A couple of months ago one of our readers emailed me and asked about high end gaming audio headsets. He mentioned that most gamers don’t have the opportunity to try most of the products used on the Pro Gaming tours, and most don’t even have a presence in mainstream retail. He asked about a specific product, the Tritton AX Pro, and if I could perhaps do a head to head review comparing it to the Astro A40. Well, here at GN, we aim to please.

Between wedding planning and now preparing for a mid-summer move to the east coast, I’ve been a little behind, but aside from my BlackBerry, the AX Pro is probably the thing I’ve used the most the past few days. For me, stress requires gaming, music, or both. And what could be better than a Dolby Digital Surround Sound headset to cover both of those needs?

This is just my first impressions, and I’m saving most of my head to head comparisons to the other headsets I’ve reviewed for the final review, but I do some high and low points I want to cover in basic.

First, the construction and form factor. The AX Pro is really light, but at the same time is built solidly. In fact, of the high end headsets I’ve reviewed (and I think I’ve covered them all now), this one is easily the sturdiest. It even looks more rugged than the others.

The cords are thick but not obnoxiously so, and even with a lot of options (which I’ll leave the details of to the review), the headset and decoder are easy to assemble, configure and attach to PC, 360, and even my iPod (for grins).

One of the cool features I like that the integrated volume control on the headphone cord uses color LED backlighting  to display the relative volume level of each pair of drivers. This is particularly awesome in the dark and matches nicely with my Saitek Cyborg keyboard.

And those drivers…. The sound from this thing is REALLY FREAKING GOOD. It’s sometimes difficult when you’re playing a game, or listening to music to really tell the difference between one headset and the next. But for units like the A40 or the AX Pro, it’s obvious they are heads and shoulders above most headsets in the marketplace. Left 4 Dead in particular took advantage of the surround sound.

The two negatives I have so far are in regards to configuration. The first is that the unit requires 2 power adapters to use the headset and the decoder box. In the age of green technologies and high energy costs, this is not something I would have expected.  Second, it doesn’t have a battery option for the decoder. Other units may eat the batteries for breakfast, but I’ve found this feature to be very useful, as you can just unplug without untangling from the headset.

If I asked you to recall that one Gears of War trailer whereMarcus Phenix runs down a narrow street and shoots at an alien withspidery eyes, you might not have any idea of what I'm talking about. But if I asked you to recall that one trailer with the Donnie Darko version of "Mad World" playing, then I bet you'd know.

If I asked you to remember that one Assassin's Creedvideo where Altair is flicking out his wrist dagger and leaping acrosssome rooftops in slow motion ... that could be anybody's guess.  But ifI asked you to remember that one video scored by UNKLE's "God Knows Your Lonely Souls," then I bet you'd know that one too.

Akiller soundtrack can go a long ways -- longer than its typical 3minutes and 30 seconds during some fleeting cinematic presentation. Here's five games coming out in the next several weeks that couldbenefit from having a memorable song scoring a GameTrailers video. These recommendations are probably only half as apt as Assassin's Creed's, and nowhere even close to as brilliant as Gears of War's.  Nevertheless:

Spore -- "Into the Ocean" from Foiled, by Blue October

Samplelyrics:  "With envy for the solid ground // I'm reaching for the lifewithin me // How can one man stop his ending // I thought of just yourface // Relaxed, and floated into space."

Starting off withpresumably a lightning flash in a mud puddle, your little spore will"flOw" its way up the food chain, eating and evading its way throughthe evolutionary cycle.  Blue October's "Into The Ocean" draws onimagery reaching from the ocean depths to outer space, carrying yourspore from one cradle of life to the next.

Fallout 3 -- "Consoler Of The Lonely" from Consolers Of The Lonely, by The Raconteurs

Samplelyrics:  "Haven't seen the sun in weeks // My skin is getting pale //Haven't got a mind left to speak // And I'm skinny as a rail // Lightbulbs are getting dim // My interests are starting to wane // I'm toldit's everything a man could want // And  I shouldn't complain."

Withmankind bombed back into the Stone Age -- or at least the 1950s -- yourcharacter will emerge from Valut 101 into a Wild West stage setting. The Raconteurs' "Consolers Of The Lonely" has an eagle-eye fortumbleweed details, sung from a bone-dry throat choked withclaustrophobia.

 Left 4 Dead -- "Believe [Moon Version]" from The Sun And The Moon Complete, by The Bravery

Samplelyrics:  "The faces all around me they don't smile they just crack //Waiting for our ship to come but our ship's not coming back // ...Something's always coming you can hear it in the ground // It swellsinto the air with the rising, rising sound // And never comes butshakes the boards and rattles all the doors // What are we waiting for?"

"Believe"engages minor tonalities that stretch heavy-hearted shadows across theground, while the vampiric organ pulls undead clouds across a groaningsky.  And the Bravery's metaphorical tie-ins with the sedentary and thezombified can't be ignored.  Left 4 Dead looks mighty grim, alone inthe dark.

[EDIT:  Urk.  Due to technical difficulties, the Far Cry 2 entry has been chewed up and spit out into the internet ether.  I dunno either.]