Daily News Podcast 2025-08-07

Catastrophe! Heroism! Paranoia! The dangerous romance of survivalist stories

The article explores the history and evolution of survivalism, contrasting it with the concept of being a survivor. It traces the roots of survivalism from figures like Kurt Saxon to modern-day preppers and Silicon Valley billionaires. The piece highlights how survivalism often involves a desire for civilization's collapse, fueled by paranoia and a craving for a simplified world. It differentiates survivors, who want to return to society, from survivalists, who actively seek estrangement. The article also examines the genre of post-apocalyptic fiction, noting how it has influenced and been influenced by survivalist ideology, and discusses the shift from survivalism to prepping.

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Topic: World

Title: Catastrophe! Heroism! Paranoia! The dangerous romance of survivalist stories

Source: The Guardian

Full_article: The man who claimed to have coined the word “survivalist” called himself Kurt Saxon. The sinister godfather of survivalism was actually born Donald Eugene Sisco, a former journalist who spent the 1960s floating between far-right groups in California before deciding that none of them were serious enough. Sisco’s passion for making his own bombs, which he advocated using on student demonstrators, cost him the fingers of his left hand. He liked to say that he was the reincarnation of a soul whose previous lives included a Roman legionary, a Nazi stormtrooper and the revolutionary philosopher Thomas Paine.

Survivalism, or prepping, is experiencing a boom, from Silicon Valley billionaires to users of the Reddit board r/collapse. Elon Musk’s entire career, for example, has been partly driven by apocalypse anxieties and his conviction that he alone can save the human race (details to be confirmed). The scenarios vary – climate catastrophe, renegade AI, another pandemic, nuclear war between authoritarian regimes – as do the responses. Some claim to be making rational preparations to survive in the event of civilisational collapse, while others seem unnervingly keen to see the world turned upside down. This can feel like a very 21st-century obsession, stoked by online conspiracy theories and the doomerism produced by 24/7 news, but Sisco was pioneering the doom business 50 years ago.

During the 1970s, rising crime and soaring inflation convinced Sisco that America was headed for an almighty crash and that he had better be ready for it. In 1976, he launched a magazine called the Survivor, which offered subscribers an unnerving combination of tips on self-sufficiency (how to make candles, blow glass, grow cucumbers) and ghoulish predictions of a cataclysmic event known as Collapse Day. “America’s irreversible collapse should be apparent to anyone by 1980,” Sisco wrote in the first issue. In an interview, Sisco summed up the survivalist’s blend of excitement and genocidal misanthropy: “I’m quite thrilled by the prospect of civilization ending. It is an adventure and a great culling that has to come.”

Survivalism is a way to accomplish the creative renarration of the self Richard G Mitchell Jr, sociologist

Yet despite Sisco’s claims, the word “survivalist” actually originated in fiction – specifically Giles Tippette’s 1975 novel The Survivalist. It is the story of Franklin Horn, a middle-aged man with similar, though less fascistic premonitions of doom to Sisco. Horn believes that the city he lives in is on the verge of collapse and tries to convince his wife and friends to join him in building a fortress in the Ozarks (where Sisco would move in 1980). “I’m not a humanist,” Horn says. “I’m a survivalist.” When they decline to sign up to his paranoia, he goes it alone and finds himself stalked by an antagonist who raids his supplies and tries to kill him. In fighting back, Horn realises that man cannot live alone in fear and shamefacedly rejoins the civilisation he rejected. Tippette repudiated in advance Sisco’s lurid fantasies of apocalyptic adventure.

Novelists have been imagining the challenges of survival for decades. If survivalism can be seen as a form of storytelling that consumes the storyteller, then fiction can help us understand the mentality and the dangerous places it can lead.

From Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe in 1719 to Ridley Scott’s movie The Martian almost 300 years later, audiences have been captivated by tales of resourceful individuals who find increasingly ingenious ways to survive a hostile environment until they can return to civilisation. They are adventure stories in which heroism consists of relentless problem-solving rather than conflict.

