My new Supernova – I think most forum users should read this……

Hi-Fi Corner
62

Due to Covid my local surgery were not particularly interested as well.

Living in Cornwall we don’t have an abundance of independent audiologists so I used my local Boots &, although I have no experience of anyone else, have been happy with them. I could have easily used both Specsavers or Amplifon. Just went to Boots first & they seemed fine. All are within a 10 minute walk from my house.

BTW, don’t wish to give the impression that things are too far behind the times here, after all we have had electricity since the 1980’s & colour TV is promised soon!!

3 Likes
63

And of course the answer is obvious - but it is a significant thing to budget for in retirement, and very possibly not on people’s radar when retirement planning (which apart from everything else makes this a brilliant thread).

Certainly when only a couple of weeks ago my wife and I were doing just that, assessing household expenditure to see the effect if she were to retire at the same time as me i stead of some time later as originally planned, and the cost of hearing aids didn’t occur to us.

64

As a DIY hearing aid programmer and a naim enthusiast I was pleased to see this subject raised. I had been considering raising it myself for some time but due to the usual lethargy of age, I’m 87, I just haven’t got round to it.

Most of us, with otherwise normal hearing, suffer from a loss of the ability to hear the higher sound frequencies as we age but this is a very slow process so that we don’t appreciate what is happening until it starts to become obvious and by that time we have probably forgotten what a normal balance of sounds is. It is usual, when first fitted with aids, to be shocked by the loudness and intensity of those higher frequencies and it takes a week or two for the brain to accept this as normal. For this reason audiologists usually set hearing aids, for a new user, to increase those higher frequencies gradually over a period of time.

Hearing aids are mainly designed to improve the hearing and understanding of speech and the main programme provided by your audiologist usually aims to satisfy that requirement. If your hearing is very poor in the upper speech frequencies and can’t be helped just by amplification then it is possible to programme the aids to transpose those frequencies so that they are brought within your audible range. There are also settings to reduce wind noise and other background noises to help with speech recognition. Obviously these settings are not good for music reproduction! Therefore there is provision to set up more than one programme in the aids and if one is for music it is best if all these settings are turned off and in effect the aids are being used only as amplifying graphic equalisers. It may be necessary to ask the audiologist to turn off these settings.

I was lucky in that I didn’t reach the point at which I knew I needed aids until I was 80 when I realised I could no longer hear the ticking of the indicators in my car! However I soon realised I had also been missing those high sounds which characterise all musical instruments but particularly of cymbals, snare drums and the brass.

One of the greatest difficulties in getting aids set to match your personal needs is the quality of the audiologist and regretfully in my experience many are lacking. I should perhaps add that my wife has had severe loss for around forty years and so I have had a lot of experience in this area. This is what led me to DIY programming, which doesn’t just require the acquisition of the appropriate software but also a hardware interface that allows the aids to connect to your computer. I’m afraid the industry is generally very anti DIY involvement and it is not always easy to obtain, particularly, the software. No one can know exactly what another person is actually hearing and apart from testing individual frequencies via a specific type of tone generator an audiologist has to rely on your ability to describe to him what you are hearing and then make adjustments that he/she believes will correct any problems. Doing it myself means I can experiment and hear the change, if any, straight away. However if you push the amplification too far you can cause further serious damage to your hearing and therefore a good understanding of audio frequencies and decibels is essential. I’m sure most, if not all, members of this forum will have that.

Finally, modern hearing aids are very sophisticated micro digital computers and the top of the range versions have bluetooth and various accessories available to assist with hearing in all situations but it must be said they cannot cure hearing loss. They just attempt to make you able to hear sounds again that have become less audible. My own aids are Bernafon, a make that has a reputation for being good with music and I am happy with them.

Apologies for such a long post but it is a quite involved subject and I still haven’t covered all the variables!

11 Likes
65

This is a great post, and is great that someone spoke about it.

Honestly, I don’t understand why wearing a hearing aid should is a stigma. The fact is, in every person hearing starts to deteriorate with age. Like sight. But wearing glasses is absolutely normal.

I am 47, and for 2 years now I have a hearing aid. It’s not only that it changed my audio, completely, but it also changed my social experience. Actually I understand people :). There is no “sorry, say again please “

As, it was mentioned before, my wife was the one who noticed that I have hearing issues. She is a dr. and she knows a little bit more about hearing issues than I do. Since, I was denying it (at the end I am a HiFi enthusiast that cab hear the difference between the cables, I can not be def :)) she arranged a visit to ent dr. and audiology test. My left ear hearing was deteriorated, but jus a little bit. Dr. Suggested that still there is no need for hearing aid. Now, no matter waht my wife insested I get one. So i did.

At the beginning I didn’t noticed practically any difference. After some two months I started to notice difference. First of all, I wasn’t constantly asking people to repeat. I didn’t get into their face to hear better. And since my social interaction became normal, I was less irritated (something I wasn’t noticing before) and getting more involved in conversations in general.

