Products
Astro A50 X
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite
Tested using Methodology v2.0
Updated Nov 18, 2025 02:17 PM
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Amazon.com
Tested using Methodology v2.0
Updated Nov 27, 2025 08:16 PM
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BestBuy.com
TypeOver-ear
Noise CancellingNo
EnclosureSemi-Open
Bass Amount
Slightly Underemphasized (-2 dB)
WirelessYes
TransducerDynamic
Treble Amount
Slightly Underemphasized (-2 dB)
MicYes
Sound Signature
Balanced
TypeOver-ear
Noise CancellingYes
EnclosureClosed-Back
Bass Amount
Slightly Emphasized (2 dB)
WirelessYes
TransducerDynamic
Treble Amount
Slightly Underemphasized (-3 dB)
MicYes
Sound Signature
Warm
Our Verdict
Astro A50 X
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite
The Astro A50 X and the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite are similar headphones with plenty of dock connectivity options. The Astro support both USB and HDMI connections from consoles, allowing them to serve as an HDMI passthrough hub to a display. That said, the Astro support fewer devices in total (up to 3x USB-C inputs or 2x HDMI 2.1 inputs) compared to the SteelSeries GameHub dock (up to 3x USB-C inputs + Line). While both have natural-sounding microphones, the SteelSeries's boom mic is more effective at keeping your voice audible despite background noise. And although the Astro A50 X support Bluetooth, the headphones are tethered to the dock, while you can use the SteelSeries while out and about via Bluetooth. Overall, your decision between the products will come down to whether you want a device that can double as a casual-use headphone and whether you value HDMI hub functionality.
Variants
- A50 X (Black)
- A50 X (White)
- Arctis Nova Elite (Obsidian)
- Arctis Nova Elite (Sage & Gold)
Check Price
Black
A50 X
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Obsidian
Arctis Nova Elite
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BestBuy.com
White
A50 X
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Sage & Gold
Arctis Nova Elite
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
Main Differences for
Sports And Fitness
Sports And Fitness
Threshold
Sports And Fitness
7.0
7.0
Comfort
8.0
7.5
Bluetooth Connection
7.3
8.1
Full Comparison
Sound
Sound Profile
Sound Profile
Normalization Frequency
800 Hz
500 Hz
Bass Amount
Slightly Underemphasized (-2 dB)
Slightly Emphasized (2 dB)
Treble Amount
Slightly Underemphasized (-2 dB)
Slightly Underemphasized (-3 dB)
Sound Signature
Balanced
Warm
Frequency Response Consistency
8.3
6.9
Consistency L
Consistency R
Std. Deviation
0.73 dB
1.12 dB
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
9.7
9.6
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
1.2 dB
1.7 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
20 Hz
20 Hz
Low Bass
-1.1 dB
1.26 dB
Mid Bass
0.19 dB
1.88 dB
High Bass
-0.99 dB
1.85 dB
Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
9.4
8.8
Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
0.97 dB
1.59 dB
Low Mid
-0.61 dB
-0.17 dB
Mid-Mid
-0.27 dB
0.79 dB
High Mid
0.41 dB
-2.38 dB
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
8.6
6.1
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
2.79 dB
5.06 dB
Low Treble
-3.11 dB
-2.79 dB
Mid Treble
-1.92 dB
-3.69 dB
High Treble
-5.47 dB
-7.92 dB
Stereo Mismatch
8.2
8.4
Frequency Response Mismatch
Phase Response Mismatch
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
0.22 dB
0.09 dB
Weighted Frequency Response Mismatch
0.99 dB
1.19 dB
Weighted Phase Mismatch
1.7°
2.0°
Cumulative Spectral Decay
CSD
Compare High-Res
Compare High-Res
PRTF
5.5
0.7
PRTF
PRTF Accuracy (RMS Deviation)
1.97 dB
4.75 dB
PRTF Size (Avg.)