The difference between a survivor and a survivalist is that one is a temporary condition and the other a permanent identity. The survivalist actively wants to be estranged from civilisation – craves, in fact, the destruction of civilisation itself. After all, it would be a waste of effort if society refused to collapse. In the 1970s, some called themselves “retreaters”, having in effect resigned from society. Though framed as an ugly necessity (people would try to steal your stuff), violence was part of the appeal of this bare-knuckle libertarianism. The survivalist is not content with maintaining a vegetable patch and whittling a bow and arrow to hunt for food. He wants guns, and people to use them on.

The survivor and the survivalist go head-to-head in William Golding’s 1954 novel Lord of the Flies, about a group of schoolboys stranded on an island during a nuclear war. Their initial leader, Ralph, wants to preserve a skeleton of social norms and solidarity until help arrives. The fire he maintains is both a signal to rescuers and a symbol of civilised values: “The rules are the only thing we’ve got!” His challenger, Jack, however, turns himself into a tribal chieftain, exerting power through violence, barbarism and superstition. For him, catastrophe is liberation. Why would he ever want to go home again?

View image in fullscreen Peter Brook’s 1963 film adaptation of Lord of the Flies. Photograph: RGR Collection/Alamy

Subsequent catastrophe novels such as John Christopher’s The Death of Grass (1956) and Charles Eric Maine’s The Tide Went Out (1958) proposed that most people thought of themselves as noble Ralphs but would soon turn into brutal Jacks once the going got tough.

The fictional survivalist who first expressed the ominous politics of survivalism appeared in HG Wells’s 1890s phenomenon The War of the Worlds. Amid the chaos of a Martian invasion, the narrator meets an artilleryman with a plan: humanity will regroup and rebuild in underground sewers and tunnels in order to wage guerrilla war against the invaders. The artilleryman is drooling with anticipation because he is a eugenicist and – 20 years before the fact – a fascist. He contrasts “able-bodied, clean-minded men” with the “weak and silly” who deserve to die: “It’s a sort of disloyalty, after all, to live and taint the race.” Decades later, in a 1982 interview with the Sacramento Bee, Sisco argued that anyone with an IQ below 110 should be sterilised to save America from degeneracy.

Survivalism went mainstream during the first half of the 1980s. Newspapers profiled survival businesses and the isolated communities they served, finding characters much like the artilleryman. Their lurid fears included nuclear war, foreign invasion, environmental disasters, race war and food shortages due to overpopulation.

The sociologist Richard G Mitchell Jr spent more than a decade talking to survivalists for his 2002 book Dancing at Armageddon: Survivalism and Chaos in Modern Times. He found that most of them felt impotent and overwhelmed in their day-to-day lives and were empowered by imagining themselves the main characters in a greatly simplified world without rule of law – or WROL in survivalist parlance. “Survivalism,” Mitchell observed, “is a way to accomplish the creative renarration of the self and often one’s companions into tales of aesthetic consequence.” It gave their lives meaning.

It was in 1981 that Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior popularised the hitherto obscure word “post-apocalyptic”. “Mad” Max Rockatansky is not technically a survivalist, because he never expected or wanted society to collapse. A former police officer, he sides with the vulnerable neomedieval community rather than the feral biker gang. But the movie inspired a more aggressively rightwing genre that the writer Mike Davis called “armageddonist”.

View image in fullscreen Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981), directed by Mel Gibson. Photograph: Moviestore Collection/Rex Feat

That same year, Jerry Ahern began publishing The Survivalist, a series of pulp novels about John Rourke, a former CIA officer who battles Soviet invaders, mutants and cannibals in the aftermath of a nuclear war. Ahern published as many as four volumes a year (titles included The Doomsayer, The End Is Coming and The Savage Horde), which tells you something about their quality. More notable for the loving attention Ahern gives to various firearms (he later founded his own gun company) than for their characters or ideas, they sold millions of copies.

At the same time, survivalism merged with the far-right militia movement to produce hundreds of real-life John Rourkes. The far-right, anti-government militia group the Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord conducted an End Time Overcomer Survival Training School – and practised assassination skills on its 224-acre (91-hectare) armed compound in Arkansas – before one member killed a Black police officer and attracted the attention of the FBI.

A related white nationalist group, the Order, murdered the Jewish radio host Alan Berg and was also shut down by the FBI – a story told recently in Amazon Prime’s The Order. All of this overt Nazism and homicidal violence made survivalism a dirty word, leading Sisco to insist that real survivalists do not shoot police officers. “A survivalist is simply one who anticipates the collapse of civilisation and prepares to survive it,” he protested.

