Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 Headset for Xbox Review

There are many gamers who wouldn’t even consider going into battle without a decent headset to hand. And for many of those, that headset must come from Turtle Beach. You see, over the years the name has become synonymous with gaming quality, so much so that the brand is one of the first names to trip off the tongue when you ask any gamer to name a quality headset provider. And Turtle Beach want it to stay that way going forward – and that is where their latest headset, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 for Xbox, comes in. 

As the name suggests, Turtle Beach have got eyes on the next generation of gaming, and with their Stealth 700 Gen 2 – and the Stealth 600 Gen 2 for that matter – they are covering all bases, giving gamers access to one of the best headsets on the market that is more than capable of straddling the divide across generations. 

Designed for Xbox One and Xbox Series X, and being compatible with Windows PC should you have the Xbox wireless adapter, the next iteration of Turtle Beach’s premium wireless headset is one of sheer beauty. It looks great, it feels great, it sounds great, and it just so happens to have a ton of stunning tricks up its sleeve. When you consider the £129.99 asking price, I’d go as far as to say this is an utter steal. And yes, I fully understand that £100+ is a significant amount of cash to lay out. But I’m that impressed with my hands-on time with the headset, that anyone looking to splash out on a quality, premium piece of kit, should possibly look no further. 

It seems that over the years I’ve said that a fair old bit about numerous Xbox-related headsets, and it’s true that the real gaming powerhouses from the likes of Razer – the Razer Nari Ultimate for Xbox One, for instance – are amongst some of the very best sounding, most well-equipped sets on the market. But they come with a hefty price tag attached. Even though that £100+ asking price of the Stealth 700 Gen 2 for Xbox will immediately put it out of reach of many, when you consider the extra benefit this brings over a more mid-range set, it’s all a bit of a no-brainer. 

So, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 for Xbox immediately oozes quality. It feels great in the hand, not light, but never heavy (382grams in weight), but it is most definitely well-balanced from the get go. More importantly though, it feels superb to wear. An all-metal reinforced headband brings the whole thing together, with the inner side of that complete with a decent amount of padding. This ensures that you can wear the 700 Gen 2 for long periods of time without any need to remove it, with comfort in place at all times. It’s made to look better still by a matt black outer band adorning the Turtle Beach logo. This is a really understated look that sees the whole thing come across as classy; it’s certainly  no crappy plastic affair that many gaming headsets – some of those the cheaper Turtle Beach options – come across as. 

That headband is fully adjustable too, allowing it to fit any size head with ease. It must be said though that when it is on your head, it’s a super tight fit – whether you like that or not may vary, but for me it feels brilliant. That fit is complemented well by some TB logo’d Aerofit-styled earcups that house 50mm Nanoclear neodymium drivers inside some super squishy cooling gel-infused synthetic leathered earcups. Yep, lots of tech speak right there, but honestly from the first minute of taking the Stealth 700 Gen 2 out of the box, I was drawn to these cups immediately, and they’ve been an utter pleasure to use. Comfort is a main selling point of any headset and the tech thrown into these has meant that every single play session – and even when outside of gaming – has been a good one. I just can’t fail to be impressed by the overall aesthetic and feel these deliver, with a brilliant fit that is completed by the keeping of Turtle Beach’s ‘glasses friendly’ promise.

I’ve also been pretty damn touched by the sounds that the Stealth 700 Gen 2 deliver. The 50mm Nanoclear neodymium drivers provide super punchy, super realistic audio no matter whether you are using these as a gaming device or as a pair of cans to deliver the latest musical melodies to your ears. And when you throw in some easily accessible EQ presets – Signature Sound, Bass Boost, Bass + Treble Boost, Vocal Boost – making sure the Stealth delivers the sounds you want is super easy. I’ve happily had these fired up as high as they can go in terms of volume levels and taken in a host of different experiences, and not once have I noticed a single crackle, hiss, or bit of distortion. Credit has to go out to Turtle Beach for creating such a well detailed set of cans. 

