I agree with the bit about the metal box - it's quite heavy and drags the ear piece if you're on the move. As you say, you need to fasten the cable to yourself to prevent this.
You're right, but organising people on NSC is similar to herding cats: see the NSC Easter Bunny CD thread for an example of a simple collaborational concept taking months of organising, but often ending in disappointment - given the timescale here, it would have been a tall order, even if we HAD...
Hopefully they might still deliver, but we'll have to see. I have been umming and aahing over whether to buy some B&W headphones, but these are more attractively priced.