I love the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless – it’s absolutely packed with premium features that make it work in a wide variety of scenarios across multiple platforms. My only complaint in my original review was that the ANC nubs in the earcups were too prominent and ruined the comfort for me. Now in 2024, SteelSeries has released a white version of the $350 premium multi-platform gaming headset with much smaller ANC nubs! So it should be perfect now, right? Be sure to hit the video below to see all of the details.
Overview
We’ll quickly cover the bases on the Nova Pro Wireless, but for the most part, it’s the same as what we saw in July 2022. This is a do-it-all gaming headset with ANC, hot-swap batteries, a wireless base station, and simultaneous Bluetooth connectivity. There is even an Xbox version that will basically work on any platform.
The microphone may not be up to par with the competition from the Astro A50X but otherwise, the Nova Pro Wireless is an incredible gaming headset.
Nova Pro Wireless: Comfort
This is, at least for me, until it comes to comfort. With the original headset, there was a large ANC bump in the middle of the earcup that would press against my ears with the stock cushions.
Grabbing a pair of Wicked Cushions solved that issue by adding some thickness to the ear cushions and putting some distance between my ears and the ANC bumps. But, I was frustrated that a $350 pair of premium gaming headphones needed an additional $30 accessory to be comfortable for more than a couple hours.
Nova Pro Wireless 2024: Video
Many other reviews have mentioned the ANC bumps causing them issues and now SteelSeries has updated the design with a new ANC mic that doesn’t require the massive bump inside the earcups – the ANC pain is totally gone for me.
But, now I’m noticing another pain point. It might just be my ears, but they rub against a hard ledge near the top of the ear cup. Taking the earpad off and examining it, there appears to be a lip on the pad that when mounted on the headset becomes rigid. Even setting the headset at its smallest size setting, which I would assume would pull the whole headset up, my ears rub against this ledge.
It’s not bad for short gaming sessions but over time I as move my head and adjust the headset, I can feel that hard ledge rubbing and irritating the tops of my ears.
Once again, Wicked Cushions come to the rescue for me with the Nova Pro Wireless. That added padding pushes my ears further away from the headset and limits that contact – making it more comfortable for me.
Sonar updates
SteelSeries has also made some updates in Sonar. Mostly, the list of pre-made configurations has been drastically expanded with more profiles for popular games. From Call of Duty to Brawlhalla, There are at least 100 different profiles to choose from. What’s great is that you can also take a profile, duplicate it, and make some adjustments if you want to tone down the tuning.
9to5Toys’ Take
While I’m so happy to see and feel that SteelSeries made adjustments to the ANC bump in the ear cups of the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless, I am still bummed that there are other comfort issues.
It could just be my ears. I haven’t heard that same complaint in any of the other reviews I’ve seen. The good news is that there is a solution. If you pick up this incredible headset and it feels fine, good! You’ll love everything about it! But if you’re like me and find some discomfort, pick up a pair of $30 Wicked Cushions, and it should take care of that for you.
Buy Nova Pro Wireless
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