We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-10-01 · 8 min read · Independent comparison
If you want a light, cheap-feeling-free headset that doubles as a music companion and tunes itself per game, choose SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P; if you need serious spatial audio, active noise cancelling and the ability to hear your squad while staying wired to the game, choose JBL Quantum 910X.
• SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P — biggest strength: 260 g on the head, 40 hours per charge, 15 minutes of fast charge for up to 9 hours of play, and a mobile app with 200+ per-game presets.
• SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P — biggest trade-off: It leans on software presets and a mid-tier driver setup rather than positional 3D audio, and there is no head tracking or ANC tuned for gaming.
• JBL Quantum 910X — biggest strength: Hi-Res certified 50 mm neodymium drivers, JBL QuantumSPATIAL 360 with head tracking, ANC tuned for gaming and a game/chat balance dial.
• JBL Quantum 910X — biggest trade-off: At 420 g it is a heavy headset, and it takes 3.5 hours to fully charge.
• Who the Arctis Nova 3P is for: Long-session players who want low weight, cross-platform USB-C simplicity and preset-driven footstep tuning.
• Who the Quantum 910X is for: Competitive players who want spatial positioning, noise cancelling and simultaneous game-plus-phone audio.
The Arctis Nova 3P is built around one idea: get out of your own way. It weighs 260 g, which is genuinely light for a wireless headset, and the stretchy headband plus multiple adjustment points means the pressure is spread rather than focused on one spot. If you have ever pulled a headset off after three hours because your ears were throbbing, this is the design detail that matters most. The dual-hinge build is there to survive being tossed in a bag or dropped on a desk.
Where it gets interesting is the software layer. The Arctis Companion mobile app gives you 200+ game presets, and the pitch is simple: pick your game, and the EQ shifts to sharpen the sounds that actually matter — footsteps, reloads, heals. In my opinion that is a smarter use of a mobile app than most headsets manage, because it solves a real problem (you cannot hear the guy sneaking up behind you) instead of just offering a graphic equalizer you will never touch. There is also a neat switching behaviour: the 2.4 GHz connection is for game audio, and flipping to Bluetooth brings up your music preset instead.
Battery life is the other headline. Up to 40 hours on a charge, and 15 minutes of fast charging gets you up to 9 hours of playback. That is the kind of number that changes how you use a headset — you stop planning around the charger.
The custom neodymium drivers deliver clear highs, pinpoint mids and deep bass, and with 36 ohm impedance and a 22,000 Hz frequency response it is a fairly easy load to drive. Connectivity is USB-C dongle for PC, PlayStation, Switch, handhelds, phones and tablets, with Bluetooth 5.3 for everything else, plus on-ear controls for mute, pairing, power and volume. It also offers active noise cancellation, which is a nice bonus at this tier.
Who should buy it: players who bounce between PS5, PC, Switch and a handheld, want a light headset, and want their audio tuned per game without fiddling. Who should skip it: anyone who specifically wants 3D spatial audio with head tracking, or a dedicated game/chat balance dial. The Nova 3P gives you presets and platform agility — not positional audio engineering.
The Quantum 910X goes the other direction entirely. It is a performance headset, and the spec sheet reads like it. The 50 mm Hi-Res certified neodymium drivers are the largest piece of hardware in this comparison, tuned for an immersive curve rather than a neutral one. Big drivers plus a gaming-tuned curve usually means explosions hit hard and small details stay audible — which is exactly the promise here.
The real differentiator is JBL QuantumSPATIAL 360 with integrated head tracking. On Xbox, PlayStation and Switch it runs through the USB-A dongle without needing the QuantumENGINE software, and on Windows 10/11 you get QuantumSPHERE 360 through QuantumENGINE for PC-level 3D positioning. Head tracking is the part people underestimate: as you turn your head, the audio field stays anchored to the game world instead of rotating with you. In my opinion that is the single most "competitive advantage"-shaped feature on either headset, because it makes directional cues feel physical rather than simulated.
