SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Review (Wired)
Product links in this article are affiliate links. As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
There are 4 versions of the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro. Wired and wireless. Xbox and PlayStation. I’m reviewing the wired PlayStation version that launched for $250.
Who is the Arctis Nova Pro for?
Connectivity
Controls
Headphone Audio Quality
Microphone Audio Quality
Software
Comfort and Build Quality
Verdict
Who is the Arctis Nova Pro for?
The wired Arctis Nova Pro is best for people who already love the usual SteelSeries bright sound signature and want even better drivers.
The sound quality is improved compared to previous Arctis headsets, and both the headset and DAC are "Hi-Res Audio" certified. More on that in a later section.
The Nova Pro is also for those who want the additional features that come with the GameDAC 2, which is a powerful amplifier with built in EQ controls and SteelSeries Sonar integration.
Connectivity
Two USB-A to USB-C wires are included.
This Arctis Nova Pro is designed for PC, PS4 and PS5, but there's also an Xbox variant if you need that.
There are two different ways of connecting this device. You can use the basic 3.5 mm cable connection or use the GameDAC Gen 2. The GameDAC connects to a PC or console using USB. There's a type-A end that goes into the console and type-C for the DAC itself.
You can connect two different devices to the GameDAC this way and swap between them using the controls on the DAC.
GameDAC Gen 2
Before I get into the controls of both the headset and GameDAC, let me explain what the GameDAC Gen 2 actually does. It has three main purposes.
Clean signal
First and foremost, the GameDAC is a digital to audio converter (DAC) that converts a digital signal into an analog one. Basically, it lets you plug headphones or a headset into it.
You may be thinking that you can already do that by plugging a headset straight into your motherboard or into a controller. And you can. Those have their own DACs already built into them.
SteelSeries’ pitch is that their DAC has a particularly clean audio signal to and from the headset. Clean meaning the amp inside has an imperceptibly low noise floor with a signal-to-noise ratio of 111 dB.
Therefore, you won't hear any static feedback even at the highest gain. And this thing pushes a lot of power. It made the Nova Pro and every other headset I plugged into it incredibly loud at max volume.
Hi-Res Audio
Secondly, the GameDAC is capable of sending through high fidelity or “Hi-Res Audio”. Specifically, it's capable of 24 bit, 96 kHz audio and its frequency range is 5 Hz to 40 kHz. The Nova Pro's drivers themselves have a frequency response range of 10 Hz to 40 kHz.
I'll explain why none of those numbers really matter much in the headphone audio quality section, but they are a big selling point of the GameDAC.
On-the-Fly Equalizer and Controls
Finally, the GameDAC has several controls built into it including an equalizer and game/chat mixer.
You can swap between multiple premade EQ presets and you can create 1 (yes, only 1) custom EQ curve on the fly using the DAC's controls or with SteelSeries Engine. Since the custom EQ is saved to the device itself, you can use the same curve on PC and console.
On PC only, you can control the chat/gain mix. You can set certain communication audio sources like Discord to be "chat" and the rest to "game". In order to access this functionality, you'll need SteelSeries Sonar running and you can follow the instructions there.
With that done, you can adjust the volume level of the game or voice chat to get a perfect balance where one doesn't overpower the other.
The Game/Chat mix slider is visible at the bottom. Though it can only be actually controlled on the GameDAC itself.
Controls
Here are the controls, starting with the GameDAC Gen 2.
The device actually comes with a tutorial as soon as you plug it in, so I'll just go over some basics. The wheel on the right lets your raise or lower the volume. You also can scroll through the menus with it.
Clicking the button in the middle of the dial when at the proper screen lets you switch from changing the volume to the game/chat mix. The small button on the left is basically a back button to take you out of menus.
Overall, the GameDAC Gen 2 is similar to the MixAmp Pro, but more streamlined and has way more gain.
On the headset itself, there's just a mic mute button on the left and a volume wheel. The mic is retractable and it comes with a pop filter, but the wind screen will fall off when it’s retracted.
Headphone Audio Quality
The Nova Pro is a significant improvement from previous SteelSeries devices, but it's nowhere near worth $250, and it’s definitely not worth $350 for the wireless version.
I have 6 other Arctis headsets: the Arctis 1,3,5,7+, 7P+, and 9. And aside from the 1 which is a clearly budget option, the others have very similar drivers with only slight tuning alterations.
The Nova Pro finally switches things up. While SteelSeries continues with their emphasis on the treble and upper midrange, the sound separation and clarity up there has been further improved.
Holding the Arctis 1,3, 7+ and 5 (in that order).
It's definitely a step above the Cloud Alpha. This is a good choice for footsteps as that's the range where they worked on the most.
The mid-range - where vocals generally are - also has good definition to it without getting lost like what happens on the Arctis 5, 7, and 9 for example.
Out the box, the Nova Pro's bass is even weaker than SteelSeries’ older devices, but the detail is much improved. It's still nothing impressive compared to the bass of devices like the Drop + Epos PC38X, but bass isn't why people buy SteelSeries headsets anyway.
The EQ potential of the Nova Pro is very impressive. This can be done on the DAC, or in SteelSeries Engine/Sonar - I'll talk about those two shortly. The Nova Pro is similar to how the Razer Barracuda Pro's drivers give you a lot of room to work with before distorting.
Even with lots of bass boosting, the Nova Pro will never hit hard.
If the Nova Pro headset was sold separately from the DAC, I'd say it's a worthy purchase for maybe $130-150 for those who enjoy a treble oriented sound signature. It's pretty much the opposite of the Drop + EPOS PC38X. What that does for the bass, this does for the upper midrange and highs.
