Q: My mic output seems to be spotty, full of static, or accompanied by a background hum or other interference on Xbox Live when I talk. A: There are a few possibilities as to why this may be occurring. The most likely culprit is the 2.5mm cable connected to your controller. Please make sure the connectors are wiped clean of any dust or residue -- many of these connectors had residue left on them from the molding process and this will create a poor connection. Also, please be sure that your boom mic is fully inserted into place and that the Daisy Chain connector is either fully inserted or totally removed. It wouldn't hurt to pull it out and FIRMLY push it all the way back in -- making sure that the connector isn't upside down (the ASTRO logo should be right-side up when the MixAmp is resting on a flat surface).

One final troubleshoot is to replace the Quick Disconnect cable with the Dual-Jack Quick Disconnect (the PC cable) and attach it to your MixAmp with the Y-adapter. If this final step solves the problem then the problem is within your Quick Disconnect cable -- please contact us and we will send you out a new one. If nothing works, email us and we'll get to the bottom of it with you!

Q: I hear a very slight popping from my MixAmp every few seconds if my game is quiet -- is there any way to fix this? A: Yes -- this quiet popping can be easily fixed if it bothers you. If you can hear it, simply put some AA batteries in the tray of the MixAmp and this will go away instantly. The batteries don't need to power the A40 MixAmp, however, and you can still use USB power. The USB power will override the batteries in the tray as long as the cable is connected (and receiving power).

This clicking is a voltage detection of the rechargeable battery feature. If a battery is present, the circuit stops functioning.

Q: When I'm on Xbox Live, my controller misfires and twiches randomly. Is this due to the A40 Audio System? A: This glitch isn't due to the A40 Audio System itself, but it's simply a defect in the wired controller for the Xbox 360. An overvoltage occurs when the mic is blown into or gets a *very* loud signal, that causes the player aim to go up and to the right. Sometimes the gun fires, and for Southpaws, a grenade will be thrown... usually at inopportune moments.

There are a couple of workarounds to this. First is to switch to a wireless controller, or a wireless controller with a Play and Charge cable attached if you wish. The voice comm is now wireless (even with the Play and Charge kit) alleviating the problem.

If you'd like to continue to use a wired controller, you'll have to lower your incoming voice level -- this prevents overvoltage from reaching the controller through the Xbox 360 software layer. To do this, hit the Guide Button > Personal Settings > Voice, and lower the incoming voice "Volume" from 10 (default) down to at least 4. At level 4, you'll still get a few anomalies with the loudest incoming sounds, but it's really very rare. At level 3, the problems go away 100%.

Recheck this setting every once in a while -- there seems to be some kind of bug where it'll get reset to the default 10 every so often.

Fortunately for users of the A40 Audio System, you can simply dial back more voice by using the Balance control knob on the A40 MixAmp, and you'll probably need to raise the overall Volume to get back to where you were at before.

Q: My headset has developed cracks in the plastic headband, what should I do? A: This problem is only inherent to the first batch of Limited Edition headsets shipped out back in December 2007 and January 2008. There was a production problem resulting in headbands that become overly brittle over time. We believe that this will eventually affect the majority of our LIMITED EDITION customers, and will offer 100% of these customers a brand new headset free of charge, for the lifetime of the product. If you should start to see cracks in your headband let us know - shoot an email to support@astrogaming.com. We'll ship you a replacement A40 Headset immediately.

Q: Why do I need an audio mixer? A: Console gamers at home will use the A40 MixAmp to seamlessly blend voice communication with game sounds into a single stereo headset. No longer do you need to cobble together a mono voice-comm headset with stereo headphones to enjoy a private gaming experience. The A40 MixAmp channels both game sounds and voice-communication into one headset. With Dolby Digital and Dolby Headphone on board, you'll also enjoy the full benefits of highly accurate spatial reproduction that will equal your full 6-channel home theater speaker system.

