Alienware Pro Wireless gaming headset review: “a step out of the spaceship”

Alienware headsets have always stuck to the peripherals of my vision. Their space-age cups have sat on the shelves for years now, but it’s not a market the PC brand has invested too much time in. That all came to an end with the Pro Wireless range, a selection of sleek accessories that bring the brand into more conversations with the likes of Razer, Logitech, and SteelSeries.

These brands produce some of the best gaming headsets on the market, and Alienware is finally starting to tread on their toes. The Alienware Pro Wireless headset sits in the upper mid-range of the market, at $229.99 / £221.99 it’s a good deal cheaper than the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless and Astro A50 X that dominate the top shelves. And yet it’s considerably more expensive than the majority of mid-range options, territory of the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5, Razer BlackShark V2 Hyperspeed, and Turtle Beach Atlas Air.

The Alienware Pro Wireless takes some strong steps to distance itself from these cheaper alternatives. Active noise cancellation, a super comfortable set of cups, and a wider 20Hz - 40kHz frequency range makes for a compelling feature set. I’ve spent the last three months using the latest Alienware cups to see where they sit among the best wireless headsets on the market.

Design

If you thought Alienware only dealt with fantastical designs you can think again. The Pro Wireless is muted compared to the aesthetics of previous releases, with a slimline, low profile design complimented by a soft-touch matte plastic cover and soft, rounded corners. That’s in direct opposition to the chunky, angular frames of yore, and one I prefer for more versatile use. From looks alone, this headset can easily join you through work, commuting, and everyday activities - the detachable microphone might be a pain to keep track of, but without it this looks like any other high-end set of headphones.

The Alienware logo stamped on each side might give you away to fellow gamers in the know, but it’s in-keeping with the style of the headset as a whole, subtle and classy.

That logo sits on the side of each oval-shaped earcup, on a slightly extended section of the can itself. Designers may have been tempted to slip back into old habits with this ledge, but its smooth rounded corners keep those angles toned down and instead creates a more dynamic visual effect that keeps the gentle curves of the wider design.

On the inside of those cups are perhaps the most comfortable cup cushions I’ve ever experienced. The Turtle Beach Atlas Air holds onto the top spot overall in this category, but if I could combine that headset’s floating mesh headband with these memory foam leatherette pads I’d be a very happy player indeed. The contours of the cushions sit perfectly around my ears, never encroaching on the tip or lobe, and provide a tight enough fit to feel secure while never clamping down particularly hard. It’s as close to a perfect balance I’ve ever felt, and despite this material being known for its warmer qualities I never overheated during longer sessions.

That’s surprising, because the actual amount of padding in here isn’t too substantial. You’ll find much chunkier cushioning on the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless and Nova 5 models - but the difference is this memory foam is much more pliable. That means it sits against the side of the head a little easier, bending to whichever shape it needs to be with less resistance behind it.

At 315g, the Alienware Pro Wireless isn’t the lightest headset on the market, or even in my comparison pool. It’s heavier than the Arctis Nova 5, Razer BlackShark V2 Hyperspeed, and Turtle Beach Atlas Air, but brushes just under the 363g weight of the Astro A50 X and 339g Nova Pro Wireless. It’s in the middle of the pack, but still manages to eek towards the top for comfort. While the headband could benefit from a little more padding, it’s easy to adjust and still proves more tolerable than the Asus ROG Delta II.

The Alienware Pro Wireless comes in both black and white (Dark Side of the Moon and Lunar Light if you’re Dell), with an all-plastic construction save for the aluminum headband. I love the finish on this plastic, though - this is far from your average cheap headset material. Most high-end headsets still keep a plastic frame, it’s lighter and more pliable than a slightly sturdier material, but it’s nice to see the Pro Wireless taking steps to feel as premium as its price tag suggests. I much prefer it to the shiny exterior of the Astro A50 X.

The build is solid underneath that coating as well. The headband can withstand a good amount of flexing without creaking and the cushions are pinned to the side of the cups without a single crinkle. That’s one of the bigger benefits over a cheaper headset like the Razer BlackShark V2 Hyperspeed, which - straight out of the box - presented with some joinery issues around the cups. However, I find the SteelSeries Arctis Nova 5 Wireless to be just as flexible (and more) in their durability.

