ASTRO Gaming A40 TR Wired Gaming Headset Gen 3 for Xbox, PlayStation & PC - Black

A few months back I decided I really wanted a gaming headset - I'd started to play online with friends and I found my basic desktop microphone to be annoying, and my music headphones (Ultrasone HFI 580) to be far too uncomfortable after more than an hour. I wasn't too fussy about how much they cost, but I wanted them to perform in all areas.To jump the gun a bit, I ended up trying out the HyperX Cloud II, Razer Krakken 7.1 Chroma, and the Astro A40 + MixAmp. If you're in a similar situation to me where you are debating similar choices, I'll give a mention for all of these!Astro A40 + MixampAfter being unhappy with the 2 other pairs mentioned for one reason or another (see below), I decided to go all out and try the A40s. There are a few options for top-end gaming headsets, and the added option of going wireless. I shied away from wireless since there are quite a few reviews complaining about buzzing, which is something I can do without, and wires aren’t too much of an issue for me.While the A40 headset in itself isn’t that expensive (~£140), I opted to go for the Mixamp as well. I can tell you that, as you’d expect, these were by far the best pair in comparison to the others. Build quality is excellent – metal and sturdy – but are much heavier than the other sets. Not an issue for me, could be for others. Comfort is extremely high with the standard earcups, and I wear them for many hours and often forget they’re even there. Since they’re foam and open backed they do leak a lot of sound (the wife HAS complained about them) and I did use them at a large LAN party and could hear things from the environment around me. However this leads nicely onto a nice little feature of the A40s, which is their customisation. You can buy various mod kits to change the look of the set, one of which is to get closed back leather ear cups for better noise isolation. This could be a work around if sound leakage is a problem, although it’s added cost. Sound quality is superb – I’d have to try the Cloud II and A40s next to each other before I could give you a true comparison, but really the MixAmp does a sterling job for music, games and movies. The MixAmp has 4 EQ settings, but I honestly can’t tell them apart. The Dolby Surround sound also seems to have limited impact. That all being said, the sound quality is hugely improved through the MixAmp compared to plugging the headset directly into the computer. Worth it just for that, even if there are limited differences between settings. The headset comes with a boom mic which is nice and clear, has great noise cancellation and is LOUD! As a nice little bonus, the headset also comes with an in line control box to mute the mic, adjust volume, and also contains a mic in itself (if you’d like to get rid of the boom for whatever reason). I’ve also tried the set on the PS4 and it worked instantly (sound and mic) when plugged into the controller, but if you wanted to you could also use the MixAmp on the PS4. With my setup, this is more hassle than it’s worth (I use the PC 95% of the time).If you aren't interested in the other pairs, you can stop reading now. For those that are:HyperX Cloud IIAt £70 these were the cheapest of the bunch (by far, in comparison to the A40s). Excellent start! The headset comes with leather earcups which are EXTREMELY comfortable and isolated noise nicely (the wife didn't complain about my noise spilling at all when I was using them sat next to her - well, if she did I wouldn't have heard her anyway!). The build was also of high quality, being metal rather than all plastic. The sound quality was superb - comparable to my Ultrasone pair – and, with the added feature of simulated surround sound, made for excellent gaming. It also worked instantly on both PC and PS4. No setup issues. However, the big pitfall that stopped the Cloud from being pretty much perfect is the microphone. It simply isn't good enough. In a quiet environment it works ok - when testing the set over Skype in a normal call, sound quality was OK. However add in a gaming environment, and my friends just couldn't hear me. Normally this wouldn't be an issue, in the past I have just boosted microphones with Windows settings - however this feature is removed completely due to the need to use the Soundcard supplied. In addition, on videos I recorded in game I couldn’t hear my voice over the noise of the game. In the end, I decided to return the set and try out the Razer Krakken. Personally I wish HyperX designed a slightly more expensive set with a good quality microphone. As it stands, the headset just isn't usable for me.Razer Krakken 7.1Tried these after the HyperX Cloud II. From what I could tell online, they were a decent pair and the microphone standard was several notches higher. I can tell you that within 30minutes I was filling in the return form. Although comfortable, the Krakkens were nowhere near the level of the Cloud II, and the build was clearly inferior, being entirely plastic and not as padded. The real deal breaker was the sound quality. It just DOES NOT compare to the Cloud II - bass was way too overpowering and mid-high sounds were tinny and cheap sounding. I tried several EQ settings to no avail. Positives for the Krakken were a loud, crystal clear microphone and the Razer Synapse software which allows a lot of customisation. I'm actually a huge Razer fan and they’re my go-to company for Keyboard/Mouse. I was willing the headset to be good - but they just fell short by a long way to the Cloud II (and were more expensive!). An additional two niggles: 1. It’s a USB set, which means if you want to use it on PS4 as well as PC, you’ll need a long wire coming from your console; 2. The braided wire has a tendency to rub on your clothing when you move even a small amount. When this happens, the noise is amplified into the earcup – this issue has also been reported on a Youtube review.TL;DRI honestly can’t recommend the Krakkens despite being a big Razer fan.Money not an issue? Get A40 + Mixamp.On a budget? Get the HyperX Cloud II, but don’t be disappointed if you have to get a standalone mic to supplement it.

