Others by stefan @ 2012-10-22
The new, revised TRITTON Pro+ 5.1 Surround Headset from Mad Catz comes with a redesigned decoder box which features multiple options, one in-line remote for adjusting volumes on each channel, SVM, voice or Master Volume, but also a removable microphone. The shape of the headset has been also tweaked so now it is more comfortable and the cups can be rotated 90 degrees.
At first I would like to thank Mad Catz for offering me a sample of their TRITTON Pro+ 5.1 Surround Headset for testing and reviewing.
"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."
Immersion. Isolation. Control.
Dominate the leaderboards with the TRITTON Pro+ 5.1 True Surround Headset. Featuring eight precision-balanced speakers that accurately reproduce a 3D sound field, you gain the competitive edge by hearing each and every disturbance within a game's atmosphere.
Individual backlit volume controls allow you to fine-tune each channel - - front, rear, center, and subwoofer - - while premium-quality ear pads deliver hours of gaming comfort. Avoid a late-night shouting match with Selectable Voice Monitoring, next-gen technology that allows you to hear your own voice through the headset.
Immersive 3D Directional Audio Powered by Dolby Digital Technology
Utilizing proprietary Dolby Digital technology, the Pro+ replicates the immersive feeling of high-end home theater setups. Envelop yourself in a richly detailed, 3D environment as 5.1 channels of sound collaborate to reveal previously hidden details within the backdrops of your favorite games.
The Only True 5.1 Headset for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3
Rather than rely on stereo drivers and emulated surround sound, the Pro+ houses four speakers in each earcup (Front, Center, Surround, Subwoofer), creating an adjustable, three-dimensional, true 5.1 audio experience with highly detailed channel separation. Just like 5.1-channel home theater setups, true discreet audio feeds each speaker individually. Frequency response is always optimal - - the subwoofer only has to produce lower frequencies, while the front, center, and surround speakers output mid to high frequencies.
Hear Your own Voice with Selectable Voice Monitoring (SVM)
New SVM allows you to choose whether or not you want to hear your voice through the headset. When certain situations - - like those late-night gaming sessions - - dictate that you talk softly or loudly into the mic, easily activate/deactivate SVM with the push of a button and take control of all your conversations.
Improved Independent Game and Voice Volume Control
If the chatter from your online rivals gets distracting and starts to hinder your gameplay experience, just turn a dial on the headset's in-line audio controller to quickly tune them out. Game volume can also be adjusted on-the-fly so you can drown out your foe's voice but still hear stealthy in-game footsteps creeping up behind you.
Flexible Performance Mic can be Removed when not in use
When not communicating over Xbox LIVE or the PlayStation Network and just listening to music or watching a film, a headset's microphone only gets in the way. Problem solved with the Pro+ 5.1 Surround Headset's removable solution - - it provides the freedom to use the mic only when necessary.
Newly Designed for Extreme Comfort
Headset comfort is of utmost importance during extended gaming sessions. The Pro+ keeps your ears comfy with its padded, adjustable headrail - - which extends an extra 1.25 inches on either side to accommodate a wide range of head sizes - - and soft, pliable earcups which encapsulate your ears in an immersive sound field while keeping ambient sounds at bay. A new, more flexible headrail improves both comfort and durability, and the earcups now swivel to provide a comfortable around-the-neck resting position.
New Easier Setup
An improved, easy-to-follow quick-start guide makes setup a snap. No matter which console or controller you have or how the console connects to the TV, the Pro+ is ready to go right out of the box. All required cables and adapters are included to help ensure you can be setup and playing within minutes.
