SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 Wireless - Review

The brand SteelSeries has been synonymous with both quality and gaming since 2004 when they launched the world’s first gaming headset, the Siberia. Since then technology has moved ahead in leaps and bounds and SteelSeries has moved with it by adding a wide array of gaming peripherals such as mice, keyboards and gamepads to their product line. I have always been a big fan of their gaming headsets and have used the Arctis 7P headset as my main gaming headset on my PS5 since they were released, so when SteelSeries asked us to review their new Arctis Nova 7 Wireless headset I was quite happy to put my hand up and run it through its paces.

The SteelSeries Arctis Nova 7 headset boasts a wide array of features including but not limited to, both wireless 2.4 Ghz and Bluetooth support, 38 hour battery life, 360 degree special audio, an AI powered noise cancelling mic and compatibility with PlayStation, PC and Mac. Included in the box is the headset itself, the USB-C wireless dongle, A USB-C to USB-A extension cable for the dongle, a USB-A to USB-C cable for charging and a 3.5mm to 3.5mm Audio cable so the headset can be used via an audio port rather than wirelessly, it’s really nice to see a headset manufacturer include such a wide array of cables with a headset especially when the cables are of the type of quality that is included in this package. The headset itself, though made of plastic, looks and feels like a quality product, colourwise black is the name of the story with the headset sporting a mostly black matte finish to it, the left ear cup features a volume dial and the 3.5mm audio connection. The right ear cup features the USB-C charging port, an on and off button, a separate button to turn Bluetooth on and off and also another dial that can be used to adjust your chat and game audio mix, it also features a LED that displays current battery level and charging level when the headset is plugged in to charge.

On the wearable side, the ear pads themselves are made from memory foam and are extremely comfortable, out of the box I found the clamping pressure on the headset to be a bit loose but this is easily adjustable via the elastic head strap which can be moved to 3 different positions.  I have always liked the look of SteelSeries headsets and I am glad to say that the headset is very aesthetically pleasing.  As instructed via a handy tab in the packaging I downloaded the SteelSeries Engine and Sonar software and then plugged the dongle in and turned on the headset, I was then guided through a firmware update which was a simple and intuitive process and my headset was quickly updated to the latest firmware, and I was ready to go.

Out of the box I found the sound of the headset to be extremely flat and lacking bass and overall not to my liking, but this is where the beauty of the SteelSeries Sonar software kicks in, I did a quick search on YouTube and quickly found a video on how to get to grips with the Sonar software and tried out the video creators sound profile that he designed to even out the highs and add some more oomph to the bottom end, once I had this dialled in the headset seem to magically spring to life and become a different beast all together. The amount of customisation available in the software is quite remarkable, I have tried out a lot of gaming headsets and never seen anything this comprehensive before, not only can you design your own sound profiles you can also toggle spatial audio settings and whether Bluetooth is turned on at the same time as when you turn on the headset, which is a fantastic feature.

I can comfortably say that sound wise this is one of the best gaming headsets I have ever had the pleasure of wearing, the bass has punch without being overbearing and the spatial audio is great in games like Call Of Duty for determining where your foes footsteps are coming from, even listening to music the headset sounds fantastic which is quite a unique property for a gaming headset as I find most of them don’t seem to hold up when it comes to enjoying music. The noise cancelling mic which slides out from the left ear cup is also very impressive I tested this out by having a TV in the same room as me playing at a considerable volume and my squad mates had no problem at all hearing me over discord, the same goes for when receiving a phone call via the headsets Bluetooth connection, on the multiple calls I tested out my voice came through crisp and clear.

For the price the Arctis Nova 7 Wireless is packed full of features, many of which its competitors lack, the ability to connect to Bluetooth to receive and make calls whilst also gaming being one of the main and most handy ones. The Sonar software is also a class above most of it competitors offerings with the vast array of options to dial in sound exactly the way you like being absolutely staggering, these settings can be saved directly to the headset so when switching over to the PS5 your settings will remain exactly the way you customised them to be on the PC, the only drawback about using them on the PS5 is that the excellent chat/game volume mix dial will not work, this issue is not unique to SteelSeries headsets though as Sony lockdown this feature on all 3rd party headsets and only allow this function to work with Sony gaming headsets. Battery life is also great and I found myself getting pretty close to 35 hours use out of the headset before needing to charge them. This headset will be staying on my noggin for a long time, the only thing that might get me to remove it is if SteelSeries decide to send me a Arctis Nova Pro Wireless headset for review, hint hint SteelSeries, you can’t blame a guy for trying!

If you are looking to purchase a new gaming headset and own both a PC and a PlayStation console, I cannot recommend the Arctis Nova 7 Wireless highly enough, from the build quality, comfort level through to the sound it puts out, it is a class above the competition.

The Score

9.0

Review unit provided by SteelSeries

The Pros

+Both Bluetooth and Wireless Connectivity

+Software suite is easy to use and the amount of customisation options are mind blowing

+Once tuned to your liking the sound these babies put out is fantastic

+Nice array of accessories included which are of very high quality

+Noise cancelling mic is one of the best I have used

The Cons

-Dials on the ear cups are in an awkward place and can be hard to find when wearing the headset