We first ran a frequency response sweep with the new firmware update, but there wasn’t much of a change. These headphones deliver a bit of extra boom, which can help emphasize sound effects in action games.
Astro Gaming A40 TR + MixAmp Pro TR Review
It’s mostly matte black plastic around the earcups and headband, with aluminum struts on the sides connecting them and allowing for smooth vertical adjustment to tweak the fit. The underside of the headband has a rectangular pad made of the same material as the earpads, mounted between two flexible, sturdy plastic bands. The back panels of the earcups are made of glossy black plastic with silver accents, and stay attached to the headset with magnets.
You can also get additional open-back speaker tag sets for $40, featuring designs based around Call of Duty, Halo, and Nintendo.
The new MixAmp Pro TR is a dark gray box measuring 1.8 by 5.4 by 3.6 inches (HWD), with fairly stark corners and edges in contrast with the glossier, more rounded design of its predecessor. The top panel is dominated by two large, gunmetal knobs with backlit indicator notches that glow white when the microphone is active and red when it’s muted.
Connecting the MixAmp Pro TR to your computer is simple: Just plug the included 10-foot micro USB cable into a free port on your PC and put the switch on the back into the right position. Mick Gordon’s grungy industrial metal soundtrack alternates between frantic and ominous through the headset, with the thumping bass notes sounding full even without reaching into head-rattling sub-bass levels.
The loud roar of a pickup truck’s engine sounds distinct from the aggressive whine of a sportscar, each getting just the right amount of presence.
Every bump and crash into other cars, and every rumble of the edge of the track under tires, sounds low and full for plenty of impact.
Our bass test track, The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” sounds full and deep at maximum (and unsafe) volume levels, without any noticeable distortion. 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.
The open-back design allows for very pronounced stereo imaging, a far better experience for certain music tracks than a simulated surround mix. Listening to the track in lossless quality on Tidal, the string texture of the acoustic guitar notes in the opening come through with enough detail to pick out the positions of the instruments in the recording studio. The electric bass receives enough low-mid presence to drive the track, but it doesn’t sound overly thumpy, while the vocals, guitar riffs, and drums can all easily be discerned in the dense mix. If you want to spend less on a good wired headset, meanwhile, the Astro Gaming A10 offers strong performance at a fraction of the price of the A40, though it lacks the MixAmp and doesn’t feel nearly as comfortable.
Wij stellen technologie op de proef
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Wij stellen technologie op de proef
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Astro A40 TR plus MixAmp review: A tough sell nowadays, but still a top-notch headset
Astro’s A40 TR and redesigned MixAmp feel pricier than ever given the current headset market, but great audio and plenty of options for content producers make it a viable niche product. Once known exclusively for its high-end headsets, Astro spent the past few years carving a niche at the budget-friendly end of the market. But with those newcomers now firmly established it’s high time Astro returned to its signature headset, the A40. That last point is very specific, sure, but let me reiterate for my other bearded readers: The A40’s earcups are a minor miracle.
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. Astro’s very own wireless A50 is a model I wish other companies would emulate, with Game/Chat mixing (or chat-mix), volume, EQ, mute, and Dolby all easily accessible and relatively intuitive. Ante up $100 more for the A40-plus-MixAmp bundle, however, and you get chat-mix, volume control, EQ, Dolby, and more—albeit as a separate box, not built into the headset as with the A50. The previous MixAmp was oriented vertically, with one enormous volume dial over the smaller one for chat-mix.
A neat touch: The wheels are RGB backlit, and the lighting turns red when the A40 is muted. 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. It’s a lot cleaner-looking than the previous model, which split the ports between the front and back in ways that sometimes made it hard to move the MixAmp once you had it set. In general, the new MixAmp simply looks more professional, like a legitimate piece of audio mixing equipment, where the previous version felt sort-of toylike.
Even so, it’s less of a leg up than it used to be—Logitech (who of course owns Astro nowadays) and others have started building chat-mixing functionality into their $100 to $150 headsets as well, with built-in controls. Cymbals and snare hits tend to get lost or buried though, and I’ve noticed that music feels flat and cramped. That’s especially surprising given the A40 uses an open-backed design, which lets in more ambient noise but also generally creates a broader soundstage.
Astro A40 TR Headset en Mixamp Pro Review – Perfecte combinatie voor een pro?
Maar daarover later meer, eerst richten we onze blik op de headset zelf. We hebben het niet getest, maar het zal ons niks verbazen als je de Astro A40 TR meerdere keren op de grond kan laten vallen zonder dat er ook maar iets kapot gaat. Sterker nog, we zijn soms vergeten dat we aan een kabel waren bevestigd terwijl we even iets te drinken wilden pakken. Hij is vrij zwaar, zodat je het kastje niet makkelijk wegtrekt en de afwerking is zeer strak. Al die opties voor het geluid hebben ons lekker gemaakt om eens goed te luisteren naar de Astro A40 TR headset, maar om eerlijk te zijn waren we er niet door weggeblazen. De bass is daarentegen wel goed en heeft een sterke punch, maar voor een koptelefoon die zich juist neerzet als headset voor professionele gamers is de bass het minst belangrijke aan het geluid.
Je wil daarbij juist veel details hebben in de midrange en hoge tonen. Astro weet wat het moet doen om de vijfde generatie perfect te krijgen.
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