Immediately grabbing is the presentation of the A40s, even starting as early as the very slick, stellar packaging that is very reminiscent of an apple product. It's an impressive, clean introduction to Astro as a company. The Mixamp itself really has a retro-futuristic vibe to it and is very enjoyable to look at. In fact, the Mixamp's gorgeously simple design is immediately striking, just sporting two knobs, one for volume and the other for chat control, and two buttons, one for power and the other to activate simulated 7.1 surround sound. The buttons light up red, and really accent the black & white sheen of the Mixamp. Keeping up with the quality aesthetic design are the headphones themselves. The white ones remind me very much of the black & white droids with the red LED face screens from Mass Effect 2 (I hope you know what I'm talking about). Again, a very cool retro science fiction look that reminds me of the aforementioned Mass Effect, Star Wars, and Star Trek series. It's very neat. The speaker tags also look very stylistic and the way they click into place is always satisfying.
The build quality of the headset, as well as the Mixamp, is very sturdy and well built. However, without batteries, the Mixamp is very, very light and can easily be jostled around if you're not careful. Keep that in mind. Each headphone can swivel to rest comfortably around your shoulders when you need to take a break. The quick disconnect cable included allows you to quickly and comfortably get up and walk around with the headset still resting on your shoulders, if you so desire. The headset itself feels heavy in your hand but feels extremely comfortable on your head. I have had long, long gaming sessions with these on and my ears stayed cool and dry, and it still felt great all-around. The package includes every wire you would ever want or need except the most important one for surround sound, an optical cable. Fortunately, there are very high quality ones dirt cheap here on Amazon, like this one, which I found to be particularly high quality. It's also worth noting that the new-and-improved 2011 edition microphone easily molds and stays in whatever shape you want relatively well. It can plug into whichever earphone you want, which is a very nice feature. There are also foam inserts included that you can put in each headphone, sandwiched between the magnetized speaker tags and the open-back headphone themselves. These will lower outside noise by 6 decibels, and really add to the privacy of your sound experience. It also greatly lowers the sound that escapes out when you're playing. This is good for those of you with sleeping wives or girlfriends next to you, or if you want to keep from disturbing anybody nearby. It's also important to note that, despite being a wired set-up, this system is very streamlined and doesn't clutter my house or get in the way at all. I haven't once been inconvenienced by it.
The overall audio sound of the headsets by themselves is excellent. The 2011 edition utilizes new foam in the headphones themselves that is supposed to bring out more bass (the biggest and pretty much only complaint of the prior A40 models were a distinctly poor amount and quality of bass). They do not disappoint in any way. I've sampled various headsets and audio systems in my life, and the overall mix and focus of these headsets are very, very balanced in comparison. Overall, the headphones have a very warm, embracing tone that really brings out the lows, the mids, and the highs in an excellent mix without any being overwrought and abrasive, but still remaining distinct and clear. It's very much like an old, aged acoustic guitar that has settled over the years into a distinctly warm, full-of-character charm, with a loving sound that embraces your ears. It's a little hard to describe, but this thick and creamy tone is great whether in stereo or in surround sound. One reason I really love the Astro A40's is the variety of uses you can have with it. It's not tethered to a base that transmits audio like wireless systems require you to. You can plug the headset itself into your iPod, your 3DS (or just plain DS), your PSP, your laptop, pretty much anything with a standard jack, and that was a major selling point for me. It's nice that I can go anywhere I want, plug my A40s into my iPod, and enjoy the music. The audio from any of these other sources sound amazing through these headphones.
