ASTRO Gaming A50 Wireless Dolby Gaming Headset - PlayStation 4 & PC

The A50 is not cheap... it does not have the best audio, or the best mic, but that is not what you are buying. You are buying a surround sound, wireless headset that provides "good" audio and "decent" mic qualities with decent battery life. This is the second A50 in our household, My wife uses this one, and I use an older generation HALO version. For this new generation they have basically doubled the battery life as well as having it auto off when placed down, meaning battery life is no longer a issue as long as your willing to charge it every other day or so. They charge decently quick, and you can always plug in to continue playing if need be. For the new generation the base now has a light indicator telling you your current battery life, so no need on guessing rather you have 20% or 90% battery life. With two ways of charging; the magnetic base stand which works well, or the old plug in USB style there really is no excuse not to charge it when you are not using it. So why buy it? Well... it is honestly the most comfortable headset I have ever used. I have owned over the last +/-20 years of gaming; Razer, TurtleBeach, Creative, Corsair, Logitek, Icemat Audio (now known as Siberia/Steelseries) and many others... The only headset that came close was the Icemat Audio in comfort, many of these other headsets were somewhat comfortable but after a few hours started bothering me, not so with the A50. This is why we went this direction for my wife, as her last Logitek was one of the most uncomfortable headsets we have owned, maybe only second to her Razer Banshee headset in the feeling of having your head in a vice. I can see people with narrow heads potentially having problems as their is not much "clamping force" but anyone with a average to above average size head should have no issues with comfort, the ear cups are pretty standard size, not small or large. It is also very breathable, I have never had "sweat" from wearing these, that I have had with say leather/vinyl cups. I wear a 7 1/4 to 7 1/2 hat and my wife wears a 6.5 and its just as comfortable to both us of, she also wears glasses and finds they accommodate glasses well. So again, why buy this headset? Because for myself at my age, I do not need the best audio... the best mic, the longest battery... what I do need is a super comfortable, wireless, surround sound headset, that does everything I need while performing well. This headset delivers. You can have the best audio in the world but if it means that in a hour my ears are hurting or I am uncomfortable, then what is the point? PRO: - Amazing comfort (I would dare say the best in the "Gaming" category) - A jack of all trades headset - Base stand has came a long ways and the new style is very nice - Two ways to charge (magnetic base or by USB) NEG: - Cost - Its not for audiophiles. If you are a audiophile you will be unhappy with the sound, go back and buy your "stereo" headset. - Software, I place it here because while its amazing, I am not sure the average user can utilize it to its fullest. - Sound bleed... Loud volume does indeed bleed out, they sell a kit to silence it, but yea a consideration for some. - I have always thought the need for the mic to be basically vertical to be in the "off" mode is silly and takes a while to get used to flipping it all the way up for it to be off... Overall the A50 has just gotten better over the years and while the audio quality may no longer be the best in the segment anymore, it still delivers dam good audio, and ill sacrifice having the best audio by a few points for comfort. I will put it this way; my older A50 suffers from the volume wheel adjustment problem(they have re-designed this now so no longer a issue), and even then I have continued to use it because its that good, that instead of buying a different brand I have stuck with them because they are that good, and its a minor annoyance compared to my enjoyment of the headset. Happy Shopping.