Then there is ANC tuned specifically for gaming environments. That is a meaningful distinction from general-purpose noise cancelling, which often over-corrects and leaves you with a pressurized feeling. Here the goal is simply to remove the room — a fan, a housemate, traffic — so you stay locked in.
Battery is up to 37 hours over the 2.4 GHz dongle, or up to 42 hours over Bluetooth, and it charges while you play via the included USB cable. Full charge time is 3.5 hours. JBL Dual Source lets game audio come through the dongle while Bluetooth 5.2 handles a phone call or music at the same time — genuinely useful if you take calls mid-session. The game audio-chat dial, backed by separate sound cards, lets you rebalance game versus chat on the fly without pausing.
The trade-off is weight. At 420 g it is substantially heavier than the Nova 3P, and that is the number I would think hardest about before buying. You also get a fuller accessory kit: a calibration microphone, a 3.5 mm audio cable, a USB-A to USB-C converter and a windshield foam for the mic.
Who should buy it: competitive players on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch or PC who want spatial audio, head tracking, ANC and simultaneous game-plus-phone audio. Who should skip it: anyone who prioritises a featherweight fit for marathon sessions, or who wants the simplest possible setup.
• Best for long sessions and light weight → SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P. 260 g versus 420 g is a real difference over a four-hour session.
• Best for spatial awareness → JBL Quantum 910X. QuantumSPATIAL 360 with head tracking is the more advanced positional audio system here.
• Best for noise cancelling → JBL Quantum 910X. Its ANC is tuned specifically for gaming environments; the Nova 3P's is a broader implementation.
• Best for charging convenience → SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P. 15 minutes for up to 9 hours of play is the faster top-up of the two.
• Best for total battery headroom → JBL Quantum 910X. Up to 42 hours over Bluetooth edges out the Nova 3P's 40 hours, and you can play and charge at once.
• Best for per-game audio tuning → SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P. 200+ presets in the Arctis Companion app is a deeper library than anything the JBL side offers.
• Best for mixed game-and-phone use → JBL Quantum 910X. JBL Dual Source handles game audio and Bluetooth audio simultaneously; the Nova 3P switches between them.
• Best for platform hopping → SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P. One USB-C dongle covers PC, PlayStation, Switch, handhelds, phones and tablets.
If I were buying for myself, I would take the JBL Quantum 910X. The 50 mm Hi-Res drivers, QuantumSPATIAL 360 with head tracking and gaming-tuned ANC are the features that actually change how a competitive match feels, and the game/chat dial plus Dual Source make it a better all-day companion for someone who is on comms constantly.
That said, I would only recommend it if you can live with 420 g. If weight and marathon comfort matter more to you than spatial audio, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 3P is the headset I would point you to instead — lighter, quicker to charge, and smarter about per-game tuning.
Either way, check the current price on Amazon before you commit, since the value calculation shifts depending on what each is going for when you buy.
FAQ
how much gaming headphones
is gaming better with headphones
For most competitive games, yes — a headset gives you directional cues and voice chat in one device, which speakers cannot do. Both options here are built for that: the Quantum 910X adds head-tracked spatial audio, while the Nova 3P leans on per-game presets to sharpen footsteps and reloads. If you play anything where hearing the enemy first matters, a headset is the better tool.
are gaming headphones good for calls
They can be, and both of these handle it. The Quantum 910X is the stronger call companion because JBL Dual Source lets Bluetooth audio run alongside your game audio, so you can take a call without leaving the match. The Arctis Nova 3P supports Bluetooth 5.3 and switches between 2.4 GHz and Bluetooth, which works well if you are fine toggling rather than running both at once.
how to game with bluetooth headphones
You connect the headset over Bluetooth, but for gaming the 2.4 GHz dongle is the better route on both of these because it keeps latency low. The Arctis Nova 3P uses its USB-C dongle for game audio and Bluetooth for music, while the Quantum 910X runs the game over its USB-A dongle and Bluetooth 5.2 for chat or music. Use Bluetooth for everything except the game itself.
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