A neat touch: The wheels are RGB backlit, and the lighting turns red when the A40 is muted.
Hooking the MixAmp up to your console is slightly trickier.
Astro’s billing this latest A40 as a brand-new generation, but I don’t think the headset’s actually changed.
Great for gaming. At 100dB SPL and a foot away, their leakage will be relatively loud. The cups are dense and should survive a few accidental drops without too much damage.
Astro Gaming has established itself as one of the most consistently high-quality gaming headset manufacturers. It doesn't reach quite low enough into sub-bass territory to rattle your head, but the bass synth notes and kick drum hits still get plenty of low-end force behind them. It’s worth noting that Astro’s got one of the better microphones on the market. Beats Powerbeats Pro: Which True Wireless Earbuds Are the Best? The headset itself is very similar to the previous A40's design, with some tweaked colors and finishes.
The super shotgun and rocket launcher get plenty of low and low-mid resonance to give them lots of punch, and the various hisses, grunts, and growls of enemies come through with lots of clarity in the high-mids and highs. AirPods Pro vs. AirPods 2: Which True Wireless Apple Earbuds Are Better? The imaging is excellent. However, the Razer have an adjustable surround sound feature. Your computer should automatically detect the MixAmp and headset as an audio device for both input and output. On the other hand, the Corsair have better noise isolation thanks to their closed-back design, as opposed to the open-back style of the Astro. However, like the Astro A50, the headband is somewhat open and a little hollow with only a plastic mid-section resting on the head. These gaming headphones don’t have Bluetooth compatibility. The simulated 7.1-channel surround sound provides accurate left-right imaging with the stereo drivers of the headset, giving a good sense of the source of different sounds. Here, you definitely lose isolation, but the A40 doesn’t sound nearly as wide as the HyperX Cloud Alpha, for instance. The 3.5mm hookup is towards the back of the left earcup, and while the cable stays out of the way it also has a tendency to rub against my neck—especially in cross-body situations, as when plugging into a PC on my right. Four pin-prick lights down the center indicate which EQ preset you have active, and there’s a button to swap 7.1 or Stereo modes as well. The Astro 40 TR lineup is Astro's flagship wired headset product, completed with a revamped version of its excellent MixAmp.
They leak quite a lot so you shouldn’t use this in a crowded office as you’ll bother your colleagues. Then Astro followed up with the A20, for entry-level wireless. You can also create your own EQ presets.
The main frame is now all-black, while the color accent indicates the console variant. These panels, which Astro calls speaker tags, leave a gap above the earcups, giving the open-back 40mm drivers plenty of space to breathe and provide better spatial imaging (and plenty of sound leakage, so be aware when you're using the headset around other people). Otherwise, the A40 is essentially frozen in time. Other differences are mainly aesthetic-related, like the Amp design or the color scheme of different model variants. The Astro A40 have a poor leakage performance, but this is due to their open-back design. However, the overall difference in temperature is not too drastic and won’t be too warm. Their bulky design also sways a lot with head movement, so the headphones could easily slip off your head.
The back is festooned with inputs—optical, USB, Aux—and a switch that lets you toggle between PC and PlayStation 4 on-the-fly. The A40 MixAmp have good gaming controls, but they don’t offer call and music management, which shouldn’t be an issue for most gamers. The leakage averaged 56dB SPL and peaked at 80dB SPL, which is significantly higher than the noise of an average office. They keep the same comfortable and sturdy build of the previous Astro A40 model. The Astro's open-back design also provides a far more immersive listening experience. Its wireless A50 headset offers excellent build quality and performance, and its A10 remains one of our top picks for budget wired headsets. It’s been a while since we’ve seen premium Astro gear. Gain early access to all tests results for new products, Prices will now be listed directly in reviews and tables, Have 5 votes per product category to choose which product we’ll review next, Gain unlimited access to detailed test results in tools and results (no blurred results), Best Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds For Running, Best Noise Cancelling Headphones Under $100, Best Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds Under $50, Best Noise Cancelling Earbuds And In-Ears, Best Wireless Bluetooth Headphones Under $100, Best Noise Cancelling Headphones Under $200, Skullcandy Sesh Evo True Wireless Test Results, Mpow Pro Trucker Bluetooth Headset Review, Plantronics Voyager 3200 Bluetooth Headset Test Results, Having trouble deciding between two headphones? I’ll personally never use that feature, and left-hand mics are so standardized I actually find the idea of a right-hand mic a bit unsettling. The new bundle would … The open-back design allows for very pronounced stereo imaging, a far better experience for certain music tracks than a simulated surround mix.
That’s the one change!
The new MixAmp is arrayed horizontally (as pictured above), with a volume wheel on the left and chat-mix on the right. Copyright © 2020 IDG Communications, Inc. This is, by all outward appearances, the same A40 Astro has been selling since at least 2016. Otherwise, it’s hard for me to imagine why you’d choose a $250 wired headset over a $300 A50, getting essentially the same build but in a more convenient wireless form. PCWorld helps you navigate the PC ecosystem to find the products you want and the advice you need to get the job done. The boom mic has great recording quality. The A40's microphone sounds excellent. Astro could use a better wiring system though. They are also a bit less tight than the A50 and feel fairly similar to the previous model. The Astro have a more comfortable design for long gaming sessions, and their open-back design reproduces audio more consistently across different users. Wired, the aforementioned Logitech G Pro X is a solid alternative for half the price. They also feature a useful dual-battery system that makes it near impossible to run out of power, and they can also be used via Bluetooth as well.
With the MixAmp, the A40 sounds more impressive. The left knob controls master volume, while the slightly smaller right knob controls voice chat and game audio balance. Still, it’s the way to go if you’re set on buying an A40.
Light, sturdy design feels premium.