Everything’s looking good for the design of the Alienware Pro Wireless, then, which is why I was so disappointed with one minor design decision. These cups don’t swivel - at all. For a headset that wants to be taken on the road that feels like a major oversight. I usually put my headsets in a backpack with their cups at a full 180 degree angle to keep everything safe (and preferably in a case, which Alienware doesn’t provide either). Without that flexibility it feels a little too risky to keep the Pro Wireless with me wherever I am. It also means the cups don’t sit well when worn around the neck and don’t shape themselves around the side of your head as much. While it ultimately creates a more durable strut design, pretty much every other headset I’ve tested in the last three years has been able to swivel and they’re all still going in my roster.

Features

There are a couple of features in here that you won’t find in too many other gaming headsets. Active noise cancellation, for example, is a particularly rare offering. The SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless is the only other device in my testing pool that carries the feature, and it does so at a much higher price point.

It’s a solid system that works wonders under light and moderate sound loads, though louder, particularly high-frequency noises can still sometimes catch it out. It’s as good as I’ve heard it on the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless, though. As with many ANC headphones, there is a faint hum to the overall sound profile, so I’d only recommend using it when you really need to. I can say that fairly easily, though, because even without that extra grunt these cups are particularly impressive in their sound isolation. I can’t hear my own keyboard clacking away as I type this and listen to some chilled lo-fi, and ANC is firmly off.

ANC is easily controlled via a small button on the left cup, where it’s joined by the volume dial and mic mute button. On the right, you’ll find power and connection switches distributed a sensible distance from each other. There’s no chat mix or sidetone controls available on the headset itself, but I do appreciate the simplicity of these controls - especially compared to headsets that load one on top of another.

As is to be expected at this price point (though many headsets still get away with not offering it), the Alienware Pro Wireless supports both 2.4GHz and Bluetooth connections. You can also connect via the included cable, though note this is a USB-C affair (with a USB-A adapter should you need it) - that means it’s not a particularly console-friendly fallback option. Xbox players need not apply, this is a PC / PlayStation / Nintendo Switch only device.

The included microphone is detachable, which means you won’t have to worry about it when you’re out and about. In previous years that would have been a benefit, but now that SteelSeries and the Razer Kraken V4 have started hiding their mics in retractable pockets it feels a little outdated.

While you’re home, though, that boom mic is one of the Alienware Pro Wireless’s biggest assets. Voice recordings and in-game chat is crystal clear, textured, and robust - in a manner that’s only comparable to the fantastic super wideband mic on the Razer BlackShark V2 Pro. That’s also complimented by ANC noise canceling working to keep your background noise firmly away from your recording space. This also works well, keeping keyboard and mouse clicks out of chat while also taking on larger background noises.

Battery life officially clocks in at 75 hours on Bluetooth without ANC, only dropping to 70 hours over 2.4GHz. That’s a solid runtime that easily beats cheaper options from SteelSeries and Razer, though both the Nova Pro Wireless and Astro A50 X have their own battery workarounds via charging cradles and hot-swappable batteries. You could argue that the Alienware Pro Wireless has its own trick up its sleeve with its 15 minute fast charging, but it’s still behind more premium models in how it handles power overall.

I found that 70 hour rate to ring true during my own testing. During my full battery run (without ANC), I was able to keep the headset alive for around a week and a half, using the headset for music and gaming for between five and eight hours per day. Sporadically switching noise canceling on does drain that charge quicker - the Pro Wireless was dead after five days when using ANC for a couple of hours every now and then.

Everything is controlled via Dell’s Alienware Command Center software, but options in this program are limited. This where you can configure power settings including adjusting the sleep time, set the volume of the main cups and microphone, enable or disable ANC or toggle Transparency Mode, and download the Dolby Atmos software. It’s in this latter app that you’ll actually be tinkering with EQ and choosing different presets. That’s a frustrating split, it’s a small nitpick, but having to rely on two separate pieces of software to alter a $200+ headset’s EQ is disappointing. Most gaming brands host their own settings on their software directly, and Alienware is still catching up in this department.

Performance

Underneath those cushions you’ll find a set of 50mm graphene drivers, similar to those found in high-end sets like the Logitech G Pro X 2 and Corsair Virtuoso Pro. It’s a more stable material that allows for the oscillation of sound waves at higher frequencies to be more controlled, resulting in greater detailing and less distortion at high volumes. Alienware hasn’t implemented these drivers quite as well as other brands.

