Voice is pretty valuable in high-stakes matches. As Goat mentioned, we made it a point to have a specific &quot;language&quot; that we would all understand so that we didn&#039;t clog the line with random crap (besides, the longer and more frequently you speak, the worse it gets--sounds start taking longer to get to your teammates).<br /><br />This, and having a designated &quot;talker&quot; (for example, the free-roaming/middle player) have helped me in the past. I&#039;ve never had a problem having music+sounds+voice going on at the same time, but I suppose it&#039;s people&#039;s preference to have the bare minimum in terms of possible distractions (these days I don&#039;t even play with headphones, but speakers, and I do just fine).<br /><br />Now that I have a good mic, I&#039;m looking forward to having more solid priv and pre-season games as I prepare for a possible return to the league 8)