For tournament play, the A40 MixAmp creates a private voice LAN with each players' individual game sounds mixed with their team's private chat. Anyone who's gamed in a team tournament setting knows how critical communication is and the difficulty of being heard by your teammates when you've got hundreds of gamers screaming and yelling during a tournament. The A40 MixAmp was designed from the ground up to solve this problem.

Q: I'm a PC gamer; what does the A40 MixAmp do for me? A: To be honest, we originally developed the A40 MixAmp to give console gamers something that PC gamers have had all along -- unified voice and game sound. But being PC gamers, we quickly discovered that the A40 MixAmp gave us something we loved as PC gamers as well: dedicated, separate hardware for our music and voice communication. Much like discrete graphics, audio, or physics hardware free up CPU cycles and make our games run faster, offloading communication and music duties to the A40 made our games run faster and easier as well. No more Alt-Tabbing to change volume or tracks on the RAM-tastic iTunes -- we simply plugged in our mp3 players into the A40 and controlled everything at arm's length without interrupting our games. And with daisy-chained A40 MixAmps, we had a high-quality, full-duplex voice channel without fiddling with complicated and finicky software. Combine all that with the audiophile-grade headphone amplifier and we were instantly hooked.

Q: How many mixers can be daisy-chained? A: Theoretically, as many as you'd like -- but remember that with the more people on the same channel, the more difficult it is getting a word in edgewise. We've found that eight players is about the most we'd want on at one time -- while four or five seems ideal.

Q: Do you sell anywhere other than on your website? A: Not at this time, other than at Major League Gaming tournaments beginning during the 2008 season. Stay tuned for announcements about future marketing partnerships.

Q: Why don't you sell at Gamestop or Bestbuy or any other retailers? A: By offering our products directly to end consumers we can offer much higher quality and more features at a far lower price. Virtually any product sold at retail incurs a huge price increase to the end customer. By cutting out the middle-man and going direct, you'll end up paying far less than you would at retail. If we were to sell the A40 Audio System at a retail store the price tag would be closer to $400, if not higher.

In addition, we're striving to make customization a hallmark of our products. That is not easy to offer at retail, but on our website you will be able to dial in the exact color and speaker tag combination that you want -- instead of the like it or leave it way you'd have to buy it at retail.

Q: I'm a pro/hardcore gamer and I have an idea for a [insert gaming widget idea here] that will help me dominate my tournaments and enhance my game play. Would ASTRO Gaming be interested in talking to me? A: We are always interested in talking to people that want to improve their gaming experience. Drop us a line at info@astrogaming.com.

Q: Is there an owners manual I can read through before purchasing? A: For sure: go back up to the top of this section where it says 'FAQ/Manuals' and hit Manuals. This will enable you to download any manual you'd like to read from all of our products.

Q: What is the A40 Audio System? A: The A40 Audio System is an audiophile-grade headset and a powerful standalone mixer/amplifier.

The A40 Headset itself is a finely-tuned piece of audio/communication equipment, with a removable noise-canceling boom mic, customizable speaker tags and a breakaway cord. The boom mic can be attached to either side of the headset, depending on your personal preference -- or it can be removed completely. The headset's high fidelity sound is far superior to any gaming headset on the market today and its versatility and style help to make it the best gaming headset on the market -- period.

In addition to the A40 Headset, the system includes the A40 MixAmp. While it may look like a simple volume control, it will fast become the audio hub of your gaming lifestyle. We started with a multi-channel audio mixer, added a powerful headphone amplifier, then loaded it with an on board Dolby Digital and Dolby Headphone processor -- just like you'd find in a high-end home theater receiver. In addition, when you link two or more A40 MixAmps together via their built-in daisy-chain connectors, you'll create an instant, private voice communication network. All of this functionality comes packaged in a portable, all-in-one design that you'll never want to game without once you've tried one.

