Others by stefan @ 2011-01-04
The TRITTON AX 720 High Performance Audio System from Mad Catz is a great addition for people that own consoles and prefer listening to headphones but also PC; the system comes with an AMP/decoder box that features Dolby Digital 5.1 Dolby Headphone Technology, delivering surround sound to our ears even if the headphones are stereo.
At first I would like to thank Mad Catz for offering me a sample of their TRITTON AX 720 High Performance Audio System for review.
"Mad Catz is a leading global provider of innovative products for the interactive entertainment industry. Mad Catz develops and markets accessories for videogame systems and PCs under its Mad Catz (casual gaming), Saitek (simulation), Cyborg (pro gaming), Eclipse (home and office) and TRITTON (gaming audio) brands. Mad Catz also operates e-commerce and content websites for videogame and PC products under its GameShark brand, develops, manufactures and markets proprietary earphones under its AirDrives brand and publishes and distributes video/PC games. Mad Catz distributes its products through most of the leading retailers offering interactive entertainment products and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia."
* Digital Optical Connection
* Dolby® Digital / Pro Logic® II / Dolby® Headphone
* Inline Audio Controller with Independent Chat Volume Control
* Voice Compatible with XBox® Live
* USB Microphone for Playstation® Network /PC/Mac®
* Removable And Replaceable Ear Pads and Headrail Pad
* Removable Microphone
The TRITTON AX 720 Surround Sound Gaming Headset from Mad Catz comes packed in a nice white/orange themed box; right from the frontal part, we can see some of the product features but also the fact that this product is fully compatible with the Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3 consoles:
The frontal side can be further opened, to reveal even more information regarding the headset:
One of the laterals reveals us the technical specifications of the product, in multiple languages:
On the opposite side, we can find the package contents listed:
On the back of the box, we can see the main product components explained, in a lot of languages:
The package is sealed on both sides, to avoid unauthorized persons check out the product:
After opening the box, we can find the accessories that come with the headset: the documentation, another little white box with the rest of the bundle and the AX 720 AMP:
The product manual that comes with the headset shows us how to install the sound system on both PS3/Xbox 360 consoles, but also on PC:
A little product catalogue is also present, which shows us the other TRITTON headsets, along with their main features:
The AMP box is the size of a wireless router and has little vents on the laterals:
The frontal part of the AMP has some buttons on the left: the on/off button, the volume down/up, but also a button to change the operating modes of the device; in the center we have the status LEDs:
-the first LED from the left is lighted up when the device is turned on; if the sound that is received from the source (PS3/Xbox 360/PC) is Dolby Digital 5.1, the LED is white, otherwise, the LED will light up blue;
-the second LED lights up when the Dolby Pro Logic II mode is on; otherwise, if Dolby Digital signal is received from the source, this LED will be turned off;
-the third LED is signaling the presence of the Dolby Headphone mode; in Stereo mode this LED will be turned off;
-the last fourth LED lights up white if we are in the Movie (Game) mode, or turns green if we switch to the Music mode.
Finally, to the right we can find two headset output jacks, so we can connect two identical ones to the same AMP/decoder box:
In the back of the device, we can find a DC-IN port, where we have to connect the included power adapter, an optical port and an USB port:
On the bottom of the AMP, we can see that it does have little rubber feet, to avoid scratching the surface it sits on:
In the little white cardboard box I have mentioned earlier, we can find an optical cable, an adapter so we can use the headset with any other device on analog, the adjustable microphone, a jack plug cable that links the headset console on the wire to the Xbox 360 controller, a power adapter and an USB cable:
The optical cable comes with small transparent protective caps that must be removed before inserting it into the AMP or the sound source:
The microphone that comes with the headset is detachable and flexible:
The small power adapter that powers the AMP/decoder comes from Powertron Electronics Corp. and is rated 9V, 0.5A:
The headset looks very solid and is not as heavy as the ROCCAT Kave 5.1 headset I have tested in the past (although not as light as the World of Warcraft Wireless Headset), near it we can find the small white console:
On the inside, the headset has a little soft cushion and the rest of its body is made from rubberized plastic:
The earpads are removable and also replaceable; inside the manual we are shown step by step how to do that. On each side, the cups are marked (L/R):
The outside earcap covers are also replaceable and hold the TRITTON logo:
On top of the headrail, we can find another TRITTON logo:
The headrail is adjustable to fit properly any head size:
The top part of the console has a MIC on/off switch:
On one of its sides, we can find a MIC volume adjuster, along with the port where we have to plug in the audio cable coming from the Xbox 360 controller:
The opposite side holds the volume rocker and a switch (depending on the audio source, we can select the AMP or PC, in the case we have connected the headset directly to the soundcard, with the included adapter):
The headset cable ends with this connector that must be plugged in the AMP/decoder box:
On the cable we can find also a plastic clip, which is also removable:
On the bottom of the left cup, we can find the hole to insert the removable microphone, which also has a securing mechanism:
This is how the LEDs light up on the AMP/decoder box, when it is operating:
To test out the AX 720, I have first installed it on my PS3 and I have set the output in the XMB to Optical (Dolby Digital 5.1 setting, without activating the DTS option too, like Mad Catz recommends). The sound received in games was clear, with enough bass, but much more interesting when the Dolby Headphone option was activated, compared to the Beyerdynamic headphones I have used in the past on the PS3, by connecting them directly to the headphone output of the TV. One of the drawbacks is that the optical cable that comes with the AX 720 is somewhat short and you will be limited in options regarding where to place the AMP/decoder; by getting a longer optical cable this problem is also solved, but this does mean we have to spend more.
The AX 720 was also tested on my PC, which has installed a Creative X-Fi Titanium HD, that supplied the optical interface for the AMP; with the X-Fi, I could supply digital stereo signal to the AX 720, but also Dolby Digital Live. When activating the DTS Connect encoder, I could not hear anything coming out of the headset.
Also on the PC, the sound quality was very good, but the bass strength was not as high as the previously tested headset from Arctic Cooling; however, it did not distort the sound even at very high volumes. By having the opportunity to test out the headset on a high-end sound card, I have found out that by activating the Dolby Headphone setting on the AMP was very similar like activating the Surround setting in the THX TruStudio PC interface, when having the headset connected on analogue, directly to the sound card, by using the supplied adapter.
Installing and using the microphone was no issue; when using the PC, I could either connect the microphone on USB, by using the AMP/decoder box (and it was detected in Windows 7 as a “C-Media Audio Device” or I could connect it directly to the sound card by using the adapter). The person on the other side could hear me without any problems or interferences (by using Skype for several hours).
An advantage over the previous models I have tested in the past is that the headphones can be detached from the little console located on the wire, so we can walk around without the need to take them off.
This headset is heavier than the Creative World of Warcraft Wireless one I have tested in the past and I felt the need to take them off after an hour and a half of usage, something that did not happen with the Creative model.
Mad Catz says about this headset that it has an "Unfair Advantage", being capable to deliver surround sound with the help of the AMP/decoder box, even if the headphones themselves are stereo.
The TRITTON AX 720 headset can be found in stores for about 110 Euros.
I would like to thank again to Mad Catz for providing me a sample of their product for review!
