I personally love the way that the Arctis lineup sounds. If you prefer the deep, authoritative rumble and punch of a movie theater, you’ll probably want to shy away from these and go for something from HyperX, Astro, or Razer. The extra bass push of the Arctis 1 makes these better suited to explosions and other low end rumble compared to the 3/5/7, but it’s still not a bass heavy headphone at all.

The result is a bright, detailed sound overall that’s perfect for positional awareness in games, critical music listening, and acoustic material. Similarly, the treble has more energy than the average gaming product, with a bit of bite that borders on grainy. They’re colder and more clinical than on competing headsets from the likes of HyperX, but I enjoy their sharp presentation. Mid range tones are clean, clear, and mostly natural. Like the original Arctis 1, the bass is a little more prominent than on the 3, 5, and 7, and I enjoy that added richness. The bass is thumpy and precise, with barely any extra thickness or mud. These are the same speakers used inside the Arctis 3, 5, and 7, and not the nicer hi-res certified drivers from the Arctis Pro.įortunately, the Arctis 1 Wireless exhibits the same great sound as its wired counterpart. The Arctis S1 Speaker Drivers used here are a known quantity at this point, offering clean and crisp sound. On PC, you can additionally install SteelSeries Engine to customize some EQ settings, but you don’t have to. In wireless mode, it’ll work with a PC, Mac, PS4, or Nintendo Switch with no drivers or software needed. Any 4-pole 3.5mm cable will work just fine with the Arctis 1 Wireless, making it compatible with any device still featuring a headphone jack. Previous models used a proprietary cable based on an obscure USB connector. This is the first Arctis headset with a detachable cable using a standard 3.5mm plug, and I’m super excited about it. They include the closed-back Arctis 1 Wireless headset, a detachable ClearCast microphone, a 3.5mm analog audio cable, a micro-USB charging cable, a USB-C to USB-A adapter for use with older PC’s and PS4, and a small USB-C audio receiver. I bought the standard model for its full retail price, and you can find its official product page here.īoth models are identical in terms of features and performance. It’s available in two configurations: a standard model with white lines inside the ear pads, and a “For Nintendo Switch” model with a different box (and blue lines in the ear pads depending on the print run) that’s exclusive to Best Buy, at least in the US.

Steelseries arctis 1 review