Test Casque Audio Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 2 max

The Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max is therefore a wireless gaming headset with microphone, with Xbox Series and Xbox One certification, but which directly announces its compatibility with many other platforms, including PS4 and PS5 consoles, Windows PCs such as Mac and Nintendo Switch in TV mode. An almost universal helmet that sold at a price of $139 when it was launched. Enough to put it right in front of the Hyperx Cloud II Wireless that we reviewed a few weeks ago.

Buy the Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max gaming headset at the best price

Manufacturing and Processing: Another foot in the world of toys

Use Le Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max a classic design with a simple bow, rigid, to which the ball joints of the auricles are attached. The sizing is done by sliding the ball joint on the frame, with a graduated and notched plastic rod giving the helmet a good amplitude that allows it to adapt to the largest heads as well as those of young people. Contact with the head at arch level is ensured by a thick foam lined with synthetic leather for balanced support.

A little more than 90° horizontally and almost 5° vertically allows the rotation of the ear cups precise placement and storage flat on the table or around the neck. The seating surface of the earcups, which are average in size, is made of a thick honeycomb fabric completely covered by a fairly thick memory foam compatible with wearing glasses. The ventilation is also sufficient to avoid excessive sweating when the temperature or playing time rises.

If comfort, rather firm, is part of the game, the overall finish is very plasticky. A plastic that struggles to make a high-quality impression despite an obvious solidity and an absence of creaks and squeaks during handling, while the visible screws are numerous and clearly visible. The appearance of the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max is therefore pretty much a toy, especially when compared to other models in this price range such as the HyperX Cloud II Wireless, its main competitor.

Features: Exceptional compatibility for this Xbox headset

If the stealth 600 gen 2 max is very officially an Xbox series headset, with compatibility extended natively to the Xbox One, we can count on it to operate on many other platforms and in particular current PlayStation machines. With a simple switch on the included USB dongle, the headset switches from Microsoft consoles to a Direct Audio mode with wide compatibility: Windows, MacOS, Linux, PS4, PS5 or Switch. With the latter, compatibility in TV mode is still limited to the standard or OLED model, since a USB-A port is required to connect the dongle. Finally, It’s just missing an analogue wired connection or even Bluetooth compatibility to be complete.

In any case, the use of the headset is simple, immediate, without drivers and therefore without software support and without noticeable latency. Nevertheless its ergonomics deserved some clarification for more easily accessible controls. Thus, the left atrium offers no less than two buttons and two dials, all aligned on the axis, with a spacing and differentiation that inevitably leads to false manipulations.

A general volume (which does not affect the operating system but the sound received from the headset), a chat volume for Xbox or a voice feedback volume for other platforms, a mode button for the various equalizations included in the headphones’ DSP, and a dual-function power button, enough to get lost at times, or at least enough to waste time trying to find the right setting.

Even the microphone, which benefits from the simplest of manipulations with its torsion bar cutting the sound in the high position, is difficult to maneuver in the low position in the heat of the moment. Nothing serious overall, but it does take some practice and focus.

The sound: good overall performance and an effective EQ

The Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max has 4 basic equalizer modes. The “Signature Sound” corresponds to the most balanced mode, which offers a homogeneous reproduction over the entire spectrum. Listening is pleasant, without over-the-top performance but with enough headroom to play in a moderately noisy living room to compensate for the earcups’ limited noise isolation. The bass is very present, rather dynamic, with a precise attack and a real presence in the lowest frequencies.

No midrange exaggerations and no overly pronounced cavities, which means that voices and effects in the game and in the film are sufficiently present to be heard without suffering from listening fatigue in the long term. Finally, the highs stand out well and offer good definition, albeit lacking the crystalline side at the top end of the spectrum, with the 50mm speakers showing their limitations beyond 15kHz.

alternative ways, Bass Boost, Bass+Treble Boost, and Vocal Boost are moderate variations of the signature mode, achieved by slightly amplifying certain frequency ranges. What to get a rounder sound, in V or with the voices brought forward, without distorting the original rendition. For once, iYou have to admit that each mode has its interest and allows you to vary the pleasures according to your desires and needs.. Our only regret is that no application offers a true equalizer for PC gamers.

Finally, as usual, Turtle Beach features a Superhuman Hearing feature, which still offers a fairly crude spatialization effect, ditching a good chunk of definition in favor of an atmosphere that’s too lush to be truly enjoyable. We prefer enabling Dolby Atmos, DTS or 3D on the PlayStation 5, which the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max is obviously compatible with. (like any o ther helmet).

A real microphone, nothing more

With its somewhat short handle that comes close to the mouth, the microphone of the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max does not perform miracles and offers limited high-frequency reproduction of the voice. The result is a lack of syllable precision, a slightly hollow voice with the added bonus of an overall compression that crushes most nuances.

So even if the player can afford to boost the audio without risking saturation, his voice will still appear as if he’s walked through a phone. So the result isn’t recommended for streaming, but it’s okay for chatting with friends in the heart of a game. Also note that the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max doesn’t offer active isolation of ambient noise, but rather “allows” it to not over-capture the environment due to its lack of treble. A bad for a good.

Conclusion: Good qualities but a few disappointments

The Turtle Beach headset has a few advantages over a Cloud II Wireless, which the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max shares its introductory price with. An autonomy that reaches almost 50 hours at normal level (about 80% of the available power), a more advanced multi-platform connection and finally a more balanced sound with a more complete management of equalization or chat volume.

There remain a few flaws that, given the category’s tenor, prevent the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max from becoming the benchmark. Next its clearly recessed surface, with too much plastic at all levels, but also its complex ergonomics that are sometimes at stake and finally its microphone that lacks clarity. So we’re dealing with a quite honorable helmet, without major defectthat lacks little to really place itself among our favorite models.

Buy the Turtle Beach Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max gaming headset at the best price

Conclusion

With high sound quality and controlled firm comfort, the Stealth 600 Gen 2 Max manages to entice us for long hours of gaming. Controlling the voice feedback to the ears. We simply regret the very plastic finish it offers, the slightly recessed microphone and some deviations in terms of ergonomics, while acknowledging the undeniable interest of this multi-platform wireless compatible gaming headset. We really don’t stray far from the reference of the genre, especially not at this price point.