In the next step of its seemingly never-ending quest to offer tiers within tiers of its constantly expanding range of gaming headsets, Turtle Beach has unleashed its Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset onto the gaming populace at large. However, whereas the previous iterative generations of previous Turtle Beach headsets have been predominately around establishing a broader selection of extremely high quality mid-range headsets, for the Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset Turtle Beach however, has very much elected to go down the premium route, resulting in a hugely compelling high-end headset with a range of truly premium features. Read our Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset review for the definitive lowdown on why Turtle Beach’s latest headset might also be its best yet.
Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 Headset Review
In this Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset review
Wireless Performance
In following the design footprint of Turtle Beach’s other headsets, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset provides users with a wireless connection and also a Bluetooth 5.2 connection. Once again, Turtle Beach’s QuickSwitch button returns to the table, providing players with the ability to switch between devices which utilise either protocol easily – thanks in no small part to how easily findable the QuickSwitch button is on the headset itself.
Just like other Turtle Beach headsets from both the mid-range and high-end tiers, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset is super easy to get started with, too. To get going, simply plug the USB adaptor into the USB slot on your PlayStation 5 console, turn on the headset, switch it to wireless mode and boom, your Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset is ready to go.
It’s also here that we run into one of the Stealth 700 Gen 3’s new features – it’s newly touted CrossPlay wireless audio system. Instead of just a single USB dongle, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset actually boasts two wireless USB dongles which can be plugged into two devices at once and a handy button on the headset allows you to switch effortlessly between wireless connections on two different active devices. Though the use cases for such a thing are admittedly on the margins, having functionality which allows you to switch from using your shiny new headset on your laptop and/or desktop PC to your PS5 console, is nonetheless a cool feature and one that makes headset gaming between those two device more seamless than it arguably ever has been.
Battery Life
Like the Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 3 headset before it, the Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset boasts a monstrous 80 hours of battery life from just one charge. In practice, this means that you can tear through and complete Astro Bot, The Plucky Squire, Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster and *still* have a decent amount of charge left to go even longer. Put simply, you will tire many times over long before the Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset does.
And just like the Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 3 headset, this sizable battery is charged extremely quickly by the USB-C cable which is handily packed inside the box.
Sound Quality
At $199/£179, the Turtle Beach 700 Gen 3 headset is undeniably priced very much as a high-end, premium headset and that’s because, well, it *is* a high-end, premium headset and perhaps nowhere is that better evidenced than in the stunning sound quality that Turtle Beach’s latest headset is capable of putting out at any given moment.
Leaving behind the still-excellent 50mm Nanoclear drivers that were found in the Turtle Beach 600 Gen 3 headset, this latest offering from Turtle Beach goes a full notch higher, employing 60mm Eclipse(tm) dual drivers which turn out to be a much bigger leap over that aforementioned headset than I originally thought were possible.
Providing hugely punchy bass along with precious sound quality, the clarity and depth of sound that the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 provide is utterly exceptional and certainly helps to justify its decidedly premium price point. From the pin-point sharpness of the soundscape which is synonymous with every one of Astro Bot’s worlds, to the roar of a feverish stadium crowd during a championship match in WWE 2K24, all of it comes thunderously through the Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset in a way that all but only the highest end of the pro era Turtle Beach headsets can achieve.
Beyond those 60mm Eclipse(tm) drivers, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset also brings the AI noise reduction technology seen in the Stealth 600 Gen 3 headset back into the fold. Just like its implementation in that earlier headset, the AI noise reduction functionality is effective in letting players have the best of both worlds – enabling them to be in a room filled with noise and yet still play online games like Fortnite and Warframe without that noise creeping through to the mic uninvited. Again, much like that previous Turtle Beach headset, having this feature which allows you to continue your online multiplayer gaming in a room regardless of the noise level, is something that is extremely freeing to say the least.
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Like other Turtle Beach headsets which lurk in the mid to high end, the Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset once more employs the Advanced Superhuman Hearing technology. Actively working to amplify higher sound frequencies and reduce background noise, Turtle Beach’s Advanced Superhuman Hearing technology very much feels like the icing on the cake of what is already a compellingly high end, premium headset.
Equally predictably, the Swarm II software again returns and allows inclined users to tweak and fiddle with the EQ bands and sound profiles. Though the app itself (which is available on iOS and Android devices), remains largely workmanlike and not quite as accessible as it needs to be, the fact that Turtle Beach remains committed to updating it over the long-term suggests that such improvements may not lurk that far over the horizon.
Form Factor, Comfort & Overall Design
Of every aspect of the Stealth 700 Gen 3’s technical design, it’s perhaps the form factor and physical stature of the headset that surprises the most. Though this latest headset is noticeably larger than the Stealth 600 Gen 3 headset, it still oddly feels just as pleasingly lightweight, even though it employs a metal frame across the top of the headset itself.
Pleasingly, the memory ear phone cushions make a return here too, adding up to a headset which, despite its larger size, nonetheless confidently stakes itself as one of the most comfortable headsets Turtle Beach has ever manufactured.
Speaking of the headset’s physical design, the built-in mic is – as before – easy to use by simply snapping it up or down into perspective as needed. There aren’t any big, groundbreaking innovations here – but neither does there need to be either. To quote that old maxim, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
Final Words
A truly high-end offering with a performance profile and price point to match, the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset is one of the best headsets Turtle Beach has put out in years, representing a soaring synergy of pro specification functionality and ultra comfort that other headsets will struggle to draw favourable parallels with.
The Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset is out now.
Review unit kindly provided by Turtle Beach PR.