Vista - Switching between speakers and headset (simply)

Although there are similar threads they don't seem to be quite the same so here goes...

I have speakers plugged into my integrated sound card, and a USB headset. To switch between them I have to manually access my Playback Devices and set one or the other to the Default Device.

Previously when I used XP, my speakers seemed to work as the default device but then when I switched them off (using the volume/off knob on the speaker) the sound would automatically be switched to the USB headset.

It was so simple - switch the speakers on and get sound through the speakers - switch the speakers off and get sound through the headset. Is there any way to get this same scenario working in Vista?

OR... I guess it would work just as well to have BOTH the speakers and headset working all the time - so I can simply switch the speakers off when I just want to use the headset.

The way mine is set up I plug Headset in and speakers auto matically turn off....unplug headset, speakers turned on.

Pretty simple

Well - both my speakers and headset are plugged into the rear of the PC, which is located in a cupboard (so it's near impossible to access the back for plugging/unplugging).

It's just unbelievable how so many people had various speaker/headset setups working the way they wanted in XP and then Vista screws it all up - with no apparent fix!