The speakers themselves are squat, bulgy little guys, connected to the subwoofer by decently thick cables. So, for example, you don’t have to choose between playing music via your phone while you’re up and about and hearing a ping from your boss on Slack. When paired via Bluetooth, the audio signal will mix with whatever is coming through the desktop/console.

This latter use case is surprisingly convenient.

I’ve used them as the primary speakers on my desk for the past few weeks, but I’ve also occasionally used them to play audio directly from my phone. This gives you a surprisingly wide range of options for desktop speakers. You can connect the system via USB-C, optical audio, 3.5 mm, or even Bluetooth.

The set comes with two speakers equipped with RGB LED backlights and a substantial 6.5-inch subwoofer for the low end. The Arena 7 I tested is a bit of a hybrid of both. The Arena 3 is a simple stereo set, while the Arena 9 comes with 5.1 surround sound, a dedicated volume control knob accessory, and RGB LEDs on the two front speakers. The Arena 7 speaker system is the middle option of SteelSeries’ new desktop speaker line.

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