Compatible With
PS4, Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Mac, and Mobile Gaming Devices
| List Price: | $199.95 |
| Price: | $84.99 & FREE Shipping. |
| You Save: | $114.96 (57%) |
Think of them more as gaming headphones you can use if you want, not all-around mavericks. And now, details!
First thing you'll notice is that the headphones come in a very nice hardened grey box so there is little chance of the equipment being damaged during shipping. Inside you will the headphones, a package of cables and connectors and a little instructional booklet, all separately wrapped in plastic bags and branded with either the turtle beach logo or the Call of Duty logo.
Setup and easy and straightforward, you plug the headphones into the in-line amplifier and the in-line amplifier into whichever device you are connecting to. There are multiple connection options depending on which device you are connecting to.
Compatibility.
The Turtle beach headphones are compatible with just about any device you can think of. Gaming wise they can connect to both the xbox 360 and the playstation 3 (of the current gen consoles), PC and apple Mac. You can also connect them to your cell phone, iPod, iPad, Windows Pro and any other tablet you can think of. As a bonus (although considering it gets released next week so maybe not a bonus as per se) you will be able to use these headphones with the new playstation 4 as long as you download the day 1 1.50 patch. I can't however find any information regarding their use with the new Xbox One but would be surprised if they weren't also compatible with that given the range of connection options it comes with. I will try to circle back and update this review in a couple of weeks when I receive my Xbox One.
Appearance.
The turtle beach Spectre headset looks excellent. The headphones are are made of two tone black and hard plastic with the turtle beach logo on the leather(ish) headband and the branded in multiple places with the Call of Duty logo. The ear pieces sport a white spectre skull on black which stands out wonderfully.
Comfort and Durability.
The headphones are fully adjustable in every way that you could want. The ear pieces rotate, the headband is expandable and snaps into place at various stops so as not to slide. It actually reminds me a bit of zip ties in the way it does it. The leather(ish) (it's not actual leather but looks and feels like soft leather) headband is well padded, soft and won't hurt your head, as are the ear pieces. It fits very comfortably and snugly and I've worn them playing GTA V for a couple of hours with no soreness (something I've had with other headphones). The microphone plugs into the ear piece using a standard 3.5mm jack and is on an adjustable plastic "wire" for want of a better word, so you can adjust this to be as close or as far away from your mouth as you wish. If you don't want to chat, playing a single player game or just listening to music on one of your devices, simply unplug the microphone.
The headphones are very well built with hard plastic and good sturdy joints. The leather(ish) comfort pieces on the headband and ear pieces are also well constructed and shouldn't rip or tear easily. These headphones should last you for a long time.
Sound Quality.
What good are nice comfortable headphones if the sound quality doesn't match up? I'm happy to say that the Spectre headphones have excellent sound reproduction. You can adjust the bass and treble settings on the fly using the in-line amplifier to set the right balance for your particular taste. It handles treble very well without getting too tinny and has a nice deep bass, although I found they do struggle a bit on the very low range bass. I tested this using various songs connected to my iPad as well as connecting to my Xbox and Playstation. In game sound is excellent and you have separate controls on the in-line amplifier to boost chat and/or game music as well as your microphone level. So if you want you can turn the in-game music down, turn chat up and concentrate on chatting with your friends online or vice versa. Play the game whichever way you want. This Dynamic Chat Boost technology works extremely well when the action gets frantic and there are lots of people talking (or yelling), making their voices nice and crisp and easily understood.
Overall the Turtle Beach Spectre headphones are an excellent addition to your gaming library and outstrips the free Xbox headsets by miles. While not the cheapest headset out there, it is true that "you get what you pay for". For a serious gamer, this is a great headset with the versatility to be able to be used on different gaming systems as well as with iPod or phone.
