Turtle Beach Stealth Pro Review – Phenomenal, With A Price To Match

With the arrival of the Stealth Pro, Turtle Beach has as soon as once more cemented itself as a pacesetter within the gaming headsets market. Yes, Turtle Beach has been probably the most recognizable names within the gaming audio area for practically twenty years, however as the sphere crowded with formidable opponents, Turtle Beach fell behind the pack when it comes to high quality. Turtle Beach’s Stealth Pro is just not solely the producer’s finest headset ever, but in addition probably the greatest gaming headsets you should buy in 2023 throughout all platforms.

One look on the sticker worth will in all probability make you suppose: Well, I’d hope it is good for that worth. And that worth occurs to be $330. So, yeah, you are carrying a headset that prices greater than the Xbox Series S or Nintendo Switch you are doubtlessly enjoying on. The worth is undoubtedly exhausting to abdomen, and it places the Stealth Pro in a distinct segment however rising class of extremely-premium gaming headsets. Most flagship headsets these days retail within the $150-to-$200 worth range–headsets just like the MetalSeries Arctis Nova 7 and Razer BlackShark V2 Pro. And for many gamers, these headsets supply greater than sufficient when it comes to efficiency, consolation, seems to be, and sturdiness.

The Stealth Pro is a special beast; it is a headset that makes an attempt to do for gaming audio what Sony and Bose did for studio headphones. And Turtle Beach is not truly breaking new floor right here. The Stealth Pro was clearly designed to compete with the MetalSeries Arctis Nova Pro, a $350 gaming headset that was fairly simply the perfect headset I’ve ever tried from mainly the second I began gaming with it.

Given Turtle Beach’s lackluster current output, such because the garish and moderately uncomfortable Stealth 700 Max Gen 2 (a $200 headset), I did not actually count on the Stealth Pro to rival the Arctis Nova Pro.

I used to be flawed.

The Stealth Pro truly beats the Nova Pro in a few notable areas, together with noise cancellation and customization. The Nova Pro does beat it in consolation and appears, however the Stealth Pro is not far behind, which is spectacular in and of itself since MetalSeries’ Arctis collection primarily reinvented the with its distinctive and extremely efficient ConsolationMax system.

Out of the field, the Stealth Pro has a wealthy, vibrant sound whether or not you are utilizing 2.4GHz wi-fi or Bluetooth 5.1. Turtle Beach actually knocked it out of the park in relation to the audio drivers, because the 50mm drivers excel mightily with each lows and highs. The bass particularly is sort of spectacular. Many gaming headsets battle with deep lows, however the Stealth Pro stays crisp and clear.

What differentiates the Stealth Pro from the competitors are its handy and versatile customization options, that are notably current throughout your entire units. The Turtle Beach Audio Hub is accessible on each PC and cell (iOS and Android). Whereas most excessive-finish headsets reserve their customization options for PC (together with the Nova Pro), the Stealth Pro would not have that limitation. Your personalised audio settings are saved on the headset, which implies you possibly can benefit from practically all the sturdy customization options on not simply PC, however Xbox, PlayStation, and cell units through Bluetooth.

The app has a variety of fundamental and superior options. Sliders allow you to regulate energetic noise cancellation, treble, bass and vocal enhance, and Turtle Beach’s Superhuman Hearing tech. Superhuman Hearing is Turtle Beach’s means of pinpointing and figuring out sounds that you simply won’t hear in any other case. On the Stealth Pro, this tech has by no means been higher due to the readability offered by the improved audio drivers.

If you need to actually get into the weeds, you possibly can create customized presets utilizing the superior settings. These 10 sliders regulate frequencies in relation to decibels throughout all 10 audio bands. With superior settings–which by nature are geared toward audiophiles–you have additional management over your audio, permitting you to create a extra distinct profile than you’d be capable to in any other case.

Universal compatibility is what makes the Stealth Pro’s customization options so good. But when you’re strictly a PC participant, personalization continues to be higher on MetalSeries’ Sonar attributable to exact tweaks you may make to spotlight or masks very specific sounds. For multiplatform avid gamers and notably those that favor consoles, the Stealth Pro wins within the customization area.

By far probably the most spectacular customization function on the Stealth Pro is the energetic noise cancellation. To put it merely, it has the perfect noise-canceling tech of any gaming headset. Previously, that honor went to the Nova Pro, however the Stealth Pro provides a noticeable distinction. On the technical facet, this function maxes out at -25db of noise discount at 100Hz. For comparability, the Nova Pro hits -16db. To evaluate them, I turned a fan on the best setting and sat subsequent to it with energetic noise cancellation tuned to the max. I may solely faintly hear the fan with the Stealth Pro, however the hum of the blades was nonetheless identifiable with the Nova Pro. To be clear, the Nova Pro’s noise-canceling tech is stellar; it is simply that nearly a 12 months has handed and Turtle Beach has topped it. And on the opposite facet of the spectrum, the Stealth Pro’s transparency mode is classy. If you need to hear the sport audio whereas nonetheless being plugged into the world round you, that works properly, too.

