The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless are feature-packed wireless gaming headphones. They offer Bluetooth compatibility, a high-quality boom microphone, and companion software with a broad range of configuration options. They're also very well-built and quite comfortable, though their elastic ski-band headband may not suit everyone. They also have a somewhat imbalanced sound profile and struggle to deliver audio consistently. That said, they're a versatile option if you're looking for gaming headphones for your PC or PS4.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are okay for mixed usage. They're sturdily-built, comfortable, and can be used over Bluetooth for casual listening. Their boom mic is well-suited for chatting with teammates or making phone calls, while their 20-hour-plus battery life is sufficient for most uses. Unfortunately, they're also quite bulky and filter out very little ambient noise.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are passable for neutral sound. They struggle to deliver audio consistently and lack low-bass, so sound effects may be missing a bit of thump and rumble. They also have an uneven treble response that causes some higher notes to sound dull and lispy. Thankfully, their mid-range is well-balanced, so vocals, dialogue, and lead instruments should sound clear and present. Their companion software also features a graphic EQ and audio presets to customize your listening experience.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are alright for commuting and traveling. Since they're Bluetooth-compatible, they don't need their wireless transmitter to function, so you can listen to your music on your phone during your daily commute. Unfortunately, they don't filter out that much noise, so you may hear the rumble of bus engines and the chatter of other commuters.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are decent for sports and fitness, though that isn't what they're designed for. They do a good job of clamping your head and feel stable enough for light jogs, though they're likely to fall off during intense workouts. They're also quite heavy, though their microphone does retract to reduce their bulky profile.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are mediocre for office use. They're comfortable enough to wear for long periods and supply more than 20 hours of playback, so they should last you through the whole day without a problem. However, they don't filter out that much background noise, so you may hear the chatter of coworkers.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are a satisfactory choice for wireless gaming. Their USB transmitter allows for low-latency audio while their simple control scheme lets you quickly adjust chat mixing on-the-fly. They have a companion app with a wide range of features to let you fine-tune your gaming experience as well as a high-quality boom microphone that ensures teammates hear you clearly.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 don't come with an audio cable but are compatible with wired connections courtesy of their 3.5 mm audio port.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are decent for phone calls. Their boom microphone does a great job of making your voice sound full-bodied, clear, and mostly free of background noise. That said, they don't block out much background noise, so you may have trouble following a conversation if you call from a loud environment.
These headphones are comfortable. While the headphones themselves are somewhat heavy, their elastic headband does a good job of distributing its weight. The ear cups offer a pretty broad range of adjustability, and the cloth-lined padding feels soft. Unfortunately, like other SteelSeries headphones, their elastic headband can feel tight for people with larger heads and can't be expanded very far.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 have a very good control scheme. There are dedicated buttons for power on/off, microphone muting, and Bluetooth playback functions. A single tap of the Bluetooth button answers and ends incoming calls and pauses or plays media. A double and triple tap skips tracks forward and backward, respectively. There are also separate wheels for volume adjustment and chat mixing on either ear cup, though it can be hard to tell which is which as they both feel the same.
These headphones aren't especially portable. The ear cups swivel to fold flat, but their headband doesn't fold inwards to reduce their footprint. Thankfully, since they're Bluetooth-compatible, you won't need to carry their USB transmitter wherever you go. They also have a retractable boom mic, so you shouldn't have to worry about it snagging on something in your bag.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 don't have a case or pouch.
