Review: Turtle Beach Stealth 700x Gen 3 Headset (PC)

Sneaky set of useful features at a competitive price.

Overview: 

 The Stealth 700 Gen 3 headset by Turtle Beach is a great sounding wireless gaming headset for both PC and console. They sound great, have a premium fit and finish, and are very comfortable for prolonged use.  Priced at $199.99, this headset sits comfortably in the space and offers comparable if not more features than its competitors. If you need a new headset for your console or PC, don’t let the Stealth 700s sneak past you! 

Specs:  

Metal-reinforced lay flat design, unidirectional microphone with A.I. noise cancellation, two wireless transmitters for crossplay, 60 mm eclipse drivers, plush leatherette ear cushions, Bluetooth, USB-C charging, and up to 80 hours of battery life. 

Set up process: 

For this review, I am using my PC. For specific directions regarding your console, please visit Turtle Beach’s website or follow the quick start guide included in the packaging. 

I charged the headset, plugged in the USB transmitter and the Swarm software immediately recognized the headset. This is where I encountered my one and only issue with the headset: updating the firmware.  

To update the firmware, I needed to have both USB transmitters plugged into my PC and connect the headset to my phone via Bluetooth and install the Swarm II software on my phone. I did this but the Swarm software refused to find the headset. I went to the website and found the specific steps I needed to take; turn off the phone, turn off the headset, turn the phone back on, open the software, and turn the headset back on. Any variation in these steps caused an issue—so after a couple failed attempts, I got the Swarm software to recognize the headset and run the update. The update took about 10 minutes to complete. 

While not the end of the world, it was a bit of a pain at the beginning to get started with the headset. After that however, I experienced zero issues with connectivity. 

Sound Quality: 

The most important part of any headset—do they sound good? I can say that yes, the Stealth 700 gen 3 sounds amazing! The sound quality did not feel muddy at all. Footsteps in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 sounded great even with a lot of other sounds happening in the game. The bass was punchy but not overly done and didn’t drown out the mids and highs. They volume isn’t the highest I’ve experienced but it absolutely is loud enough for any environment. 

I also tested the headset with Ghost Recon: Breakpoint. The environmental sounds were elevated by the Stealth 700s. I could hear the grass and trees rustling in the wind, crickets chirping, and water running in the streams. It took an already immersive experience and made it that much better.  

The oversized ear cups also provide a fair amount of noise cancellation and create a nice seal around my ears to block out other noises. I’d like to add that the cups are very comfortable—just the right amount of give and firmness for my liking. 

Microphone: 

The microphone is advertised as having A.I. noise cancellation—what doesn’t have A.I. in it these days? To test this, I have recorded some samples below: 

• Quiet Room:

• TV on in the background to simulate other people in the room:

Overall, the microphone sounds good, and the noise cancellation is no gimmick! 

Features I like: 

• Simultaneous Bluetooth connectivity. Switching from PC to Xbox is cool BUT honestly, my favorite aspect of this is the Bluetooth functionality. Waiting for a game to load and want to scroll through Instagram Reels why you wait? As soon as audio is played in my phone, it automatically increases the phone’s volume and decreases the game volume from my PC. Need exclusive Bluetooth? Easy, just hit the Bluetooth button. 

• Flip-down microphone. When it’s up, it’s muted and when it’s down, it’s live. You can of course still mute it manually when it’s down, but I really like the physical reminder if I’m on a hot mic or not. 

• Lay flat design. I like having them lay flat on my desk or around my neck and rest flat on the top of my chest. It just makes for a much better experience when the headset isn’t being worn. 

• Construction. These feel premium—you can tell there is a fair bit of metal supporting them and the weight is a subtle reminder of the quality of the materials used. 

Cons: 

• While the ear cups are very soft and comfortable, I found that the foam on the headband wasn’t quite as thick as I’d like it to be. I wouldn’t say it was uncomfortable, just that it could have used a few more millimeters of cushioning. 

• There are a lot of controls on the headset—this absolutely took a bit of learning to do without looking. It is very easy to use the wrong volume roller or press the wrong button at first. 

Final Thoughts: 

While certainly not cheap, the complete package here feels like a strong value. I think the sound and microphone quality are great and the overall comfort is good as well. What really sells me is the simultaneous Bluetooth connection as well as the easy switching from PC to Console or Console to Console.