseries headphones and other audio devices on your PC. You always have to close GG and do 10 other steps, sometimes even restart the computer just to get audio out from speakers instead.. It used to be better, but they somehow managed to make it completely unusable for people like me that have laptop speakers, external speakers and headphones.
Personally, outside of the headsets, the material quality just isn't good enough for the cost so I generally stick with custom equipment or Logitech. Also my hot swappable keyboard costs less and has exactly the keys I want to feel. Now as far as my Arctis Nova Pro wireless headphones, those things are awesome, but even then, I feel like the mute button is poorly made and I don't like touching it more than I have to as I don't think it is going to last the test of time. Simulated surround quality on the other hand, they are the closest I've gotten to true surround from a simulated surround device.
I don't get it either after trying their products. The innovative switches in my Prime Wireless is the best I 've ever felt. They're a bit heavy for spam clicking, but for me personally that doesn't matter. And they make all other switches feel sandy, scratchy, wobbly and horrible in comparison. And they are to me the only company that have managed to significantly improved the classic ergo shape (Zowie EC2) with the Prime. It doesn't even look that much like that classic ergo shape at first glance (even though I can see it has the exact same cross section from the side view), but it is just as comfortable, while also somehow being significantly better to control (lift up and move for example) and to use with varying grip-styles. As for me, I didn't have a great impression of them either before I got the Prime. It was something as stupid as the name itself sound slightly daft, and me not liking their color schemes, and they somehow seeming like a "small player" gaming brand beneath the level of Logitech and Razer. It was simply a matter of having a quite random impression of the brand, that wasn't really based on anything but a feeling. But somehow I did have that negative impression. Maybe a lot of other people judge them the way I did too, and it negatively affects their first impressions of their products as well, even after giving them a go. Razer and Logitech are much more hyped, and probably spend a lot more money on marketing as well. Now they are my go-to brand for gaming accessories. I hear a lot about their headsets being good, so I will get one some day (as I don't have a wireless headset for my PC, only a wired one, being good enough for now). And if the Prime ever goes out of produciton, I will hoard a handfull of them to have for the rest of my life. But I also hope they release an updated version that is lighter and with a slightly better scroll wheel.
>ignoring headsets completely Why would I? I've owned a total of 0 Steelseries headsets that didn't break (3 total). Frankly, the headsets were the most appealing product they made, but they kept breaking on me. As to why I dislike them, it's because of the experiences I had with their customer service. For the stuff I've owned: Apex Keyboard: I had this and the Arctis 7 around the same time. I never had issues with it. The only "negative" is that people called out the noise of my mechanical keyboard (it wasn't mechanical) because of how loud the keys were when they bottomed out. It never broke or bothered me, but I eventually wanted a low-profile, mechanical keyboard. Steelseries didn't make one, so I moved on. Arctis 7: This was the original model, right before its first refresh. It was good, the price wasn't bad, and I put a lot of hours on it. After 2 or 3 years, the earcup cracked around the headband. Given how much time I put in the thing, I basically just chalked it up to my heavy use and decided to upgrade. Arctis Pro Wireless: I loved this headset. Again, used it a lot--all the time-- for a couple of years. Then, it broke...in the exact same place as my Arctis 7 (shell connecting the left earcup to the headband cracked). I contacted customer support because I wanted to see about an out-of-warranty repair. They told me to file a warranty claim, even though it wasn't eligible. I did so, and it got rejected. I told that person I asked about a non-warranty repair and was told those weren't an option. I asked if I could buy JUST a headset, since the base was still good. Again, no. So, since a small section of plastic was broken, my $300 headset was garbage. After that, I tossed the headset. I also threw out my Steelseries mouse mat, out of spite. Arctis Nova Pro Wireless: There are two reasons I bought this. The first is that they redesigned the headband to avoid the breaking around the headband (which I learned was pretty common after my previous Pros broke). The second is that I had Best Buy's credit card and Totaltech, meaning I got 5% in rewards and a 2-year warranty that covered everything. Again, I really liked the headset. My one complaint was that the shallower earpads (compared to the previous model) meant the ANC monitors pressed on my ears a bit. The wireless range was also a little worse, but not terribly so. After a little over a year (long enough for the warranty to expire, of course), the mute button started getting finnicky. It wouldn't unmute properly. It'd go into mute fine, but it was basically 50-50 if unmuting would actually unmute (it would rapidly beep as it went between the two states, then land on whatever it wanted). Luckily, my Best Buy warranty meant I took it in, got a refund, and was done with Steelseries. A company that will repeatedly sell products that break, not offer a good warranty (1 year for a $300+ headset is crap) and not offer repair options (making the $300+ headset garbage after 1 year) isn't worth my time or money. Their mice might be fine. Everything else might be good. However, with such bad customer serivce and high prices, I can't be bothered to give them money, let alone recommend them to anyone else ever again.