At a look
Expert’s Rating
Pros
- Very snug to put on
- Good, detailed stereo sound with sturdy localization
- Simultaneous 2.4GHz and Bluetooth connection
- Wide compatibility (PC, PS5, Xbox, Switch, cell)
- Long battery life with quick-charging perform
- Intuitive operation
- Extensive software program
Cons
- Microphone sounds tinny and never very pure
- Wide USB dongle blocks neighboring connections
- Slight high-frequency sharpness in the usual sound (will be corrected through EQ)
Our Verdict
The Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 delivers a headset that’s snug, sounds exact, runs endlessly, and switches effortlessly between PC, Console, and cell phone. The twin wi-fi perform is just not solely sensible, however a very distinctive promoting level on this value vary.
Price When Reviewed
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Best Pricing Today
Price When Reviewed
$199.99
Best Prices Today: Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2
The Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 presents itself as a flexible mid-range gaming headset that desires to shine on the PC in addition to on consoles and cell units. This is the second technology of the favored Arctis Nova 7, with Steelseries constructing on confirmed strengths and making focused enhancements.
Even on paper, the technical specs are spectacular: 40-millimetre neodymium drivers, twin wi-fi (2.4GHz dongle and Bluetooth 5.3) with simultaneous perform, over 50 hours of battery life, broad platform help, and a comfort-oriented design.
This overview clarifies whether or not the Nova 7 Gen 2 can earn these praises within the sensible take a look at, and the place its weaknesses lie.
Design and carrying consolation
On the skin, Steelseries stays true to its line: The Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 depends on the traditional Steelseries design with matte-black plastic and a smooth look. The metallic body within the headband supplies stability, whereas an elasticated spring band (within the fashion of ski goggles) distributes the contact strain.
This mixture — Steelseries calls it the “ComfortMax” system — ensures a first-class match with out strain factors. In the take a look at, the carrying consolation truly proves to be excellent: Several hours of steady use aren’t any downside, the headset stays snug and safe on the top.
Weighing round 11.4 ounces (325 grams), it isn’t ultra-light, however because of the nice weight distribution it doesn’t really feel too heavy.
Friedrich Stiemer
The ear pads are produced from a hybrid of breathable material and synthetic leather-based. This provides them a tender match and permits some air to succeed in the ears, whereas the bogus leather-based on the within minimizes sound leaks.
In apply, exterior noise is passively dampened, though not utterly shielded, because the partially open design is noticeable right here. After very lengthy classes, nevertheless, the ear areas can get slightly heat. But total, the constructive impression of a effectively thought-out, snug headset prevails.
Friedrich Stiemer
The construct high quality can be of a excessive commonplace: Nothing wobbles or creaks, the adjustment mechanism (extendable ear cup holders and three adjustment factors for the spring band) seems sturdy and designed for a variety of head sizes. Overall, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 feels sturdy and high-quality — best for each day gaming use.
However, there’s one small design criticism: The USB-C dongle provided is unusually broad at 2.11 inches (approx. 53.8 millimeters) and might block neighboring USB ports. Although Steelseries provides a brief USB extension cable, a slimmer, longer dongle would have been extra sensible. Apart from this element, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 impresses throughout the board with its simplicity, wonderful ergonomics, and effectively thought-out design.
Features and connectivity
In phrases of capabilities and connectivity choices, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 packs a punch. The headset will be paired wirelessly through a 2.4GHz wi-fi dongle and in parallel through Bluetooth, even concurrently to combine two audio sources.
The USB-C dongle ensures a latency-free connection to PC, Mac, Playstation 5, and Nintendo Switch (each within the dock and cell through USB-C). A slide change on the dongle permits the particular Xbox mode for the Xbox Series X/S, as Microsoft’s consoles require a proprietary wi-fi protocol.
Important: Steelseries gives the Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 in numerous variations: Nova 7P (PlayStation/PC) and Nova 7X (Xbox all others). The {hardware} is an identical, however solely the X model is totally appropriate with the Xbox. So when you select the Arctis Nova 7X model, you’ll be able to the truth is cowl all platforms.