3.06 dB
0.43 dB
PRTF Distance
6.22 dB
-1.41 dB
Harmonic Distortion
9.4
9.6
Harmonics Levels
THD Ratio
WHD @ 94 dB SPL
0.06%
0.04%
WHD @ 104 dB SPL
0.11%
0.05%
Electrical Aspects
Impedance
Sensitivity @1kHz-1V
N/A
113.7 dB SPL
Bluetooth Max SPL
N/A
107.4 dB
Virtual Soundstage
4.1
2.0
Virtual Soundstage
Compare High-Res
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Head Modeling
On/Off
No
Speaker Modeling
On/Off
On/Off
Room Ambience
No
No
Head Tracking
No
No
Virtual Surround
Dolby Atmos
Spatial Audio
Test Settings
Firmware
1.2.18
1.25.0
Power
On
On
Connection
Wireless (Proprietary)
Wireless (Proprietary)
Codec
PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
Test Instrument
Audio Precision APx517B
Audio Precision APx517B
EQ
Default (Flat)
Default
ANC
No ANC
High
Tip/Pad
Default
Default
Microphone
Boom
Boom
Design
Style
Design Picture 2
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Type
Over-ear
Over-ear
Enclosure
Semi-Open
Closed-Back
Wireless
Yes
Yes
Transducer
Dynamic
Dynamic
Comfort
8.0
7.5
Comfort Picture
Compare High-Res
Compare High-Res
Weight
0.8 lbs
0.84 lbs
Clamping Force
0.7 lbs
1.3 lbs
Controls
7.6
8.6
Controls Picture
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Compare High-Res
OS Compatibility
Not OS specific
Not OS specific
Ease Of Use
Good
Good
Feedback
Good
Good
Call/Music Control
Yes
Yes
Volume Control
Yes
Yes
Microphone Control
Mute/Unmute
Mute/Unmute
Channel Mixing
Yes
Yes
Noise Cancelling Control
No
On/Off
Talk-Through
No
On/Off
Additional Controls
Bluetooth + Multi function
Bluetooth + Multi function
Portability
5.3
5.8
Portability Picture
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L
10.3" (26.1 cm)
8.3" (21.1 cm)
W
7.9" (20.0 cm)
7.4" (18.9 cm)
H
2.6" (6.7 cm)
2.0" (5.1 cm)
Volume
213.34 in³ (3,496.06 cm³)
124.98 in³ (2,048.03 cm³)
Transmitter Required
Yes
No
Case
N/A
7.0
Case Picture
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Type
No case
Pouch
L
N/A
N/A
W
N/A
N/A
H
N/A
N/A
Volume
N/A
N/A
Build Quality
8.0
8.5
Build Quality Picture
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Stability
6.5
6.5
Stability Picture
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Headshots 1
Angled Picture
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Side Picture
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Headshots 2
Front Picture
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Rear Picture
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Top
Top Picture
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In The Box
In The Box Picture
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Compare High-Res
Isolation
Noise Isolation - Full Range
2.2
8.8
Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph
Noise Cancelling
No
Yes
Overall Attenuation
-5.05 dB
-23.43 dB
Bass
1.42 dB
-19.50 dB
Mid
-0.23 dB
-18.56 dB
Treble
-18.18 dB
-33.59 dB
Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios
2.2
8.9
Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph
Airplane Noise Attenuation
-4.07 dB
-19.94 dB
Airplane Noise Isolation Audio
Office Noise Attenuation
-5.17 dB
-20.18 dB
Office Noise Isolation Audio
Street Noise Attenuation
-3.14 dB
-22.46 dB
Street Noise Isolation Audio
Noise Isolation - Voice Handling
Female Voice 1
Male Voice 1
Female Voice 2
Male Voice 2
Leakage
5.4
8.8
Leakage
Leakage Audio
Overall Leakage @ 1ft
47.83 dB
28.2 dB
Microphone
Microphone Style
Integrated
No
Yes
In-Line
No
No
Boom
Yes
Yes
Detachable Boom
No
No
Mic
Yes
Yes
Recording Quality
8.6
8.3
Microphone Frequency Response
Recorded Speech
LFE
151.02 Hz
70.25 Hz
FR Std. Dev.
