The newly released Turtle Beach XLCs from - you guessed it - Turtle Beach, is their attempt at making an affordable alternative to the high-end headsets on the market while still maintaining great quality. Well you're probably wondering if it's worth your hard earned money, so read on and find out.
Headset Quality - Well honestly the XLCs do not look expensive. I've got quite a few headsets and closed-back headphones that look cool, and what I think is appealing about them is having some massive and awesome 'phones to wear, in comparison the XLC has a slim design with smaller ear pads than normal.
Headset Sound Quality - I have to say the sound quality of the XLC was average. I tested the headset on Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 and I found the clarity and general quality to be pretty good, everything from the explosions of combat and the rattling gunfire came out well. I also found that Turtle Beach made good on their promise of noise-cancellation as the XLCs don't really leak sound like other padded headphones.
The only downside to it is the sound is a little distant which isn't that noticeable, and the headsets sound output isn't huge. This is probably due to the absence of the amp in the XLCs like the X1s, so you can turn up the volume and yes it'll be loud but it's not going to blow your head off. So gamers who like to play their games on a deafening volume or play survival horrors with the eerie music immersing them in the game might not be that impressed.
A great redeeming feature however is hearing your friends and the game sound on multiplayer games through your headset. Just on a side-note you have a master volume for both voice and game sound on the headset, which means you have to tweak the individual in-game volume and voice volume on your 360 to find a good balance, I usually go for high voice volume and a lower in-game volume, and also remember to set your voice settings to play voice output "through both".
Voice Chat Quality - There's not much to say here, your voice output will be loud and clear to other players. I tested it with a friend and he commented that it was better clarity than the old standard 360 headset I used to talk through.
Comfort - The ear pads are soft like a very soft cat's paw, yeah it really is that soft. I've used them a couple of times now and they feel wonderfully comfortable on my ears. However if you play for extended periods it does still suffer from making your ears ache a bit.
Value for Money - This headset is great value for money, because it does the job well. If you don't want to spend a fortune on high-end headsets but want an upgrade from your basic headset or are just replacing a broken standard 360 headset, then this is the one to go for. In fact now this has released, THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO REASON TO BUY ANOTHER STANDARD 360 HEADSET as for a couple of quid more you can get the XLCs which let you hear voice and in-game sound through a proper headset.
In Conclusion - It's a must have headset for 360 gamers.