In exams, the wi-fi connection proved to be very steady and lengthy sufficient vary to take a break within the subsequent room with out shedding contact. In addition to Bluetooth, cell units even have the choice of utilizing the USB-C dongle on smartphones or tablets, for instance through an adapter.
Here, nevertheless, we’ve noticed {that a} dongle connection plugged instantly into the cell phone can generally have a quick lack of connection when shifting. In such instances, Bluetooth pairing is the extra handy alternative when travelling.
Speaking of Bluetooth: This wi-fi methodology solely makes use of the SBC codec, which is okay for listening to music, however can result in noticeable delays when gaming or watching movies. The 2.4GHz mode is due to this fact clearly really useful for gaming, because it has just about no latency.
Friedrich Stiemer
In addition to wi-fi, wired operation can be potential: the headset has a 3.5 millimeter jack socket to attach it to a PC, controller, or handheld within the traditional analog approach. This even extends compatibility to older units (e.g. for the Nintendo Switch Lite or some gaming handhelds) and serves as an emergency answer within the occasion of battery failure.
The controls on the headset are organized in a user-friendly approach: The energy button, a devoted Bluetooth button and a wheel for the chat-game audio steadiness (chat combine) are positioned on the best ear cup: A blessing in multiplayer to have the ability to finely steadiness voice chat and recreation sound always.
On the left is the amount management knob and a clearly perceptible microphone mute button. The buttons and wheels present clear haptic suggestions in order that they are often operated intuitively even in the course of a recreation.
The Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 doesn’t have energetic noise cancellation (ANC), however this isn’t uncommon on this value vary of lower than $200 — most gaming headsets at this value don’t provide ANC anyway.
The passive isolation supplied by the padding is common: Everyday noises reminiscent of keyboard clacking or quiet background chatter are noticeably muffled, however nonetheless penetrate considerably at increased volumes. Overall, nevertheless, the options of the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 are impressively complete:
Multi-platform help, simultaneous connections, and analog fallback choice make the gaming headset an especially versatile companion. In truth, the Arctis mannequin works with virtually all the pieces, from PCs to consoles and smartphones, making it a real all-rounder.
Friedrich Stiemer
The twin wi-fi perform is especially noteworthy: In the take a look at, simultaneous playback from PC/console and cell phone labored easily and with out dropouts. For instance, you will be in a Discord chat in your cell phone through Bluetooth whereas gaming on the PlayStation, or take a name whereas gaming on the PC.
Incoming calls are dealt with cleverly: If a name is available in through the cell phone, the headset microphone is robotically muted for the sport chat so to make the decision undisturbed. When you cling up, it switches again to the sport chat. This seamless integration of each audio channels is extraordinarily sensible in on a regular basis life.
Sound high quality
The sound high quality of the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 is geared in direction of the wants of demanding avid gamers with out compromising on all-round qualities. The 40-millimeter speaker drivers ship exact, detailed sound throughout your entire frequency spectrum.
Steelseries clearly emphasizes readability within the mids and highs, which permits tremendous particulars reminiscent of footsteps or directional noises to face out clearly. In truth, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 shines within the take a look at in relation to spatial localization:
In shooters and motion video games, it was potential to make out precisely from which course opponents have been approaching — a tactical benefit that not each headset on this class gives. This is supported by the digital encompass perform (Steelseries Sonar Spatial Audio on the PC and Tempest 3D Audio on the PS5), which makes the sound picture even wider and extra immersive if desired.
In single-player video games, the encompass mode considerably enhances the ambiance. In aggressive video games, then again, we largely used the stereo mode, because the localization is exact and with out synthetic results — the Arctis Nova 7 already delivers wonderful positioning data in stereo.
As delivered, the sound tuning is barely fun-orientated: The bass has loads of physique and strain, whereas the higher treble sounds barely over-sharpened. This results in a robust rumble throughout explosions, for instance, however can generally be perceived as slightly too sharp with very excessive tones. Voices and vital recreation sounds within the mid-range come by way of clearly and dominate the motion, giving the headset its “tactical” sound.
