SteelSeries Arctis 7 - Lossless Wireless Gaming Headset with DTS Headphone: X v2.0 Surround - for PC and PlayStation 4 - Black

Review for the 2019 Arctis 7. Love the design and build quality. Materials and sound quality are completely solid, but I had to take off one star because of some strange behaviors out of the box. I charged them fully (or so I thought) before using them. I thought it was weird that the mic LED was flashing red for a few hours then turned off. The next day I tried them out while working and noticed below average sound quality (static and terrible bass range). I was actually quite disappointed and thought there was no way these would get such good reviews with this sound quality. This was also during/after tweaking the SteelSeries Engine Software. I looked into the issue and found some users required a firmware update to get things going. I hadnt been prompted to update my headset and noted that my Headset and Transmitter were at 1.19.0.0 and firmware at 2.3.0.0. Not finding any success in updating I initiated a hard reset by pinning the button under the left ear cup for ~20 seconds and repairing with the transmitter (hold ~5sec and headset for ~6sec). I immediately saw a change when the charge LED flashed green. I hopped back into the software, and although my software/firmware versions didnt change, my headset now indicated I had a full battery and sound quality dramatically improved. I hope this helps if some of you are experiencing the same thing! Sound quality and Comfort: I still have my wired Bose QCs for noise cancelling head down work, these are a great substitute when mobility is a plus. Sound quality is comparable with a little tweaking in the SS Engine Software. Although Im not too convinced of the 7.1 surround quality, it is enjoyable. The headset is also very comfortable, both on the ears and on the head. They are pretty light compared to some other headsets. This helps if youre going to use them for extended periods of time.

The headset materials do not feel cheap, they feel well made and sturdy with the metal band on the top with a rubber matte under side which your head never hits due to the comfortable ski goggle band. The ear cups on this 2019 version are super soft and provide enough cushioning so my ears arent bothered by the speakers and the whole headset is nice and light along with the Arctis 7 being wireless, makes this headset nice and comfortable for long gaming sessions. The mic is great quality and has been notably better than my previous headset (Razer Kraken 7.1 Chroma) as noted by my friends through discord (Also the headset is detected up by discord as a certified input/output device). One of the things I dislike (which is also helpful) about the headset is that if you turn the volume wheel above 90% there is a slight static that I hear. This isnt a problem for me as the headset is loud enough where I keep the volume wheel around 70-80%. The static sound actually helps me if I accidentally slide the volume wheel to 100% when I put the headset on I can hear the static and know to reduce the volume under 90% until the static goes away so I wont get blasted by audio when I watch a youtube video or start a game. There is also a Program you can download called the SteelSeries Engine 3 (which isnt needed for the headset to work) to change settings such as mic sidetone, power options, bass enhancement, equlizer, dynamic range compression, surround settings (although the surround sound wasnt as good as my previous Razer Kraken 7.1 headset) and more. There is also apps in the SteelSeries Engine 3 that work along side other SteelSeries devices Such as PrismSync, AudioVisualizer, ImageSync and apps for games and programs like CSGO, Minecraft, iFeelPixel, Tidal (Coming soon), Dota 2, Utopia 9 and Discord. Overall this headset exceeds my expectations and is worth the price. I have only been using the headset for about a week now so I will keep this review updated if I have any problems with it. :D

Id definitely recommend it to someone but minor caveat. Wireless version, used on PS5: Pro: -Its easy to set up, you plug the USB receiver into the PS5 and thats about it. -It sounds great, and mic is much better according to friends. I had the razor kraken prior. -Battery life seems excellent. Ive gone a couple days of heavy gaming without charging it and it was fine. Its comfortable, my ears dont sweat like crazy. Big plus there. -Dual volume dials for in game and chat audio. Helpful! -Used it in COD warzone and its definitely easier to detect footsteps. If you know what Im talking about itll make sense, if youve never played it it wont make sense. Con: Aside from the price the biggest CON is that Its not intuitive at all. Ive had it for 2 weeks and I cant tell if it turns itself on automatically when the ps5 turns on or not. I dont understand its charge level AT ALL. Instructions say its green for 80+%. yellow for whatever percentage but that doesnt exist. The mic turns red when its charging and turns off when its full.

