Hello,

I'm looking for a new pair of USB headphones with mic. I do a lot of podcast recording using Skype, and also use them when editing and doing voiceovers. I use them with my Mac Book Pro.

I live in Japan, but have an APO box, so ordering from the States is not prohibitive.

Currently I'm using Buffalo USB headphones.

The only thing I really like about them is that the cable and mic are on the left side (actually, either way is possible with these). Being right-handed, I find that a cable on the right side tends to get in the way more.

Things I don't like about the Buffalo headphones:

* big, clunky inline controller gets in the way, and is a bit too far up the cable, too close to the phones themselves. More than once I've accidentally turned off the phones by bumping the "off" switch on the controller. If there must be an inline controller, would prefer it's a bit farther down the cable. Would really prefer not to have one at all.

* frequently, when recording on Skype, talking into the mic will push the input volume down so that my voice becomes much softer on the recording than the voice of the person on the other end. I've also found that turning up the output volume somehow makes my voice louder to the person on the other end! Neither of these were problems with my old Logitech headphones, may they rest in peace.

* sound is not that great, but this is not a dealbreaker.

I'm looking for recommendations. Requirements:

* Must be under $100
* prefer no inline controller
* no problems with keeping up the input volume on the mic
* no buzz

Recently I ordered some Logitech phones from Amazon. The input volume problem was gone, and I was happy -- until I listened to the recording and found that there was a fairly bad buzz all through it. A bit more research (which, yes, I should have done before purchasing) revealed that this was a known defect with that particular model of phones. Apparently caused by using them with a notebook computer operating on the AC adaptor. And my Mac Book Pro's battery has severe problems, so using it on battery power isn't an option.

I returned those headphones and decided I'd better do some serious research before ordering again.

A couple that look good on the net:

Ear Force HPA2 5.1 Surround PC Gaming Headset
Jabra GN1900 USB (1989-829-107) Duo USB Noise Canceling Headset

Any comments on these? Others that might be better, while still falling under $100?

Appreciate any information you can provide.