This is the comparison between the Steelseries Arctis 5 and the Hyperx Cloud 2 headsets. Both are the best gaming headset in this price range but there are some pros and cons in each of the headsets. You can decide “which to buy” by this review.

Steelseries Arctis 5	Hyperx Cloud 2
BUY NOW	BUY NOW
PROS	PROS
Extremely comfortable. Sleek aesthetics. Great audio. Sensible software.	Great sound quality. Luxurious finish. Thoughtful extras.
CONS	CONS
So-so surround sound. Long, convoluted cables.	Headphone cord doesn’t detach. Flimsy carry case.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Expert Reviews of Steelseries Arctis 5:

By Nag.co
the Arctis 5 is a comfortable gaming headset that delivers good in-game audio as well as ensuring that your teammates can hear your commendations and insults in perfect clarity. Oh, and it features RGB lighting – if that floats your…

By Techteamgb
Steelseries sent over their Arctis 5 and Arctis 7 gaming headsets for me to take a look at – let’s see if they are worth their price tag! Want one? 5’s: prourls.co/VY8Q 7’s: prourls.co/Ijdc – OverclockersUK Affiliate link: techteamgb.co.uk/ocuk – Want…

By Techpowerup
The SteelSeries Arctis 5 is available online for $100. Great audio performance, both for music and serious gaming SteelSeries Engine 3 software is easy to use and filled with useful features ChatMix Dial is a fantastic addition, one I’d love to see on…

By Videogamesuncovered
SteelSeries have created an excellent headset with the Artics 5 being able to deliver very precise sound with a range of different options in the SteelSeries Engine to customise it to your needs. The connections and cables are something which could be…

By Tom’sguide
The Arctis 5 offers great sound that you can fine-tune to your liking, a comfortable design and an impressive mic at a reasonable price.

Expert Reviews of HyperX Cloud 2: 

By Techspot 
For me, it’s between the Kingston HyperX Cloud II and Polk Striker P1 Multiplatform. The HyperX Cloud II looks and feels better in my opinion, but you have to use USB audio instead of your sound card if you want the inline control box. When spending this much on a headset we’d rather not have to choose between having less features or lower quality audio.

By IGN 
The HyperX Cloud II is attractive for many reasons, including its modular and comfortable design, premium build quality, great 7.1 surround and stereo sound, and affordable price. It’s also great for laptop gamers since it obviates the need for a dedicated sound card, and overall is one of the best headsets I’ve ever used.

By Enos Tech 
When all is said and done, the HyperX Cloud II headset offers the full package. As mentioned, they only thing that tops their quality looks is the quality of the performance which comes at a very fair price when considering other options currently on the market. The Cloud II is a well worthy headset and its versatility only helps to make sure you get the most from them possible.

By WCCFtech 
Then it struck me. That comic book I bought so long ago, it was so cheap and yet I got so much enjoyment out of it. I don’t want to use the word cheap because that has some negative connotations to it, but the value it provided for the price was genuinely amazing. The Cloud II’s are the same and at this moment in time, they are without a doubt my favorite headphones for gaming and general PC usage.

By TheStraitsTimes
The Kingston HyperX Cloud II is one of the most well-rounded gaming headsets on the market.It is a very comfortable and understated headset, backed by solid construction and performance. It is also pitched at a price that will not break the…

Detail Review:

INTRODUCTION:

Steelseries Arctis 5

This headset doesn’t look like a gaming headset but it does give a lot of features for gaming, especially at a lower price. As a package, this one is worth buying considering the quality and its features.

HyperX Cloud 2

This is a successor to the original cloud headset which became widely popular among gamers for its affordability, comfort, and quality. Like that, this also has some more improvements, so this will be better than the original Cloud.

DESIGN:

Steelseries Arctis 5

I think this thing looks good. I think it totally gets the pass in the style class. The thing they said they updated was the buttons on the side whether it be your scroll wheel and your mute button, they said they made them a little firmer.

HyperX Cloud 2

Design-wise, the headphones themselves look near identical to their original and this is a good thing. Matte black plastic ear cups with brushed aluminum side panels, a sturdy metal frame with easy adjustment for head size, and a padded headband with high-quality stitching accompanied by an embroidered HyperX logo.

