Browsing trough the internet I found that there is an alternative for guys like me – in ear headsets. They look and work very similar to earphones you got with your iPod or Walkman. With one small difference – they use special foam or silicon seals to fill your ear canal so no sound can get to your ear other than your radio’s. Many pilots claim that they reduce noise as well or better than those fancy ANR headsets. But again – the price for those is still beyond my rich.

So I build my own. Using cheapest pilot headset from Aircraft Spruce (below $70) as a microphone and cable donor and a pair of Comply NR-10 headphones I rolled my own in ear headset:

I made the frame from 3/16″ steel rod, taped everything together and took it today for first flight. They are simply awesome. I can’t really say how much better they seal the noise (the green ear plugs are rated 33dB NRR while my old headset was rated just 24dB) but they are a lot. Plus the sound is delivered directly to your ear so it has no chance to mix with residual noise that went through ear cup. The result – today was the very first day when I really had to dial down volume on the intercom because it was simply to loud, and I still had zero problems with sound clarity). No more sweaty ears, clamped head and migraines.