The Mixamp takes what was an already amazing audiophile set of headphones that performed at $350+ quality and turns them into an overachieving, $1000+ quality surround sound theatre system. It is a remarkable little box. To test out the 7.1 surround sound function, I played some multiplayer in Halo Reach, and was promptly blown away. I could FEEL the rumble of an engine, the discharge of a plasma rifle, the power of a running stream and waterfall, and the impact of a grenade. The bass was punchy, the mids were tasty, and the highs were distinctive. It was quite the experience. I stopped to pan the camera around and marveled as the sounds traveled from ear to ear, front to back, side to side, with a realism that genuinely convinced me I was there myself. The newly improved microphone worked very well in multiplayer as well. Having this audio system engaged gave me a distinct edge in multiplayer, which is what I imagine most people will buy the headset for. The award winning Mixamp is critically acclaimed for a reason, it is incredible. For me personally, I didn't buy this audio system for multiplayer efficiency though. Rather, I bought it for the surround sound immersion factor, with more focus on grand single-player experiences, which is what I tested next.
I went through some other games from a broad spectrum of genres and focus from my collection to test the audio quality and the 7.1 function of the Mixamp with the headset. I tried Okami, whose artistic, zenlike focus in the music and sound was made even more spectacular by this audio system. Halo 3: ODST became even more immersive, running around the lonely streets of New Mombasa in isolation and anticipation, newspapers blowing in the wind and rain drops were distinct. The charming ambient noises of Albion and lovely music in Fable 2 and Fable 3 were a delight. So many of my favorite games have so much detail now, I can't help but wonder if I was deaf before. It's a miracle, Astro healed my ears! Dramatic joking aside though, I cannot wait to play Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 again. This audio system makes me want to go back and play my favorite games again, just to hear all of the details I never had a clue about. One of the biggest factors for me in my favorite games is the immersion, taking me to another place and time to marvel at and enjoy. This audio system made even the most immersive games with the greatest atmosphere so much better to enjoy, and that's what's most important.
Well, are you still here? I know this review is really long, but I gotta tell you, when I was trying to figure out whether I wanted TB X41s, DPX21, PX5s, XP500s, Astro A30s, A40s Wireless, or the wired Astro A40 audio system, the long reviews that went into extreme detail that covered every topic the reviewer could think of are the ones that helped me the most. I hope that's what this review was like. My recommendation: buy this audio system if you can afford it. Astro is a great company to do business with, very personal, very much focused on your satisfaction. I can personally attest to that fact. The only downside that I can think of for most people is the price of the Audio System, but I can tell you that in my experience, the splurging was well-worth it. These headphones, combined with the mixamp, take a $250 price and stretch it out to being the equivalent to a very expensive, high-fidelity surround sound theater system. As a matter of fact, Astro purposefully chose to be their own seller because if they sold their products through a third-party retailer, the price tag would be 400$ OR HIGHER! Yes, $250 is a steal, and you'll get every bang for your buck in the best sound for anywhere near this price range. It's excellent. Buy it, immerse yourself (or "pwn n00bz" online) with it, LOVE IT!
*Below is supplementary information in addition to the main review, which I finished above. I figured I would include some information about this system and my own personal preference to try and give you as much helpful information as I can. The following really didn't fit anywhere in the review, so I put it here, enjoy:
After hours and hours of research into the different high quality headsets out there, I really settled on either Turtle Beach's PX5 or the Astro A40 wireless system, or this one. The PX5's are wireless and boast a ridiculous amount of features and customization. The A40's boast simplicity and ease of use, variety of use, and being of the highest quality. I just didn't feel I needed all of the things Turtle Beach claimed the PX5s could do for me. I'd prefer to avoid wireless, I don't care about bluetooth, I don't care about customized presets, I don't want my headset to be anchored to one base source, etc. I'm really glad I got the A40s.