1.52 dB
3.15 dB
HFE
11,166.8 Hz
7,896.12 Hz
Weighted THD
0.114
0.241
Gain
10.57 dB
7.83 dB
Noise Handling
6.4
8.2
SpNR
SpNR
16.6 dB
38.13 dB
Noise Gate
On/Off Toggle
On/Off Toggle
Speech + Pink Noise Handling
6.0
8.0
Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample
Speech + Subway Noise Handling
7.0
8.5
Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample
Active Features
Battery
8.6
9.0
Battery Type
Rechargable
Hot-Swap
Continuous Battery Life
26.4 hrs
18.5 hrs
Additional Charges
0.0
1.0
Total Battery Life
26.4 hrs
37 hrs
Charge Time
2.3 hrs
1.9 hrs
Power-Saving Feature
Auto-Off Timer
Auto-Off Timer
Audio While Charging
Yes
Yes
Passive Playback
No
Yes
Charging Port
USB-C
USB-C
App Support
7.5
8.5
App Picture
Compare High-Res
Compare High-Res
App Name
Logitech G Hub
Steelseries GG
iOS
Yes
Yes
Android
Yes
Yes
macOS
Yes
Yes
Windows
Yes
Yes
Equalizer
Parametric + Graphic
Parametric + Graphic
ANC Control
No
Adjustable
Mic Control
Mute/Unmute
Adjustable Level
Room Effects
No
No
Playback Control
No
No
Button Mapping
No
Yes
Surround Support
No
Yes
Connectivity
Wired Connection
0.0
9.9
Cable Picture
Compare High-Res
Compare High-Res
Analog Audio
No
Yes
USB Audio
No
No
Detachable
No
Yes
Length
N/A
4.17 ft (1.27 m)
Connector
No Wired Option
1/8" TRRRS
Latency - Analog
N/A
0.2 ms
Latency - USB
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
N/A
Recorded Latency Connection
No Wired Audio
Analog
Bluetooth Connection
7.3
8.1
Bluetooth Version
5.010
5.3
Multi-Device Pairing
Bluetooth + Console/Non-BT Wireless
Bluetooth + Console/Non-BT Wireless
Quick Pair (Android)
No
No
Quick Pair (iOS)
No
No
Line Of Sight Range
228.02 ft (69.50 m)
334.65 ft (102.00 m)
Latency - SBC
257 ms
287 ms
Latency - aptX
N/A
N/A
Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)
N/A
N/A
Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)
N/A
N/A
Latency - LDAC
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
Recorded Latency Codec
SBC
SBC
AAC Support
No
Yes
Wireless Connection (Dongle)
8.1
7.8
Line Of Sight Range
257.55 ft (78.50 m)
234.58 ft (71.50 m)
Latency - Dongle
29 ms
34 ms
Recorded Latency
PC Compatibility
Analog
No
Audio + Microphone
Wired USB
No
No
Non-BT Wireless
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
PlayStation Compatibility
PS4 Analog
No
Audio + Microphone
PS4 Wired USB
No
No
PS4 Non-BT Wireless
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
PS5 Analog
No
Audio + Microphone
PS5 Wired USB
No
No
PS5 Non-BT Wireless
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
Xbox Compatibility
Xbox One Analog
No
Audio + Microphone
Xbox One Wired USB
No
No
Xbox One Non-BT Wireless
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
Xbox Series X|S Analog
No
Audio + Microphone
Xbox Series X|S Wired USB
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
Base/Dock
5.2
8.8
Type
Wireless Dock
Wireless Dock
USB Input
Yes
Yes
Line In
No
Yes
Line Out
No
Yes
Optical Input
No
No
RCA Input
No
No
Dock Charging
Yes
Yes
Power Supply
USB-C
USB-C
Check Price
Black
A50 X
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Obsidian
Arctis Nova Elite
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
White
A50 X
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Sage & Gold
Arctis Nova Elite
SEE PRICE
BestBuy.com
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Astro A50 X
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Comments
Astro A50 X vs SteelSeries Arctis Nova Elite: Main Discussion
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