One peculiar product of this fraught period was The Survivors, a flop 1983 comedy starring Robin Williams as a paranoid dental supply executive who joins a survivalist camp in Vermont. A more serious one was David Brin’s 1985 novel The Postman. Brin’s hero, Gordon Krantz, dons a dead postman’s uniform and delivers his abandoned mail to bring a little hope and order to post-apocalyptic Oregon. His foes are a “loose, macho, hyper-survivalist” militia called the Holnists, whose antisocial savagery he blames for America’s desperate state: “It was the same solipsistic philosophy of ego that had stoked the rage of Nazism.” Brin was rebuking the violent, self-aggrandising survivalism that ran through post-Mad Max fiction and spilled over into real life via the Covenant and the Order. In The Postman, society is something priceless that should be mourned and rebuilt, not a sandcastle to knock down.

After the militia movement was associated with atrocities such as the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, survivalism’s reputation sank further. But in 1998, one user of an internet message board about the Y2K bug introduced the synonym “prepper”. It sounded more modern and more reasonable than “survivalist”, with an emphasis on the practical details of preparation rather than daydreams of post-apocalyptic gunplay. The National Geographic series Doomsday Preppers, which launched in 2012, became the channel’s most watched show to date.

View image in fullscreen The Doomsday Preppers discussion panel during the National Geographic portion of the 2012 Summer Television Critics Association tour in Los Angeles, California, on 3 August 2012. Photograph: Frederick M Brown/Getty Images

Despite the rebranding, preppers are still usually treated as sinister or absurd in 21st-century fiction. Closer in spirit to Tippette’s The Survivalist than Ahern’s The Survivalist, these stories puncture what Brin called “little-boy wish fantasies about running amok in a world without rules”.

Cormac McCarthy’s crushingly bleak 2006 masterpiece The Road is often praised on prepper websites but it presents survival as a gruelling slog rather than an adventure. “There were few nights lying in the dark that he did not envy the dead,” McCarthy writes of his unnamed protagonist. The most acclaimed episode of HBO’s The Last of Us meanwhile features a misanthropic survivalist (played by Nick Offerman) who admits: “I used to hate the world and I was happy when everyone died.” But his hard shell is cracked open when he falls in love with an unexpected visitor and is reminded that people matter after all.

View image in fullscreen Nick Offerman in The Last of Us (2023). Photograph: HBO

While Offerman’s character represents the old-fashioned hermit survivalist, other stories satirise the new billionaire preppers: people like Peter Thiel, who spend vast amounts of money on luxury bunkers, private islands or refuges in New Zealand. While traditional survivalism is a power fantasy for the powerless, this version is an escape route for elites who are partly responsible for the social and environmental instability that terrifies them. “Why do people who are envied for being so powerful appear to be so afraid?” asked the economist Robert A Johnson in the New Yorker. “What does that really tell us about our system?” They are retreaters.

The popular suspicion of the survival industry dates back to the fallout shelter craze of the early 1960s, when The Twilight Zone showed neighbour turning on neighbour in The Shelter; Stanley Kubrick’s Dr Strangelove ranted about creating a postwar master race in the mineshafts; and Bob Dylan mocked bunker dwellers in his song Let Me Die in My Footsteps. The shelter business all but collapsed within a year when most Americans decided that not only would they probably not survive a nuclear war but that they would not want to.

Subterranean shelters are ripe for parody once more. The recent satirical TV series Fallout, based on the hit video game, contrasts the suffocating conformism of the Vaults with the perilous freedom of the wasteland. In American Horror Story: Apocalypse, a billionaire socialite and her entourage shelter from a nuclear winter in the luxurious bunker Outpost 3 but the situation turns nightmarish as food supplies run out and paranoia flourishes.

In season three of the post-apocalyptic sitcom The Last Man on Earth another socialite hides out from a pandemic in her dead friend’s well-appointed bunker and slowly loses her mind. Whether it is the menace of desperate companions, a sinister regime or maddening solitude, an apparent refuge becomes a prison to be escaped.

