Turtle Beach XO Seven Review

August 4, 2014

It’s no secret there were some issues with gaming headsets and the current (because they’re no longer “next”, come on!) generation consoles, especially the Xbox One. But March rolled around, and that Titanfall game came out, and Microsoft were like “hey we should probably do that thing with the thing” and hey presto an update came out with Dolby Digital support and the Internet applauded!

Since the Xbox One’s launch last November there are currently only seven headsets available that are “designed” for and will work with the Xbox One “out of the box” (meaning they come with the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter). Three of those seven are from Turtle Beach – the XO Seven, XO Four and Titanfall Ear Force Atlas. For everything else or your current headset – you’ll need to purchase the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter separately and do some button science. I don’t know about you, but I listen to the radio, it’s better than the stereo. Quack. Personally I’ve been waiting for something super amazing to come out for the Xbox One, but as I currently have a need right now for a headset, I decided to grab these and give them a chance.

That's pretty much what I look like, no joke.

That’s pretty much what I look like, no joke.

The XO Seven from Turtle Beach is an affordable, premium surround sound wireless headset designed for maximum comfort and full entertainment immersion, from games to music, TV and movies.

Adjustable chat and game audio levels allow you to create the right balance that works for you on the fly via the adapter, and is completely wireless to your Xbox One with the exception of a single cable to your controller. The cable itself is actually quite nice, as the wiring is covered with a very sturdy woven fabric sporting a black and green colour scheme fitting of an Xbox One accessory.

Let's hope your cat/rat doens't chew through it!

Let’s hope your cat/rat doens’t chew through it!

As is the trend with headsets in recent years, the microphone is completely removable, allowing you the freedom of no microphone at all for those gaming solo, or for those recording audio separately via a boom microphone. You can also use an inline microphone and use the XO Seven with your mobile device, however full compatibility is not guaranteed. But hey, if you enjoy proudly rocking gaming headphones out and about – the XO Sevens will tick that box for you too. My only suggestion however is to choose an equaliser setting other than the default on your device of choice as they’re pretty flat for music playback otherwise.

I started up an old Outlast save file to test how “immersive” the surround sound experience was and I was quite surprised at how much more accurately I could pick up where enemies were walking to/from, in comparison with my Tritton headset using the Xbox One Stereo Headset Adapter. God knows I’m going to be relying on that accuracy by the time Alien Isolation rolls out, I’m already scared! Please don’t make me do it Anthony 🙁

I’ve worn these for a couple of hours now while listening to music and doing assignments and they are insanely comfortable! More comfortable than my SOL REPUBLIC Master Tracks, actually. The headset is quite refreshingly light – much lighter than my Trittons, and they create a fantastic noise-isolation barrier due to the fully-enclosed foam cushion pads. They’re also large enough for those with stretched lobes who enjoy the fully-enclosed experience; as minor as this fact may be – it was an important one for me personally when choosing my previous gaming headset. Someone will appreciate this fact, I know 🙂

XOSeven3

For those who enjoy looking just that tiny bit different from the next ‘Tuber or Twitcher, the XO Sevens can be personified with the interchangeable speaker plates, available from various places on the internet. Or you could try your hand at DIY. I will be. Mine will be blue and sparkly and have gold anchors on them, because nautical.

There are only two issues I’ve found with these so far, one being the aforementioned flat sound for unenhanced music, but there also seems to be some weird consistent and rapid clicking. It’s only audible when connected to my Xbox One, microphone irrelevant and only heard in-game. It’s fairly quiet though once I heard it, I couldn’t stop hearing it. I tried it with a few different games and it was still there. It reminds me of Starvin Marvin from South Park, a bit. I did a poke around and found a few other people had this issue, however theirs disappeared upon updating their Xbox One/controller, but mine has not. Maybe I’m just unlucky. Who knows.

While I don’t have a higher end headset to compare with, I’m incredibly satisfied with how the XO Seven performs. If you’re after an affordable headset under A$200 that is well worth the money if you’re unable or not willing to fork out $300+ for the higher end ones, then I highly recommend the XO Seven headset from Turtle Beach.

Don’t steal my idea for glittery blue speaker plates with gold anchors, I am CaptainSammii afterall.

Positives:

Great quality surround sound; lightweight and comfortable for extended wear.

Negatives:

Relatively bland for listening to music; consistent faint clicking during quiet game moments.

Overall Score: