Audio
Turtle Beach Stealth Pro: among the best in gaming audio
We take a look at the high-end Turtle Beach that puts them among the greats of gaming audio.
Audio in a game is extremely important and being fully immersive is undoubtedly a factor that helps in the vast majority of video games. Every accessory is essential when it comes to gaming and each time the thing gets more complicated as the price range increases to enter each of the possible categories. On this occasion, we review some premium wireless headsets that are positioned as one of the great audio accessories of the year: the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro.
Specifications
As always, let’s take a look at the specifications of this device:
Content and design
From the moment we open the box, we find the headsets first hand, passing to a lower part where we find their accessories, such as the removable microphone, a bag to store them and the receiver base, 2 USB-C cables, and the batteries.
As far as the design of the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro is concerned, it has a very simple look that at first glance highlights the quality of its materials. The metallic finishes of aluminum and steel, as well as the few plastic elements, give the device a good look along with the few distinctive brandings on the top of the headband as well as on the side of the headphones. The ear cushions are extremely soft, with a material similar to memory foam with a synthetic skin covering it, reaffirming the softness and lightness that cover the ears, in addition to allowing you to use glasses while playing without feeling any discomfort. Regarding the weight, they are about 400 grams that you have on your head, but they are quite bearable during long sessions of play or work.
On the right ear cup, we find the power button, Bluetooth, the volume wheel, the MODE button, and the button to access the Superhuman Hearing and microphone mute options. By default, the MODE button activates and deactivates Active Noise Cancellation, and holding it down allows us to use the volume wheel as a secondary option.
The left earbud, on the other hand, is simpler. At first glance, it seems to have only the input for the removable microphone, but by lifting the cover with the brand name, you can also find the space where one of the two batteries included is located, making it easy to access but not so noticeable where these parts go. It is also worth mentioning that although the cover is easy to remove, it is held in place by 3 magnets. Overall, the design is extremely functional, even if it can look very, very large.
Connectivity
Before mentioning its operation, it is also worth mentioning the base of the transmitter. Instead of a small USB dongle, we will connect a round base that, in addition to becoming the base of the Bluetooth 5.1 transmission with any of the devices, will become the visual indicator of the battery level of our device, or even if we have our microphone on mute. Depending on the version that we buy (Xbox or PlayStation) will be the indication that we have to put in this transmitter to be able to use our consoles or PC.
In the case of smartphones (iOS and Android) as well as the Nintendo Switch, there is no need to use this dock as we can seamlessly connect it to our device. What’s more, the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro can be connected to more than one device. This means you can play on your PC and still listen to your smartphone notifications if you want.
Sound Quality
Without a doubt, the audio quality of the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro is one of the most important factors of the device, and one of the most careful and focused on video games. Although the devices are great for listening to music, it is understandable that they are tuned more for what they are: gaming. The balance between bass and treble is very well balanced, making the experience immersive, more with noise cancellation). Similarly, it has the “superhuman hearing” function, which enhances aspects such as the detection of footsteps or other important sounds, especially in shooting games. Of course, this reduces other aspects such as music or even other sound effects, so it is not something that should be active all the time.
It should also be mentioned that the device has its own app, both on PC and smartphones, that allows us to move and adjust many of the audio elements, as well as assign different modes to the buttons.
Is the audio cancellation good?
We have certainly come across some great Active Noise Cancellation. Press the MODE button and you’ll feel a little suction and much of the noise around you will disappear. This can even be modified with the app on both PC and smartphone, being able to adjust how much you want to stop hearing within its noise range up to 25dB. Walking down the street with these headphones and even working from home was quite enjoyable with this disconnect from your surroundings.
Battery Life
Under this section, we have a battery that, although it does not have a long battery life (considering that we can find batteries that last up to 25 hours), we have separated it here. Each battery lasts just over 12 hours. That’s plenty of time to work and play for a day. However, the transmitter base is the one that helps us extend this time by always having the next battery charged. Considering that with only 15 minutes of charging we can get up to 3 hours on one battery, it does not sound bad, but if we decide to leave the house with these headphones, it will be necessary to always carry the other battery, just in case.
The Price
Undoubtedly one of the most important factors, and considering that this is a premium product, you can imagine that its price will not be low. The Turtle Beach Stealth Pro is around $350, a rather high price, but it corresponds to the materials, design, and performance of premium headphones.
With comfort, good audio, eye-catching design, and impressive noise cancellation, the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro has all the features you would expect from this premium series. The ease-of-use and quality you get is exactly what you pay for, allowing you to enjoy your gaming experience that much more.