SteelSeries Siberia Elite Review

In order to keep up with the constant growth of the gaming market and remain competitive companies like SteelSeries have to frequently update and upgrade their product line-ups. The Siberia series has become pretty much the flagship for what SteelSeries can do when it comes to audio products, because of that a lot of expectations surrounded the third entry in this series, the Elite.
The first thing that people will notice when comparing the Elite to its predecessor is the steep increase in the price tag, $200 dollars is definitely not cheap, especially when comparing it to the original V2 that at the time of this review costs around $80-$100. While some people may consider this increase in price a negative thing, others will certainly look at it as a statement by SteelSeries that the Siberia Elite series is exactly that, elite.

The SteelSeries Siberia Elite comes neatly packed inside a sturdy and nicely designed box that lists some of the main features of the headset along with some pictures that do a good job when it comes to showing off the over-the-top design of the Elite headset.
Inside the sturdy box you will find bundled together with the headset a few other accessories that will allow you to use the Elite pretty much with any device that you can think off:

• USB Sound Card
• PC Adapter (2 x 3.5mm)
• Mobile Adapter (1 x 3.5mm)
• Extension Cable
• Manual/Quick Start Guide

When buying a product from SteelSeries most of these accessories are usually included so no big surprise there. What really stands out from the crowd is the USB Sound Card, this is an essential piece if you want to hear and see all that the Elite has to offer, particularly the shiny lights and 7.1 surround sound. While it's not mandatory to use the USB Sound Card I would recommend it unless you're already using a high-quality dedicated sound card.

Visually the new Siberia headset looks amazing, it's a lot flashier than most other gaming gear from SteelSeries. Especially when you compare the Siberia series to the H series you can clearly see how very different the visual design of these two series really are.
Of course this is a matter of taste and opinion but I personally prefer the look of the H series, still the Elite headset looks fancy enough with its extremely large ear cushions and elegant looking headband. This headband integrates the Siberia traditional suspension system that automatically adjusts to any head, it also better distributes the weight of the headset making it a lot more comfortable during long gaming sessions. The only downside in terms of comfort that I found was during the first few days of use, the headband is extremely tough and because of that will put excessive pressure on your ears, thankfully it won't take long for it to start adjusting to your head size and shape.
SteelSeries didn't focus exclusively on making the Elite look good though, this is probably the most sturdy and durable headset that I've ever tested. The aluminum headband will take a beating and keep on going while the large leather ear cushions will last you for a long time before they will start to deteriorate. If you're buying the white version get ready to give them a wash every once in a while though, apparently sweat and white leather don't go well together (big surprise there!).

When it comes to audio quality it really depends on your skill and patience to mess around with the equalizer included in the SteelSeries Engine 3 software. At default the headset sounds great and the pre-configured profiles that you can assign to your different games and applications will really help the headset sound even better. But like I said, if you have the skill to mess around with the software you can really adjust the headset to your own preferences, making the Elite one of the most versatile audio products out there.
Finally the retractable microphone, I feel that it sounds above average when compared to other headsets but you can determine that for yourself, just listen to my test recording below (Microphone Compression and Noise Reduction are On):


Final Thoughts
SteelSeries is trying to appeal to a larger audience than just hardcore gamers with the Siberia Elite and they certainly seem to be going in the right direction. For once the sound quality is very close to audiophile levels, making the headset very good not just for gaming but for pretty much anything that you can think off.
While the price will certainly be a drawback for some people I personally think that the Siberia Elite is worth the money, it doesn't just sound good, it also feels great on your head and ears. You can also expect the Elite to last you for a very long time since its build quality is top-notch.

The Good
+Sound Quality
+Supports 7.1 Surround Sound
+Construction
+Visual Design
+Great Software
+Versatile
+Microphone


The Bad
-Price
-White version gets dirty quickly
-First days are tough on your ears
-A bit heavy

Thanks to SteelSeries for providing the review sample