The individual, the isolated self was dead. The social self was regnant A survivor of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake

We sympathise with Robinson Crusoe or Matt Damon’s character in The Martian because they have been forcibly estranged from the human race and are desperate to reconnect. But from the Ozarks compound to the New Zealand bunker, survivalists choose to sever themselves from humanity at large. No wonder we enjoy seeing them fail.

All stories of catastrophe and survival contain a verdict on human nature. Most texts about survivalism, from prepper handbooks to The Road, promote a Hobbesian view of humanity: civilisation is a thin skin stretched over an abyss of animal brutality. “Men have always had urges towards dominance which are basically stronger than urges towards cooperation,” John Christopher said when asked about the pessimism in The Death of Grass.

But is this true, or does survival fiction encourage us to believe the worst? While nobody knows what would happen if everything collapsed, Rebecca Solnit demonstrates in A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities that Arise in Disaster that in the aftermath of real catastrophes the looters and marauders are vastly outnumbered by people trying to help and save each other. Far from being a liberal delusion, mutual aid is a powerful human instinct. “Everybody was your friend and you in turn everybody’s friend,” recalled one survivor of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. “The individual, the isolated self was dead. The social self was regnant.”

Whether for political reasons or simply the need for narrative excitement, conventional survival fiction endorses the idea, as David Brin put it, “that humanity in general is dreadful and therefore only individual heroes matter”. But in novels such as Pat Frank’s Alas, Babylon (1959) or Emily St John Mandel’s Station Eleven (2014), post-apocalyptic survival is achieved instead by solidarity and collaboration. Problem-solving is a collective endeavour and selfishness spells doom. These stories are worth telling, too, and they may be closer to reality.

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Source: Bombardier

Bombardier to Launch Major U.S. Services Expansion Initiative Across Multiple States

Bombardier is launching a major expansion of its U.S. services and support network. This multi-phase initiative will focus on both regions where Bombardier currently operates and new locations. The expansion aims to meet growing customer demand for OEM-backed services. It will involve phased investments to add infrastructure and broaden the range of services offered. The expansion is expected to create new, highly skilled job opportunities in the targeted regions. The company plans to bolster its apprenticeship and talent programs with local communities to recruit and train Airframe and Powerplant Technicians, as well as other skilled workers.

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Topic: Business

Title: Bombardier to Launch Major U.S. Services Expansion Initiative Across Multiple States

Source: Bombardier

Full_article: Bombardier’s U.S. Services network is set to grow through a multi-phase, multi-site expansion initiative focusing on existing geographies where the company operates, in addition to new ones

The expansion initiative is expected to generate a need for highly skilled labour, with Bombardier anticipating new jobs created for each project

The planned phased investments will add the required infrastructure as well as aim to offer a wider range of services and resources to support the company’s growing customer base

Bombardier is proud to announce the launch of a major expansion initiative within its services and support network in the United States. This multi-phase, multi-site expansion initiative aims to meet the increasing demand for OEM-backed convenience and care from the company’s growing customer base. Expansion projects are expected to roll out over the coming years, and will be focused on both regions where Bombardier currently operates, as well as new ones. As part of this growth, the company anticipates a need to recruit highly skilled talent, creating new job opportunities in each of the targeted regions.

"Bombardier’s fleet in the United States is growing at a rapid pace, and so should our American network of services and support," said Paul Sislian, Executive Vice President, Bombardier Aftermarket Services and Strategy. "Today’s announcement demonstrates our full commitment to provide exceptional care and seamless convenience, so that our customers can fly with total confidence. While our team is already delivering on this promise — with our best-in-class services earning the #1 ranking in the AIN Product Support survey for a second consecutive year, as well as in the 2025 Professional Pilot Corporate Aircraft Product Support Survey— this expansion initiative demonstrates the depth of our commitment to offer the ultimate customer experience.”

With the entry into service of the Global 8000(1) aircraft later this year and the steady growth of Bombardier’s global fleet, the company is keen to bolster its U.S. capabilities in key hubs across the country to meet customers where they are. As part of this large-scale expansion investment, the company will prioritize talent recruitment and workforce development to ensure a steady flow of qualified professionals into its operations. Furthermore, to meet demand and ensure convenient care and service, Bombardier will focus on expanding its successful apprenticeship and talent programs with local communities to accelerate the recruitment and onboarding of Airframe and Powerplant Technicians, as well as other skilled workers.