In the end I went with this wired version, and I want to let you know why exactly I chose the wired Mixamp system over the new wireless Mixamp 5.8. Some may think this is a weird choice, because the 5.8 Mixamp supposedly has every good feature of the wired one, plus some new, exclusive features like a bass boost function that the wired Mixamp does not have, as well as the obvious perk of the convenience a wireless system inherently has. Despite these facts, I deliberately chose to get wired for two main reasons:
1.) Call me a hippy alarmist if you want, blame it on the fact that I live in Portland, OR, the emerald city of weirdness and ecoloving-naturalist-hipsters, blame it on my natural-health focused wife rubbing off on me, but I really didn't want yet another wireless system broadcasting micro/radio waves in my house. It seems every year they come out with studies proving how harmful the background radiation is from wireless things we use everyday (cell phones, wireless routers, etc) and I just want to avoid as much of that in the house as I reasonably can. In our house, we only have one wireless router, and that's pretty much it. I don't judge anyone who uses wireless systems, and if you love high-quality wireless devices and detest wired systems, then the A40 Wireless System is probably the way for you to go, but as for me, this wired system was exactly what I wanted. I may get a lot of unhelpful votes for this paragraph alone because people hate those who seem to be hipsters (I'm really not), but I just wanted to explain one big incentive to go the wired Mixamp route for me. There's also one more big factor for me, and it is my biggest reason...
2.)The quality of a wired audio system is still the best you can get. Despite the fact that newer wireless headsets are getting better in better in quality, perhaps nearly as good as wired systems, I still prefer a wired system for headphones. There really is no better way to transfer audio data that translates to higher quality sound than in a wired system. Maybe next year that won't be the case, hell maybe that's not the case right now, but I just figured I would go wired because after much research, it's a general consensus that wired gives the best quality. According to my experience with the A40s, this is true. This way, there are absolutely no risks of pops, interference (although that really shouldn't be the case with the 5.8 Mixamp as it uses a different frequency than every other wireless device out there), and all of the cons of a wireless system.
So there you go, the two biggest reasons I went with the Mixamp over the 5.8 Mixamp. I traded the convenience for worrywart health precaution and audio quality, but I'm glad I did.
Finally, I'll give you a really nice pointer that helped me tremendously. I have a two-year-old Xbox 360 Elite and a relatively new Playstation 3 slim. Instead of buying accessory plug-ins for the 360 and then unplugging and plugging the optical cable every time I want to switch between the systems, I did something much simpler. Both systems are hooked up to our HDTV via HDMI cables. All I did was hook my optical cable into the optical out on the TV, plugged the USB power cord for the Mixamp into the TV, set up each system to output dolby digital, and voila! It's easy, it's super effective (lame Pokemon reference aside), and now I don't have to bother with it anymore. It's a great set-up! I hope that is helpful to somebody out there.
Ok, I think I'm all out of words to use for the product. I hope all of this was helpful. Take care.
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Hello, this is D-Day1944, and today I will be doing a review on the Astro A40 Audio System (2013 Edition). I know that many of you have been waiting for this one. So, let us get started.Introduction:
Astro has already proven themselves as a one of the most successful gaming headphone brands in recent memory. However, with Turtle Beach snagging the contract for the new headset licensed by MLG (Major League Gaming), and Tritton having made their turnaround with the 720+, things are more difficult for the A40. To make matters worse, Astro's old rivals, the Beyerdynamic MMX 300 and Sennheiser PC 360, did not make things any easier for this new edition. The most talked about this year, however, the Plantronics Commander, has made things even harder. With all these new competitors, does the A40 still have the sound performance to best its rivals, or has time really taken a toll on this consistent successful performer? Also, should you even consider to upgrade to the 2013 edition? Those questions will be answered soon, so stay tuned!
Out of the Box/Looks:
To start out, if you have already have owned the Astro A40 System, there will not be much change here. However, if you have not, here is to explain what the box looks like.
To start out, the box itself has the Audio System logo on it. On the back, there is a quick set-up guide for those who are new to how a gaming headset is supposed to be hooked up, and on the sides, their is additional information about the A40 specifications.
Now, as you pull of the cover of the box, you are greeted with a eye catching design of graphical artwork. You will then notice a tab sticking out. Once you pull back the tab, the headset itself will appear. There is a 3.5mm input located on the left side. Once out of the case, you can adjust the metal sliders to change how big you want the headphone to be.The skeletal frame looks eye catching as well. If you look at the plates, you cam remove them, which reveals an Astro "A" embossed on it. These plates, or speaker tags, are unique in which you can buy different sets, or customize your own at their official site. Also revealed are two 3.mm inputs in which you can add the microphone on either side. Thus far, this is the only company I have seen who does this. As said before, the A40 is no longer sponsored by MLG, so the embossed MLG logo has been replaced by the Astro logo instead.