I have a pair of generation 1 Astro A40's, I was gifted them on my 20th birthday and now im 27, here's a mixed review with my beaming with joy over my new A40 TR'sGen 1: amazing sound quality when used with a half decent soundcard (creative soundblaster X-fi Xtremegamer 5.1 and then later creative soundblaster ZX), they are really comfortable as the cups are a soft textile fabric, however the Gen1s had a few flaws; the ear cups were held in by four very terribly placed screws, the wire only had a replacable lower section from the line-in mute/volume control to the 3.5mm jack which split. I had to replace the wire twice as the wire literally degraded from the inside out and audio would only play out of one cup or the mic wouldn't work, no problem though as the fix was £25 plus vat and express shipping.Gen 3 (these TR's): straight away the first upgrade is they put markings on the cup posts so you can line up and tighten the screws for your noggin size so stop the headset coming lose overtime which is irritating when gaming. The second upgrade is the entire wire line can be replaced; now at the base of the left cup is a jack port (not 3.5mm, it's a large 4 stage post) and the wire comes in two parts so you dont need a huge 2m long cable if you're using the headset with your phone or with a console controller etc, this is a huge positive change as it means wires can be replaced thanks to a modular system so no more binning a £150 headset cus a dodgy bit of copper has split under tension and stress. Next upgrade is the ear cups, the parts you have to remove and clean or replace every so often cus they get pitted with sweat and dead skin and become gross, they are now held in place by four very strong magnets instead of four terribly placed screws which would strip the soft plastic they bite down into; easy to strip = easy to maintain = longevity of product = happy customers.EDIT: The first gen headset has tags which came with sound dampening/isolating foam on them, you were given two sets of tags, you can remove the foam as you please so you can isolate yourself from your surroundings. With the gen 3 headset you get one set of tags and there are no foam inserts, you can buy a "modkit" which comes with a new trimmed headband insert, two trimmed tags w/ foam inserts for £50~Straight away these new TR's while costing the exact same as the generation 1 headset have been GREATLY IMPROVED UPON.The sound quality is even better now as the TR's are 7.1 where as the generation 1's were not and they were either 3d surround (simulated) or they were 5.1, I've not had time to test them in a variety of different games to notice differentials between loud and soft sound enviornments and being overwhelmed with a multitide of different sounds. but straight out of the box on my head while im catching up on some vod's from a streamer I like, the sound is crisp and I can already tell the 3d positioning has been drastically improved upon.The microphone has been revamped as well, instead of being a soft cored mic that bends but never stays in the same position, now its a more dare i say denser cored mic and when it bends it stays there, quality wise I've yet to get on discord or steam and have a friend tell me how the TR's pare up but I have no doubts in my mind the mic will be as clear and crisp as the generation 1s are.If you want a good quality headset that is comfy, will fit a small head all the way up to an XL noggin, is compatible with glasses, looks nice, can be customised and easily taken apart and cleaned, works with pc/mac/ps/xbox, and you care about replacements being a viable option then you've found em - In my humble opinion Astro is a company that has been around for a long time and instead of abandoning products they actually care to make them better to make products that will last you a long time to ensure you get your moneys worth.Oh, for those who don't like having their ears squished by ear muffs (I hate having my ears squished) my ears are average/large (not dumbo size) and they fit inside the large cups with ease, seriously Astro's are the only brand which i know make large cups so they make a seal with your head and not by crushing your ears and thus letting sounds to leak in, I can wear them for very long periods of time and the only time i think about the fact im wearing them is when i feel the wire press into my left shoulder.Seriously 5/5*, 10/10 i'd buy this headset again.Astro's come with a two year warranty now btw.They cost £150 - I got about £1.78 a month out of mine as they lasted 84 months before ultimately succumbing to my abuse.Oh, if you do get a pair, get a headphone stand, or fabricate one, I would leave my headset to rest by putting one half of it on my desk so the other half dangled, this did the structural integrity no good as my headset became very lose to wear.I would go on about all the other brands i've tried and which have been disappointed by, but it's quicker just to list the one brand which has never let me down or abandoned me with time.ASTRO = SERIOUSLY GOOD STUFF.

This has been my main headset for over 4 years now. It’s still comfortable, drop prof, sound quality is still good and has become the best head set I have bought.If people are looking to buy one headset for a long time and don’t mind paying a pretty penny then this is it. I had the A10s before this and they are in their own league. Turtle beach, Logitech, Razer, coirsair… I’ve had a lot of them. This is the most durable and reliable headset in the market in my opinion.

While the audio quality isn't quite on par with high-end Sennheiser / Beyerdynamic headphones, it's not too far behind, and these are definitely the most comfortable headphones I've ever used. If your job involves wearing headphones for several hours a day, you can't go wrong with these.Design-wise, there could be a bit more distance between the volume control and the headphones themselves, and the padding on the headband could be slightly thicker (it's fine when they're brand new, but it gets flattened over time, and the plastic edges end up touching your head)..Construction-wise, the headphones themselves seem quite sturdy (I've dropped them a few times and nothing broke; at most I had to reattach the magnetic covers or click the sides of the headband into place), but the "track control" button on the volume did fall off after a few months (easily fixed with some glue).Some room for improvement, but I was mainly looking for something with good sound quality that can be worn comfortably for 8+ hours a day, and they definitely fit the bill.