SteelSeries Arctis 1 Wireless Headset Review

A Closer Look & Performance

Everything you need to get you started is included. There’s a 4-pole 3.5mm audio cable that’ll work on just about anything. PC, mobile, tablets, MP3 players, Xbox One, etc. Then you have USB cables, one for USB connectivity or charging. However, the other is also a mount for the dongle and acts as an extension. Handy if your computer doesn’t have Type-C, as it’ll act as a Type-A to Type-C adaptor.

The dongle looks great. It’s a simple plug and play type thing. It pairs with the headset instantly too, so no silly pairing or Bluetooth buttons to tinker with. Plug, play, go. It’s perfect to sit snug on the bottom of your mobile phone, Nintendo Switch, etc.

Arctis Style

SteelSeries has been smart with its Arctis range, and have chosen to keep the design pretty uniform. There are a few nips and tucks between the more affordable models and the flagships. However, they all still have that sleek and clean style. As you can see, it’s a closed-back driver design, with just a bit of branding towards the bottom. No RGB or big shiny logos here, just a lightly textured matte black plastic finish.

Control

On the base of the ear cups, you’ll find a lovely array of controls. There’s a microphone mute switch, which is pretty self-explanatory. Next to that, an easy to use volume control wheel, which is always welcome. In USB mode this will control the system volume, however, it’ll control the headset volume independently in other modes.

Moving around, you’ll find the 3.5mm jack, the USB charging/connectivity port, and the microphone mount. As I said, there’s plenty on here, but with it being wireless, you do really need all this at your fingertips.

Battery

All the wireless hardware, all the sound processing, etc needs power. It comes from a built-in battery pack. SteelSeries doesn’t tell us how big the battery is. However, they claim around 20 hours of battery life. We got about 15 hours out of it before we got a charge warning. However, it was being pretty ragged in that time and used at high volumes. For typical use and not deafening yourself, 20 hours sounds perfectly achievable. You can charge and play though, or drop down to 3.5mm mode where you don’t need any charge at all.

Ergonomic

The design looks fantastic, but it’s nicely tuned for comfort. I mean, it’s something you could be wearing extensively, so you want it to be comfortable anyway. The ear cups fold in, allowing you to easily wear it around your neck between games. However, the rotation also provides a good fit around your ears, since no two heads are really identical.

Of course, the adjustable headband helps too. Plus, it’s reinforced with metal strips, so it doesn’t flex out of shape.

There’s plenty of memory foam and a breathable fabric finish. The ear cups also pivot in and out just a little. Again, this just helps give you a balanced fit around your ear. The foam lets air through, sure, but it’ll let sound through too. If you want noise isolation, you’ll want to look elsewhere. However, the semi-open sound allows the headset to feel bright and clear, something that SteelSeries is well known for with their driver tuning.

Sound

That’s not to say they don’t pack plenty of punch though. Open and airy sound is great for FPS gaming and for team chat, mostly. However, you can EQ in quite a thump if you want big bass. The maximum volume is plentiful, without bordering on excessive too, so no fear of deafening yourself, but you’re not left starved of power either. You can push the EQ on all frequencies to get a big “WOW” factor and volume bump if you really feel you need it though.

It’s not the first time I’ve tested these drivers, as they are in the Arctis 9X. They were fantastic then, and the haven’t changed; literally. The sound is fairly well balanced overall. There’s good bass, but it’s certainly not the dominant force. The mid-range detail is where the drivers really shine I think, giving a slight warmth to the sound that’s very pleasant for movies, music and gaming alike. This is especially true of voice chat, as it sounds more natural than most gaming headsets.