These headphones have impressive build quality. They're mostly made of dense, high-grade plastic and have cloth-lined ear cup padding as well as an elasticized headband. Overall, they feel like they should survive a couple of minor impacts without serious damage, though their yokes and hinges do feel a little fragile.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 are quite stable. Their ski-band headband and relatively tight fit help keep them on your ears during low-intensity head movements, but they're very likely to fall off if you plan on using them for intense workouts. Their wireless design eliminates the risk of having an audio cable snag on something and pulling them from your head.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 have a somewhat imbalanced sound profile out-of-the-box. They're missing a bit of low bass, so some sound effects and bass-heavy music genres may lack thump and rumble. While their mids are mostly flat and neutral, they have an uneven treble response that results in a lack of detail and clarity. This isn't helped by the mismatch between the L/R drivers of our unit, which is most noticeable in the low-bass, high-mid, and low-treble ranges. That said, their sound profile can be customized in-depth via a graphic EQ or presets in their companion app.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 have alright bass accuracy. The low-bass range is slightly underemphasized to different degrees in the left and right drivers, resulting in an overall lack of thump and rumble, but this mismatch could be unique to our test unit. Conversely, they have an overemphasized high-bass response that adds a bit of muddiness to some tracks. That said, since their audio delivery is heavily dependent on their fit and positioning, your experience may vary.
The mid accuracy of these headphones is great. While there is some mismatch between both drivers, the range itself is mostly flat, resulting in full-bodied and present dialogue, vocals, and lead instruments. A slight dip in the high-mid range does make them sound a little distant.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9's treble accuracy is disappointing. There's significant mismatch between the L/R drivers in this range, so vocals and lead instruments may sound alternatively dull and lispy, though this may only be an issue for our test unit. Since their audio reproduction is heavily dependent on their fit and positioning, your experience may vary in the real world.
The peaks and dips performance of the SteelSeries Arctis 9 is satisfactory. The left driver has an underemphasized low-bass response, resulting in a lack of thump and rumble, followed by a bump in the high-bass range that muddies some mixes. The overemphasized mid-mids and high-mids generates some harshness while the sharp dip and following peak in the treble range makes some notes alternatively dull and piercing. The right driver has a slightly recessed mid through high-mid range as well as a slightly harsh low-treble range.
The stereo imaging performance of the SteelSeries Arctis 9 is mediocre. Their weighted group delay falls beneath the audibility threshold, resulting in tight bass and transparent treble. While the L/R drivers are well-matched in regards to phase response, some amplitude and frequency mismatch is present. This has an impact on the headphones' ability to accurately place objects in the stereo image. However, these results are only valid for our test unit, and yours may perform differently.
These headphones have a passable passive soundstage. It may be perceived as quite spacious, but also somewhat unnatural. Their soundstage won't feel quite as open as that of open-back alternatives like the Astro A40 TR Headset + MixAmp Pro 2019.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 have support for DTS virtual surround and a simple speaker modeling feature.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 have a satisfactory weighted harmonic distortion performance. Some distortion is present throughout the mid-range and low-treble range, but the rest of the frequency spectrum falls within good limits. This results in mostly clean and pure audio reproduction.
These are the settings used to test the SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless. Our results are only valid when they're used in this configuration.
These headphones have bad noise isolation capability. They filter out almost no ambient noise throughout the bass range and do a poor job of dealing with mid-range background noise, so you may hear sounds like the rumble of bus engines or the chatter of people nearby quite easily. Thankfully, they're quite effective at cutting down higher-pitched sound, like the hum of a nearby AC unit.
These headphones have a retractable boom microphone.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9's battery performance is great. They supply over 20 hours of continuous playback time and have an auto-off timer to help conserve charge, which can be adjusted in their companion app. However, they take over five and a half hours to recharge, which is longer than alternatives like the SteelSeries Arctis 7 2019 Edition.
These headphones are compatible with the SteelSeries Engine companion software. It's easy to use and offers support for functions like a graphic EQ, audio presets, mic volume adjustment, changing the length of their auto-off timer, and enabling surround sound.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9's Bluetooth connectivity is decent. They don't offer multi-device pairing solely via Bluetooth, but you can connect to your PC with their USB dongle and stream media via Bluetooth from your phone at the same time, unlike non Bluetooth-compatible alternatives like the ROCCAT Elo 7.1 Air Wireless. Their latency on iOS and Android mobile devices is low enough to make them suitable for watching videos without significant audio delay. Since apps and devices compensate differently for latency, your real-world experience may vary.
