Set-up and sound quality
The set-upYou will need the manual to set-up this headset. For use with PlayStation 3, the AX Pro is actually relatively simple to set up once you’ve got all the leads in the right place, but we did come across a stumbling block with Xbox 360 as our Elite doesn’t have an digital optical connection. If that’s the case with your console, you’ll need to buy an adapter to make it work. Thankfully, the manual is well laid out and splits up the set-up procedure for PS3 and Xbox 360 and gives you plenty of detail on how to use the decoder box and how to remove the cups if you want to replace the padding.
There are a fair few wires to sort out before you get to power-up the headset; the optical cable from decoder box to PS3 and then the USB cable, which powers the mic. You’ve then got the AC Adapter into your main plug socket, which once again connects via the decoder. Nonetheless, the wires can be tucked away easily and the inline volume control and decoder box are fairly small and discreet. The only real grumble we had with the set-up process was that the optical cable you get is quite short, flimsy and doesn’t look like it will last. Instead, we opted for a Joytech Fusion Digital Optical Cable with the reassuring knowledge that it will last a fair while. Finally, before you get to test out the headset you do need to make some changes in the XMB too. Changing input and output options and ensuring that you have it set to Dolby Digital 5.1. As we said, it’s not the easiest and quickest set-up, but your efforts are most definitely worth it.
Sound quality
Video games tested on: Killzone 3, Call of Duty: Black Ops and Operation Flashpoint: Red River, Fable III, Dead Space 2.
Many headsets simulate surround sound and some do a very good job at it, but there is a noticeable difference with true 5.1 Dolby Digital. The depth of sound is quite incredible. When it rains it almost feels like you can touch it – it’s all around you and therefore creates quite an immersive experience. The ambient sounds of water splashing, birds twittering or footsteps rustling through leaves completely wraps the senses and produces a cacophony of sound. In conjunction with great visuals from the likes of Killzone 3, this does produce a complete sensory experience similar to what you would enjoy at the cinema or through a Dolby Digital 5.1 home surround system. Sounds are crisp and voices are crystal clear. Sniper fire (sniping section in Killzone 3) had us immediately pin-pointing sniper locations, and grenade explosions made us recoil in our chair.
Subtle sounds like footsteps and whispering are amplified, thus creating paranoia (Dead Space 2 is particularly brilliant) and overall the true surround sound seems to brighten even the faintest of sounds. The only slight issue we had was having to turn the bass down after a particularly frenetic attack from a rocket made them rattle with ferocity – the AX Pro produces a loud sound. Indeed, we rarely made it past halfway on the volume control such is the power of the sound. It’s also worth noting that the sound produced from our iPod Touch, and when watching the movie Black Hawk Down on our PC, was exemplary - if you’ve ever had a true 5.1 surround set up in your home you’ll know what we mean.
Microphone chat also performed particularly well. We meet up with many of the same people on PSN regularly and most have commented on the clarity of mic compared to our usual Bluetooth headset. We were also impressed with the way that you could separate game and voice chat volumes intuitively, which came in handy during a multiplayer game of Black Ops where the sounds from in-game can override the mumbles from your team-mates. It’s fair to say, we think the AX Pro delivers a magnificent sound through both the mic and the speakers.