Turtle Beach Ear Force Stealth 420X Headset for Xbox One
When it comes to playing online, there is very little that is worse than having a horrible gaming headset. Being unable to hear both the game you’re playing in all of its splendid glory, as well as your teammates yelling at you to ‘git gud’ is an absolute travesty that should be avoided at all costs. Unfortunately, this often comes at a price that is far higher than people are willing to pay. Turtle Beach seeks to provide a solution with their Stealth 420X headset for the Xbox One.
At first glance, it is clear that the Turtle Beach Stealth 420X headset definitely won’t be winning any awards for its aesthetic design. These headsets come in the signature black and green that fans will recognize from the previous Xbox One headsets manufactured by Turtle Beach. They are a bit clunky visually, but don’t let that deter you from what manages to be a solid headset for its asking price.
The hard plastic molding is lightweight, and the synthetic leather along with the memory foam cushioning make for an extremely comfortable listening experience, perfect for longer than average gaming sessions. Gaming sessions that you can in fact have, since the Turtle Beach Stealth 420X headset has a 15 hour battery life that recharges relatively quickly.
Sound is sharp and manages to remain so at all volumes. Voices come through crystal clear, explosions are as bombastic as one would hope, and subtle environmental sounds come through very well. There is no support for 7.1 surround sound, which may be a deal-breaker to some, but the headset manages to simulate the experience well enough to where it shouldn’t be an issue to anyone but the most hardcore of online gamers. Another feature missing from the Turtle Beach Stealth 420X headset is noise cancelling. The outside world will not be left behind, yet, unless you’re playing in a crowded area or during a party, this hardly becomes an issue. Using the headset in a home setting led to a rather pleasant experience, even with friends over talking in the background.
One feature that may very well prove to be one of the Turtle Beach Stealth 420X’s biggest pros is the fact that it is completely wireless. You can even use the microphone for party chat without the need of any wires, which no other headset on the Xbox One can currently do. Everything is done through the RF transmitter that connects to your console via USB. It may seem like a small bonus, but being able to not worry about tangled cords or annoying wires is a blessing for many, and will definitely lead to even the more advanced Turtle Beach headsets going the wireless route.
All in all, the Turtle Beach Stealth 420X is a solid headset. Comfortable, lightweight design (even if it isn’t so pretty), sharp sound, and true wireless connectivity make it worth the $150 asking price. If you can do without genuine 7.1 surround sound support and the lack of noise cancelling, this is definitely a gaming headset worth considering as we head towards this year’s huge video game releases.
