SteelSeries Arctis 7P+ headset review: A PlayStation gaming great

(Pocket-lint) - There's a definite mysterious alchemy to making a genuinely large gaming headset. You don't conscionable request dependable prime and a bully design, with countless intangibles and tiny details that besides substance hugely arsenic you usage a fixed headset for much and much time.

SteelSeries has agelong had the fundamentals nailed down, with superb dependable successful headsets that are ridiculously comfortable, but a fewer of its much caller console headsets person been showing their age. There's a more-than-welcome update successful the signifier of the Arctis 7 Plus and 7P Plus, though, which makes it our favourite PlayStation 5 headset to date. Here's why:

Design

• Available successful achromatic oregon black
• Ski goggle headband

SteelSeries has a long-standing plan connection erstwhile it comes to its headsets, and it hasn't seen acceptable to get escaped of that for the Arctis 7P Plus. This is precise overmuch successful enactment with however each of its different headphones look.

That means you get a level sheet connected the extracurricular (in this lawsuit the headset is achromatic to lucifer the PS5 that it's truthful squarely aimed at). The look isn't precisely street-style worthy, but past these are precise overmuch gaming headphones, truthful who minds?

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In that field, this headset is among the nicer-looking ones we've tried. But what's much important is that it retains what makes SteelSeries specified a favourite of ours: the comfortableness levels. The operation of brushed earpads with the skis goggle headband-style plan makes for a truly beauteous fit.

The value of the headset is partially held by that band, making the earcups consciousness lighter than they are, starring to nary issues whatsoever erstwhile wearing for hours astatine a time. Plus, the alloy brace that it hangs astir is durable successful a mode that galore integrative competitors can't match.

On apical of that, a retractable microphone means that you don't person thing successful your eyeline erstwhile you fancy playing immoderate single-player games. A sensible array of controls connected each earcup besides makes things bully and casual portion you're adjusting connected the fly.

Sound quality

• 40mm drivers; 20-20,000Hz frequence response
• Bidirectional ClearCast microphone

This is yet different large introduction from SteelSeries from a plan standpoint, with the existent changes coming nether the hood. However, there's besides not overmuch alteration to study erstwhile it comes to dependable quality. The archetypal Arctis 7P was 1 of our favourite headsets for a console successful the archetypal place, and sounding fantabulous was a large portion of that.

Once again SteelSeries has fto a sleeping canine lie, which means you tin trust connected the Arctis 7P Plus to dependable fantabulous successful beauteous overmuch each scenario, whether you're playing a raucous shooter and request to pinpoint an enemy, oregon privation to luxuriate successful the sounds of a heavy phantasy role-player.

It's got capable delicacy to assistance you perceive for tiny details, but besides a proviso of warmth and extent that tin stroke you distant if you crank it up to precocious volumes.

Most of all, though, it's the equilibrium that we appreciate. Nothing gets mislaid successful the dependable premix due to the fact that thing is overpoweringly loud, which makes for a truly satisfying sonic acquisition arsenic you play.

That's matched by a truly fantabulous microphone, which volition work you large and clear, delivering immoderate of the champion clarity we've recovered successful a console headset. You get a dedicated dial connected 1 earcup to power sidetone, too, though we recovered that leaving it connected the minimum mounting was wholly fine.

As issues go, you tin record this nether "incredibly minor" but we'd besides person swapped that sidetone dial truthful that it was connected the earcup the microphone extends retired of, for immoderate clarity, but it doesn't instrumentality agelong to get utilized to.

Features

• 30-hour artillery life
• USB Type-C charging

Look, USB Type C isn't new, truthful it feels a small weird to beryllium celebrating its accomplishment connected a tech merchandise successful precocious 2021, but the information is that for galore of SteelSeries headsets from the past 2 years determination was lone 1 evident flaw - utilizing Micro-USB.

The Arctis 7P Plus fixes that occupation - and the alteration is extraordinarily welcome. We were keeping a Micro-USB cablegram astir purely for our Arctis 9, fixed its presumption arsenic our default headset, and the 7P Plus' adoption means we tin yet bash without it.

It means you tin complaint your headset with the aforesaid cablegram you usage for your DualSense controller, oregon your Android phone, your laptop, oregon immoderate fig of different devices, and it besides makes for a charging larboard that's mode little apt to get bent retired of signifier implicit time.

The lone different large alteration to the headset's feature-set is different truly large one, too. Its artillery beingness has got a important boost up to 30 hours - a fig that we've recovered to beryllium beauteous close successful our testing. Just 15 minutes of charging volition get you 3 hours' playback, too, truthful you shouldn't get caught abbreviated excessively often.

The headset volition really link to your PS5 oregon PS4 utilizing a tiny dongle that's unobtrusive, and comes with an adapter successful lawsuit you don't person a USB Type-C larboard free. You tin besides daisy-chain successful different headset utilizing a 3.5mm jack connected 1 earcup.

Writing by Max Freeman-Mills. Editing by Mike Lowe. Originally published connected 2 December 2021.