The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are the wired counterpart of the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless [PC, PS, Xbox]. Released in 2022, these headphones come with the GameDAC Gen 2, a digital to analog converter that offers several inputs and customization features like an EQ and channel mixing right at your fingertips. That said, even though they're wired, they come in either a PC/PlayStation or Xbox variant, as the Xbox model's DAC has a dedicated port for this console. There are also a few minor differences between this model's performance and the wireless model, particularly in build quality and noise isolation.
Our Verdict
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are sub-par for sports and fitness. They're not designed for this purpose as they're bulky, and the audio cable can snag on something and pull them off your head. The headphones can also fall off your head with moderate physical movement.
- Comfortable and well-built design.
- No call or music-related controls.
- Can fall off your head with moderate movement.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are mediocre for commuting and traveling. They're not really designed for this purpose, as they're bulky. They also struggle to block out the low rumble of bus and plane engines and mid-range noise, like passenger chatter. On the upside, they're comfortable, well-built, and don't rely on a battery.
- Comfortable and well-built design.
- Poor noise isolation.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are mediocre for office use. They have a comfortable fit suitable for long listening sessions and don't leak much audio at high volumes. If you need to take calls, they have a retractable boom mic, which does a very good job capturing your voice clearly, even in moderately noisy environments. Unfortunately, they struggle to block out mid-range sounds like ambient chatter.
- Very good overall boom mic performance.
- Comfortable and well-built design.
- Poor noise isolation.
- No call or music-related controls.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are wired headphones, and you can't use them wirelessly.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are good for wired gaming. Thanks to their GameDAC, you can connect them to your console while keeping controls like channel mixing and EQs close by. These headphones have a comfortable fit suitable for long gaming sessions, and their boom mic ensures that your teammates hear you clearly. You can customize their performance to your liking using their companion software's EQ and presets.
- Very customizable sound.
- Very good overall boom mic performance.
- Comfortable and well-built design.
- Prone to inconsistencies in audio delivery.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro have good audio reproduction accuracy. They perform impressively in objective metrics like stereo matching, so they'll render audio accurately in the stereo image. Plus, low harmonic distortion means you won't hear any unwanted timbral coloration. However, their warm frequency response is subject to noteworthy peaks and dips in the treble range, which can cause sibilant sound effects to sound alternately piercing and dull, depending on their pitch. The headphones' drivers excite your pinna, providing spatial cues, too, but they don't fully match the PRTF of angled speakers used as the benchmark.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro have disappointing noise isolation performance. They're closed-backs which afford some attenuation of treble- and mid-range frequencies. Nevertheless, their lack of active noise cancelling means that most low-frequency sound from engines, construction, and footsteps will penetrate their purely passive protection. On the plus side, they won't let much of your audio out, so you likely won't disturb anyone seated nearby.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro have a very good microphone system. While there's little software trickery for attenuating environmental noise, the boom microphone's pickup pattern, by default, places an emphasis on your voice, despite significant background noise. You'll be audible over even loud and sustained noise, with your voice reproduced intelligibly.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro have poor frequency response consistency. Depending on your physical characteristics, your listening experience may differ substantially from our measurements, particularly in bass delivery. If you wear glasses or have thicker hair, an interrupted seal will result in a loss of significant bass energy.
Performance Usages
Changelog
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Updated Mar 12, 2026:
This review has been updated to Test Bench 2.1, which removes the Group Delay test and rebalances scoring for the Harmonic Distortion test and Audio Reproduction Accuracy performance usage. For more details, consult our full changelog.
- Updated Mar 12, 2026: This review has been updated to Test Bench 2.1, which removes the Group Delay test, and rebalances scoring for the Harmonic Distortion test and Audio Reproduction Accuracy performance usage. For more details, consult our full changelog.
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Updated Jan 26, 2026:
This review has been updated to Test Bench 2.0, which adds the following tests: Stereo Mismatch, Group Delay, Cumulative Spectral Decay, PRTF, Harmonic Distortion, and Electrical Aspects. We've added new performance usages and updated the text throughout the Sound tests and side-by-sides.
- Updated Dec 23, 2025: We've converted this review to Test Bench 2.1, which features minor updates to our sound tests.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are the wired variant of the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless [PC, PS, Xbox]. These headphones also come in either a PC/PlayStation or an Xbox variant, so it's important to ensure you have the right model for your console. We tested the PC/PlayStation variant, which only comes in one color variant: 'Black.' You can see our model's label here. The Xbox variant's GameDAC has a dedicated port for this console.
If you come across another variant, please let us know in the comments.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are wired headphones with a lot of customization options. They come with the second generation of the GameDAC. Much like its predecessor found with the SteelSeries Arctis Pro GameDAC, you can easily customize their performance with features like built-in EQs and channel mixing. They also have robust companion app support with a ton of extra features to help you get the most out of these headphones. They don't feel as well-built as the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless [PC, PS, Xbox] due to their squishy padding, and they aren't as comfortable.
Check out our recommendations for the best gaming headsets, the best headsets for PS5, and the best headsets for Xbox Series X/S.
Depending on how you game, you may prefer either the Astro A50 Gen 4 or the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro. The Astro are wireless gaming headphones that are more comfortable, better built, and have more consistent audio delivery. Additionally, their boom mic has a significantly better overall performance. However, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro are wired headphones that come with a GameDAC so that you can make adjustments as you game. Their companion software offers significant customization features too.
The Audeze Maxwell are better than the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro. The Audeze are wireless gaming headphones with better build quality. They come with a boom mic for gaming and an integrated mic for more casual use. Their boom mic has better noise handling for when you're gaming in noisy environments, and the headphones support Bluetooth as well as non-Bluetooth wireless connections. On the other hand, the SteelSeries are wired headphones. They have a more comfortable fit for most people and better mic recording quality.
The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro and the SteelSeries Arctis Pro GameDAC are similarly performing wired gaming headphones, meaning you may prefer either one. While both headphones are comfortable and have similar sound profiles, the Arctis Nova Pro's boom mic offers a better recording quality. They also have more customizability via their companion app, and they use a 1/8" TRRRS cable instead of a mini B 8-pin, which makes it easier to replace if it gets damaged.
The Astro A40 TR Headset + MixAmp Pro 2019 have a slight edge over the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro for gaming. The Astro are open-back headphones that are more comfortable and better built. Their overall microphone performance is better. However, the SteelSeries have a more customizable performance, and their GameDAC makes it easy to adjust controls on the fly.
Our How We Test Headphones article takes you behind the scenes in our lab. You'll learn how we choose and purchase products and dive into the details of our review philosophy, from testing and scoring to writing and editing.
You can also discover how we produce recommendations like this one so that you can find the best headphones (or earbuds!) for your needs.
Test Results
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