SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless Review (2024)

Type Over-ear

Enclosure Closed-Back

Wireless Yes

Transducer Dynamic

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless are very similar in design to the rest of the Arctis lineup. They have a wide metal headband with a pronounced curve wrapped in an elastic strap to adjust the fit, reminiscent of ski goggles, that has a premium, durable feel. They’re a bit bulky, but have a retractable microphone for added versatility. They have a sleek, uniform look that's more understated than gaming headsets with flashier designs like the Astro A50 Gen 4 Wireless 2019, but is more versatile for everyday use. If you want your headphones to stand out more though, you can purchase more colorful headband straps, magnetic ear cup plates, and leather or velour ear cushions directly on the SteelSeries website.

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Weight 0.8 lbs

Clamping Force

Like the SteelSeries Arctis 7 2019 Edition Wireless and the SteelSeries Arctis Pro GameDAC, the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless are comfortable gaming headphones. They have a curved metal headband frame with a ski goggle-like elastic that adjusts the fit. The ear cups are large, spacious, and well-padded, and are coated with breathable and soft padding that feels nice on the skin. Unfortunately, the sizing is limited by the length of the elastic strap and the shape of the metal frame, which can’t expand to accommodate all head shapes and sizes. The fit will be fine for most but may feel a little tight for some.

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OS Compatibility

Ease Of Use Good

Feedback Great

Call/Music Control Yes

Volume Control Yes

Microphone Control Mute/Unmute

Channel Mixing

Noise Cancelling Control No

Talk-Through

Additional Controls Bluetooth Sync

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have good controls that are easy to use and provide great feedback. Like the SteelSeries Arctis Pro GameDAC, these headphones have a control dial and a microphone mute switch on the left ear cup. When using Bluetooth, the control dial only adjusts the volume. If you're using the transmitter, you can also adjust the volume by default, but clicking the dial accesses more settings like channel mixing, EQ presets, and audio sources. The right ear cup has a power button and a dedicated Bluetooth Sync button, which controls music and calls when you're using a Bluetooth connection. The power button also curves outwards while the Bluetooth button curves inwards, which helps to distinguish the two.

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Avg.Temp.Difference 8.5 °C

Like most closed-back, over-ear headphones, the SteelSeries Arctis Wireless Pro Wireless have poor breathability. These headphones aren't suitable for sports or exercise since they can make your ears sweat if used while working out. They can also warm your ears up a bit during longer or more intense gaming sessions. That said, you won't have a problem during more casual gaming or listening sessions, especially if you take breaks every now and then.

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L 7.5" (19.1 cm)

W 6.9" (17.5 cm)

H 3.5" (8.9 cm)

Volume 181.00 in³ (2,966.05 cm³)

Transmitter Required No

Like most gaming headphones, the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless aren't very portable. Even though they have practically the same design as the SteelSeries Arctis 7 Wireless 2017 and the SteelSeries Arctis Pro GameDAC, they’re a bit larger too. They have large ear cups, a rigid headband, and they can't fold into a more compact format. Their wireless transmitter is also fairly bulky. However, you don't need to carry it with you when you're on the go as these headphones have Bluetooth support or can be used passively with their audio cable. Still, they're not the easiest to carry around unless you have a bag or backpack to stash them in.

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Type No case

L N/A

W N/A

H N/A

Volume N/A

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless don't come with a case or a pouch. However, you can purchase one directly from SteelSeries.

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The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have similar stability to the SteelSeries Arctis 7 Wireless 2017 and the SteelSeries Arctis 7 2019 Edition Wireless. They have a tight yet comfortable fit that prevents them from moving much once on your head. Since they’re also wireless, there’s no audio cable that can snag on something and yank them off your ears. That said, their fit is tight enough that you can jog with them if you want to, provided you don’t mind your ears getting a little warm.

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Bass Amount

Treble Amount

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have a sound profile that depends on how they fit on your head. Their position, seal, and whether you have glasses or thick hair can all affect sound delivery, resulting in inconsistent bass and treble. Once properly fitted to your head, however, you'll get a consistent sound. However, you can easily tweak their sound using the EQ on their wireless transmitter. They're also compatible with SteelSeries Engine companion software, which offers a graphic EQ and presets.

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Avg. Std. Deviation

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have sub-par frequency response consistency. The bass delivery varies, and a drop in bass can occur if the ear cups aren't flush to your head, like if you wear glasses or have thick hair. The treble range is also inconsistent. As the overall frequency response depends on fit, seal, and positioning of these headphones, once you achieve a good overall fit, you'll get a more consistent frequency response each time you use them.

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Std. Err.

Low-Frequency Extension

Low-Bass

Mid-Bass

High-Bass

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have outstanding bass accuracy but its delivery can vary across users. The bass is accurate and neutral and while some listeners may find that they sound a bit light on the bass, you can use the EQ in the companion software or on the transmitter to adjust the sound to your liking. However, the bass delivery is sensitive to the quality of the fit, seal, and whether you wear glasses. This represents the average bass response and your experience may vary.

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Std. Err.

Low-Mid

Mid-Mid

High-Mid

These headphones have an excellently accurate and flat mid-range, resulting in the clear reproduction of vocals and lead instruments.

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Std. Err.

Low-Treble

Mid-Treble

High-Treble

The treble accuracy of the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless good but its delivery can vary across users. The low-mid is balanced, and although there's a slight dip, lead instruments and vocals sound present and detailed. There's also a small peak in the mid-treble which can make sibilants like S and T sounds slightly sharp. However, this treble accuracy performance represents the average response and your experience may vary.