Moving on, there is another compartment you pull up, which, once done, will reveal the new mixamp (I will explain how this differs from the 2012 version later in the review). I heave to say, the mixamp definitely has some retro vibe going for it, with its retro-like analog controls and curves. It reminds me of when space invaders was still in its prime.
Afterwards, you will notice a ribbon. Once you pull up the ribbon, you will notice some papers regarding the Astro family, and a congratulations one as well. Under these papers, there are the cables that you will need. The cables are as follows:
A 3.5mm to TOSlink cable.
A 3.5mm Male to 3.5mm Male cable for streaming music or "Daisy Chaining" or the new Stream mode (I will cover this later in the review, along with the Daisy Chaining.)
A 2.5mm Male to 2.5mm Male cable for Xbox Live Chat.
A PC Splitter.
A 3.5mm Male Cable with a mic mute switch that you plug in to the Headset.
A USB Cable.
These are all the cables needed to hook up with any system. The cables themselves have strong wiring, and the Microphone is flexible and pliable for any position once you stick it in the headphone itself.
Well, that covers what is in there and what you will be using. Next up, Build Quality.
Build Quality:
To put it simply, to Astro A40 system is very solid. Initially, I was a bit concerned due to many gaps in the plastic, as well as partially exposed cables of the headset. Through my two weeks of testing, neither of which gave me problems. If anything, I did not even snag a single cord. The headset is also very flexible, so it will not get broke easily. The skeletal frame of the headphone also made me nervous, but, after tossing it a couple of times on the coffee table, the headphone still worked properly.
As for the mixamp itself, it also performed very well. The mixamp's build is so good that even a couple accidents of it falling on the floor did not even break it, let alone scratch it.
In the end, the Astro A40 really did not break a sweat. Nothing low was here, which is good considering the $249.99 price tag.
Comfort will be the next topic in this review.
Comfort:
The Astro A40's really did not give me any problems at all comfort-wise. The flexibility of the headphone was great and did not clamp on my head. The skeletal frame of the headphone made it even more lighter due to its floating design. It is surprising, as the headphone itself weighs around 350 grams. However, none of those key factors above would be worth it if the A40's did not have good earcups. The earcups themselves are made from memory foam, and there is some on the inside as well. There is also a good amount of padding on the headband. The velour materiel was breathable, and the earcups themselves could swivel 90 degrees for breaks while resting on your shoulders. I had received 7-10 hours of comfort without taking them off.
If one word comes to mind about the comfort of the A40, it would be awesome.
Alright, now the main reason whether or not you should purchase this. The Sound Performance. That, my friends, is up next.
Sound Performance:
The moment many of you have been wanting to read, the sound performance. Astro said that the new updates to their drivers make this the best Astro headset ever. I was curious to see if these claims were true as I am an owner of the 2012 Edition.
The answer would be yes. For stereo sound, the A40's were very fun to listen to. In songs like "We are the Reasons" by We Came as Romans, the A40's handled the heavily distorted bass, screeching highs, and powerful guitar strums. It sounded almost as good as a worn in acoustic woody sounding guitar. Other songs, such as "Existence" by Excision, the A40 handled the powerful bass and expansive loops well.
Now, before we take a look as to how the A40 performed in Dolby 5.1 Surround Sound, let me explain how it works:
Dolby 5.1: A closer look:
In order to achieve Dolby 5.1, Dolby headphone is mixed with Dolby Digital, which then uses 5.1 channels of audio much like in a 5.1 speaker setup. Then, DSP's (Digital Sound Processors) are used to simulate 5.1 channels of audio going to the headset. For Dolby 7.1, Dolby Pro Logic IIx is used as rear filler channels and mixed with the Dolby Digital 5.1. That is then blended in with Dolby Headphone to give Dolby 7.1
Disclaimer:
However, Consoles only output 5.1, so the hysteria behind the "Full Dolby 7.1!" is only marketing.