COMFORT:

Steelseries Arctis 5

They claim that they added a little bit more padding to the ear cushions because some people used to say that their ears would touch the inside. It’s just really because the cushion on this is incredibly soft like it’s cozy but again, it’s so soft and it’s not like my ears touch the inside and it’s uncomfortable but I feel the tip of my ear touching.

This headset is extremely cozy. The material they have used for the ear cups are almost like that sports material that you see in a sports attire. Then on the inside, you have that little pleather coating to prevent some sound bleed but these things are so soft, cozy, breathable. They stay cool on your head.

There’s a little headband up and what you can do is just un-velcro of that headband which is pretty cool. You can take this whole thing out. You can just adjust it and then your head just pretty much rest on it there and it really feels like it’s floating on your head. It’s not too tight on your ears by any means at all and then with this really soft, stretchy headband, it feels like it just floats on your head. Now, you also have plenty of movement within the ear cups and then you can turn them all the way flat or the back way out. They don’t just from the headband like most headsets, it’s just all by this elastic. As far as comfort, these things get a plus.

HyperX Cloud 2

I was happy to see good flexibility in the headband as well as just the right amount of clamping force that in tandem with the super-lightweight of just 350 grams makes this headset wearable for hours on end without any discomfort. You might even say that it feels like a cloud on your head. It comes with pre-installed around-the-ear leatherette memory foam pads that feel good but they’ve also included a pair of velour pads as a comfy alternative.

I was also impressed by the sound isolation and insulation when using the leatherette ear cups which is partially attributed to the headphone’s closed-back design. The velour pads perform adequately in this arena as well but I definitely choose the leatherette pads when traveling in noisy crowded areas like a subway and that brings us to the main feature that separates the cloud 2 from its predecessor.

FEATURES:

Steelseries Arctis 5

On the side of the box, it says it works with Windows, Apple, PlayStation 4, and mobile. So, they give you this little wire where plugs right into the console, and then you plug it right into the wire of the headset.

A lot of people complain about our RGB on headsets. I personally think they’re cool because it’s not just on your ears but whatever it’s just back then it’s like a decor piece, it looks really cool.

There is a little volume adjuster, it says voice and then a game or chatting in-game and you have to just connect in the bottom when on that little white lights up. It’s really nice because you had a really big knob here and it has some rubber grip on the bottom. I really like about this because you can go from game to chat or actually lower the volume in your headset, I kind of use it just on a quick volume adjust.

In the software, you have your RGB settings and you can do you have these up here steady color shift, breathing, and so on. Over here you have live mic preview and when you’re adjusting your settings, it’s gonna let you hear in the headset what your settings sound like. So, it’s not necessarily mic monitoring, it’s just letting you all of your settings that you’re set. You can press this activate it and then in your headset, you’re gonna sound how you sound to your friends. You’ll be able to hear how your mic sounds.

You get all your mic volume and everything. Noise reduction which was just gonna lower some of the input right there, then your mic sidetone which is the mic monitoring where I can hear myself talking. As far as the software, you have maybe a little too many options but the options are there which is fantastic.

HyperX Cloud 2

A nice improvement over the original cloud is that the chord solution has been simplified into a single four-conductor jack to carry both the mic and audio signals as opposed to having them split into two separate connections. Not only does this mean less cable mess behind your computer but it creates a more viable solution for on-the-go use when a microphone isn’t needed. The braided cable exits out the left ear cup and measures one meter long which I found to be the perfect length from my head to my pocket when using the product with a smartphone.

The included 2 meter USB dongle with built-in sound card and audio control unit but the dongle plugged into your computer and your headphones plugged into the control unit. You get access to volume up and down buttons for your mic and headphone. Though I found these buttons far too stiff to press quickly without some directed focus. A minor annoyance when changing volume on-the-headset when gaming.

On the left side, you do get a microphone mute switch and a shirt clip on the back but the real star of the show here is definitely support for 7.1 channel audio.