Comparing to the Hyperx cloud 2 (which i paid the same amount for) these are not as comfortable and do not have equivalent sound quality. If this headset were wired it would be around $60-$70 or so. So yeah you are paying for wireless, but nothing really amazing in terms of overall quality. Sound quality 7/10 If youre trying to listen to music it seems you have to leave the EQ untouched, otherwise your bass is going to be too loud and cause a very noticeable, very bothersome static/ vibrating noise. If youre looking to play games it depends on what you play. Things like car engines/ jet planes should be very loud, with deep bass for immersion and its the same issue as with music- this headset doesnt produce a ton of bass without making bad vibes. I recommend leaving the EQ Flat- with no bass boost. It seems that is the only way I can turn the headset up as loud as it can go and not have noticeable static/ vibrations. However, once youve found what works best for you the sound is pretty clear, and once you get used to the overall sound it does has enough depth to satisfy your ears. Comfortability is 8/10 I can wear it for hours and it never becomes noticeably uncomfortable/ painful, only after many many hours is it a little bothersome, but really just taking the headset off for 5 minutes is more than enough, really I cant think of anything I can do all day without being uncomfortable, so yeah they are fine, but still not nearly as comfortable as my Hyperx Cloud 2. (They have leather ear cups and headband, definitely nicer than the materials used on the Arctis 7) It isnt a bad headset overall, but lacks anything which makes it very good, other than being wireless. I would recommend it if you want less immersion than a wired headset of the same price- but with the freedom of Bluetooth.

Been using this headset for about 2 years now. They are a must grab if youre looking for a durable headset with good sound to them. I will say though my biggest complaint will be that eventually you are gonna have to replace the ear pads and headband. My fat head wore out the headband pretty quickly. The ear pads themselves are solid but not comfy if youre using them for hours. I just placed an order for more thick ear pads and a sleeve with padding as a replacement for the headband situation. Besides these complaints, I believe that for a wireless headset this is a solid option.

I’ve had them a year and a half now, and for the most part they’ve been great. They’re comfy, the band is fantastic and doesn’t give me headaches, the charge lasts long and when I do need to plug in the cord is long. Great range, I can go into the kitchen and people can still hear me (floor down and halfway across the house). mic is retractable and I haven’t had complaints of mic clarity. My only complaint - six months in they started shutting themself off :| no reason, battery will be fine, I’ll be watching a video or playing a game and out of nowhere I’ll hear the powering down sound and they’ll shut down. Irl turn them back on and they’ll be normal, but it’s a bit annoying when you’re in voice chat and in a game and your headphones shut off and you have to take a hand away to turn them back on.

Overview - the SteelSeries Arctis 7 (2019 edition) has a good quality set of drivers and microphone, plus is made from very high quality materials and includes lots of extras which leaves very little to be desired. The Good: Build Quality - 5 out of 5 These headphones are made from very durable and quality materials, and overall feel very solid. I especially like the ski goggles headband style since you only have to adjust it once for your head and then never have to worry about readjusting it, unlike the traditional telescoping headband that most headphones have. The headband is made of steel and plastic with an elastic band for support, and the earphones are made from high quality plastic. The ear cups are made from memory foam covered with an interweaved material which is light and breatheable, but still keeps external noise out well. There are very few points of articulation in this headset which I like because that means there are less potential points of failure. Sound Quality - 4 out of 5 Overall the sound quality is solid, and these headphones have a generally flat frequency response, with a slight bump in the mid-lows. Its taking me some time to adjust to this flat EQ because the headset that I was using previously was excessively muddy and boomy in the lows (Kingston HyperX Cloud), however the sound is very balanced across the frequency spectrum. Connectivity Options - 5 out of 5 This headset includes a ton of connectivity options right out of the box, and you can tell that the engineers who designed it took interoperability and ease of use into consideration when building it. It includes a wireless dongle which plugs into your computer via USB and is used to sync to the headset wirelessly, as well as a USB charging cable for the headset and a 3.5 mm headset jack to mini usb cable for use with non-bluetooth enabled devices (such as the Xbox One). I especially like that the wireless dongle includes an audio in and audio out headset jack, so you can run an alternate line in (like a music player) or line out (to a secondary set of speakers). The best part is that the wireless dongle will automatically switch over to the line out when the headset is powered down or disconnected, so you can run the line out cable to a set of external speakers and can switch between your wireless headset and the external speakers by just turning the headset on and off. The included configuration software is also very nice and has many options for adjusting the input sound, frequency levels as well as saving various profiles for different uses. The Bad: Comfort - 3 out of 5 Unfortunately, these arent the most comfortable headset Ive ever tried or owned, and due to their design they are very limited in terms of adjustability (more of a 1 size fits all approach). Many people complain that the headband was too tight or too loose for their head, but luckily it seemed to fit me perfectly. My problem lies with the earcups themselves. While the cups are soft and very breatheable, they are quite thin and the inside of the cups dont offer nearly as much padding as other headphones that Ive owned. I also wear glasses and have large ears, which ultimately means that these headphones cause fatigue in longer wear sessions. I have found that I can only wear them for a few hours at a time before my ears start to get sore and I need to take them off for a bit. If comfort is the most important feature for you then you are probably better off looking for a more adjustable headset, however I find these to be as good or better than most so ultimately it wasnt a deal breaker for me.

