USB to 3.5mm Audio Adapter

I’ve been searching for the longest time for a quality USB audio headphone so I could listen to music on my computer. Radio Shack, Best Buy, or my local Micro Tech Center didn’t have what I was looking for. I saw many USB headphones but I wasn’t pleased at all with the selection and to be honest, I didn’t want to buy another pair. I already own a Logitech headphone with microphone but when I wear it for long periods of time, it begins to cause some discomfort around my ears. The headset is best suited for Skype calls or gaming but when it comes to listening to Pandora or iTunes, I wanted a really comfortable and superior headphone for listening to music.

Last year I purchased one of Bose’s around-the-ear audio headphones. It was the cheaper model of the Bose headsets for $99 (purchased with Best Buy’s accidental damage insurance). The cups fit nicely around my ears and have very soft cushions for comfortable listening. What if I could use those headphones for my computer? The connection on the back of my Mac Pro has a single 3.5mm port but I use it for my desktop speakers. Continually having to switch out the plugs on the back of my computer would be highly inconvenient. I just needed something like an adapter to solve the problem.

That’s when I thought of searching for a 3.5mm to USB 2.o adapter to use with my headphones. I didn’t know if such a thing existed but it was worth a try. None of the stores mentioned above could help me so I went online to look for this “magical” adapter. Sure enough, I found it.

I went to buy.com and saw that they had a USB 2.0 Male to 3.5mm Female Audio Stereo Microphone Headphone Adapter (model CABAUD030 -500), exactly what I needed! The price was right at $7.99 with shipping and handling already included. I didn’t even pay for tax! The downside to the order was a 4-14 day delivery time. After putting in the order, I was completely surprised to receive my package only 3 days later, less than the expected minimum delivery time!

I immediately ripped the package open and connected my headset to the adapter and then to the front USB port on my Mac Pro. At first I didn’t hear any sound. Fearing that I had received a dud or even worse, the product didn’t work as advertised, I went and double-checked my sound settings.

Unlike when I plug in my Logitech USB headphones where it automatically switches to it, I have to manually go into system preferences and specifically choose “USB Ear-Microphone” under the select a device for sound output menu. Voila! the music started playing with no issues and with great audio quality. As I type this post, I’m listening to Pandora and the sound is perfect as far as I’m concerned. I’m no audiophile, lacking any sophisticated equipment to gauge high fidelity sound through this adapter. All I can confirm is that this simple little adapter works on my Mac and that the sound, according to this average user, is perfect.