Q: Can I use the A40 at home with Xbox Live? A: Yes -- at home you'll simply need to connect a small cable from your controller to the A40 MixAmp (it's included). All of your voice and game sounds will now be combined in your headset. Moms and Dads will love the A40 Audio System because it enables late night gaming without disturbing your loved ones.

By the way, there is also an included adapter that lets you use any non-ASTRO branded headset with the A40 MixAmp.

Q: Can I plug the headset directly into my computer without the mixer? A: Yes -- the A40 Headset comes with an additional accessory cable that has the standard dual-jack (separate audio and mic connectors) that are commonly found on PC headsets. This cable also includes a volume and mute control pod. You won't get the benefits of using the A40 MixAmp, however. Pity.

Q: What is the standard connector on the headset? Can I use it with my iPod? A: Being that we are fussy about great design, we rolled the microphone and audio signals into one sleek 3.5mm connector. It'll even work with your music player.

Q: I see the A40 MixAmp has digital connectors, do you include a digital audio cable included with the system? A: Due to the high cost and variability of digital audio connections and cables, we can't include a solution that will work for everyone. Instead, we decided to splurge for both types of digital audio connectors (TOSlink and digital coaxial) on the A40 MixAmp, making it easier for you to find the right cable and get connected based on your personal setup.

Q: Exactly what accessory products come included with the A40 Audio System? A: You'll get everything you need to connect to your A40 Audio System to your Xbox, Xbox 360, PS2, or PC: system audio cables, microphone cables, and an Xbox Live audio cable. In addition when you buy the complete A40 Audio System, you'll get a premium quality case with a custom-fitted interior to carry your Headset and MixAmp with style.

In order to connect the PS3's voice communication feature, you'll need to purchase the 'PS3 Mic Adapter' from our accessories page. This will enable full voice communication with all PS3 titles.

Q: How are the speaker tags held on? A: Four very small, very powerful magnets. (Neodymium -- strong stuff).

Q: When will other speaker tag designs become available? A: We have a few designs in the bag already, and will release them for tooling as soon as we can.

Q: I want to design my own customizable speaker tags (I want my team's name on mine!) Is that possible? A: We are working hard to make this happen through our manufacturing partners. Our goal is to ramp up 100% user customizable Speaker Tags by the end of the 2008.

We'll be announcing some new partners for Speaker Tags soon -- be sure to sign up for the mailing list for announcements of new designs!

Q: What is the difference between the MLG Edition and the Standard A40? A: The only real difference between the two is the branding on the Speaker Tags. They are the exact same product otherwise. We are promoting the MLG Edition because we'll be selling product at all Pro Circuit events during the 2008 season. In addition, each gaming station will have an ASTRO Pro Rack that will be pre-populated with MixAmps. A40 Audio System owners only need to sit down and plug in their A40 Headsets in order to be fully connected with Dolby Digital game sound and high-quality, zero latency voice chat.

Q: Will you guys be offering a wireless solution any time soon? A: That's the plan. But since we make professional, tournament-grade equipment, we need to develop a wireless solution that will stand up to the abuse of hundreds of simultaneous gamers in the same room -- a tall order. Once we have a solution to that, we'll cut the copper spaghetti-fest.

Q: How does Dolby Headphone work? A: Dolby Headphone is Dolby's solution for delivering 5.1 surround sound in any two-channel headphone. It's a way to get surround sound in a headphone without having to sacrifice sound quality by cramming 4 or 5 tiny speakers into one little headphone can. To read more about it check out Dolby's take on it: Dolby Headphone

Q: When will you be shipping product? When will I get it? A: We are currently shipping new orders within 24 hours (if your order is placed on a weekday). There is no longer any requirement to pre-order product from the website.

Orders can take up to 5 business days to reach the East Coast via UPS Ground service.

Q: What does the "Limited Edition" refer to? A: The first 500 headsets we produced were individually numbered, and they've got an A40LE marking on the headband in addition to a couple other cosmetic identifiers.

