The great thing about the Nintendo Switch family are there – well, switchability. You want the big screen experience, keep it in its dock, but if you want to play on the go, just take it with you in its portable mode.

But both versions to play can be inconvenient for either you, people around you – or both, when it comes to noise. Either you play it too loud on the TV or in handheld mode, or no one around you is respecting your gaming time, yapping away around you. The solution is simple, place a bounty on all their heads and wait for swift justice to be served. Or alternatively buy a headset, the choice is yours.

If you go the latter route then this latest headset from Turtle Beach just might be for you.

Their Stealth 500 headset for the Switch 2 is the first officially licensed from Nintendo, which is always a badge of honour for third party companies. And to make sure you’re fully aware of this support, the Switch 2 logo features on the product – which may have had something to do with it getting the license, perhaps. But the branding is a little confusing as the headset is deceptively versatile.

It can connect to the Switch 2 – and other devices – in two ways: by using the supplied low latency 2.4GHZ USB-C transmitter, or by good old Bluetooth. The USB-C transmitter slips into the port under the Switch 2 in handheld mode, and automatically connects to the device when you switch the headset on. Our one quibble would be that the transmitter isn’t flush to the system once plugged in, sticking out a little from the unit, which isn’t very neat, but it functions perfectly.

You can’t connect to the console in dock mode, because that port is the one it’s docked into, but you can still use the headset in Bluetooth mode, by pairing it with your TV. And this where its versatility kicks in.

We used the USB-C transmitter with an Android phone and were instantly up and running. We listened to some tracks in our music folder – the Fcukers debut album if you must know – and it was a pleasing audio experience. There was a nice balance to it, with adequate bass and a nice richness to the sound overall. No doubt its high quality 40mm drivers doing a lot of the heavy lifting.

We then took a call, by pulling the flip-down mic; the call was clear and we were told we could be heard well, as we took advantage of the hands free sitch, using our hands for washing up duties. Then back to the music with an almost sci-fi flip to mute with the mic back into its hold in the headset.

We then connected to a TV, in Bluetooth mode, and watch a two hour film; we have a number of headsets, and without meaning to brag, some of them are on the pricey side, but we have to admit their bands – despite being padded - do get a little uncomfortable putting pressure on top of the old noggin. This is less of an issue with Stealth 500 however, due to an elastic band just under the set’s band, which means there’s a gap between the physical band and the elastic band when worn, making for a comfier experience, especially if worn for longer periods, which can come from gaming.

After the film, we decided to pop our Xbox on and play a little Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag Resynced, still in Bluetooth mode. We were a little surprised by the detail, which you can lose playing from your TV’s speakers, and it made us appreciate the audio work that developers do. Arrrgh. Anyway, playing an Xbox game with our ‘Switch 2’ headset on.

And now the time has come to feed our machine words for this review, on a desktop, so connected the headset by Bluetooth, and put on another album – you’re so darn nosey, it’s Thrasher by Brandon Flowers, and no, we don’t do country – still without charging, as they supposedly last up to 40 hours on one charge.

So like we said, don’t be put off by the Nintendo branding, as it handled everything we through at it.

The headset itself isn’t terribly attractive; it has a plasticky feel to them, with just hints of colour with its dominantly dull-grey look, so is on the ugly-but-productive side.

Another qualm we have is its USB-C connectivity; it connects great, but the connector was loose in a bag in the box, and being so tiny it will invariably be misplaced/lost. What we would like is a place for it to slide into in the headset itself, so you don’t have to pull your hair out (which, in fairness, may make wearing them even more comfy) trying to remember where was the last ‘safe’ place you put it. But that isn’t just directed at this particular headset, but all USB-C ones that also don’t have a home for it within the headset – shame on you all.

Some may be confused by which way round to place them, as there aren’t any L or R signs to help you out, but there is a clue with the placing of the flip-down mic; sure, some people may talk from the back of their heads – and online gamers are known to talk from even further down – but a mic pulling down in front of your mouth is a good indication which way round to put them on.

All the controls are on the one cup – the left – and they are a little fiddly, even with turning them on not as responsive as we’d like, sometimes with a long hold press not turning them on as it should, but at least there’s an in-ear voice to tell you when you have it in either Bluetooth or wireless mode, which is useful.

On top of that there’s also an app you can download – of course there is – Swarm II, where you can change various aspects of the sound, particularly gaming, to just the way you like it.

It may look a little budgety, but the Stealth 500 has a lot going for it, that goes far beyond just playing it with your Switch 2, with a great level of comfort, as well as impressive sound quality, and being so very versatile, that could well make them be the only headset you need.