The Stealth 600 Gen 2 for the PlayStation 4 is a steal, if you’re looking for a professional sounding and looking headset that brings comfort, as it does functionality.
Turtle Beach is a brand familiar in both the Esports arena and for us filthy casuals. They have brought a variety of different headsets to the world, some inexpensive, such as the one-eared wired headsets, and some, such as the Atlas Elite Aero, that are built for those dedicating their lives to the best-of-the-best gaming experience. Regardless of gaming dedication and needs, Turtle Beach seem to have their preverbal finger on the pulse of the gaming headset experience.
Today, they announced the arrival of the Stealth 600/700 Gen 2 headsets, which do a few more things to improve a mid-range experience with gaming headsets.
Let’s talk about the Stealth 600 Gen 2.
Design and Function
I wear glasses. I wear glasses all day long. I have to wear glasses because I can’t see a damn thing without them (nearsighted in one eye, far-sighted in the other — it made an NBA career impossible). Anyway, I bring this up because the first design test I do on headsets is determining how comfortable they are for a period of time with my glasses on. That amount of time will tell me whether I’m going to be annoyed as hell with the earpieces pressing my glasses’ arms into my head or if I’m feeling nothing. I have felt nothing with the 600 Gen 2. They are comfortably angled to avoid any unnecessary glasses arm pressing against the sides of my head. I know it sounds silly, but past headsets tend to be hit or miss with this subject. Having something pressed against the sides of your head, as much fun as you can possibly imagine that being, is no fun at all. This time, as with the TB Atlas Elite Aero, they have been designed to cater to us glasses sporting sports. That is one of the biggest tests when it comes to hardware like this, as being miserable over a long period of time while playing a game is…well…unbearable. Again, thankfully, this is not the case with the Stealth 600 Gen 2.
The comfort level literally from ear-to-ear is also equally as acceptable as the glasses test. One of the bigger challenges with the Elite was the headband connecting the two earpieces. After a period of time, the metal, regardless of the padding, would dig into the top of my head. It might have been angular for me because I have a huge noggin, but it always was a comfort issue regardless, which can easily become unpleasant to the point I don’t want to use them.
Another issue the Elite carries with it is how much heat builds in the earpieces. While the padding for the earpieces is certainly light and unnoticeable, long periods of time with the Elite would usually cause some sweating in the covered ear/head regions. It would trap body heat, which would just build and build in the earpieces. It wasn’t as bad as the bar, but it was incredibly relieving when I would take the Elite off. It would be like coming out of a sauna.
Thankfully, the Stealth 600 Gen 2 seems to eliminate both these issues.
The headband is not noticeable at all on the 600 Gen 2. I played with this headset for about 3-5 hours in Destiny 2, took it to private meetings on Teams and Zoom, and never ran into an issue where it made the top of my head sore. It simply was a non-factor. Even though the headset is slightly smaller than the Elite, the band seems to be more flexible, as it is plastic, and the padding is just the right amount of thick. It’s a nice experience in a long term usage situation.
Continuing with that, the earpieces seem to breathe a bit better than the Elite. While the earpieces are definitely a bit tighter, the angle in which they are designed seems to help alleviate the heat build-up, while keeping the air flowing and cool. The fabric used in the earpiece also seems to be a bit more breathable than the leathery material in the Elite. While the Elite certainly provides some soft cushion, the Stealth 600 Gen 2 just seems to provide a balance between cushion and airflow.
As for the functionality of this headset, it achieves a lot in this category.
The headset connect for recharging has gone from a MicroUSB connector to a USB-C connector. This does two great things. The charge time for these headsets is cut in half thanks to the USB-C shift. This means when you hook it up over a period of hours, this thing becomes fully charged from a dead-battery state. Having a MacBook Pro that enjoys USB-C charging and an iPhone 11 that runs on that same type, it means a world of difference with charge time and usage. The fact that this headset gets 15-hours of charge also helps this situation, as you don’t have to charge it all the time. I have had this headset for a week, I have not charged it beyond the first time around. I have gamed and reviewed quite a few things in-between.
Continuing functionality, the switch from MicroUSB also means another big thing — durability. For those of you who own a PS4, you know how easily those items can break and how many MicroUSB cables you’ve gone through in a year. I’m running on my 10th MicroUSB cable right now, though I do blame my kids for breaking most of them. The design of a MicroUSB is a design that was meant for failure. They have a nice plug shape that features two teeth on the top to grip and provides a solid connection. They are much like communism, as those teeth probably looked great on paper, but piss-poor when it came to execution. Once those teeth go, the wire becomes incredibly less secure to the point where you get a wiggle…an annoying wiggle….angrily annoying wiggle. I’m getting angry just thinking about how breakable those shitty cables are — UGH. Anyway, you get my drift. The USB-C is a huge upgrade in connectivity and charge speed. It might have cost more for TB to go that route, but it was a route worth taking. Also, whenever Sony announces the PS5, you have extra charge cables for the PS5 controllers. Win-freaking-win.
As for the quality of the headset, the up/down — talk/mute microphone makes a nice return. It picks up sounds beautifully, while noise-canceling equally as well. I have always loved the design of the built-in mic for the Stealth series and how you can flip it from talk/mute positions with the greatest of ease. I’m glad that TB has gone back to this and is using it again for their Gen 2 line-up. It makes sense and it works well. I think the more removable and pieced together parts you have with an accessory, the more likely there is for failure in the overall design.
Overall
The Stealth 600 Gen 2 for the PlayStation 4 is a steal, if you’re looking for a professional sounding and looking headset that brings comfort, as it does functionality.
