Tested – Work and Gaming Headsets That Don’t Break the Bank

Peter Donnell / 3 years ago

Turtle Beach Recon 200 Gen 2

The last headset is one of my personal favourites, as for just £40 it delivers pretty much everything you need to enjoy impressive quality audio on a wide range of devices. It’s a good first headset for younger gamers, but also has a lot of appeal for those who are generally on a tighter budget in general. However, it has a powerful secret that pushes it ahead of its similarly priced rivals… built-in powerful amplification, even though it runs on a 3.5mm jack.

Features

Next-Gen Comfort – New for the Gen 2, athletic fabric and softer memory foam ear cushions keep you cool and comfortable over hours of gaming.
Amplified Audio – Amplification drives 40mm speakers to deliver immersive, detailed gaming audio plus always on bass boost & variable mic monitoring.
Glasses-Friendly Comfort – Patented ProSpecs dual-foam ear cushions alleviate pressure so gamers with glasses can play in comfort.
12-Hour Power – A 12-hour battery delivers amazing, amplified audio features including always-on bass boost and variable mic monitoring.
Multiplatform Compatibility – Works perfectly with your favorite game consoles, controllers, mobile devices, or anything with a standard 3.5mm jack.

Specifications

Performance

I won’t beat around the bush here, this is a cheap headset and it’s been built to a price. That being said, it follows the same aesthetic we’ve come to expect from more expensive models in the Turtle Beach range, but it does feel lighter. If you’re someone who cares well for their peripherals, I doubt that’ll be an issue. If you’re buying one for a rage-quitting teen that throws their headset… you may want to buy a few spares. That aside, at forty quid, this headset has a lot to offer.

Firstly, it’s powered by a 3.5mm jack, so it’ll work on Xbox, Switch, PlayStation, PC, Mobile, and well, just about anything really. It is plug-and-play, so you can’t really go wrong with that!

It has a built-in microphone too, which has a flip-up boom that automatically mutes when it’s folded away. It’s not the most advanced thing ever, it’s just a standard Omni-directional microphone and doesn’t do any fancy noise cancelling, but it’s bright and clear, just don’t eat crisps and listen to loud rap music while gaming because it hears everything.

It’s surprisingly comfortable though, thanks to synthetic leather and foam ear pads that sit around the ear, and the closed-back drivers help lock in the sound. Plus, there’s the patented ProSpecs glasses relief system (a notch in the foam) that makes wearing glasses and the headset a lot more comfortable.

The 40mm drivers sound great, with a nice clear response that’s well suited to any kind of media consumption, but there’s a little more on offer here. There’s a built-in battery and amplifier on this headset. You’ll need to recharge that via the micro-USB port and it’s good for around 12 hours of usage. Albeit, the headset still works with this feature inactive.

It provides a big boost to the audio, with an added bass boost feature and even provides variable microphone monitoring. On a headset that costs this much, that’s honestly insane. Audiophile processing it is not, but it just puts a few more Naga peppers in the chilli so to speak, and gives everything some punch and wow factor. For playing games, listening to music and watching movies, you’ll be hard pushed to get a bigger sound for less.

Added Value

The multiformat support and built-in audio amplification are the real stars of the show here, giving you a huge sound on a small budget. Having microphone monitoring is nice too, as it takes out the need to shout to hear yourself while you’ve got your gaming volume turned up higher. If there’s a better budget headset on the market that can compete with this, I haven’t seen it.