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Peaks

Dips

The peaks and dips performance of the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless is good but their position, seal, and whether you have glasses or thick hair can all affect sound delivery, resulting in inconsistent bass and treble. Although there are a few peaks and dips, most are very slight. However, the peak between the high-mid and low-treble is less balanced than the rest of the range but it's unlikely to be noticeable to most listeners.

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Weighted Group Delay

Weighted Phase Mismatch

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch

Weighted Frequency Mismatch

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have excellent imaging. Although there are two small spikes in the low-bass and mid-bass that are above the group delay's audibility threshold, it may not be audible for most users. Additionally, the L/R drivers of our test unit are exceptionally matched, which is important for the accurate placement and localization of objects and instruments (like voices and footsteps) in the stereo image. However, these results are only valid for our unit and yours may perform differently.

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PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)

PRTF Size (Avg.)

PRTF Distance

Openness

Acoustic Space Excitation

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have an unremarkable soundstage. Although it feels relatively large and sounds as if it's coming from out of the listener’s head, the soundstage may still be perceived as a bit unnatural. As they have a closed-back design, it results in a soundstage that may not feel as open as that of open-back headphones.

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Head Modeling

Speaker Modeling

Room Ambience

Head Tracking

Virtual Surround

These headphones have virtual sound support and a speaker modeling feature.

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WHD @ 90

WHD @ 100

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless' weighted harmonic distortion performance is good. Although there's a small spike in the low-bass, this likely won't be audible to all listeners. Otherwise, all frequencies fall within good limits, which will result in clear and pure audio reproduction.

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Firmware

Power

Connection

Codec

EQ

ANC

Tip/Pad

Microphone

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Overall Attenuation

Noise Cancelling No

Bass

Mid

Treble

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless have poor noise isolation. They don’t isolate sounds in the bass range at all and instead, they can let the rumbles of a subwoofer into your audio. Although they block out slightly more mid-range noise like office chatter, it won't be enough for an office or cafe setting. On the upside, they do a better job of reducing treble range noise like A/C fans. However, if you want gaming headphones with better noise isolation, check out the EPOS Sennheiser GSP 600. The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless are also worth considering as they have an active noise cancelling (ANC) system.

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Overall Leakage @ 1ft

The leakage performance of the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless is decent, similar to that of the SteelSeries Arctis 7 2019 Edition Wireless. They mostly leak between the low-mid to low-treble and it sounds fuller and speaker-like than leakage coming from in-ear or more tightly closed-back, over-ear headphones. If you're listening to music at a high volume, it may be audible to those around you, even in a moderately noisy environment.

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Integrated

In-Line

Boom

Detachable Boom

Mic Yes

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LFE

FR Std. Dev.

HFE

Weighted THD

Gain

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SpNR

Noise Gate

Speech + Pink Noise Handling

Speech + Subway Noise Handling

The microphone of the SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless has remarkable noise handling. It can easily separate your voice from demanding or noisy environments like gaming events, so you can be heard clearly.

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Battery Type

Continuous Battery Life

Additional Charges

Total Battery Life

Charge Time

Power-Saving Feature

Audio While Charging

Passive Playback

Charging Port micro-USB

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App Name SteelSeries Engine

iOS No

Android No

macOS Yes

Windows Yes

Equalizer

ANC Control

Mic Control Mute/Unmute

Room Effects

Playback Control

Button Mapping No

Surround Support

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless are compatible with the SteelSeries Engine desktop app, which is a good app with lots of customization features for gamers. You won’t get as many features as you do with the SteelSeries Arctis Pro GameDAC, but there’s a graphic equalizer with presets, DTS surround sound, live mic preview, bass boost, and dialogue enhancement, to name a few. The charge level of the battery in the headset and the battery in the transmitter is available on the app, and the app specifies when the charging battery is fully charged.

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Analog Audio

USB Audio

Detachable

Length

Connector

Latency - Analog

Latency - USB

Recorded Latency Connection Analog

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless come with an uncommon mini B 8-pin connector cable that connects directly to the headphones. However, the other end is a 1/8" TRRS cable that's compatible with most gaming consoles and operating systems. When the headphones are on, they have slight latency via analog, but your audio and visuals are still well-synced. Using them completely passively drops the latency to virtually imperceptible levels, though.

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Bluetooth Version

Multi-Device Pairing

Quick Pair (Android)

Quick Pair (iOS)

Line Of Sight Range

Latency - SBC

Latency - aptX

Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)

Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)

Latency - LDAC

Recorded Latency Codec SBC

AAC Support

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Line Of Sight Range

Latency - Dongle

These headphones have excellent wireless connectivity via their wireless transmitter base. Their audio latency is quite low, ensuring your audio and video stay in sync. They also have a very good line-of-sight range, allowing you to use them further away from their audio source.

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Analog

Wired USB

Non-BT Wireless

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PS4 Analog

PS4 Wired USB

PS4 Non-BT Wireless

PS5 Analog

PS5 Wired USB

PS5 Non-BT Wireless

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Xbox One Analog

Xbox One Wired USB

Xbox One Non-BT Wireless

Xbox Series X|S Analog

Xbox Series X|S Wired USB

Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless

The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless can only receive audio when their wireless transmitter is connected to the Xbox One via an optical connection. If you like to stay in touch with your teammates using your microphone, you can use a Bluetooth connection with a phone or other device that has the Xbox app for chat. However, you have full audio and microphone support when you plug their analog cable directly into the controller.

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Type

USB Input

Line In

Line Out

Optical Input

RCA Input

Dock Charging

Power Supply

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