The
A50 Wireless Headset utilizes KleerNet 5.8GHz wireless technology, providing a high-quality, clear and higher fidelity sound signal with less chance of interference. (Nice.) The sound quality is amazing, especially with the very convincing 7.1 Dolby surround in effect. I was even noticing spacial effects in certain songs I listened to on my PC. Crazy.
I found the A50 Wireless Headset to be best used with the PC, and, unless you have an amazing sound card that you want to use the optical audio out from, you can simply plug the USB connection into your PC and use the A50 transmitter's internal audio device as your sound card. For 360 or PS3, however, you'll need to plug in the included TOSLINK optical audio cable in addition to the USB connection for powering the transmitter. The transmitter features both an "Optical In" and an "Optical Out" port for passing the audio along to other devices, should you want to do that. If you don't use the optical audio cables, you can substitute a standard mini audio cable in the "Aux In" port, but there isn't a pass-through port for that.
Also, although on the PC you can use the A50's MixAmp transmitter as an audio device (instead of using your own sound card or mainboard-embedded sound), the EQ settings don't seem to have any effect on the sound if it is generated by the MixAmp. Sound that is piped in via the optical audio, however, is affected by the EQ - and to good effect. The three settings are numbered 1, 2 and 3 and seem to be, essentially, 'straight', 'fuller' and 'fullest / theatrical' - although the names used by Astro Gaming are 'Native', 'Astro' and 'Media', respectively. (The 'Astro' setting is tuned with the intention of being used with games.) Reportedly, a future firmware upgrade will allow for customizable EQ settings to be assigned to these three EQ positions, so perhaps mine is simply set to flat-lined for all three. I am contacting Astro Gaming about this issue and will follow up with their response and any resolution.
The A50 Wireless Headset is easy to hook up and use - especially if you read the instructions fully before trying things. For example, the headset and the transmitter are shipped pre-paired to each other. Unless you have a problem with them, you shouldn't have to pair them at all. Personally, I read the instructions on how to pair them (and followed them) before I read the part that I didn't have to do that.
One obvious point of consideration is the price: the A50 Wireless Headset is at the $300 price point - putting it in the "high end" market. The A50s generally live up to the price, with high quality, comfort and nice features, but their value will also depend on your personal preferences. For example, the A50 Wireless Headphones are some of the most comfortable full-sized headphones I've ever used, being light-weight, nicely padded and sitting quite comfortably on the head. However, I prefer ear cups that sit on the ears, rather than around the ears, so I, personally prefer the feel of my trusty A30 wired headphones (link below). (I have one pair at home and one pair at work, in fact.) Over time, the A50s tended to get a little warm (not hot), whereas my A30s stay cool even during all-day usage. The upside of the over-the-ear construction is that, although the A50s don't feature active noise cancellation, the ear cups do an excellent job of cutting out ambient sounds around you. This is good when you want to remain immersed in a game. This is not so good when your wife is trying to get your attention. Just sayin'.
Astro Gaming claims that the internal battery is supposed to get around ten hours of use when charged for five hours. In my personal experience, it seemed to be closer to eight hours of usage, but I rarely would charge my headphones for five hours straight. The auto cutoff feature helps your charge last longer when you're not actively using your headphones and, of course, the volume you use them at will affect how long your charge actually lasts. The biggest problem with this internal battery is not its battery life, but its service life. Batteries lose potency over time and, given that the battery is internal (and not easily removable), when your A50s get on up in age, you're going to be looking at getting them serviced by Astro Gaming to replace your battery. Something that might be worth considering.
For those familiar with the previous Astro Gaming headphone products, you're likely aware of their MixAmp (link below). This device adds flexibility and control to your audio by allowing you to control the mix of Game and Voice Chat feeds, as well as piping in an auxiliary feed and tweaking the sound quality. The A50 Wireless features a version of the MixAmp built-in to the headphones, themselves. This makes for a nice package with controls for tweaking you sound right on your headphones, but since it's wireless, it limits the functionality of the MixAmp feature a bit. For example, you can't output your mixed sound to share with another device, as you could with a standalone MixAmp. This may or may not be an issue for you. Given that the standalone MixAmp is upwards of $250 on its own, this helps to make up for the high cost of the A50 Wireless Headphones.
The A50 Headsets are wireless - on the PC or PS3. The Xbox 360's LIVE Chat has that annoying little wire connected between the controller and the headset, but - even then - you're not playing across the room from your television with a wire leading from your head all the way across the room. And, when you're not using them, the included headphone stand provides a nice and safe place to store your headphones - and show them off. This is one of those extra touches that Astro Gaming has built its reputation on. Why, even their packaging is archival quality; I keep the boxes in case I ever need to ship or store their products.