The headset is just the right weight--it doesnt fall off your head if you dont wear a hat. The batter life and the range are incredible so you arent constantly charging or losing connection as you walk around the house. I have used other brands, but im never changing now unless the quality drops at some point.

You know, I want so much to love this headset. In fact, I do, BUT.... This is my second round with this thing. I can say off the top that while the sound quality is great and the dual volume controls are great. Noon e complains that I cut in and out or they cant really hear me- NONE of that technical piece is missing. I have a friend that I game with who has the same headset and he sounds great and there is never any issue. I can even walk almost to the end of my driveway before really starting to cut out. I hate the charging port. I dont think it is sturdy on the inside. I try to be very cautious and deliberate about plugging in the cable, because with my first one, the port completely went into the head-set and I couldnt charge it. Thus the need for round two. I think there needs to be guidance about the multiple settings though that appear in the sound... Arctis chat v. Arctis game...because it is not as intuitive as it seems. This had never happened before, but this last week I got a loud mechanical buzz sound that was fixed when I switched to the other of the two. Whenever it happens, I figure I just picked the wrong one...then I switch to the other and its fine. So not sure what thats about. My friend and I both are starting to notice that and cant seem to figure out why. I like this headset primarily because it is light on my head. I like the dual volume controls, I like the sound quality especially, but not the charging port and this new recent-fixable- buzz noise.

Okay, these SHOULD be pretty nice headphones for $150, BUT there are quite a few caveats that put me off of these. I noticed a few other reviews mention these issues. These issues bothered me so much I returned them. Simply NOT worth the price! First off, I wear headphones 12-18 hours a day, 7 days a week. For work, recreation, and to help me fall asleep. I know headphones, and have a decent collection of a dozen or so. 1) HOLY DISTORTION, BATMAN! Listening to music at volumes any of my other headphones can handle (including the cheap-o $30 bluetooth units), these units produce massive amounts of distortion. I cannot believe how bad these are at volumes over 50%! Give it one tonal range to cover, and it seems to do okay, but toss in two or three (like bass guitar and a high-hat at the same time.... or, ya know, almost all music) and suddenly you cant make out what youre listening to anymore. 2) The volume roller is EXTREMELY easy to accidentally adjust. I mean, unbelievably easy. I am CONSTANTLY messing with the volume when adjusting the headphones or mic, and since its so loose its almost impossible to dial in just the right volume. Very very annoying! 3) Theres no media controls on these. Why? A push-button volume button combination would easily solve the too easy to adjust volume, and allow media controls through long presses. 4) The ear pieces are EXTREMELY hot. I wear headphones quite a bit, but these burn my ears up in a matter of minutes, which makes me adjust or remove them temporarily. This also reiterates point #2 in that the volume knob is ALWAYS being adjusted by accident. 5) These block absolutely no out-side sound, and people often can hear what I am listening to or playing. This doesnt make sense since the ear-pads dont seem to allow ANY airflow. 6) The mic disable button turns ON a light........ What? So when your mic is on, theres no light. When you mic is OFF, such as when listening to music, hanging out, whatever, theres BRIGHT RED LED on 100% of the time....... Huh???? How does this make sense? 7) the audio volume is easily 1/3 of every other headphone I own. I crank every setting up to 100% just to be equal to 30% on any other headset... Why? 8) mic is garbage!!!! I cant imagine anyone with any sense of intelligence thinking this mic is anything other than painfully sub par. Everything either sounds tinny, or incredibly digital (like using one of those $5 voice oscillators that make you sound like a robot. 9) while the ear pads do go around your ears, the speaker mesh is too shallow and will contact your ears. This makes it unbearable by itself, but combined with every other issue..... 10) FINALLY the surround sound effect is negligable. Playing the same surround sound tests, I cannot tell a difference between regular 2.0 phones and these. At all. Theres also a VERY VERY VERY specific place you HAVE to position these, or youll only hear about 70% of what its putting out. Unfortunately the VERY SPECIFIC spot these must be placed is absolutely HORRIBLE. You must bend and fold your ears to position them even remotely correctly. 11) I know I said 10 was the final number, but it brings me to another point. These are so uncomfortable in almost every way. After a short session your jaw will hurt, as the bottoms press right into the hinge of your jaw, your ears will hurt and be sweaty from the complete lack of ventilation (its like putting your ears in a wool coat in July in Florida -- a swamp!) From a company that specializes in headphones, these are full of awfully poor design choices! One of the worst overall headsets Ive ever owned. Do not recommend to anyone for any purpose!