Bombardier’s current Services business already has a robust footprint in the United States, anchored by service centres in key locations including Dallas, Tucson, Hartford and Wichita, as well as in Miami Opa Locka with a facility inaugurated in 2022. Customers benefit from a comprehensive support ecosystem that features a strategically located parts distribution centre in Chicago and Mobile Response Teams deployed across 20 locations nationwide — ensuring rapid, expert assistance wherever it is needed.

About Bombardier

At Bombardier (BBD-B.TO), we design, build, modify and maintain the world’s best-performing aircraft for the world’s most discerning people and businesses, governments and militaries. That means not simply exceeding standards, but understanding customers well enough to anticipate their unspoken needs.

For them, we are committed to pioneering the future of aviation — innovating to make flying more reliable, efficient and sustainable. And we are passionate about delivering unrivaled craftsmanship and care, giving our customers greater confidence and the elevated experience they deserve and expect. Because people who shape the world will always need the most productive and responsible ways to move through it.

Bombardier customers operate a fleet of more than 5,100 aircraft, supported by a vast network of Bombardier team members worldwide and 10 service facilities across six countries. Bombardier’s performance-leading jets are proudly manufactured in aerostructure, assembly and completion facilities in Canada, the United States and Mexico. In 2024, Bombardier was honoured with the prestigious “Red Dot: Best of the Best” award for Brands and Communication Design.

For Information

For corporate news and information, including Bombardier’s Sustainability report, as well as the company’s initiative to cover all its flight operations with a Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) blend utilizing the Book-and-Claim system, visit bombardier.com

Learn more about Bombardier’s industry-leading products and customer service network at bombardier.com. Follow us on X @Bombardier.

Media Contacts

General media contact webform

Christina Lemyre McCraw

+1-514-497-4928

christina.lemyremccraw@aero.bombardier.com

(1)The Global 8000 aircraft is currently under development and remains to be finalized and certified. All specifications and data are approximate, may change without notice and are subject to certain operating rules, assumptions and other conditions. It is expected to enter service in 2025. Please also see the forward-looking statements disclaimer at the end of this press release.

Bombardier and Global 8000 are registered or unregistered trademarks of Bombardier Inc. or its subsidiaries.

Forward-looking statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements require the Corporation to make assumptions and are subject to important known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results in future periods to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Please refer to the “Forward-Looking Statements” disclaimer contained in Bombardier Inc.’s most recently published financial report for additional details.

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Source: SoundGuys

Best noise canceling gaming headsets

The article discusses the importance of noise-canceling gaming headsets for blocking distractions and protecting hearing during long gaming sessions. It notes the relative rarity of ANC technology in gaming headsets compared to consumer headphones, but highlights recent entries from manufacturers like Turtle Beach, Razer, and SteelSeries. The article provides recommendations for the best overall, competitive play, multi-platform gaming, marathon gaming sessions, and budget options, with detailed reviews of each headset, focusing on ANC performance, audio quality, microphone clarity, and platform compatibility. It also includes a section on what to know about noise-canceling headsets and how they are tested.

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Topic: Technology

Title: Best noise canceling gaming headsets

Source: SoundGuys

Full_article: Gaming sessions can stretch for hours, but outside noise shouldn’t force you to crank your volume to dangerous levels. Noise canceling gaming headsets offer the perfect solution, blocking distracting environmental sounds while delivering immersive game audio and crystal-clear voice chat. Whether you’re battling the drone of traffic, noisy roommates, or household appliances, active noise canceling (ANC) technology can transform your gaming experience and protect your hearing in the process.

We’ve tested hundreds of gaming headsets over the years.

The gaming headset market has been surprisingly slow to embrace ANC technology. While consumer headphones from the likes of Sony and Apple dominate the consumer noise canceling space, dedicated gaming headsets with ANC remain relatively rare. However, the landscape is changing, with manufacturers like Turtle Beach, Razer, and SteelSeries finally bringing noise canceling capabilities to gaming-focused designs.

