Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!

Surround sound speakers have always given me a little thrill. Although I can’t claim to be any sort of audiophile, the idea of actually hearing an object in relation to your central person struck a chord with me when I first experienced the sensation in the childhood home of my best friend. His parents had purchased their first “surround sound” system, and we played around with it on any medium we could find.

This bad boy is one enormous piece of audio hardware.

But as an adult, I find that more and more of my time is spent with a pair of headphones slapped onto my ears. Whether it’s to appease my next door neighbors or to keep the baby from waking, I’ve been religiously barred from having any sort of overzealous sound escape my lovely set of 5.1 speakers. In terms of audio, this has left me in a bit of a bind in the past few years.

With the progression of true 5.1 Dolby Digital headphones, I’ve been able to keep up with my gaming and entertainment, albeit in a much more confined medium. That said, most of the 5.1 headphones that I’ve gotten my hands on (either through friends of as gifts) have been slightly lackluster and have produced sound effects that emerge in my ear like a mass of audio rather than the booming, individual speakers I get from my standard 5.1 set up. However, all of my complaints came to an end when I was given the privilege of reviewing the Tritton AX Pro gaming headset.

When my AX Pro’s arrived in the mail, I was amazed at the sheer size of this audio unit. Although not a surprise considering the fact that the AX Pro uses eight drivers: six 30mm drivers for center, front, and rear channels, and two 40mm drivers for the subwoofer. That’s four – count ‘em! – total drivers per ear, which is certainly an enormous loud to put in one ear cup.

That said, the result of having so many drivers in each ear is incredible sound clarity and 3D functionality. Whether I was playing Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings Online or Age of Conan, I was struck by the sounds that were clearly coming from my rear, left, right, or directly ahead. The subwoofer response was equally phenomenal, and, as one of my major sticking points with headsets, I couldn’t have been happier.

Games that utilize 5.1 sound really excel with the AX Pro.

Installation, on the other hand, will be a bit of a bear for the standard headset user. If you’re still using yesteryear’s sound card or onboard sound, you’ll be using a standard set of analog plugs, but if you’re using a sound card with “Optical Out” that’s definitely the way I would proceed. The AX Pro utilizes a specific audio controller that adjusts the sounds being exuded by your PC to correctly input them into your headset, which basically means that you’ll need to plug in a variety of different jacks into and out of the controller.

On top of the audio plugs, the AX Pro uses two A/C adapters to power this monstrous headset. Don’t expect to wear your AX Pro’s on a plane anytime soon, because a power strip is almost a necessity with these beasties. Once everything is powered on, you’ll need to adjust your speaker selection to fit your gaming needs, as each section – front, rear, center and sub – can be individually molded to meld to your listening style. Being a big bass kinda guy, I immediately cranked up the thunder and wallowed in the richness.

All that A/C power is definitely needed when you crank up the volume for the first time. Swords cuts, ambient sound, and character voice overs are all amplified and projected exactly as if they were coming straight from a set of THX certified desktop speakers. This spacious sound is definitely an attractive sell for the AX Pro’s and their ability to integrate into your Xbox 360 and PS3 are also nice value-added features.

The stylization of the headset fits perfectly with what you’d expect from a high-powered piece of audio equipment. On the ear cups of the headset are a Tritton’s iconic “TT” logo that glows with a nice, warm orange light when powered. The cord for the headset is absolutely enormous – I could go to the other end of my office without being disconnected – and the silver plastic headset wrap definitely gets a nod of appreciation from this editor. The entire set-up is certainly comfortable and provides plenty of padding.

Leading your raid in WoW will still be possible with the AX Pro due to its integrated mic system.

Despite being aesthetically pleasing, two of my biggest complaints about the AX Pro’s are it’s enormous size and the flimsy quality of the microphone. The typical gamer can endure long bouts of ass time, but the Tritton AX Pro’s probably weigh about as much as a slim-styled bike helmet. I doubt anyone will have any problems keep it on their head, but you can definitely feel the weight of the beast when you first engage with the creation. If you’re the gamer that’s trying to attract someone of the opposite sex, brandishing these puppies may get comparisons to “my grandma’s earmuffs” as they are just enormous. Even on my giant noggin, I received a number of strange looks from my wife.  

On the other hand, the microphone is perfectly adequate for conversing with your friends or talking some smack in a PvP session, but it seems grossly grossly undersized compared to the ear cups and the lack of flexibility makes it seem lackluster compared to the headsets that offer a maneuverable metal mic.

To be honest, the Tritton AX Pro’s are definitely worth looking into if you’re willing to spend over $170 for a non-speaker audio solution. Even if you’re a gamer on a budget, you may want to plunk down the two Benjamins just to nab a nice 5.1 speaker system without devoting extra desk space or waking your sleeping significant other. But if you don’t care if you have a 5.1 audio solution, there are definitely other headset options for those gamers that are on a budget.