Turtle Beach Recon 70 review – a reliable and affordable Nintendo Switch headset

No gaming setup is complete without a reliable headset, and since 2005, few companies have been more synonymous with gaming audio than Turtle Beach. The brand offers everything from high-end headphones to budget alternatives, and it’s the latter I’m covering today, offering my verdict on the Turtle Beach Recon 70 headset for Nintendo Switch. For a set of headphones under $40, you can’t expect perfection, but this might be the best option at that price point.

So, let’s kick off with what I like about the Turtle Beach Recon 70. For a start, they fit pretty comfortably on the head, and that’s saying something, as I’ve got a famously big head – seriously, I had to wear an adult-sized helmet from age eight. The leatherette cushions on each of the cups sit on the ears nicely. They don’t feel quite as nice as the cushions of my significantly more expensive Beyerdynamic audio headphones, but again, this Turtle Beach headset is almost four times cheaper, so you’re very much getting what you paid for.

In terms of audio quality, this headset is better than I’d expected, especially when it comes to higher frequencies. No matter whether you’re playing one of the best Switch games or listening to your favorite tunes – which equates to a lot of Nine Inch Nails for me while testing this headset out – the Recon 70 delivers glistening highs, and there are some lovely warm mids, too. You might have noticed that I didn’t touch on the low-end frequencies there. Well, I’ll get into them later, but for now, I’m just covering what I like about this headset.

The Turtle Beach Recon 70’s mic is pretty no-frills, but it gets the job done and neatly tucks away, or rather flips away, if you’re not using it. I can’t speak too much about the quality of the mic, given that I can’t hear what I sound like coming through it, but I asked the friends I was playing with if I was coming across relatively clear, and that’s all you really need. It’d be nice if there was some companion software to check your mic levels, but that’s the sort of feature you’d demand from a more expensive headset, whereas it makes more sense not to find it when trying out something more cheap and cheerful.

Unlike some of the picks from our guide to the best Nintendo Switch headsets, the Turtle Beach Recon 70 doesn’t offer any sort of noise reduction, but given that the headphones can get nice and loud, it’s by no means a dealbreaker. The cushions are pretty thick anyway, so unless you happen to be sitting in the same room as someone blasting their own music, you shouldn’t feel like you’re missing out on too much with the lack of noise cancellation.

So, what don’t I like about the Turtle Beach Recon 70 headset? In all honesty, not that much. There’s a lot that could be better, but not much that’s downright bad. The build is a little plasticky, the bass presence could be a touch more aggressive, and I’d prefer if the wire that connects the headset to your device were a bit longer, but that’s about it. Like I said at the start of this review, you have to set certain expectations when picking up a headset on a budget, and as far as those expectations go, this Turtle Beach option has met almost all of them.

All in all, the Turtle Beach Recon 70 headset is as good as you can ask for from a budget option. Yes, there are alternatives out there with slightly higher quality audio or with a more comfortable or luxurious design, but not for under $50. Provided you prefer value for money to studio-level audio quality, you should get on just fine with this headset.

There you have it, our Turtle Beach Recon 70 headset review. For more Switch 2 accessories while you’re here, check out our guide to the best Nintendo Switch 2 controllers and the best Nintendo Switch 2 cameras. Or, if you’re still deciding which of the launch titles to pick up, check out our Mario Kart World review and Cyberpunk 2077 Switch 2 review.