Our team has tested hundreds of gaming headsets, evaluating everything from ANC performance and gaming audio quality to microphone clarity and platform compatibility. We’ve rigorously tested these headsets to find the models that truly excel at blocking unwanted noise and delivering the low-latency, high-quality audio that serious gamers demand.

How has this article been updated? This article was last updated on August 7, 2025, to include the latest ANC gaming headset releases and ensure our recommendations reflect current market availability and pricing.

The Quick Answer For a quick guide to the best noise canceling gaming headsets that suit your needs and budget, check out our top picks below. Each has a link to our full review. The best overall:

The best for competitive play:

The best for multi-platform gaming:

The best for marathon gaming sessions:

The best budget noise canceling gaming headset:

Best noise canceling gaming headsets overall: Alienware Pro

Dell Alienware Pro Wireless Headset Dell Alienware Pro Wireless Headset Excellent isolation • Excellent battery life • Great sound quality MSRP: $229.99 To boldly game where no man has gamed before. The Alienware Pro wireless headset excels in both gaming and everyday use. More than just gamers, music enthusiasts and professionals will enjoy the sound quality, comfort, and versatility. Those willing to invest will find a feature-rich, all-in-one audio solution. See price at Amazon Alienware Pro Wireless Headset

The Alienware Pro Wireless earns our top spot by delivering excellent active noise canceling alongside exceptional gaming performance and versatility. With an impressive 81% reduction in perceived loudness when ANC is enabled and up to 25dB of low-frequency attenuation, this headset effectively transforms noisy environments into manageable background hum. The combination of strong passive isolation from its excellent seal and effective ANC makes it ideal for gamers dealing with household noise, roommates, or street traffic.

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You can switch between 2.4GHz wireless for gaming (PC, PS5, Nintendo Switch), Bluetooth 5.3 for mobile devices, but not both at the same time. The headset also supports USB Audio for lossless listening. The battery performance is exceptional, delivering up to 71 hours with ANC off or around 35 hours with ANC on. The 50mm graphene-coated drivers provide clean, detailed sound with good bass depth and precise localization for competitive gaming, while the detachable boom microphone offers clear voice communication with good noise rejection.

The headset’s understated design makes it suitable for gaming sessions and professional video calls, though the inability to fold or rotate the earcups limits portability. Xbox users should look elsewhere, as the headset lacks Xbox compatibility. However, if you need a single headset that excels at gaming, music listening, and work calls while effectively blocking distracting noise, the Alienware Pro Wireless is hard to beat.

Read our full Alienware Pro Wireless review

Best for competitive play: Razer BlackShark V3 Pro

Razer BlackShark V3 Pro Razer BlackShark V3 Pro MSRP: $249.99 Premium gaming headset with 10ms wireless latency, ANC, and excellent positional audio See price at Amazon razer BlackShark V3 Pro

The Razer BlackShark V3 Pro is our choice for competitive gamers who demand every millisecond advantage. It’s HyperSpeed Wireless Gen-2 technology delivers an industry-leading 10ms latency, significantly faster than most gaming headsets that hover between 15-30ms. The headset achieves 77% total noise attenuation with its hybrid ANC system, effectively blocking low-frequency distractions like AC units and footsteps from upstairs neighbors between 50-300Hz. This lets you focus entirely on crucial audio cues like enemy footsteps and reload sounds in competitive FPS games.

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You can also use 2.4GHz and Bluetooth simultaneously, allowing you to game with ultra-low latency while handling Discord chat or music streaming through Bluetooth. The headset works across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox, with console-specific models featuring unique stitching colors and optimized spatial audio (THX Spatial Audio 7.1.4 on PC, Windows Sonic on Xbox, 3D Tempest on PlayStation). The upgraded 12mm microphone with 48kHz sampling rate captures exceptionally natural voice quality, though it struggles somewhat with background noise rejection.

The default tuning suffers from treble distortion that can be fatiguing and requires custom EQ adjustments to fix. The yoke design, while durable, can also create fit issues that can compromise the ANC seal, and the fabric earpads trap heat during long sessions. If you prioritize competitive performance and don’t mind tweaking settings, the BlackShark V3 Pro excels, but those wanting plug-and-play versatility should consider the Alienware Pro Wireless instead.

