External headphones not working (unless plugged in at boot up)

Hello,
I have a MBP 1st gen unibody running 10.5.7. However in last few days my headphones are not working when i plug them in. When i got into system pref-sound it still shows as internal speakers... this is where it goes weird tho: If i boot the machine up with the headphones in, they work fine and system prefs show them as headphones. But as soon as i unplug them and plug them back in, the machine doesn't recognize them anymore.
I have done the following with no luck:
Repaired permissions
Reset PRAM
Created new user account
Tried another set of headphones
Reinstalled quicktime
Restored system from time machine backup
Did a full archive and install and tried it under 10.5.5 and was same then later did all the updates, still same.
I think i covered the basics.. its just weird it works when leaving headphones in on bootup then afterwards stops if i take them out and back in. I have booked an appointment at a genius bar but wonder is there anything ive missed before i go....
Any help, tips or tricks will be appreciated.

Hey!
I'm having the exact same problem. Just bought a new MBP 13 inch with Snow Leopard already installed. I toggle a lot between having external speakers or headphones plugged into audio output. It was working fine for about the first week with the computer, but just started having the problem you describe-- not recognizing an external audio device plugged in unless I restart/put computer to sleep. Any solutions yet?
Thanks!
Kyle

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External headphones not working (unless plugged in at boot up)

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