FPS games are pretty good with this, although other media feels lacking. Unfortunately, as of this writing, this device is not sold by itself and launched for $250. At this price range, it competes with the Audeze Penrose where it just gets shut out.
The Audeze Penrose (left) and Arctis Nova Pro.
In the highs and upper mids, it can compete. I won't deny the work the Nova Pro is doing up there. But lower mids lack warmth.
Basslines have no bite and they don't stand out in the mix like on the Penrose. Sub-bass on the Penrose is far superior. Sound separation overall in chaotic enviroments is better on the Penrose. When switching back and forth from the Penrose to the Nova Pro you realize you're really only hearing half the game.
Hi-Res Audio (a breakdown)
Now about the high resolution audio - what does that really mean for the sound quality?
Hi-Res Audio is a certification based on a few attributes that was created by Sony and is recognized by the Japanese Audio Association and Consumer Electronics Association.
To get the Hi-Res Audio certification, a device must have a frequency response of up to 40 kHz or above and be able to play back audio in a format at least 24 bit and 96 kHz.
The frequency range of the Nova Pro headset itself is 10 Hz to 40 kHz and the DAC goes from 5 Hz to 20 KHz.
Hi-Res Audio badge on the lower right of the box.
Most headsets and headphones have a frequency response from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, so this is a much greater extension in both the low and high frequencies.
Also, many of the DACs that come bundled with consumer headsets max out at 16 bit or 44.1 kHz sample rate playback.
On paper this seems amazing. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the marketing jargon and conclude that this headset and the DAC produce far superior sound to other headsets on the market because of the high resolution audio.
But here’s the real story:
The reason most headsets, speakers, and microphones have a frequency response of 20 Hz to 20 kHz is because that's the range that the human ear can hear.
When you make a device that stretches beyond this range, a human can't hear it. So while there may be niche use cases for this, from a performance and sound quality perspective, it doesn't make a difference.
Any 3.5 mm headphones can do this.
The second part of Hi-Res Audio is the playback format which needs to be 24 bit / 96 KHz. And you get that due to the GameDAC Gen 2.
However, if you go in Windows sound settings, you'll realize even your 3.5mm headphone port can put out 24 bit / 96 kHz audio, so you never actually needed that GameDAC in the first place.
So what does this increased sample rate even do? In theory, it allows for a higher quality sound that’s a better representation of the original recording. In practice… not much.
I downloaded several 96 KHz audio tracks and listened to their standard resolution counterparts on YouTube and YouTube Music, and I honestly couldn't hear a difference myself even with the extra compression YouTube adds.
Adding a higher sample rate than 44.1 kHz doesn't have the same effect as looking at a 1080p vs 4K video where there's a clear and obvious difference.
The main thing you'll notice is the files themselves are FLAC or WAV files, and they are incredibly large - I'm talking 150 megabytes for a 3 minute song.
And games aren't playing 150 megabyte audio files for their music and every single sound cue. That would be insane. So again, not only could I not tell the difference but even if you could, the actual amount of media that's formatted in 96 KHz is minimal.
Long story short, Hi-Res Audio started as and ultimately still is a marketing strategy. SteelSeries chased those specs not to make their headset sound better, but to get that Hi-Res Audio certification.
Microphone Audio Quality
Out the box, the mic on the Arctis Nova Pro is slightly above average. It's pretty clear, and you can listen to it as you speak with the adjustable side tone, but the tuning is horrendous.
It’s way too nasally just like other Arctis mics. I’ll dive into the software shortly, but with some EQ improvements, you can get a much fuller sound with less sibilance.
As usual, I’d opt for a dedicated USB or XLR mic for the best audio.
Software
10-band mic equalizer and more in Sonar.
SteelSeries GG has several different apps inside, but the two key ones are Engine and Sonar. Engine really just alters a few basic controls. Most of the cool stuff is in Sonar. I’ll save the deep dive for a dedicated Sonar review, but I’ll touch on a few things relevant to this headset specifically.
Sonar has a ton of really useful features. Mic EQ, mic filters, headphone/speaker parametric EQ with even more filters… Just so much stuff. The virtual surround sound, while still a gimmick, sounds really cool, and I enjoy how customizable it is.
Parametric EQ and Spatial Audio option.
Overall, this software is top notch after being extremely buggy while it was in early access. The thing is, you can use pretty much every aspect of Sonar except the game/chat mix slider (that interacts specifically with the GameDAC Gen 2) with any headset. So don’t think of it as being tied to the Nova Pro.
The more basic SteelSeries Engine.
Comfort and Build Quality
Comfort
This is another aspect that SteelSeries finally stepped up in. Fans of the scratchy cloth they use on their other devices might be disappointed here, but they've switched to fake leather for the ear cushions. It’s softer than the HyperX Cloud Alpha, but not as good as the Cloud II.
Adjustment brackets have finally been added after many years.
The ski-goggle headband hasn't been removed entirely, but it's way better with a new mechanism to adjust the tightness. I wish they would just put some padding up there, but I guess SteelSeries is just set on making the top of users heads uncomfortable.
Build/Durability
The build is iffy. The Nova Pro is almost completely plastic, but they added a thin metal strip to the top of the headband which is positioned in a way that wouldn't stop any of the plastic parts from breaking.
I’ve had this headset for about a month now, so I can't speak to the long term durability of this device. But it’s held up with no damage or scuffs yet.
Overall, the comfort is pretty good and build is decent. Nothing amazing.
Verdict
If you're a hardcore SteelSeries fan and you find the Arctis Nova Pro on sale or sold separately from the GameDAC Gen 2, this is a great purchase. Otherwise, this is an easy pass.
The sound quality doesn’t come close to the Audeze Penrose which I recommend instead. And if you’re looking for any trace of good bass, keep looking.
