I am an audiophile. Sometimes it's a curse! But one thing I do know is quality audio. I have a very decent Klipsch top tier surround sound setup in my house. It's hard to beat it, but as I became a father twice over, I've needed to go incognito during my nightly gaming sprees. Hence my search for a top of the line headset/headphones. I have personally tried/tested the name brand gaming headsets and found all to fall short. Trittons, Turtle Beaches and the mighty Astros, to name a few! I have also tried the Sennheiser HD555s and the AT AD700s, both of which are audiophile headsets.
Those reading this review are looking at Astros because they are the top tier gaming headset. Endorsed by the MLG and by many fans who love to game. But how many of those "endorsers" have audio experience? How many have tried different gaming headsets? Probably not too many, especially if they bought this complete set. I want to help you in your decision making process.
First, the Xbox 360 has horrible sound output. This is not a random guess, it is sadly a fact. Optical out does little more than put compressed quality audio through an optical cord. And as everyone should know... it doesn't matter how good your headphones are, the source dictates the ultimate quality. But even then, a good pair of phones will sound better than others, just not performing to its optimal abilities. On the other hand, the PS3 shines in this department. The audio is clearly the winner of the two. For instance the Trittons 720 sounds like crap on the 360, but on the PS3 they are slightly less crappy. And those who think the Tritton 720s are decent, have never listened to a good pair of headphones!
The Astro A40 is not a terrible headset. It isn't great either. It doesn't have a very good soundstage (which can be defined as directionality). This surprised me, because an ultimate gaming headset should have ultimate soundstage! Rather, it is dependent on the nifty Astro mixamp to make up for its shortcomings. The headset is tinny on the high end, lacking on the low end (and I'm not a true bass aficionado, I like it accurate: tight and punchy which this is not). In my opinion this headset is made for the 360's inferior sound spectrum. Whereas with my audiophile headphones, the sound is accurate. MW2 online lobby sounds are horrid, but that's not the headphone's fault! With the Astros, the audio sounds alright at all times, but never great and sometimes not even good. Without the mixamp, the headset isn't very directional. I got just as much directionality (like locating enemies in Cod4 and MW2 by listening to footsteps) out of my Turtle Beach X1s. But plug in the mixamp and you have a well structured dobly pro-logic sound. Unfortunately,though many people don't know this, dolby pro-logic is not the best for fps games where you listen for footsteps. It is immersive, yes. It gets you into the game, yes. But it isn't that great for footsteps. At least it isn't that much better than the TB X1s.
The mixamp, on the other hand, is a solid buy. It isn't just for the Astro A40s, but for ANY headphones. Plus you can plug other mics into it. True, the Tritton 720s unit can do that, but the 720 unit doesn't have pro-logic surround. It has "concert" or "hall" mode where everything echoes around you. That is a horrible rendition of surround sound (stay away from the 720). But the mixamp has the updated pro-logic chip. It also has independent chat and game sound volume controls. Almost all the other brands have this, but the mixamp works with other headphones and mics. It is a solid purchase. In years to come you can simply buy a good headphone/headset and use this.
On the other hand, I use the AT AD700 headphones. They are superb quality. I use 5 channel stereo and I can pinpoint enemies. And I mean pinpoint! I am almost lead by what I hear. It is so clear what direction my opponents are coming from that I don't have to doubt their location. Upstairs, behind me, to the left, to the right. Two to the right, distinct from one another etc. For solo games, I hit the pro logic 5.1 and I'm golden. Perfect game immersion. Fallout 3 and Mass Effect never sounded so good! And for music... don't even get me started! Violin not just on the left, but in front of the bass, next to the clarinets and oboes.
In short, the mixamp is a good five stars. The headset, coupling in price is a 3 star. It was designed for gaming, it is not capable of really great sound production. Sure it works alright with games, but don't think for an instant that this will make a music fan happy! It is not worth the money, though. The mixamp is around $130.00. Go buy the Sennheiser HD555s or the AT AD700s and the mixamp (plus Zalman mic) for less than this package and you will be in heaven no matter what multimedia you are using! Or if you're short on money, the Turtle Beach X1s will give you the same "footsteps" advantage as the Astro for $200.00 less. If you have a decent A/V unit (with Dolby pro-logic and 5 channel programming), just buy the AT AD700s, or if you only have a headphone out on your tv, buy the HD555s, as they imho do better without equalizing. Buy the mixamp later if you wish.