Like all gaming headsets, there are inputs on the earcups as properly. Turtle Beach saved issues easy right here with an influence button, Bluetooth activation, and a toggle button between the Superhuman Hearing and the constructed-in microphone. But the outer ring of the fitting earcup has a nifty wheel–not a small dial; the entire rim rotates–that’s mapped to quantity management by default. You can map it to different capabilities, comparable to Superhuman Hearing, base and treble enhance, energetic noise cancellation, sport and chat combine (on Xbox), and extra. In the middle of the wheel is a button that may be remapped to toggle ANC, noise gate, or chat enhance, and it could actually cycle by the audio presets.

Rather than pairing with a conventional 2.4GHz dongle, the Stealth Pro has a small transmitter station that plugs into your console or PC through USB. There’s a toggle that switches between Xbox and PC or PlayStation and PC. Unfortunately, you possibly can solely be related to 1 console or PC at a time–you have to modify the cable connection when altering units. However, you possibly can have two simultaneous connections by pairing to a Bluetooth machine along with the transmitter.

Important apart right here: You can buy the Xbox model of the Stealth Pro, not the PlayStation. The headsets are an identical. The distinction? The Xbox model additionally works on PC and PlayStation. The PlayStation model doesn’t work on Xbox. This sounds foolish, however it’s regular for “universal” headsets attributable to Xbox’s distinctive wi-fi protocols. The USB-C connection on the Xbox transmitter meets these protocols; the PlayStation transmitter doesn’t. When utilizing the Xbox model on PlayStation, the toggle is switched to PC. So until you do not have an Xbox or know with absolute certainty you may by no means get one, the Xbox version is the great Stealth Pro.

Just just like the Nova Pro, the Stealth Pro comes with two battery packs, one in all which costs within the transmitter whereas enjoying. This means you may by no means have to attach your headset to a USB-C cable to cost whereas gaming on PC, Xbox, or PlayStation–you merely pop off a faceplate on the left earcup and swap the battery packs. It’s a welcome function, particularly because the Stealth Pro solely will get round 12 hours on a full charge–not a excessive determine by trendy requirements.

When it involves the mics, the Stealth Pro has some good options. It comes with a removable cardioid increase mic and in addition has a pair of constructed-in microphones–a useful little perk for cell since you possibly can take calls and use voice assistants with out having a increase mic in entrance of your face. Microphone tech hasn’t advanced as a lot as audio drivers in current years–at least from a noticeable standpoint. All of the microphones work properly, and through my testing, they did a stable job of eliminating background noise. However, I would not say the microphone is healthier than the typical mid- to excessive-finish headset.

A function-wealthy gaming headset is not price a lot if it is not snug to put on for prolonged gaming classes. The ugly fact is that many, many gaming headsets–even costly ones!–suffer from this pesky, and generally painful, subject. I’ve examined dozens of gaming headsets over the previous few years, and the vast majority of them have brought on ear soreness and cranium pressure–sometimes inside an hour of placing them on. If you put on glasses like myself, the discomfort is usually even worse. Although there are exceptions, worth typically correlates with consolation as a lot as audio high quality with gaming headsets, so it isn’t shocking that the Stealth Pro is among the finest ever within the consolation division.

The Stealth Pro’s massive, leatherette earcups disperse warmth very properly, and the plush reminiscence foam did not trigger any ear discomfort. The earcups swivel, which is a reasonably normal however welcome function. It’s price noting I wore these for practically your entire work day for a number of weeks straight. The sturdy headband is padded with the identical leatherette and reminiscence foam. The earcup and headset design makes the Stealth Pro pleasant for many who put on glasses (many headsets are terrible on this regard).

But though the Stealth Pro has a comfier match than the overwhelming majority of gaming headsets, it is not nearly as good because the Nova Pro (and even the Nova 7) on this regard. As alluded to earlier, the ConsolationMax system that MetalSeries makes use of is unmatched for headband design. The design is straightforward however extremely efficient: an adjustable elastic material band that retains the stress of the headscarf off of your cranium. This makes the Nova Pro really feel lighter, virtually to the purpose that I overlook it is there. That’s not the case with the Stealth Pro, which feels tighter and “always there.” Again, it isn’t painful, it is simply not stealthy on this facet.

The Stealth Pro can be bulkier than the Nova Pro. It’s definitely not unwieldy like another current Turtle Beach headsets, however it’s not glossy, both. I’ll say that it’s the least “gaming” look Turtle Beach has gone with as a result of practically all-black, clear design.

The design is notable as a result of these extremely-premium gaming headsets may double as common, on a regular basis headphones. No, the audio is not on the extent of excessive-finish music headphones just like the Sony WH-1000XM5, however no gaming headset could be anticipated to match conventional headphones on this means. However, identical to the Nova Pro, the Stealth Pro can positively double as a stable pair of standard headphones–the very good energetic noise cancellation and different customization options are glorious when paired with a smartphone through Bluetooth.

The backside line

And once more, that is what makes the Stealth Pro such an unbelievable piece of tech: its versatility. To be capable to use one premium headset on all platforms with out function omissions and customization compromises makes the Stealth Pro the perfect common gaming headset accessible now. At a worth level of $330, the Stealth Pro is the definition of “not for everyone.” If you care deeply about audio and/or noise cancellation and in addition suppose your present headset is a ache to put on, the Stealth Pro is perhaps for you.

The Turtle Beach Stealth Pro is available in Xbox (common) and PlayStation fashions and releases April 23. Both fashions include the headset, transmitter, two USB-C cables, two batteries, and a removable increase mic. Everything within the field could be saved within the included gentle plush drawstring bag.