With that now finished, let us go back to the sound performance of the A40.
Sound Performance (Continued):
For entering Dolby 5.1, my audio has really gotten a boost, as the Astro A40's sound somewhat like a borderline physical surround sound system.
For games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Halo 4 the results were great. Footsteps were easy to detect, gunshots were great and whizzing past my head, and dialogue in the campaign was clear. Other games such as Batman: Arkham City proved to be very good. Hearing Batman fly himself through the city was awesome, and even subtle sounds like raindrops came in clear.
Now, the new mixamp has four different modes. Not only that, the Daisy Chain Adapter from the 2012 Edition has been removed. You now use the 3.5mm Male to 3.5mm Male adapter to link other mixamps if you have friends over. For audio, these change the dynamic range and compression of audio. They are as follows:
Pro
Movie
Music
Sport
I will explain how each performed.
Pro:
This setting turns down the bass response and kicks up the mids and highs. For this option, it was very pleasing, as this was my most favorite option. This option helps in games such as Halo 4, Killzone 3, Call of Duty, or Battlefield. As for others such as Infamous 2, hearing the electrical grinding was fantastic.
Movie:
This setting turns up the mid range and lowers the highs and lows. This turned out to be my second option. This was more used in games such as Batman: Arkham City and Uncharted 3: Drake's Fortune. The Sound stage was wide, and the compression is better suited for these games. While it still can be used for games like Battlefield, I would still recommend pro for those types of games.
Music:
This setting kicks up the low end and tunes down the mids and highs. With the Astro A40, the highs are not as distorted as their 2012 edition, but still, this would be my least recommended option. The low end did not help me at all in Call of Duty or others like Infamous 2. However, I will give the special mention that games like Hydro Thunder or Forza 5, you can have fun hearing the roar of the engine.
Sport:
The High end is kicked up this time for this setting, and the mids and lows are kicked down. Since the A40's had great bass, the Sport setting did not do much, but they are my third favorite, as the sound stage for certain games, such as Halo, did not go well. Games like Madden 13 or NBA 2K13 did do well, since these games really do not vender themselves of audio importance.
Well, there you have it, folks. The new additions have made the audio for the 2013 A40 sound better. It actually sounds slightly better as its nearest rival, the Sennheiser PC 360's, but still not as great as the Beyerdynamic MMX 300's.
As for the microphone, it performed well. It is not a condenser type, but it did well in blocking ambient noise and my teammates could always hear me.
As for the stream option, I had a friend help me stream a video and it turned out well. Basically, if you hook up a 3.5mm Male to 3.5mm Male cable from the streaming option to your PC or Mac, you can have audio and voicing going from the mixamp to the PC or Mac. I would rather just use a capture card, but the mixamp did do a good job. Anyway, back to the review!
The SVM (Selectable Voice Monitoring) that is built in to the mixamp has improved, but still is not necessary. With that note, that brings me to what is not hot about the mixamp.
The mixamp I got for this review is the repaired model. My initial model had distortion upon turning the knobs and the signal wobbles between the drivers when the mixamp was below 15%. It is something to be concerned about, but I do have to mention it for disclosure's sake.
With the Sound Performance done, it is time for the verdict.
Verdict:
Many have tried to knock it from the throne, but only a few have budged it. The Plantronics Commander, Senneheiser PC 360, Tritton 720+, and Beyerdynamic MMX 300 have budged it, but the new 2013 A40 has helped it stay as one of the best gaming headsets available. It looks like that ASTRO Gaming still has what it takes to develop high quality products. While it may cost $249.99 + optional speaker tag additions or a optional carrying case, few can match what it can do and what it offers.