Further to that though and Turtle Beach’s famed Superhuman Hearing Mode is in place on these, promising to let you pinpoint the tiniest of audio cues as you game. Honestly, I’m neither here nor there with this inclusion, and whilst I’ve been extremely happy with everything it has provided in terms of gaming audio, I’m not sure this doesn’t come across as a gimmick more than anything else. It’s nice to have and all, but when you’re getting old like me it’s hard to ever distinguish these moments. Each to their own and all that. 

What isn’t a gimmick is the mappable Mode button and wheel. By utilising the Turtle Beach Audio Hub mobile app on either iOS or Android, you can play around with specific settings to your heart’s content. It’s a great app too – at least the Android one is, I can’t speak for the iOS equivalent – letting you configure the Superhuman Hearing, audio presets, mic monitoring and chat boost with ease. Just being able to set the scroll wheel to amend volumes of mobile to gaming audio is a super cool feature. Throw in a variety of other options like setting your own specific level of tone and voice prompts – which happily dictate battery levels, pairing status and more – and there is little reason for you to not get the utmost experience possible. Out of the box the Stealth 700 Gen 2 for Xbox sounds good, but go diving into the multitude of settings allowed and it gets better still. 

This is also a headset that is absolutely perfect for those who like to game with friends. A well-concealed flip-to-mute mic is included in the Stealth 700 Gen 2, and much like the rest of the headset I’ve been massively impressed by not just how easy it is to flip up and out of the way, but how solid party chat is when in use. Friends have commented that all voice chat is crystal clear, with hardly a drop in audio throughout a good few gaming sessions. In my eyes, that is all a gimme for a decent mic. I can’t speak for the previous Stealth 700, but Turtle Beach are promising a beefier, high sensitivity, high performance mic here, and through use that is exactly what is given. 

This review may sound like it is full of praise for the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 headset for Xbox, and you’d be right, mostly because it’s an impressive piece of kit. But further to all the brilliance it has already provided, the inclusion of a 1000mAh battery ensures that this will keep you gaming for a good 20 hours. I’ve always been one to take these hour statements with a pinch of salt, as usage varies for every gamer, but from my own personal use Turtle Beach ain’t far away from providing that. And even when it does go low, the included USB-A to USB-C charging cable and compatible port on the headset allows for quick, easy charging. I’ve not yet found a situation where this has let me down. 

So, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 for Xbox looks great, it sounds great, it feels great and it comes with nearly everything you could ever want in a headset. But what’s wrong? 

Well, ‘wrong’ is probably the incorrect word to use here, as nothing is particularly bad, but a quirk, if I may, is that every time you switch on the Stealth 700 Gen 2, it switches on your Xbox One. That in itself is a neat little trick, but unfortunately switching off the headset doesn’t return the favour. When you just want to use this as a headset for listening to some tunes in the house, and don’t want to necessarily power up your console, it’s a bit of a ballache. Oh, and others don’t quite agree with me on the fit – but hey, this is my review and I think it feels great on the head. 

On the whole though those are two extremely minor negative points for what is a stunning new Turtle Beach headset. With it working right now with Xbox One, and then also with the upcoming Xbox Series X, if you’re looking to spend around £120 on a new audio giver, it’s a total toss-up between this and Steelseries’ slightly cheaper Arctis 1 Wireless for Xbox. Yes there are others that are more expensive, but do they sound significantly better? Not from what I’ve heard. I think the fact that my jaw dropped open upon first turning the Stealth 700 Gen 2 up to 11 speaks wonders. If Turtle Beach headsets are your bag, you won’t be disappointed with what the Stealth 700 Gen 2 for Xbox provides. 

Massive thanks go out to Turtle Beach for providing us with the Stealth 700 Gen 2 Headset for Xbox and the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Headset for Xbox for unboxing and review purposes. If you wish to pick one up for yourself, then you’ll find them available at Turtle Beach direct, with the 700 Gen 2 rolling around the £129.99 mark. 

Related: Unboxing and first look at the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 Headset for Xbox One.