SteelSeries’ latest form of high-end wireless gaming headphones – Arctis Nova Pro Wireless – has been a great success: this new version revises one of our favorite gaming headphones with a sleeker and more adjustable design while adding active noise – cancellation, longer battery life and improved sound. And even more impressive, it offers many ways to customize your game and chat audio for each game.
On paper, SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless has it all – but it requires a high price of $ 350. Personally, I think it’s worth every dollar. It provides fantastic surround sound for games and high-quality music sound, and its multi-platform connectivity and simultaneous device support means it may be the only audio device you need for all your gaming platforms and daily listening.
Wireless images of SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless – design and features
This handset and its corded brother, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro, feature a new design that is quite different from Arctis’ existing lineup, which hasn’t really changed since it debuted in 2017.
The first change you’ll notice is that where the older Arctis line included a rigid metal headband with an elastic stretch strap to adjust the fit, the headband now also has telescopic arms so it can hold more -big heads. The older ones were great, unless you, like me, have a bigger head, in which case the tension bar would press even when set to its largest size. I don’t have to worry about that with the new design – I can even extend my arms completely to make the headphones a few sizes bigger than my head, which I think makes it even more comfortable.
The elastic headband is also slightly different in that it connects to the metal headband with plastic clips, similar to those found on an adjustable baseball cap. You can adjust the elastic band to fit tighter or looser to your head in three steps of one centimeter – although that means you can’t adjust it as precisely as the old velcro design. But on the plus side, since the elastic band of the new model is under the metal headband, it will also not dust as quickly.
The headphones are also noticeably smaller and thinner than the large, elongated headphones on older Arctis headphones. The step profile of the new design looks more stylish in my opinion – less like gaming headphones resembling earphones, and more like a sophisticated pair of wireless headphones than like JBL or Audio-Technica.
In addition to the updated style, SteelSeries has improved several of the on-board controls. Nova Pro Wireless has large pill-shaped buttons that are well placed around the stepped design of the headphones, a nice improvement over the small power buttons and Bluetooth with mini size M&M, which I have to touch with the old design.
Fortunately, the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless still has magnetic headphone covers to hide the removable battery on the right side – as well as a charging port that has been moved to the left side. A slight oddity is that the removable round caps use only two magnets to attach to the earphones, so it takes a little more trial and error to reattach them. Another thing that is literally shredding for these round covers is that they have an annular micro engraved finish that is rough enough to sharpen your nails if you touch them the wrong way.
One of the distinguishing features of the old Arctis Pro Wireless was its removable battery system, which allows you to charge one battery while the other is in use, so the handset doesn’t die on you when you need it most. Nova Pro Wireless improves this system by making the batteries hot-swappable; The headset contains large enough capacitors to keep it on for a short time, long enough to dispose of the second battery. Not charging is enough to power the drivers and keep your audio playing without interruption, but it’s a good idea not to have to plug in the headphones again after a quick battery change.
The inside of the earphones has gone from air-woven cushions to more sound-proof faux leather. Although the new fabric is not as breathable, I have never found my ears sweaty, even after wearing them all day. The tightening force of Arctis Nova Pro Wireless has also been slightly increased to make a better insulating seal, but it just feels tight instead of uncomfortable. I can easily wear these gaming headphones for eight to 10 hours straight without discomfort.
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless – active noise reduction
In addition to the improved sound insulation of the headphones, Arctis Nova Pro Wireless now has active noise reduction. It uses a hybrid system with four microphones (two microphones inside and two outside), which adjusts the ANC based on external noise and what you hear in the headphones.
However, Nova Pro Wireless honestly doesn’t provide the strongest ANC I’ve ever heard. This is a welcome feature, just not on the same level as Sony WH-1000XM5which I would still prefer for my next long distance flight. Noise reduction here is best for muffling white noise such as air conditioning or your lawn mower, as opposed to the sound of a TV playing loudly in the same room or the sound of a helicopter flying overhead. It also helps get rid of my really powerful and clicking Logitech G915 gaming keyboard, but it doesn’t completely drown out my keystrokes like the Sony WH-1000XM5 can.
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless – setup and connection
The box of the wireless transmitter received a small conversion with a rounded design, a larger control knob and a digital touch button to navigate the settings. It has a clear OLED screen to display your sound level, left and right headphone driver activity, battery levels and other information you need to know.
Pressing and holding the control button allows you to immerse yourself in basic headphone settings, such as changing the sound source, adjusting the microphone gain, and other system settings. But really the headset tuning will come later in the software.
The standard Arctis Nova Pro Wireless can connect to up to two separate consoles, computers or other devices via USB. For the most part, the transmission is smart enough to switch between its two USB connections when you start playing audio from one of them.
There is a PlayStation and Xbox version of Arctis Nova Pro Wireless, but functionally they are almost identical. The only difference is that the Xbox version has a Microsoft security chip, which is required to work with the Xbox Series X and S, while the PlayStation version is not compatible with Microsoft consoles.
In the Xbox version, one of the two transmitter-based USB ports is clearly marked as Xbox-specific and only works with Microsoft consoles and a computer. However, the other port still works well for PS5, PC, Nintendo Switch or any other device other than Xbox. Meanwhile, the PlayStation base station has two of the latest (non-Xbox) ports, making it compatible with everything except the Xbox.
In other words, the Xbox version is compatible with both Xbox and PS5, while the PlayStation version does not work with Xbox (both versions work with Switch, PC and other USB devices).
However, although it is more compatible than its counterpart, the Xbox version is free of charge. As such, even if the PlayStation is your primary console, I recommend getting the Xbox version if you have or are ever planning to get an Xbox console.
In my testing, the 2.4 GHz wireless signal between the handset and the transmission was slow and stable. I didn’t hear a single drop in the signal, even if I went to another room or even another floor of my house. If you move further away (such as two floors or leave your house) from your transmission or connected Bluetooth devices, then you will begin to hear the signal drop.
Arctis Nova Pro Wireless also has Bluetooth for connecting to a phone, tablet or other device. Better yet, you can play audio from your Bluetooth source and one 2.4GHz wireless source at the same time, so you can listen to music and podcasts – or take a call – while driving around Mexico in Forza Horizon 5.
One annoying change is that unlike the previous model, you can’t adjust the volume of your Bluetooth and 2.4GHz wireless audio separately from the headphones or control box. The volume wheel just changes the volume of your headphones as a whole, so you have to go through the pain to individually adjust the volume of the source of everything you’ve connected via Bluetooth or the connected console / computer / device.
Another annoyance is that turning off the headphones via the power button does not turn off Bluetooth – it must be turned off separately. To do this, you need to hold down the Bluetooth button to turn it off, in addition to using the power button to turn off the headset altogether. It seems strange that the special power button does not disable everything, but it makes more sense if you think of Bluetooth and 2.4Ghz modes as two separate devices that you can use independently or simultaneously. For example, you can only turn on Bluetooth if you export the headset from home and do not need a 2.4Ghz connection.
SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless – battery life
SteelSeries sets the battery life (with ANC on) to 22 hours with just 2.4 Ghz wireless and 18 hours when using 2.4 GHz and Bluetooth at the same time (which is another reason it’s nice to be able to control them independently). This is an incredible amount of time to play and play, given that the physical size of these batteries is smaller than the mini Ghirardelli chocolates. I spent up to four days using one battery and I feel like I can extend it to 30 hours in five days with the ANC off.
Add to that the fact that these batteries only take three hours to …
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