Read our full Razer BlackShark V3 Pro review

Best for multi-platform gaming: SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless

The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless excels as a multi-platform solution, thanks to its wireless base station that can simultaneously connect to two devices via dual USB-C ports. This means you can seamlessly switch between your PC and PS5, or keep your console and mobile device connected at once, without any cable swapping or re-pairing. The base station’s OLED display and control wheel let you adjust settings on-the-fly, including a 10-band EQ, game/chat balance, and ANC levels, making it incredibly convenient for managing multiple gaming setups.

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The headset delivers solid active noise canceling that makes AC units and traffic sound about half as loud, while the passive isolation handles room-level conversations and incidental noise. Overall, it has an average attenuation of 74%. The retractable microphone disappears completely when not needed, making it look professional for work calls and daily use beyond gaming. With 22+ hours of battery life per charge and hot-swappable batteries via the base station’s charging bay, you can game indefinitely without interruption. Sound quality is well-balanced for gaming and music, with slight bass emphasis that enhances game effects while remaining enjoyable for casual listening. The premium build quality, comfortable fit, and comprehensive connectivity options make this headset feel like a true all-in-one solution. However, the $349 price point is steep, and you’ll need to choose between PlayStation or Xbox variants when purchasing. If budget is a concern, consider the next pick, the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro, but for seamless multi-platform functionality and premium features, the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless is unmatched. Read our full SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless review

Best for marathon gaming sessions: Turtle Beach Stealth Pro

Turtle Beach Stealth Pro Turtle Beach Stealth Pro Swappable batteries • Compatibility • Microphone MSRP: $329.00 If you're on the hunt for a gaming headset that does a little bit of everything, the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro is definitely worth some attention. It's not perfect, but it's still very compelling. See price at Amazon

The Turtle Beach Stealth Pro solves one of gaming’s most frustrating problems: having to stop mid-session to charge your headset. Its hot-swappable battery system includes two batteries and a USB base station that doubles as a charging cradle. This battery management makes it perfect for extended gaming marathons, competitive tournaments, or all-night sessions where interruptions aren’t acceptable. Beyond its innovative power solution, the Stealth Pro delivers exceptional active noise canceling that rivals dedicated consumer headphones. With 20-25dB of attenuation between 40Hz and 600Hz, it effectively blocks household distractions like air conditioning, street noise, and conversations from other rooms. The thick leatherette memory foam earpads and adjustable hinges provide excellent comfort even during 5+ hour sessions. At the same time, the strong passive isolation adds another layer of noise reduction for total focus on your game.

You rarely see ANC performance like this in a gaming headset.

The headset’s broad platform compatibility makes it incredibly versatile, working seamlessly with PC, Xbox, PlayStation 5, and mobile devices via Bluetooth. However, the Bluetooth implementation only supports basic SBC codec (no AAC), and the overall sound signature leans toward gaming rather than audiophile listening, requiring some EQ tweaking for music. The headset is also notably heavy due to the battery system, which some users may find fatiguing over very long periods. If you prioritize pure audio quality or lightweight comfort, consider the Alienware Pro Wireless, but for uninterrupted gaming endurance, nothing beats the Stealth Pro’s swappable battery advantage. Read our full Turtle Beach Stealth Pro review

Best budget noise canceling gaming headset: EPOS H3PRO Hybrid

EPOS H3PRO Hybrid EPOS H3PRO Hybrid Connects to everything • ANC in a gaming headset • Great mic MSRP: $279.00 The EPOS H3PRO Hybrid checks off just about every box you could want in a gaming headset. The EPOS H3PRO Hybrid is one of the best gaming headsets on the market. Everything from sound quality to ANC to connectivity are top shelf. See price at Amazon

The EPOS H3PRO Hybrid delivers premium features at a fraction of the cost of competing ANC gaming headsets. Originally priced at $279, it now retails for just $115 and frequently goes on sale for around $50, making it an incredible value proposition. The headset offers solid active noise canceling with nearly 20dB of reduction around 150Hz, effectively quieting low-frequency distractions like air conditioning and traffic by up to 75%. Combined with excellent passive isolation, it creates a focused gaming environment without the premium price tag.

ANC in a gaming headset is pretty uncommon, but it’s definitely welcome.

