Muse S Athena EEG Headband

Overview

The Muse S Athena is a soft fabric headband with a small sensor pod at the front. It records the brain’s electrical activity with EEG, using dry silver-fabric electrodes on the forehead and behind the ears, and uses fNIRS — near-infrared light — to measure changes in blood oxygenation over the front of the brain. A heart-rate (PPG) sensor, an accelerometer and a gyroscope are built in, and the data is sent over Bluetooth to the Muse app on a phone or tablet.

During guided sessions the app plays sounds that change as the measured brain activity changes, and shows heart rate, breathing and stillness. Worn overnight, the headband records EEG-based sleep stages and sleeping position, and the results are shown in the app afterwards. It comes in two colours, Carbon and Opal.

Key features

• 4-channel EEG with dry silver-fabric electrodes at the forehead (AF7, AF8) and behind the ears (TP9, TP10)
• fNIRS sensor with 5 optodes measuring blood-oxygen changes over both sides of the forehead
• Triple-wavelength PPG sensor for heart rate and SpO₂ readings, plus an accelerometer and gyroscope for breathing, posture and movement
• Overnight recording of EEG-based sleep stages and sleeping position; Sleep Assist and Deep Sleep Boost audio features included without a subscription
• Soft fabric band of about 41 g, adjustable for head sizes of 43–63 cm
• USB-C charging, about 3 hours to charge and up to about 10 hours of use per charge

Specifications

What’s in the box

• Muse S Athena headband with sensor pod
• USB-C charging cable
• Quick start instructions (full setup guide in the Muse app)

Good for

• Guided meditation and breathing sessions with real-time sound feedback
• Overnight wear to record sleep stages and sleeping position
• Following brain, heart-rate and breathing data over time in the Muse app
• Short daytime sessions at home or at a desk

Things to consider

• Needs a compatible phone or tablet with the Muse app (iOS 16.1+ or Android 8+); Huawei devices are not supported.
• The headband works in the Muse app without a subscription (sessions, sleep tracking, Sleep Assist, Deep Sleep Boost, basic meditations). Features such as Smart Wakeup, Dream Recall, the Enso AI Coach, Alpha Peak, Brain Recharge Score, External Audio and the full library of 500+ guided meditations need a Muse Premium subscription.
• The sensors need contact with the skin on the forehead and behind the ears; Muse notes that glasses with metal frames may interfere with the signal.
• Muse states that it is not a medical device and is not intended to diagnose or treat any condition; it notes that clinical EEG systems use far more channels (typically 32–128), while this is a 4-channel consumer headband.

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