I give the Astro A40 Audio System (2013 edition) a 4.5/5 Stars rating.
Thank you for reading and I hoped you enjoyed. Join me next time were I will cover the Tritton 720+. After hearing so many good things about the 720+, I cannot wait for the review to happen. Until next time, this is D-Day1944,
Signing out.
***UPDATE***
Hello everyone, D-Day1944 with an update. It seems that my 720+ review will be scrapped. Instead, I have opted for the Turtle Beach Sierra for my next review. I am terribly sorry for any inconveniences and hopefully this will not happen again. Anyway, that is all.
This has been D-Day1944, signing out.
Best Deals for ASTRO Gaming A40 Audio System, Black - Xbox 360
I already own a pair of these and use them for my game consoles, however they are capable of much more! I've also used them on my iPhone and laptop. The sound quality of these headphones is near audiophile level. The directional precision is impeccable, the quality is so high that I had to change the way I sound-whored in Battlefield. I own a pair of X41s and Tritton AXPROs, they're now retired and collecting dust. The build quality is very impressive and comfort level is unparalleled. Astro actually studied the amount of pressure required to maintain comfort. They don't hurt even when I'm wearing my glasses and 3D glasses at the same time. Both of the microphones on the headset are very good too. The boom mic is my favorite with it's ability to be moved to the other side with a quick pull and push. The in-line mic is also very good and if you're not a fan of boom style mics offers a great alternative. When they're plugged into the mix amp, they provide the best clarity and noise cancelling for the mic I've ever experienced. If you take gaming serious and want to compete on a higher level, these are the headphones for you.Honest reviews on ASTRO Gaming A40 Audio System, Black - Xbox 360
I have had my A40 system for about 6 months now, and it's the best purchase I've made in a while. I've tested all the major headsets available, and this one is by far the best. It sounds amazing, it's extremely comfortable to wear, and Astro Gaming is a great manufacturer. It's obvious to me that Astro takes great pride in all of their products, and I highly recommend buying directly from them, rather than amazon.The Headset:
The headset is very easy to adjust, and fits all headsizes. On both sides of the headset are speaker tags. These tags are detachable, and comes in packs of three. Two solid ones, and one with a hole (for the mic). If you don't need the mic, you can remove the tag with the hole and replace it with a solid one, giving the headset a more symetric look. Astro allows you to upload images and design your own speaker tags, which is great for customizing your headset. The mic is a single boom with no wires. The mic is very high quality, and will attach to both sides of the headset. As far as sound goes, I give the Astros a 9/10. I think the bass could be a little deeper, but I'm not complaining at all.
The Mixamp:
The mixamp is pure genius. There is only one wire going from the headset to the mixamp. If you're playing Xbox, you will also have a wire going from the controller to the mixamp. I strongly suggest that when you buy this system, you get the TOSlink cable for the best possible sound. The mixamp has two knobs on it. The main one is the master volume control. The smaller controls the game sound to voice sound ratio. The mixamp runs of USB power, which is great because the Xbox has two USB ports on it. You can also get 4 AA batteries which will give you 12-14 hours. Astro just released a new version of the mixamp, which now supports use with the PS3 right out of the box.
The cables:
The system comes with tons of cables, allowing you to connect it with just about anything. It includes a cable to plug your headset into a headphone jack and a mic jack, a cable to plug your headset into a headphone jack, and a few other cables that I have never used. Astro makes sure that you have all of the tools necessary to maximize your headset.
Customer Support:
My headset got a short in the wiring a couple months after purchase. Astro responded quickly to my emails, fixed the headset in about 3 days, and got it back to me just over a week after it broke. They clearly care about customer satisfaction.
Astro Gaming:
Astro offers many accessories and replacement parts for the A40 system. If you have any gaming needs, Astro probably has something just for it. You can also download product manual on their site before making any purchases.
I love my A40 system, and as soon as Astro comes out with a new model, I'll be grabing that one as well. Hopefully it will be wireless.
