Our Verdict
The Astro A20 are decent headphones for neutral listening. Their default sound signature is fairly excited, with lots of punch and brightness. They sound a bit sharp and piercing, though, especially with brighter material or if you're sensitive to higher frequencies. On the upside, you can EQ the way they sound with their companion app, and they have a dedicated equalizer button so you can switch between different preset options on-the-fly.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
The Astro A20 are poor for commuting. They're not designed with traveling in mind - they have a bulky design that's not very portable, and they don't block much noise. They're also limited by their wireless USB transmitter, so you can only really use them with your laptop on a long bus trip or flight.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
The Astro A20 are mediocre for sports. They're not made to be worn while running or working out and are limited by the range of their wireless transmitter. However, they have a decently stable fit, so if you wanted to jog on the treadmill in range of their base station, they could work.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
The Astro A20 are inadequate for office use. While you can set them up wirelessly with your PC, they don't block a lot of noise, so you'll likely hear most of what's going on around in the office. They also leak quite a bit of sound, which can distract your colleagues.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
The Astro A20 are decent wireless gaming headphones. They have a good microphone that sounds clear even in noisier environments, a solid 14-hour battery life with power-saving features, and are customizable in the Astro Command Center. On the downside, they fit a little tight on the head and sound a bit sharp out-of-the-box, which means they can be a bit fatiguing to wear during long gaming marathons.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
The Astro A20 can't be used with a regular analog audio connection, so they aren't suitable for wired gaming.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
The Astro A20 are alright for phone calls. They don't support Bluetooth, so you can't use them with your mobile devices. However, if you connect their wireless USB transmitter to your computer, then they're a viable option for conference calls thanks to their good microphone quality.
- Sturdy build quality.
- Good microphone noise handling.
- Poor noise isolation.
- Slightly tight fit.
Changelog
- Updated Nov 05, 2021: Converted to Test Bench 1.5.
- Updated Mar 18, 2020: Converted to Test Bench 1.4.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.1.
- Updated Nov 21, 2019: Converted to Test Bench 1.3.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
There are two variants of these headphones, one for Xbox One/PC and another for PS4/PC. We tested the Xbox One variant, but we expect the PS4 variant to perform similarly.
Popular Headphones Comparisons
The Astro A20 are well-built wireless gaming headphones with a good microphone and battery life. However, they're less comfortable than the more premium Astro A50 Gen 4 Wireless 2019, sound less neutral by default than the Corsair HS70 Wireless, and can't be used wired like the SteelSeries Arctis 7 2019 Edition Wireless. They're still a decent option overall, but there are better options available.
See our recommendations for the best Xbox One headsets, the best PS4 headsets, and the best wireless gaming headsets.
The SteelSeries Arctis 7 Wireless 2017 are slightly better wireless gaming headphones than the Astro A20 Wireless. The Arctis 7 are a bit more comfortable, feel better-built and more stable, have a better-balanced sound profile, a better microphone, a longer battery life, and can be used wired. On the other hand, the A20 have better controls, are much more consistent among different users, and have a wider and more open soundstage.
The Astro A20 Wireless is a more neutral-sounding gaming headset than the Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Wireless. You also have access to an EQ in the Astro Command Center app to customize them to your liking. However, if you need a microphone to play online with friends, the Stealth 700 has the edge in that category. Speech transmitted will be clearer and decently full-bodied. On the other hand, the Astros feel better built and not as plasticky as the Stealth 700, but you won’t be able to stream music via Bluetooth while gaming, which you can do with the Turtle Beach headset.
The Turtle Beach Stealth 700 Gen 2 Wireless are more versatile than the Astro A20 Wireless. The Turtle Beach are Bluetooth-compatible, better-built, and have superior microphone recording quality. They also come with a more comprehensive control scheme and companion app. The Astro are smaller and have a microphone that does a better job of filtering out background noise.
The Astro A50 Gen 3 are noticeably better gaming headphones than the Astro A20 Wireless. The A50 are better made and are noticeably more comfortable, which is great for long gaming sessions. Their out-of-the-box sound profile is also slightly more neutral, and their microphone has a more natural recording quality. The A50 charging dock also has inputs, which is convenient. On the other hand, the A20 have slightly better battery life and take less time to charge. However, their latency is also higher than the A50.
Our How We Test Headphones article takes you behind the scenes in our lab. You'll learn how we choose and purchase products and dive into the details of our review philosophy, from testing and scoring to writing and editing.
You can also discover how we produce recommendations like this one so that you can find the best headphones (or earbuds!) for your needs.
Test Results
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