Give Me Wires or Give Me Death Ears On with the Astro A10
The entire time I’ve been smashing out what needs to be done on this latest issue of the mag, I’ve had the great fortune of doing it with the new ASTRO Gaming A10 Gen 2 Wired Gaming Headset clamped solidly to my head. They’re over-ear headphones with a rugged and durable build and comes in five different colourways; Black, White, Mint, Grey and Lilac. With an RRP of NZ$119, I’d consider this a mid range headset doing a midrange job with zero frills.
I was worried at first using them over my preferred ultra lightweight wireless Logitech g435’s, they have a firm grip, and with cans like these, they always run the risk of making your head feel mashed after a long hard day of drowning out your coworkers, but no such thing happened. With memory foam ear pad, they’re comfortable and have plenty of room for my ears to do their thing. They weigh 246 grams, so still decently lightweight, and come with a padded headband. They’re apparently designed for smaller heads, but it still had a few notches available for adjusting after accounting for my stunningly average skull.
The accompanying aux cable has a handy volume control which I forgot about most of the time, but it’s a decent length which is the main thing. From my desk, it can reach all the way to the back of my machine while still giving me a decent amount of manoeuvrability. Unlike some headsets out there, the 3.5mm can pop right out of the headset. Handy considering cables getting mangled and frayed is always a weak point for wired headsets, so replacing it won’t be the end of the world.
The A10 Gen 2 uses custom-tuned 32mm ASTRO Audio dynamic drivers which delivers fine audio and the 6.0mm boom unidirectional microphone works a treat. It’s rubbery and pliable making it easy to position or swing away when you’re done with a conversation. Flipping it up is a simple way to mute yourself on Discord and Zoom calls.
As I said at the top, this is a no-frills option that’s just here to get the job done, and it does it well, and most importantly, comfortably.
