![]() ![]() The soundscape is balanced, though, offering crisp detailing without sacrificing powerful bass notes and warmer tones. The headset's 40mm drivers deliver virtual surround sound incredibly well, even if the soundstage isn't as broad as some of its competitors. The A50 has gotten better and better in the audio department too with subsequent firmware updates. Source: Windows Central (Image credit: Source: Windows Central) Honestly, every aspect of the Astro A50 just screams quality. There's also a very robust PC and Xbox app that gives you even more control over sidetone, EQ settings, and beyond. Pressing on the headset's outer cup lets you adjust the mix between the SPDIF audio and the USB audio, and there's a dial in the corner for adjusting the master volume. The adjustable side frames have been softened on the ends to make them easier to manipulate, and the buttons feel a little more tactile and responsive than the previous set. Moving past the aesthetics, the design of the headset has had a few improvements here and there. Bluetooth sound mixing just isn't reliable enough for how much I switch between Xbox and PC. This reliability is one core reason why I always come back to this headset, year in, year out. The signal is rock solid, and suffered zero interference despite sharing a small space with tons of other wireless devices. If you have the money, you'll be hard pressed to find a nicer headset.The magnetized base makes it easy to dock and charge your Astro A50 headset, which lists around 15 hours of battery life with a range of 30 feet for wireless connectivity. However, the fact that they work on PS3, Xbox and PC, and can even be a set of excellent cans for movie watching with the right set-up, we think the price is worth it. At $350, you can buy a whole new console for the cost of the Astro A50. In all, this is a seriously excellent device for any gamer, with one big caveat - the price. We were also impressed with the cables themselves - the A50s ship with USB, optical, and even the attachment cable for Xbox voice chat. The MixAmp also has optical pass-through, so you can still use an existing amp/speaker set up, without swapping cables. Some other touches we enjoyed included the noise cancelling mic - very crisp pick-up - and pushing the mic boom up all the way engages the mute. We used the Pro mode for a few MMOs, as we liked the sharpness on some of the effects that the additional treble provided. In reality, what you game with is up to you. The first is for movies and music, the second for standard games and the third is aimed at the "professional shooters". We mentioned the pre-set switch before - there are three built in modes: Media, Core and Pro. The wireless technology used is the KleerNet 5.8GHz, which gives a little better range and clarity with less interference - not so much of an issue for the PC gamer, who's likely to have little distance between headset and amp, but good news for the console users who might find themselves on opposite ends of the lounge room from where the A50 amp is plugged in. Performance-wise, the A50's were stunning. But compared to the rest of the hardware in the A50 pack, the stand is a little plasticy and tacky feeling. A stand to hang the headphones on is a nice idea - one we liked with the Turtle Beach headset. What is less impressive is the self-assembly stand. The whole outside of the right cup is a giant toggle switch for voice/game balance - it's nice, but we occasionally accidently adjusted the balance while just trying to re-seat the headphones on our ears. Above that is the power button and the switch for the pre-sets. The right ear-cup has the volume wheel at the back, in a perfect position for thumb access when worn. We liked the build on the headphones a great deal - these are solid, well made cans that still feel comfortable, even when worn for a long time. ![]()
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