Friedrich Stiemer
Our music exams confirmed that the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 can be appropriate for on a regular basis multimedia: Songs sound dynamic and balanced, albeit not at hi-fi degree, because the deepest bass and tremendous element within the highest registers attain the bounds of gaming tuning.
Sound fanatics might notice that the fine-tuning ex works is just not utterly impartial: For instance, sure treble ranges are barely overemphasized and could possibly be slightly tiring for delicate ears in the long run. However, that is the place the good energy of the Steelseries software program comes into its personal:
The parametric equalizer within the Sonar app permits the sound picture to be corrected and optimized as desired. We have been in a position to tame the marginally sharp treble and fine-tune the bass with just some actions of the EQ controls. The Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 then sounded very balanced.
Steelseries additionally supplies over 200 predefined EQ profiles, custom-made for numerous video games, from Call of Duty to Counter-Strike 2, which will be loaded with a click on. In the take a look at, a few of these presets truly introduced audible enhancements for particular situations, reminiscent of clearer footsteps in shooters or extra highly effective results in motion adventures.
In quick, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 delivers a powerful audio efficiency out of the field, particularly for gaming. If you need to additional refine the sound, you may have all of the choices with the software program instruments. In this value vary, the Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 is true on the high.
More costly fashions such because the Steelseries Arctis Nova Pro or the Elite provide even finer hi-res sound, but additionally price many occasions extra. For a $200 headset, the sound high quality of the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 is totally convincing and left hardly something to be desired in on a regular basis gaming.
Microphone and voice chat
Steelseries equips the Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 with the tried-and-tested “ClearCast Gen2” growth arm microphone. This will be retracted into the left ear cup and matches seamlessly into the design when retracted — best if you wish to use the headset as regular headphones when travelling.
The microphone will be flexibly bent into place and is just pulled out to be used. However, it isn’t removable; it all the time stays connected to the headset. The LED indicators are sensible: A small crimson LED on the tip of the microphone indicators that the microphone is muted, and a standing LED additionally signifies the connection mode.
Friedrich Stiemer
In voice chat apply, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 delivers strong intelligibility. Voices are transmitted clearly and background noise is successfully suppressed. According to Steelseries, this needs to be as much as 25 decibels because of AI noise cancelling.
In our Discord rounds, our fellow gamers confirmed that our voice got here by way of clearly and with out loud background noise. Nevertheless, we’ve to say: In phrases of sound, the microphone is simply mid-range. Our criticism is that the voice transmission is considerably unnatural and nasal, as if the voice is filtered barely mechanically or tinny.
This is a typical phenomenon with many gaming headsets that reduce frequencies in favor of readability. As a outcome, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 by no means sounds as full or pure as an exterior microphone. However, the result’s completely tremendous for regular voice chat. However, anybody who values very warm or genuine voice transmission (e.g. for streaming) will see the typical microphone as a weak level.
In a direct comparability with some competitor headsets on this class, the ClearCast microphone performs barely worse — the microphone on the HyperX Cloud III S Wireless or the Razer Blackshark V3 Pro, for instance, sound slightly fuller.
On a constructive notice, nevertheless, the microphone of the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 is just not overly delicate: Loud ambient noises or keyboard clatter are hardly ever transmitted. The headset additionally has microphone monitoring — you’ll be able to hear your self barely in your ear — which protects you from unconsciously talking loudly.
Tip: The microphone ought to truly be used prolonged for optimum outcomes. Although it’s technically potential to talk when the headset is inserted (it’s then not robotically muted), the standard suffers considerably: The voice is barely captured and sounds muffled. You due to this fact have to drag out the headscarf to stay intelligible.
This is just not an issue in on a regular basis use, because the versatile arm will be positioned simply. In significantly quiet conditions, we additionally discover a slight background noise or white noise from the microphone and hope for firmware optimizations right here. On our take a look at gadget, a slight background noise was solely audible when no different sounds have been taking part in; in gaming mode, it was drowned out by the sound.
