Turtle Beach Stealth 500 Review – Wallet-Friendly Wireless

Turtle Beach has been busy this season, as they kindly shipped us a whole slew of gaming hardware. Releasing this week is not one, not two, but three headphones: a premium open-back design called the Atlas Air, a revamped Stealth 600 Gen 3, and the headphones we are reviewing first, the new (and more wallet-friendly) Stealth 500. At just $80 USD, can this lightweight and widely compatible headset compete in the entry-level wireless gaming headset category? Read our Turtle Beach Stealth 500 review to find out.

Barebones Accessories

As this is an entry-level wireless headset, there’s not a whole lot to take out of the box. Within the mostly-empty packaging, you’ll find the headphones, a proprietary USB-A transmitter, a 2.3ft/0.7m charging cable, and a quick start guide. It’s everything you need to get started, and nothing you don’t. A bright yellow sticker on the quick start guide advises you to update the firmware of the headphones using Turtle Beach’s own newly-released app called Swarm II, which is available on Windows, Android, and iOS. There’s a relatively smooth process to update the drivers using any platform, though mobile is a little easier as the Windows app can sometimes report it needs an update even when it doesn’t. Updating on mobile does require you to be able to plug in the transmitter into any nearby powered full-size USB port, which you may not have available if you only have your phone on you.

Whichever version of the app you use, you are able to mess around with settings galore. On the mobile version, there are four tabs, which allow you to mess with overall volume and EQ presets,microphone settings, auto-off timing and transmitter LED light brightness, and see current firmware information, respectively.  The Windows version of the app shows all of this information on one scrollable screen, plus an editable 10-band equalizer which you can create your own custom presets with. There is currently no way to save your custom presets to the headset for use with other devices, however the headphones do remember the last EQ used, so as long as you don’t change it elsewhere the settings will stick around. What’s nice is that Turtle Beach includes this functionality for all of their newly-released headphones, including these Stealth 500s.

Standard Performance, Actual Analog Volume

All sub-$100 wireless headphones make some concessions, and the Stealth 500 is no exception to this rule. The drivers are standard, dynamic 40mm transducers, with a standard 20 Hz – 20 kHz response range. They have a flat sound signature, with no real emphasis on the low-end, mids, or highs. You can tune this a bit within the app, though, which can help bring in some details at lower volumes so you don’t risk hearing damage. Tuned or not, you’ll hear everything going on in your games, but it probably won’t surprise you as the details are simply good enough. I’m not saying these sound bad, by any means, but the Stealth 500s sound like any other pair of headphones at this price point.

What they give up in audio quality, the Stealth 500s make up for with versatility. A floating headband allows for effortless placement on top of your head, which all but guarantees long-term comfort for those longer gaming sessions. The proprietary USB transmitter works on PC if you have either the PC or PS version, however the Xbox version only works via transmitter on Xbox. The transmitter has a fantastic range. As an example, I live in a ~2000 sqft. two-story house. With audio playing on one side of the home, I could hear whatever was playing throughout both floors. The house was built in the ’60s, meaning the signals travelled through some thick materials. If you’ve got a device with Bluetooth functionality, it’s likely they’ll connect pretty easily to the Stealth 500. Though, in order to get the Stealth 500s into pairing mode, you have to first press the QuickSwitch button, which toggles them between their proprietary wireless mode and Bluetooth. This is a little unintuitive, as even the instruction manual doesn’t outright say this, but it makes sense if you just stop and think about it for a second.

A Fierce Competitor

So, while overall these are a nice set of entry-level wireless headphones, they do not exist in a vacuum. Which begs the question: what else is available in the $80-or-less category? Ever-dependable Astro makes the A20 Gen 2, which, while priced at only $60, does not include Bluetooth functionality, and only sports a roughly 15 hour battery life. Logitech makes a G435 headphone for the same asking price as the Stealth 500, which also includes Bluetooth functionality, but once again battery life is inferior at around 18 hours. It’s also designed for smaller heads, though that does result in a lighter headset. Finally, Razer makes their Barracuda X, which is perhaps the closest competitor here. It also has 40mm drivers, Bluetooth, a rated 50-hour battery life, and is a bit lighter than the Stealth 500. However, it does not have a floating headband, which means you’ll need to adjust it to fit your noggin rather than simply setting it atop your head. It’s a small thing, but it can make a difference over the long term.

Turtle Beach has found a sweet spot balancing price and features in the Stealth 500. At just $79.99 USD, we’re talking about an almost impulse-level price for a full-featured headset. While the audio quality isn’t quite up to snuff compared to non-wireless headsets, with a focus on gaming that’s not really the point. Being able to be reached while gaming is important for some, and the Bluetooth compatibility provides just that. While the Stealh 600 Gen 3 headphones are only $20 more and sound much better, if you just can’t or don’t want to spend a dime more, then the Stealth 500 headphones represent a good deal.

Score: 8/10

Pros:

• Extremely light.
• Fantastic transmitter range.
• Floating headband helps in longer gaming sessions.
• Bluetooth functionality ensures you can stay connected if you want to.
• 40-hour battery life!

Cons:

• Audio performance is merely standard.
• Initial setup could be more intuitive.
• Stealth 600 sounds much better for just $20 more.

A review unit of the Stealth 500 (PS version) was provided by the manufacturer. You can read MP1st’s review and scoring policy right here.

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