Now lets go back to music. Hifi experience change completely. Although I tought I heard every tone every frequency, I just realized I was aware of differences between components, music, recordings. Now I can here frequencies I really wasn’t aware of. If I forget to put my hearing aid, and listen to the music, immediately I realize something is wrong. Automatically I am putting a finger in my ear :))) to check if I have a hearing aid.

I am using Signia hearing aid, and is so small that no one notice I have it. At least I think so. Anyway I don’t have issue telling anyone about it. Because hearing aid are like glasses. It can really change your life.

The best thing about signia is, that it can be controlled by phone , and there are several modes. One of them is HD Music. :metal:t2::metal:t2:

It’s important to check you hearing regularly and recalibrate the aid at least once a year.

Now, since there are slight deterioration in my right ear, that are absolutely not for hearing aid, I am so happy with results of it, that I am thinking to get one for right ear to.

What is the point to have all this hifi equipment if I can not hear every frequency from it?

Again, look at this like having glasses. What is the point if having the best 4k screen if you can not see every little detail on it.

Think about checking your hearing guys, no matter the age. Your music experience will cahnge dramatically.

Cheers

Btw, big attention should be given to ear buds. Ear buds should be designed to let through the frequencies that are not amplified by hearing aid.

1 Like
66

If you had gone to your NHS Audiology Department you would have got them for free. One in five people over the age of 50 has hearing loss. It can be sudden or gradual but most is age related . Deaf is a relative word as there are many types. I have very severe high pitch , my wife very severe low pitch which is rare. I was around ten when mine started to deteriorate and there was very little help. NHS hearing aids are as good , if not, better than private ones . They tend to concentrate on the mild to moderate range. Phonak are the largest supplier of hearing aids to the NHS and work with them on research. Digital aids became available in the 90s and are now programmed into your ear but if you have lost that pitch of hearing no aid in the world will bring it back. There is a peculiar stigma attached to deafness and wearing hearing aids that is not attached to wearing glasses. I have a red mould and a blue mould and nobody ever notices. I have recently upgraded from a Cyrus Lyric to a Uniti Star with my Spendor A5 speakers and got new speaker cables. The difference is very noticeable. So , if you can’t hear please ask you GP to refer you to the Audiology department for a test , don’t leave it.

1 Like
67

In China they can programme headphones to your hearing loss . My NHS Phonaks have a music setting that boosts mid range and trebles.

68

Hi @Canaryfan . Through friends and family, I have had very differing info on the benefits and effectiveness of various hearing aids.
Could you please post the name/type that you have, they sound very promising. I’ll research them.
Thank you, and I’m very happy to hear that they are working so well for you.
Happy listening. Cheers.

69

Mine are Phonak Paradise 90R’s.

I had no idea about hearing aids until my problems started in November last year so I have relied entirely on my audiologists recommendations.

From my very limited knowledge it appears that the more channels the aids have, the better. Naturally, the ones claiming to be good for music tend to be the more expensive ones at the top of the manufacturers ranges!

I have not been disappointed by the recommendation but, just like good Hi Fi, believe there are several good alternative brands available. Some web research will produce various reviews as a starting point but, as many here have said, be guided by your audiologist & not web reviews.

70

My audiologist is ex. NHS & advised that I would qualify for free aids. These would have been at the cheaper end of the range & lacking features I really wanted such as being rechargeable & adjustable for good music reproduction.

The model I have would not have been available on the NHS &, fortunately, I was able to afford one that appeared most suitable in meeting my requirements.

71

@Johnains @Savate

Thank you both for your contributions to this thread.

Despite already having my new hearing aids I am still learning a lot from peoples experiences here & am feeling better equipped to face any further changes in the, hopefully, distant future.

I suspect that others here have started to evaluate their own situations & think that, in the longer run, this can only be a good thing.

As an interesting aside, the whole hearing loss question has made me wonder, like never before, about how different each of us is actually hearing regardless of whether your hearing is good or you are using aids. May go some way to explain why some think Brand A sounds great & others think it is awful & Brand B is much better?

2 Likes
72

A very helpful thread. Thanks so much. As you say our different Hi-Fi preferences may well be explainable by variations in our hearing. I often wonder we can’t have tone controls again, rather than being forced to buy another 2k cable to get the balance right. Now we have the potential to correct, perhaps more accurately near our ears. It is a much easier to correct at low power. One other thought: I understand that the brain often adapts to make the most of the information it receives, so as long as it gets the info, maybe your perception of Beethoven etc will recover. PS first post, hope it is ok!

2 Likes
73

Another happy Phonak user here.

About 5 years ago now I had a bad bout of vertigo so went to an ENT consultant who had an audiologist in his practice. He suggested a hearing test which was done immediately.

He told me of the sad cases of “social isolation” he came across by people logging off due to difficulty in hearing. The nervous laugh as one responds to something you haven’t picked up. The self defence of answers like “indeed” “absolutely” etc.