Overall, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 delivers a useful microphone that’s completely enough for recreation chat, VoIP telephony and most functions, however is just not a spotlight. If you’re in search of absolute high microphone high quality, you’ll both must resort to considerably dearer headsets or take into account a separate microphone. For everybody else, the extent provided is appropriate.
Battery life and charging capabilities
An enormous plus of the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 is the considerably longer battery life. Steelseries has elevated the capability by round 40 % in comparison with its predecessor and now guarantees a formidable utilization time of as much as 54 hours in 2.4GHz mode.
In Bluetooth-only mode, the battery is predicted to final round 42 hours, and even when utilizing wi-fi and Bluetooth on the similar time, the battery nonetheless lasts round 38 hours. In apply, over 50 hours of battery life implies that the headset solely must be charged a couple of times a month with reasonable each day use, making it an actual lengthy runner.
Our take a look at interval prolonged over a number of days of intensive gaming (six to eight hours per day) and we didn’t truly must cost the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 in between inside every week. The battery standing is displayed through the software program and an LED show on the gadget, and the headset emits warning tones when the battery is low.
However, we discovered the collection of warning tones slightly intrusive when the battery is low: three loud warning tones sound each two minutes or so, which will be annoying in the long term. Nevertheless, an empty battery is unlikely to come back as a whole shock, because the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 is actually long-lasting.
And even when you neglect about it, assistance is at hand: Thanks to the quick-charging perform, 15 minutes on the cable is sufficient to provide you with round six hours of taking part in time. The battery prices totally in round one and a half hours.
Friedrich Stiemer
Another sensible function is that you could proceed to make use of the headset whereas it’s charging. Simply join the USB-C cable and it’ll cost within the background with out interrupting the sport. This implies that spontaneous gaming classes are by no means jeopardized.
Overall, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 ranks on the high of the wi-fi headset vary when it comes to battery life. Only just a few fashions (such because the HyperX Cloud III S Wireless with over 100 hours) run even longer, however over 50 hours is already greater than sufficient for lengthy gaming nights.
Software and extras
The GG software program, together with Sonar, is an actual asset for Steelseries. This software program suite integrates {hardware} and software program in an exemplary method and gives a variety of customization choices. On the PC, you should utilize Steelseries GG to put in firmware updates for the headset, however above all you’ll be able to configure the sound extensively:
A parametric 10-band equalizer, numerous predefined sound profiles for various recreation genres, sliders for recreation/chat combine, quantity, microphone degree, and sidetone (monitoring) — all of that is clearly out there.
The consumer interface is designed to be beginner-friendly; when you don’t need to familiarize your self in depth, merely choose one of many many presets and get an acceptable sound with none effort. Advanced customers will probably be delighted with the power to fine-tune each sound element from treble filter to bass increase.
Thanks to the built-in sonar expertise, we have been truly in a position to tease lots out of the headset through the take a look at. Steelseries Sonar is regarded by connoisseurs as probably the greatest headset apps in the marketplace, and our expertise confirms this:
The EQ perform and the repeatedly up to date gaming presets (over 260 profiles in line with the producer) are distinctive and really helpful. Remarkable: Since the second technology, the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 now additionally helps the Arctis smartphone app.
This permits console avid gamers or cell avid gamers to make some settings conveniently on their cellphones. For instance, the app can be utilized to pick EQ presets, regulate the sound combine, or management lighting (if out there).
The parametric fine-tuning is reserved for the PC software program, however fundamental profiles can be modified on the transfer. In the take a look at, the app pairing labored immediately; it’s also pleasing that no obligatory registration is required to make use of the app or PC software program.
Friedrich Stiemer
Overall, Steelseries emphasises its premium declare with the software program: The potentialities go far past what commonplace drivers provide. Only those that completely don’t like further software program on the PC could also be overwhelmed:
The Sonar app can appear advanced at first, however it’s price spending 15 to 30 minutes familiarizing your self with it. For most avid gamers, the software program integration is a superb added worth that units the Steelseries Arctis Nova 7 Gen 2 other than extra merely geared up competitor fashions.