These headphones deliver good non-Bluetooth wireless connectivity. When using their USB transmitter, their latency is low enough to use them for gaming without experiencing significant audio delay.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless don't come with an audio cable, but they do have a 3.5 mm jack that should allow you to use them with a 1/8" TRS or TRRS audio cable for passive audio playback or sharing audio with another pair of headphones. That said, if you're looking for a wireless gaming headset that also comes with a 1/8" TRRS cable, consider the Sony PULSE 3D Wireless.
These headphones offer full audio and microphone compatibility with PC and PS4 systems, whether you're using their included USB wireless transmitter or a 1/8" TRRS cable, though an analog audio cable isn't included.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless come in only one color scheme: 'Black'. You can see the label for the model we tested here.
If someone comes across a differently-equipped variant, let us know in the discussions below so that we can update our review.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless are premium wireless gaming headphones that are essentially the PC/PS4 version of the SteelSeries Arctis 9X Wireless. They offer impressive build quality, a 20-hour battery life, and Bluetooth compatibility, so you can stream music from your phone while gaming. Unfortunately, they do a poor job of blocking out background noise and are quite bulky. For alternatives, take a look at our list of recommendations of the best wireless gaming headsets, the best PS4 gaming headsets, and the best gaming headsets.
The SteelSeries Arctis Pro Wireless are more versatile than the SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless. The Pro have a better-balanced sound profile out-of-the-box, block out more ambient noise, have a better-performing boom microphone, and last longer off of a single charge. They also come with a 1/8" TRRS cable that allows for full audio and microphone compatibility via analog connections. The 9 have slightly lower Bluetooth latency and a broader range of microphone volume adjustment in their companion software.
The SteelSeries Arctis 7P Wireless are better gaming headphones than the SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless. While both headphones are similarly comfortable and well-built, the Arctis 7P have a better-balanced sound profile and their battery lasts longer. They also support passive playback and have less latency via non-Bluetooth wireless. However, the Arctis 9 support Bluetooth and have surround support via their companion software.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9X Wireless and SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless perform similarly overall but suit different audiences. The 9X are Xbox One-compatible and use essentially the same connection as Xbox One controllers to seamlessly connect to Xbox One consoles and PCs that have Xbox One Wireless Technology without the need for a dongle. The 9 use a USB dongle that allows them to connect to PC and PS4 systems, but not Xbox One consoles.
The SteelSeries Arctis 7 2019 Edition Wireless are slightly better for wireless gaming than the SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless. The 7 come with a 1/8" TRRS cable that allows for passive audio playback and microphone usage, deliver audio more consistently, and have a better-balanced default sound profile. Their battery life is longer too. Meanwhile, the 9 are Bluetooth-compatible, so you can use them to listen to music from your phone as you game. They also have an easier-to-use control scheme.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless are better overall headphones than the Sony PULSE 3D Wireless. The SteelSeries are more comfortable, better-built, and have a better microphone, not to mention longer battery life and a feature-rich companion app. However, unlike the Sony, they can't be used on a wired connection. The Sony also exhibit lower non-Bluetooth audio latency and deliver audio more consistently.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless are slightly more versatile for day-to-day use than the Logitech G PRO X WIRELESS LIGHTSPEED Gaming Headset. The SteelSeries are Bluetooth-compatible, offer on-the-fly channel mixing, and block out a little more background noise. However, the Logitech are better-built, have more features in their companion software, last longer off of a single charge, have lower non-Bluetooth audio latency, and have a better-balanced default sound profile.
The SteelSeries Arctis 9 Wireless are more versatile than the ROCCAT Elo 7.1 Air Wireless. The SteelSeries are Bluetooth-compatible, allowing you to stream music off your phone as you game or chat with friends. They're also comfier, better-built, leak less audio, and have longer battery life. Their boom mic also has superior recording quality and noise handling capability. However, the ROCCAT take less time to charge and offer lower non-Bluetooth audio latency.
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