MICROPHONE:

Steelseries Arctis 5

It just comes out of the headset right there and it actually bends and it stays. It’s the perfect length and then you can tuck it in there which I really like. It’s not really taking up the whole side of the headset. If you don’t use it, you can just put it in and it hides. If you want to mute, you have the button on the back.

The really cool thing I like is the way it lights up on the end of the mic whenever you mute the mic and activates it. So, it’s like you got that notification in front of your face that is such a cool feature.

The sound quality of the mic is also fantastic. This is just the best mic I ever heard. The voice is just clear and crisp and especially there are no pop sounds in between talking. So, it will be great for gaming and party chat and so on.

HyperX Cloud 2

The boom pole microphone is flexible for optimal mic placement. It features a foam windscreen on the end to eliminate air pops and of course, is detachable. So, you can use headphones in public.

To test the sound and noise isolation of the microphone, I wired the headset directly into the rear panel onboard audio of my motherboard and recorded in both silent and noisy environments. While the mic sounds a bit tinny, it’s decent enough for a gaming headset but it still did pick up a good chunk of noise from keyboard switches despite the mics cardioid pattern. In the microphone defense, however, it did do a nice job of leaving out the noise of the AC unit.

SOUND:

Steelseries Arctis 5

The two other things they added relate to the sound. They said they updated the bass in them, the bass in these is perfect. It’s not like that real muddy thumpy, it’s just a quality bass across the board and it sounds good. The other thing is the DTS, they said they updated two DTS 2.0 but honestly it sounds good. I do not like that fake surround sound that they put into these headsets but with an active on these, it truly sounds good. It’s not like 7.1 where the sound is coming from everywhere but to me, it feels like it bounces everything out.

This headset sounds fantastic. I’m not usually using the Arctis software but you get in that a little EQ mixer and everything and I mean you can just bounce it out to your sound if you want a little more bass or little less bass, you can really adjust how you want and they sound fantastic. They get loud, you get a little bit of vibration in your ear, it’s not much but it’s balanced, not muddy or anything. I really like the sound of this headset.

I test it out on a Playstation and it’s not good. Compared to I used so much of it on the PC and I was just like just ecstatic with the sound. But on consoles, it’s just complete letdown. So, I do not recommend these for a console maybe look at the Arctis 3. But for PC, I do give these sound a complete win, they sound fantastic.

In the Steelseries software the DTS settings, it doesn’t sound as bad as some of the other headsets with a fake surround sound. It sounds pretty nice, you have some presets for your surround, stereo which is your room size whatnot bass enhancement. I leave mine at high, it doesn’t really like mud out all the other sounds and just the bass is overpowering. It’s pretty nice and balanced. You have your equalizers, you can adjust which is really nice because you can really set it to whichever sound is nice for your ears which I think everybody’s just going to be a little bit different and you have some presets.

HyperX Cloud 2

The specifications on this headset haven’t changed much either. As you still get 53-millimeter drivers and 60 ohms of impedance for clean sounding audio even at max volume. The bass manages to bring tons of body without overwhelming the fearless mids and highs and I found a pleasurable listening experience with just about every genre of music except for country which I’ve now learned sounds bad through any pair of headphones.

One press of the center button on the sound card enables a virtual 7.1 surround sound which I found to be good for watching movies and playing certain games like FPS shooters and survival horror. You’ll definitely notice a much wider sound stage with 7.1 enabled which helps you pinpoint specific audio sources around you. Naturally, this helps you pick up on things like which direction someone’s running from the sound of their footsteps or where an enemy might be lurking based on the sound of their gunfire. While this virtualized element of depth makes for a much more immersive experience all around, it’s also the focal point when it comes to deciding whether or not to buy this headset.

WHICH TO BUY?

It made the hard decision that which one is better because both are really good wired gaming headset and both come around the same price. First of all, the Steelseries will not sound good on consoles. So, if you’re PC gamer and want headset also for any other works then Arctis 5 will be great to buy. The comfort and the design and everything are fine with the Arctis 5.

On the other hand, Hyperx Cloud 2 is good to buy but it is a little bit less comfortable comparatively and this also has stereo sound for consoles but it sounds good also on consoles. Then, it will be your choice which one is your preference.