Notice: Your browser is not supported or outdated so some features of the site might not be available.
Notice: We're proud to introduce Test Bench 2.0, which overhauls our audio measurements, with new tests and usages. There's even a brand new multi-target graphing tool! You can read all about this in our changelog, featuring commentary from our Test Designer, Pierre.
- Table of Contents
- Top
- Main Differences
- Design
- Sound
- Isolation
- Microphone
- Active Features
- Connectivity
- Comments
Corsair HS50 vs SteelSeries Arctis 1
Side-by-Side Comparison
Products
Corsair HS50
SteelSeries Arctis 1
Tested using Methodology v1.5
Updated Jan 17, 2024 04:05 PM
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comTested using Methodology v1.5
Updated Dec 23, 2022 06:03 PM
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
TypeOver-ear
EnclosureClosed-Back
WirelessNo
TransducerDynamic
Noise CancellingNo
MicYes
TypeOver-ear
EnclosureClosed-Back
WirelessNo
TransducerDynamic
Noise CancellingNo
MicYes
Variants
- HS50 (Black)
- Arctis 1 (Black)
- Arctis 1 (Destiny Edition)
Our Verdict
Corsair HS50
SteelSeries Arctis 1
The Corsair HS50 and the SteelSeries Arctis 1 are two decent gaming headphones that have different strengths. The Corsair have a more neutral sound profile, are noticeably better-built, and feel more durable. Some may also prefer their large cups and find the padding to be more comfortable. On the other hand, the microphone of the SteelSeries is noticeably better and sounds clearer. If you play single player games and don’t need a boom microphone, get the Corsair.
Check Price
Black
HS50
Searching
Finding storeBlack
Arctis 1
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeDestiny Edition
Arctis 1
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeMain Differences forNeutral Sound
Neutral Sound
Threshold
Neutral Sound
7.9
7.3
Mid Accuracy
8.8
7.1
Passive Soundstage
6.6
5.9
Bass Accuracy
8.0
8.4
Full Comparison
Design
Style
Design Picture 2
Type
Over-ear
Over-ear
Enclosure
Closed-Back
Closed-Back
Wireless
No
No
Transducer
Dynamic
Dynamic
Comfort
7.5
7.0
Comfort Picture
Weight
0.72 lbs
0.6 lbs
Clamping Force
1.4 lbs
0.8 lbs
Controls
5.6
5.7
Controls Picture
OS Compatibility
Not OS specific
Not OS specific
Ease Of Use
Good
Good
Feedback
Decent
Good
Call/Music Control
No
No
Volume Control
Yes
Yes
Microphone Control
Mute/Unmute
Mute/Unmute
Channel Mixing
No
No
Noise Cancelling Control
No
No
Talk-Through
No
No
Additional Controls
No
No
Breathability
6.1
6.5
Breathability After Picture
Avg.Temp.Difference
6.8 °C
5.7 °C
Portability
5.7
5.3
Portability Picture
L
7.0" (17.8 cm)
8.1" (20.6 cm)
W
5.8" (14.7 cm)
8.0" (20.3 cm)
H
3.6" (9.1 cm)
3.6" (9.1 cm)
Volume
146.00 in³ (2,392.50 cm³)
233.00 in³ (3,818.17 cm³)
Transmitter Required
No
No
Case
0.0
0.0
Case Picture
Type
No case
No case
L
N/A
N/A
W
N/A
N/A
H
N/A
N/A
Volume
N/A
N/A
Build Quality
8.0
6.0
Build Quality Picture
Stability
6.5
5.5
Stability Picture
Headshots 1
Angled Picture
Side Picture
Headshots 2
Front Picture
Rear Picture
Top
Top Picture
In The Box
In The Box Picture
Sound
Sound Profile
Frequency Response
Bass Amount
1.36 dB
1.09 dB
Treble Amount
-1.4 dB
-2.32 dB
Frequency Response Consistency
5.9
5.3
Consistency L
Consistency R
Avg. Std. Deviation
0.96 dB
1.44 dB
Raw Frequency Response
Bass Accuracy
8.0
8.4
Std. Err.
2.9 dB
2.25 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
10 Hz
10 Hz
Low-Bass
-0.18 dB
-3.4 dB
Mid-Bass
3.17 dB
-0.05 dB
High-Bass
4.01 dB
2.53 dB
Mid Accuracy
8.8
7.1
Std. Err.
1.6 dB
3.88 dB
Low-Mid
-1 dB
0.58 dB
Mid-Mid
-0.19 dB
-1.88 dB
High-Mid
-1.59 dB
-5.94 dB
Treble Accuracy
7.5
6.9
Std. Err.
3.74 dB
4.61 dB
Low-Treble
-2.67 dB
-5.11 dB
Mid-Treble
0.99 dB
-1.11 dB
High-Treble
-5.96 dB
-8.17 dB
Peaks/Dips
7.3
7.5
Peaks/Dips Graph
Peaks
1.92 dB
1.58 dB
Dips
1.03 dB
1.35 dB
Imaging
8.6
8.3
Phase Response Mismatch
Weighted Group Delay
0.25
0.33
Weighted Phase Mismatch
5.49
4.04
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
0.49
1.11
Weighted Frequency Mismatch
2.03
1.96
Passive Soundstage
6.6
5.9
PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)
2.9 dB
4.97 dB
PRTF Size (Avg.)