You can connect via 2.4GHz wireless dongle, Bluetooth 5.2, USB-C wired, or 3.5mm analog. This means compatibility with virtually every gaming platform and mobile device. The simultaneous connection feature lets you stay connected to Discord on your phone while gaming wirelessly on a console. The detachable magnetic microphone includes a cover plate for public use, and the three-material ear pad design (leatherette, suede, and mesh) provides surprising comfort for extended sessions. The sound signature closely follows our target curve with only minor bass emphasis, making it excellent for both gaming and music. With ANC enabled, battery life reaches 19+ hours, and the EPOS Gaming Suite software provides 9-band EQ customization and microphone tuning. However, the wireless range is limited to about 4-6 meters, and the battery is always in use even when wired. The microphone quality is decent but not exceptional compared to premium options. Still, you’d be hard-pressed to find better ANC performance and feature set in a gaming headset at this price point. Read our full EPOS H3PRO Hybrid review

What you should know about noise canceling gaming headsets

The Arctis Nova 5X is cool and comfortable to wear for long gaming sessions.

Active noise canceling in gaming headsets is still relatively rare, but it’s becoming increasingly important as gamers recognize the benefits of blocking distracting environmental sounds. Understanding the key factors will help you choose the right ANC gaming headset for your needs. Active noise canceling performance Active noise canceling works by using microphones to detect ambient noise and generating “anti-noise” waves to cancel it out. Gaming headsets typically achieve 15-30dB of noise reduction in low frequencies, which can make background sounds like air conditioning, traffic, or household noise sound roughly one-quarter to one-eighth as loud. Look for headsets that specify their ANC performance in decibels (dB) rather than vague marketing terms. The best ANC gaming headsets we’ve tested achieve 20-25dB of attenuation between 40Hz and 600Hz, effectively blocking the most common household distractions. Console compatibility and connectivity Not all ANC gaming headsets work with every gaming platform. Some manufacturers create separate models for different consoles, while others offer universal compatibility. Most ANC gaming headsets connect via 2.4GHz wireless dongles for low-latency gaming, but Xbox compatibility can be limited since Microsoft uses proprietary Xbox Wireless technology. Always check that your chosen headset explicitly supports your gaming platform. Many modern ANC gaming headsets also offer Bluetooth connectivity for mobile gaming and simultaneous device connections, allowing you to game on a console while staying connected to Discord on your phone. Battery life considerations ANC gaming headsets consume more power than standard wireless gaming headsets due to the active noise canceling circuitry. Expect battery life to drop by roughly half when ANC is enabled—a headset that lasts 70 hours with ANC off might only last 35 hours with ANC on. Look for headsets with hot-swappable batteries or quick charging features if you plan long gaming sessions. Some headsets cleverly include dual battery systems with charging bases, ensuring you never have to stop gaming to charge. Sound quality and tuning Gaming headsets with ANC often have different sound signatures compared to their non-ANC counterparts. The ANC circuitry can affect frequency response, sometimes adding bass emphasis or altering the midrange. Many ANC gaming headsets include multiple EQ presets or custom equalizers to compensate for these changes. For competitive gaming, look for headsets that maintain clear midrange frequencies for voice chat and upper-midrange clarity for positional audio cues like footsteps.

How we test noise canceling gaming headsets

We could test every aspect of the Pulse Elite headset in our lab, except for battery life.

Our testing process evaluates ANC gaming headsets using calibrated measurement equipment and our artificial head in controlled acoustic environments. We measure isolation and active noise canceling by playing shaped noise over loudspeakers, recording with and without the headset, then subtracting the measurements to show precise noise reduction across frequencies. Our isolation and ANC scores represent percentage reductions in perceived loudness—a score of 5/10 equals a 50% reduction (10dB), while 8.75/10 represents an 87.5% reduction (30dB). Gaming headsets with effective ANC typically achieve 20-30dB of low-frequency attenuation. We also test gaming-specific features, including wireless latency, microphone quality, platform compatibility, battery life at 75dB with ANC on/off, comfort during extended sessions, and software functionality. Frequency response measurements are compared against our research-backed target curve for objective sound quality assessment.

How we choose the best noise canceling gaming headsets Our