I’ve posted here previously about the worry that music would not sound good through them as it took a good few visits to get them to sound good with music. Thanks to @davidhendon giving me the information and encouragement to persevere, eventually I could actually hear that most of my previous years upgrades were trying to compensate for my hearing loss! All those dull sounding drums gone! When music doesn’t sound as good as you remember it’s probably because you’re not hearing as well as you did!

I’m now on my second set - P90s - and my experience of one’s brain compensating and acclimatising to hearing aids makes me smile at all the burn-in threads on the forum. And I take with a large pinch of salt the “speaker A is bright” “ BRIGHT if anything it’s dull and uninvolving” opinions.

What I initially thought of as a death sentence to my music/hi-fi hobby is nothing of the sort.

I think we all are a little bit conscious of them at the start but that goes as one becomes aware of quite frankly their life changing benefits.

Now if only Phonak would do a “Pub” preset- and if only I could have the opportunity to use it.

.sjb

3 Likes
74

After a couple decades working in radio with the headphones up at the bleeding setting, I can sure relate to this. It’s a shame to have a nice system and not be able to enjoy the full range of audio. Congrats on your decision.

75

Excellent thread and very thought provoking. I’ve had some tinnitus in my right ear for the past 2-3 weeks. I’m hoping it’s wax, but, mostly prompted by this thread I’ll see an audiologist in Hove tomorrow afternoon, either for some wax removal or a consultation on what the issue might be…

It certainly hasn’t helped me decide in my home trial of a second 555 PS on my ND555, though I think the difference is still clear enough judging from reverting to a single supply.

The other thought that is provoked is to what degree our HiFi listening habits are possibly responsible for our hearing issues as we age?

76

I have read this thread with great interest, it seems that I am not alone in finding out that hearing aides are the best upgrade a person with hearing loss can make to a HiFi system.
My story is similar to Canary. Similar wife issues. Similar trepidation about hearing aides. Similar vanity issues.
I took the plunge. My audio world was transformed.My audiologist set up my aides to include a music setting which as I understand it takes some of the noise canceling off. Music now sounds just like I remember it used to sound.
Since getting my hearing aides I have upgraded my system by adding a Supernait3 and an XPSdr to my NDX2… Each step has resulted in an increase in sound quality. I wonder about any future upgrades.
I guess that listening is subjective but that doesn’t matter a jot if I believe I can hear quality increases.As far as I am concerned I am hearing what I could hear when I was much younger and that is good enough for me.
Don’t put up with hearing loss. Forget vanity no one will even notice your hearing aides, they will just be pleased that you can hear them.
Jim

1 Like
77

Ey up, this reads exactly like my experience over the past six years or so, treble all gone etc, two digital tuned aids later, upgraded from a uniti lite to a Nova and pure musical heaven is back!

78

And of course the micro on/off switch that turns both off at the same time means that marital bliss is maintained?

79

micro suction on my earwax this afternoon has de(a)finitely improved my listening and my hearing in general. £90 for both ears, but certainly highly recommended if you think you may have a wax build up issue…

I also had a hearing test after the wax clearance to check my frequency sensitivity. Here’s the result. I guess it won’t mean much to most, but for those with familiarity it may make more sense.

image
image3264×2448 2.09 MB

Fairly normal hearing to 2Khz, then down 40-45db at 4K and down 70-80K at 8K. Audiologist Judgement was borderline/ possible future need for hearing aids.

He demonstrated the Phonak P90’s for me to see what they do. Definitely a good boost to higher frequencies which was an interesting option for both general and conversational use and possibly also music. I was tempted to buy some just as an optional boost in particular situations like pubs, restaurants (remember those!?) and music listening, but don’t think I yet truly need them. I may need them in 2-5 years by which time I guess new, better models may be available so I’ll hold off for now.

To use an analogy, I think my hearing is at the stage where I can still read ok, but a +1.5 diopter set of glasses would make it easier, albeit with the need to adjust to the odd effects that come from wearing glasses for the first time. I have no issue with getting some hearing aids. I’m pretty sure I will at do so at some point. Great thread!!

80

With a loss like that I’d be at least trying some aids. My working ear is like yours and getting the aid makes a massive change. I’ve discovered that there are quite a few birds round here! The ability to chat easily with people I meet outside has been transformational. The guy who supplied mine let me try them for two months before paying and I have the option to return then for a further two months.

1 Like
81

I believe they ( Sussex Audiology Centre in Hove) offer a ‘6 week return if not satisfied’ policy. I’m still at the considering stage and said I’d let them know if I wanted to go for it. To me, it’s almost a ‘free’ ( apart from the £2.5k cost!) option to have the ability to use them or not. I’ve just spent £800 on a switch, £6k on a second 555PS for the ND555. A big part of me is thinking this would be the best vfm upgrade I could make.