6.65 dB
6.71 dB
PRTF Distance
14.76 dB
16.71 dB
Openness
6.3
5.3
Acoustic Space Excitation
4.6
3.3
Virtual Soundstage
0.0
0.0
Virtual Soundstage
Head Modeling
No
No
Speaker Modeling
No
No
Room Ambience
No
No
Head Tracking
No
No
Virtual Surround
No App
No App
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
8.2
7.8
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
WHD @ 90
0.198
0.240
WHD @ 100
0.073
0.131
Test Settings
Firmware
No Firmware
No Firmware
Power
Passive
Passive
Connection
Wired
Wired
Codec
PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
PCM, 24-bit, 48kHz
EQ
No EQ
No EQ
ANC
No ANC
No ANC
Tip/Pad
Default
Default
Microphone
Boom
Boom
Isolation
Noise Isolation
3.1
4.6
Noise Isolation
Isolation Audio
Overall Attenuation
-10.86 dB
-13.71 dB
Noise Cancelling
No
No
Bass
-0.36 dB
-0.14 dB
Mid
-2.47 dB
-8.82 dB
Treble
-29.56 dB
-32.78 dB
Leakage
6.0
7.1
Leakage Audio
Overall Leakage @ 1ft
45.19 dB
38.89 dB
Microphone
Microphone Style
Integrated
No
No
In-Line
No
No
Boom
Yes
Yes
Detachable Boom
Yes
Yes
Mic
Yes
Yes
Recording Quality
7.1
8.6
Microphone Frequency Response
Recorded Speech
LFE
522.85 Hz
20 Hz
FR Std. Dev.
3.16 dB
2.88 dB
HFE
10,240 Hz
8,863.09 Hz
Weighted THD
0.318
0.15
Gain
31.66 dB
29.97 dB
Noise Handling
8.0
7.7
SpNR
30.99 dB
39.46 dB
Noise Gate
Always On
Always On
Speech + Pink Noise Handling
8.0
7.5
Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample
Speech + Subway Noise Handling
8.0
8.0
Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample
Active Features
Battery
0.0
0.0
Battery Type
No Battery
No Battery
Continuous Battery Life
N/A
N/A
Additional Charges
N/A
N/A
Total Battery Life
N/A
N/A
Charge Time
N/A
N/A
Power-Saving Feature
No
No
Audio While Charging
No
No
Passive Playback
Passive Headphone
Passive Headphone
Charging Port
None
None
App Support
0.0
0.0
App Picture
App Name
No App
No App
iOS
No
No
Android
No
No
macOS
No
No
Windows
No
No
Equalizer
No
No
ANC Control
No
No
Mic Control
No
No
Room Effects
No
No
Playback Control
No
No
Button Mapping
No
No
Surround Support
No
No
Connectivity
Bluetooth
0.0
0.0
Bluetooth Version
No Bluetooth
No Bluetooth
Multi-Device Pairing
No
No
NFC Pairing
No
No
Line Of Sight Range
N/A
N/A
PC Latency (SBC)
N/A
N/A
PC Latency (aptX)
N/A
N/A
PC Latency (aptX HD)
N/A
N/A
PC Latency (aptX-LL)
N/A
N/A
iOS Latency
N/A
N/A
Android Latency
N/A
N/A
Non-Bluetooth Wireless
0.0
0.0
Non-BT Line Of Sight Range
N/A
N/A
Non-BT Latency
N/A
N/A
Wired
9.0
9.0
Cable Picture
Analog Audio
Yes
Yes
USB Audio
No
No
Detachable
No
No
Length
6.00 ft (1.83 m)
4.20 ft (1.28 m)
Connection
1/8" TRRS
1/8" TRRS
Analog/USB Audio Latency
0 ms
0 ms
PC Compatibility
Analog
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
Wired USB
No
No
Non-BT Wireless
No
No
PlayStation Compatibility
PS4 Analog
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
PS4 Wired USB
No
No
PS4 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
PS5 Analog
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
PS5 Wired USB
No
No
PS5 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox Compatibility
Xbox One Analog
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
Xbox One Wired USB
No
No
Xbox One Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Analog
Audio + Microphone
Audio + Microphone
Xbox Series X|S Wired USB
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Base/Dock
0.0
0.0
Type
No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock
USB Input
No
No
Line In
No
No
Line Out
No
No
Optical Input
No
No
RCA Input
No
No
Dock Charging
No
No
Power Supply
No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock
Check Price
Black
HS50
Searching
Finding storeBlack
Arctis 1
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeDestiny Edition
Arctis 1
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding storeBlack
HS50
Searching
Finding store
Corsair HS50
SteelSeries Arctis 1
Comments
Corsair HS50 vs SteelSeries Arctis 1: Main Discussion
What do you think of these products? Let us know below.
Looking for a personalized buying advice from the RTINGS.com experts? Insiders have direct access to buying advice on our insider forum.