These have long since sold out and we are now selling standard A40 headsets. Functionally the standard headsets are identical to the LE ones, and aesthetically some folks even like the standard ones better. So there's not a big difference really, only that the numbered ones might be worth a lot more on eBay some day down the road...

Q: How much will it cost to ship to...? A: Domestic shipping rates vary depending on service selected. Average UPS Ground rates will be approximately $17 per order. We are currently not shipping to international destinations, but we have recently added Canada (both USPS and UPS shipping). We do not ship to countries other than Canada and the US at this time, but plan to as soon as we can secure international distribution. Sign up for our mailing list to be notified as soon as we add additional countries.

Q: What if I just don't like it? Do you offer a money-back guarantee? A: We'll give you 15 days to decide if you like the system or not -- and we'll take it back within that period -- no questions asked.

Q: What is your warranty policy? A: All our products carry a one-year warranty on defective parts or faulty worksmanship. The warranty does not cover damage caused by accident, misuse, abuse, neglect, lightning, power surges, other acts of nature/god(s)/Flying Spaghetti Monster, or unauthorized product modification or repairs.

Q: How do I get sponsored by you guys? A: We don't give direct sponsorships to any teams, but instead we offer accommodation rates on our products to all contracted MLG professionals. If you are a contracted pro, contact the MLG for your discount code if you'd like to start using the A40 Audio System. In 2008, all MLG Pro Circuit Xbox 360 gaming stations will be pre-populated with an ASTRO Pro Rack (and four fully-connected A40 MixAmps with TOSlink digital audio) -- all you'll need to do is connect the A40 Headset for full team voice connectivity and Dolby Headphone game surround.

Please sign up for email updates if you'd like to know about and additional pro deals we'll have in the coming year.

Q: Who do you currently sponsor? A: We don't sponsor gaming teams. Instead, we partner with top pro teams to help us beta test and prove out new products and prototypes. This ensures that our product development dollars are focused on bringing the highest quality, best designed products to every gamer--not just a select few.

Over the past two years we have worked with Str8 Rippin', Carbon, Legendz and Nice Like Rice during the 2006 and 2007 gaming seasons. Str8 Rippin' took down several top 3 finishes at the MLG as well as a first place finish at the WSVG using our prototypes while Carbon managed an impressive first place finish over their rivals Final Boss in July 2007.

The A40 Audio System is now in full production, and we'll be testing new products for 2008 with selected professionals.

Interested in being an ASTRO beta tester? Don't call us, we'll call you.

Q: What is your relationship with Major League Gaming (MLG)? A: The MLG was nice enough to allow teams to test out our prototype systems during live play during the 2006 and 2007 Pro Circuit Championship seasons. The response amongst the testers was awesome (in addition to our teams taking several top 3 finishes). ASTRO Gaming is providing Major League Gaming equipment for the 2008 Pro Circuit. The A40 Audio System is now the official headset of the MLG, and players can purchase a special MLG edition of the A40 Audio System complete with custom MLG Speaker Tags, in addition to special limited run Speaker Tags at each live event location.

In addition to the wearable hardware, each gaming station at MLG events will have an ASTRO Pro Rack that will be pre-populated with four MixAmps. A40 Audio System owners need only sit down and plug in their A40 Headsets in order to be fully connected with Dolby Digital game sound and high-quality, zero latency voice chat.

Q: Our company would love to partner with ASTRO and have our [awesome gaming-related intellectual property] put onto your speaker tags. We have a big bag of money just sitting here. Who should we contact? A: Drop us a line at: partnerships@astrogaming.com. (sorry, but if your name is Uwe Boll we can't help you).

Q: I run a private tournament and would love to use ASTRO Gaming equipment -- what is the process for getting ASTRO gear for my event? A: We might be able to help you -- largely based on product availability. Contact us at: partnerships@astrogaming.com