Kubuntu 12.10 - Audio lags through USB headset

While I absolutely love everything else about Kubuntu 12.10, there's one minor-yet-annoying bug I've yet to figure out: audio lags if I tell KDE to prefer my USB headset (a Microsoft LifeChat LX-3000). I'm sure the standard audio setup itself is fine, since there's no lag if KDE uses my regular speakers, and it never lagged in 12.04, so I'm baffled as to why it lags by about a second if I use my headset for audio. I've also noted that KMix's icon seems to spaz out whenever sound is needed, so maybe KMix is bugged? I hope I can get an answer, this is the only real thing keeping me from really enjoying KDE to its fullest.