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for ASTRO Gaming A40 Audio System, Black - Xbox 360
INTRO:Please dont mistake me for a complainer, hater, troll, etc. This is my honest review. I believe Astro can and will fix these problems. But until they do, people need to know what they are getting into.
LONG STORY SHORT:
As of 01/04/2013, do not update the firmware for the mixamp! I immediately updated, and I regret it. It has caused the mic to be complete poop. As of right now, from reading on multiple forums and reviews, the best thing you can do is
1. Get a better quality USB cable than the one it ships with.
2. Possibly plug the USB cable into a different device or wall outlet than the one you're using.
THE DETAILS
Some background on the problem history of the 2013 edition: There were reports of very low mic volume, meaning your friends could not hear you or you sounded muffled. There were also reports of the audio dropping out when certain things (loud noises) happened in game. Astro released a firmware update that "fixed" the low mic volume. They supposedly released another that fixed the sound dropping in and out. Many people have said the sound dropping out is due to the crappy USB cable the items ships with, and that replacing it with a decent one (the ps3 charge cable for example) completely fixes the problem.
When I first hooked up my headset to my 360, according to my friends, I sounded fine. Also, incoming sound sounded great to me. After I stupidly decided to update the firmware, I started sounding like poo according to my friends.
SUMMARY:
Just DO NOT update the firmware until Astro releases a new version and it is confirmed as working (I will update this review then)
I want to like this headset. It really does sound amazing. But the mic problem is a deal breaker. I paid $250 for a gaming headset. If I only cared about incoming sound, I could get a much cheaper set of headphones. But since this is a gaming headset, the mic should work perfectly, and it's not even close.
Current recommendation: Do not buy the Astro A40 2013 edition.
I truly hope to be updating this review and giving it more stars. I am waiting on Astro support to respond to my email. We shall see what happens.
UPDATE 1/17/2012
Still no firmware update from Astro. I did however communicate with a support representative about my headset. (They only communicate through email which means it can be slow). Even though the problem is clearly with the mixamp, they sent me all new cables and a new mic. While its great that they sent all this for free, I didn't really need it. The problem is with the mixamp. It needs a firmware update to fix how a persons voice sounds. For the record, Astro has said they are working on a firmware update for the "noise gate" problems. They have also said they plan to release "an update" sometime in January. Well, I got tired of waiting. I initiated a return through Amazon. The process was painless and Astro even contact me so they could give me a free shipping label for my return. This part of customer service was again, amazing. I really wish this product had worked out. Even though it isn't a bad product, for the price, it should have worked flawlessly. I will try to update this review again if I see they release firmware that works.
Current recommendation: Do not buy the Astro A40 2013 edition.
UPDATE 1/25/2013
I see that today Astro made a new blog post about firmware updates. I am a bit confused though, because I don't actually see any new updates. I can't test this since I no longer have the product.
UPDATE 2/14/2013
Astro released another firmware update today. Again, I no longer have the headset, so I cant test it. But here are some quotes from their forum page on the current firmware update. I think they speak for themselves:
"I did this livestream test using the new stream port with the update firmware and this is how it sounds. Basically my mic quality isn't good at all, it sounds muffled and cuts in and out if I speak over a certain octave."
"So I updated my mixamp now I get now sound except voices from the mixamp, I am playing black ops 2 btw"
"They still need to clean up the background hiss. I honestly feel they should turn down completely the game volume from this port."
"Just updated the firmware, now it's not working at all. Plugged to my computer via USB to power and optical (SPDIF out) for sound. Using the optical cable no sound at all is coming out. I tried setting USB as default and there's barely any sound coming out."
"the voice output has gotten a little bit better, but im still noticing aproblem with it picking up my voice"
Again, I can't say this is happening to everyone and I can't test it myself. Just take this into consideration guys.
Final recommendation: research the latest firmware update. If it has fixed everything for people, consider buying the Astro A40's.
Current recommendation: Do not buy the Astro A40 2013 edition.