The revised True 5.1 Surround TRITTON Headset from Mad Catz comes with the Pro+ name and is shipped inside a quite large cardboard box, with a clean design; the frontal side shows a photo of the headset along with the decoder box, along with the supported platforms:
More information regarding the product can be found on the laterals, and also on the back side of the box:
For extra security, the box is sealed on both sides with a transparent plastic film:
After removing the top packaging layer, we can discover another enclosure, which is also sealed:
Inside we'll find the headset along with the remote placed on the wire; all these sit inside a black plastic mold:
The layer underside them reveals the decoder box, along with the rest of the bundle, separated in two different boxes:
A leaflet is also present into the main box, which tells us how to proceed in case the headset is not working in parameters:
A Quick Start Guide will show us with drawings how to connect the headset to different systems and what accessories we need:
Let's go back to the decoder box; when looking at it for the first time, it reminds us of the chassis the decoder box had with the Gears of War Edition:
The interface is now more complex, with the Game Volume Control placed on the left side, which acts also as a Power button, one Time Delay Zone Selector button, The Time Delay button, Pro Logic II button and also a Dynamic Range Control button. On the right side we will find two headset outputs:
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On the back side we have the DC-In port, Analog 5.1 Outputs, one Optical Port and a single USB port:
On the bottom side of the decoder box, we will find 4 rubber feet, along with a sticker:
Let's inspect now the contents of the first box:
It does contain the power source inside a sealed plastic bag:
The power source also comes with different plastic adapters:
On the top side of it's small chassis, we will find the power rating, and on the output we have 9V, 0.5A:
The second box is a little bit larger and we'll see now why:
It contains a large number of adapters and cables, needed to connect to all compatible platforms. Along with the USB cable, we will also find two Xbox Live Connector cables, the microphone, the Digital Audio Adapter, one optical cable and an adapter for connecting the headset directly to our analog jacks of our sound card (PC adapter):
The included microphone is fully flexible and connects to the headset with a jack plug:
On the back side of the microphone, we will find a small TRITTON logo:
The AX Pro+ headset has a 12ft cable and an In-line Audio Controller:
The headset cups can be rotated easily 90 degrees so they can be stored much easily:
The left cup comes with the port for fitting in the microphone; on the surrounding area, Mad Catz shows the direction that we must rotate it for locking into place:
The microphone can be attached only when we need it, otherwise it can remain in storage:
The headrails of the headset are fully adjustable:
On the top side there is another TRITTON logo:
The circumaural pads along with the headrest are made from the same material, which is leatherette; while this material can become sticky after long gaming sessions, it was comfortable because the pads are quite large:
The In-line Audio Controller comes with the same color theme and offers quite a bit of tweaking; on the front we will find the Sound Field buttons which are in a total number of 4. These allow us to change the volume individually for Front, Center , Rear and Sub channels; if we do not push any of these buttons when adjusting the Master Volume, the volume of all channels will increase with the same level:
On the right side we'll find the Mic Mute switch, along with the Voice Communication Volume and SVM; near them there is also the Xbox Live Port:
The opposite side comes with the Master Volume adjuster; we can press it in to mute the audio:
For easy handling, the In-line Audio Controller is also provided with a clip on the back:
The 12ft cable ends with a proprietary connector:
When the headset is powered on, the logos located on the sides of the cups light up with a cool orange light:
Depending on the current volume level, the Individual Sound Field Switches will change their color accordingly (Green>Blue>White>Cyan>Red). Here are some examples:
As we have explained before, we can set the volume level individually by pressing on one of the buttons; during that time, the other buttons will stop illuminating:
Via the optical interface, we can feed to the decoder either Stereo or Dolby Digital audio signal; if the audio received is Stereo, we can either send Stereo to the headset and convert it to Pro Logic II, up-sampling this way any Stereo material to 5.1:
If the audio source will send Dolby Digital 5.1 to the decoder, the respective green LED will light up; however, in this mode we will only get 5.1 output to the headset if the audio material we are listening to is also 5.1, otherwise we will only get Stereo:
During these modes, we can also enable DRC or Time Delay:
The new reworked Tritton headset from Mad Catz did not dissapoint us regarding the quality of materials used and we are happy that the clean theme from the AX 720 has been preserved, a headset which we have reviewed quite some time ago and enjoyed a lot. The new flexible headrail is meant to improve the comfort of the user during long gaming sessions and the earcups now swivel for providing a more convenient storage position when they are not in use.
The decoder box AX Pro+ is shipped with offers multiple functions like Stereo to 5.1 audio up-sampling (Dolby Pro Logic II) and can be also be fed with 5.1 Dolby Digital signal. Effects like Time Delay or Dynamic Range Control can be enabled right from the Digital Decoder Box.
Unlike the AX 720 or the Gears of War themed headset, AX Pro+ houses four speakers in each earcup (front, center, surround, subwoofer), which are meant to create a more accurate 5.1 audio experience.
Thanks to the in-line audio controller which has a revised design, we can adjust on-the-fly the volume of each speaker group or all together; to be able to reset the volume of all channels to the same level, we can always adjust the Master Volume level to the lowest setting and turn it up back again.
The headset is also supplied with a removeable microphone and all the other accessories to be able to use it with the Xbox 360/ Playstation 3 consoles. The microphone has also a lock position, so it won't fall by mistake.
Regarding the sound quality, we do not have a lot to say against the headset; it is understandable that the best experience is offered when the sound source is 5.1 and we do not need any additional conversions; when watching Step Up 2 with multi-channel sound we were impressed that we have heard some details that were not so well rendered with a regular stereo headset. However, considering that most of the audio material on the web is still in Stereo format (including Youtube), we can always rely on the experience offered by the decoder box and its upsampling.
The TRITTON AX PRO+ is not cheap and we can found it online for about 165 Euros.
I would like to thank again to Mad Catz for making this review possible!