Unlike the Astro A50 X that benefits from all the above, Dell has tuned these headphones at such a high volume that even a sheet of graphene produces distortion in the upper ranges when pushed to its limit. As a result, I barely made it past 10% volume during my testing - anything much higher simply wasn’t comfortable to listen to and often produced screechy highs and murky lows, with a mid-range that seemed to be caught in the crossfire and lost as a result.

I can’t complain too much, though, with the volume at a reasonable level these things sound incredible. When the volume is kept under control, there’s a particularly energetic interplay between different ranges at work here, with fantastic balancing between them. A powerful low range can thrum up to deep, resonating pumps of bass while the top-end has plenty of space to include finer details as well. I needed to tweak a few settings before getting the most out of this soundstage, but once I upped the bass a little and levelled out the mid-range, music, movies, and games were represented with equally deft handling and plenty of texture.

Horizon Forbidden West is always a struggle for gaming headsets. The game features a particularly clustered mid-range, eeking slightly into a busy low-end with machine sounds. Placing myself squarely in the middle of some roaming beasts, I was impressed with the clarity in the lower-mids - though cranking the volume collapsed the soundstage as the headset started to spin out.

There’s a fantastic sense of atmosphere between these cups, though, proven in my testing across The Last of Us Part 2’s The Descent mission. This smaller soundstage provided a good opportunity for the Pro Wireless to show off its directional audio, but also its textural qualities. There’s enough space in the lower ranges for that looming sense of dread to pervade through this mission, with every lurking enemy’s groans and shuffles echoing between the ears beautifully.

That low end is well and truly put to the test in Doom Eternal. With Dolby Atmos on PC I did prefer my experience at my desktop in this game - being able to fine-tune the EQ for these metal-heavy runs is a must, and without these individual settings a lot of information was lost on PS5. The bass is slightly weaker by default, and the game didn’t pack the same punch as a result.

Directional imaging and accuracy is impressive, with a clear and distinct sense of placement and movement in both CS:2 and Apex Legends. Audio information isn’t quite as detailed as the Razer BlackShark V2 Pro in this regard, but it’s still impressive.

Should you buy the Alienware Pro Wireless?

The Alienware Pro Wireless occupies a tricky spot in the current headset market. It’s cheaper than the reigning premium champions but drops a few of those luxurious features, while being more expensive than the traditional mid-range and adding its own extras into the mix. This isn’t the only device in this spot - I’ve recently finished reviewing the Asus ROG Delta II at the same MSRP. It does, however, work much harder than others to justify its position. Active noise cancellation, a supremely comfortable cup design, fantastic sound performance, and a rich, vibrant microphone make this a must-see for anyone looking to splash a bit more cash than usual on an audio upgrade.

I’d primarily recommend the Alienware Pro Wireless to PC players over those on console. While its comfortable form factor could make it one of the best PS5 headsets in isolation, tweaks only available in Dolby Atmos, and the USB-C cable required for wired listening, mean PC players are going to see the biggest benefits. If you regularly swap between PC and PS5 you’re still going to have a great time here, with the added benefit of ANC and a more versatile form factor.

If you want more flexible microphone integration, the freedom of a hot-swappable battery (no more charging), and still excellent audio quality, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless is still the better buy, and current sale prices tend to dip it down to around $279.99 at the moment anyway.

How I tested the Alienware Pro Wireless

I used the Alienware Pro Wireless over a period of three months, testing alongside the Asus ROG Delta II and SteelSeries Arctis GameBuds. During that time I spent one month exclusively using the Pro Wireless for all daily work and play, primarily running the headset across Ghostwire Tokyo (PS5, PC), Fallout 4 (PC), Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (PC), Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (PC), and Oxenfree 2 (PC). I also performed our usual tests across Horizon Forbidden West (PS5), The Last of Us Part 2 (PS5), Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (PS5), Doom Eternal (PC, PS5), and both CS2 and Apex Legends (PC). For more information on how we test gaming headsets, check out the full GamesRadar+ Hardware Policy.

We’re also rounding up all the best Xbox Series X headsets as well as the best Nintendo Switch headsets - or check out more of the best PC headsets on the market.