Turtle Beach Ear Force Z2 ears-on
By Tim Stevens 
posted June 18th 2010 6:38PM
posted June 18th 2010 6:38PM
It's a simple stereo model featuring 50mm drivers in a comfortable, isolating, though predictably bulky over-the-ear design. Stereo input and output is handled through simple 3.5mm plugs, and though there may not be dozens of speakers in there to really put you in the game, the sound quality is quite good. Output here definitely offers the boomy bass that gamers will want so that they can really feel the explosions. Doing these sorts of tests on the incredibly noisy E3 show floor is always a challenge, so we can't give a comprehensive report on audio quality, but the isolating cups did well here to block most of it out, and while we weren't exactly wowed by the experience, we weren't disappointed either.
Out of the box The Z2 is PC compatible, but an optional (unpriced) "talkback" cable lets you use it with your Xbox 360, and a quick disconnect means you can switch between the two easily. Being tethered is sadly something of a drag, but overall quality seems to be good for the price. No specific release date is given, but the word of "soon" means it shouldn't be too long a wait.
FIRST
@Scape3d
IDIOT
@Scape3d
What do people gain from saying first? I am yet to understand lol.
@Mike Vick They're attention whores, nothing more.
Not wireless? No thanks.
@Scape3d listen all the top notch headsets are not wireless completely. if your that stubborn to realize that then u obviously shouldnt b commenting
@Scape3d Why would you want wireless?
Delay?
Lower quality?
Baffling.
@v2nomousphenom
Ummm...what? Wanting wireless over wired isn't allowed and considered stubborn? Color me stubborn then.
I play video games in my living room. My sofa is about 20 feet away from the TV, which is why I own the Turtle Beach X41s (wireless). Sitting that far away from the TV simply doesn't make wired headsets feasible.
@theSixFive
As for you saying that wireless equals delay, I've never noticed. Not once. While my Turtle Beach gaming headphones work great, sound quality could be a bit better, but this has nothing to do with the fact that they're wireless. In fact, I tried the wired Tritton "surround sound" headsets first and returned them for the Turtle Beach headphones.
@Scape3d
implying that wireless will give me that .00001 response time that can help me out
@Agent3rror
oh and wire is the way to go for high quality headphones. that's why you can't get wireless grados. though I'm assuming you never heard of grados...
While the connectivity to the Xbox controller is nice, I'd be worried that the wire might not be too long or that people might be falling over it.
@Cydoniac i have the x11 and those are more than long enough
Where is that guy who liked turtle sandwiches he might like this...
Can't do it.
I have had a few sets from Turtle Beach, but one thing will deter me from ever buying again, terrible build quality. Cheap screws, poor design, something always ends up snapping and rendering them useless unless I find a way to fix them or return them. Sound quality has always been great for me, but I can't use them if they break!
I'm sure it would be simple to mimic that capability with a little soldering...
It just seems like a reverse headphone splitter with two sets of volume knobs. I bet a similar product could be made that integrates a wireless headset and some sort of wireless adapter that plugs into the Xbox's RCA audio cable and transmits it to the headset.
Sounds like a "I have a week off" type of project.
Another one? What was wrong with the last one?
I was gonna buy these,
Then I found an old 4 channel mixer, put my xbox and iPod in there, and I play it through my in ear headphones.
Works just as well, trust.
I see that m11x; if it is the new i5/i7 please do a review!
@geegee I'm really mad because I can't find a single review on the i core series ones anywhere
not even a wimpy cnet user one or anything
-if anyone finds one can they please post it somewhere
I have not heard from at Turtle Beach since my Turtle Beach Santa Cruz sound card that I bought with my Dell Dimension 8100 purchased in 2001. Still using it today. Not the 8100 but the sound card.
Nice headset damn they are sexy :)
@geegee
Yea I think you can spot a core i(something) sticker on one of the pics. Hey Tim, can u tell us when to expect a review. If its positive I'm gunna grab one before I go back to college!
@mblakev Sorry, they didn't have a firm release date for us, but we'll probably be doing a review right around their ship date.
Does the alienware come free?
Dear Turtle Beach,
Please make wireless, surround sound headphones with bluetooth chat for the PlayStation 3.
Sincerely,
Future buyer