I keep telling myself that once I'm sure I won't get furloughed, I'll spring for the headset. (Hired near the end in '08. Not buying just yet.)

Flying the Maddog, and the DC clamps work pretty well, at least in short bursts. They are single sided, but you can put the earpiece towards the window so you can hear most of what the captain says - so long as he's not a mumbler. Been using them 2+ years, and haven't caught anything that's killed me yet. As others have said, you're not required to wear the headset above 180 anyway, so you hang it up and use the speaker/hand mike.

And I'll add my vote to the "lots of stuff to buy first year - headset can wait camp." Sounds like if you're on the north side of the fleets, that vote works even better.

But If you're determined to get one, I guess there's a guy called the headset doctor that sells good used ones for a little cheaper. I also hear you can get them on ebay.