You have the right plan. Many audiologist will recommend the aid using the software they’re most familiar with. Each brand’s software is different and optimization needs familiarity. That isn’t all bad. But, your ears are the real expert.
rmingee,
post your audiogram.
DD, how can you make a recommendation on a hearing aid, without even seeing the audiogram???
Are you a Rexton shill, stock holder, or employee?
RodeoGeorge
I have been deaf in my left ear since I was 14, about 60 years ago, due to an infection that led to the blockage of my Eustachian tube. When I was about 40 I went to an ENT physician and his audiologist. Both, of course, recommended that I try a hearing aid. It worked perfectly but covered my entire ear. I found that it had created a situation where due to normal perspiration I was causing ear infections. I returned it and refused to try another until this past year when I noticed that due to age I was losing hearing in my other ear. I went to a different ENT in a different place and had an ear test an exam during which the ENT removed accumulated wax in the canals, something I have to have done every couple of years. Both the audiologist and the ENT recommended that I get hearing aids for both ears. I told the ENT about my previous experience of infections. He took his hearing aid off and showed me how small a contemporary hearing aid is.
I made an appointment at the clinic to be fitted for a HA. Then I began googling for information. Nearly everyone sang praises about Costco, its prices and professionalism. Indeed, Consumers Report, a place I respect, suggested that if you were not eligible for VA benefits go to Costco. I cancelled the appointment at the clinic and made one at Costco.
Yes, I had to wait a few minutes, beyond my appointment time, but who doesn’t wait for health care visits? The Costco dispenser/audiologist commented that my test, taken 2 days before, showed a major difference between my hearing in my right and left ears. He too gave me a hearing test which exactly confirmed the clinic’s test. I was glad to be retested and find matching results. He toyed with several ideas, mostly talking with himself before suggesting a Trax 42. However, he said he would check with a techie at the Rexton or Siemans company. He had it on speaker phone when he related my statistics and his recommendation to the techie. The techie and he talked about the possibilities and both suggested the Trax 42. He had to make a mold of my left ear since I needed a larger ear piece on my left side.
Three weeks later I went to Costco for my fitting. This time with another dispenser/audiologist. Yes, he too was late for the appointment, but I soon found it that he was programming the HA to my profiles. We spent at least an hour together going over some basic and more advanced parts of my new HA. Since there a week ago, I love my Trax 42 hearing aid. Yes the sound has some problems perhaps too loud or tinny, but I could hear again in both ears. I have another appointment in about a week. I have read the User Guide several times and choose what seemed like good programs for my device. I plan to discuss them with him and ask him to program them into my HA.
The only part of the package I bought came with an accessories kit so I could hear our TV directly through my HA and allow my wife to adjust the volume for her. It does work, but is a pain resetting it each evening. Rexton needs to make that device more reliable. Included in the accessories was the device I hang around my neck. It was the far cheaper device than my ENT showed me he was wearing. If it was guaranteed that the better device would work better, I’d buy it despite the high price. Rexton also needs to upgrade and fix its smart phone apps, which are also clunky.
So far my experiences with Costco and the Trax 42 are first class. I would recommend them to anyone in search of a new hearing aid.
All the best,
Ed Eckert
Menlo Park, CA
The easyTek (smart connect) is the only around the neck device for the Trac 42.
What are you resetting every night?
Don’t go overboard with programs the universal has sub programs which can be tuned independently. The spatial control only works when in the universal program.
Go to Audiology Online and check the information about the bx7 and the easytek. Exact same things.
Ok this is my second post on this forum. I have been wearing HA about 9 years. Wound up at Costco. I don’t really know as much about all this stuff as all of you seem to! I had a lengthy hearing test. They recommended Phonak Brio P up. I walked in wanting the Trax42 but she said due to my loss being pretty severe , that the battery life on the Trax would be very short. They were professional and appeared to know what they were talking about. I get my new HAs in a couple of weeks. So far, it’s the best experience I 've had
Older tech usually has heavier battery drain. The Trax have a pretty decent reputation for battery life. The Brio was a popular choice earlier on as it had the most powerful receiver. Others have played catchup game since. I won’t say she is wrong but you do have options should you not care for the Brio. But, give it at least a month before suggesting a different trial.
If you would post your audio-gram you might get better suggestions
find an audiologist you can trust
Sorry, my life got nuts for a bit and I did not have a chance to check back in here. I had to put my purchase of hearing aids on hold because of a possible job change, which is now a definite, and in the end I may have most/all of them paid for by my new company, which is a good thing.
I went back to the ENT audiologist I had originally talked to, when I tried out the Phonak V70/90, and we tried those again, in addition to the Signia Primax 7 and one other brand I can’t recall. I found that for me I actually heard voices much more naturally with the Primax than with the Phonak, and I liked the “ocean wave” tinnitus sound - seems more soothing than the white noises I had heard. The other brand I tried sounded too tinny and just not realistic for me. I told the lady that I had started talking to Costco for price reasons, and she encouraged me to do so. She recommended that I focus on the Phonak and Rexton, and did not recommend the KS6 (please do not take me to task about this - it was her recommendation, and as someone with 30 years in the business, I am inclined to trust her). She said that given that I liked the Signia better, I was also likely to prefer the Rexton, but to try both. I also asked if there was anything she could do on price, and she said she’d talk to her rep, and we’d talk again once I went to Costco.
I did end up going to a different Costco from the one I first went into, and had a much better experience with the person there. I tried the Brio and the Trax 42 in the store, and the other audi was right. I heard everything I wanted to hear with both aids, and fairly well, but I heard all sorts of things I really did NOT need to hear with the Brio. I told the tech at Costco that, and he said that the noise reduction on the Trax is more aggressive out of the box, and that it could be adjusted on the Brio, but overall I just felt the Trax had a more natural sound. We set an appointment for a fitting about 10 days out, but I told him I was still talking to the other place, and he said he’d be amazed if they came down that much.
I got a call back from the other place, and wow, they really did manage to get a lower price. The Trax42 is $2600 at Costco, including a SmartConnect. The price they offered on the Primax 7 at the other place, including the easyTek (which I gather is the same hardware but possibly slightly updated firmware, though I’m not sure about that) and a TV transmitter, is $3600. Their original price just for the units had been $6200. Between the fact that it is newer technology, it includes the tinnitus sounds (which I may or may not need in the end once I start using them, but if I don’t have them then by definition I can’t use them), and that there is simply no way Costco can provide the same service and level of experience I can get from the other place, it is worth the extra $1k to me, so I am going with them. I need to wait until June 1 when I change over to the new benefits, and I am counting the days!
All that said, I would happily have bought from Costco had the other place not come down so much on price. I would say I had a positive experience with them, and would likely have been happy with the Trax42, but since I could go with newer tech for a price I could live with, it just made sense to go that route.
I’ll post my audiogram soon - I don’t have it with me at the moment. It is fairly straightforward high-frequency hearing loss, with the low point firmly in the “moderate to severe” range, nearly identical in both ears.
rmingee, GREAT choice!
Mainly because it’s what YOU found works best for you. As many on this forum that do not push particular brands have said, a choice in HAs is very subjective.
I have the Phonak Naida v90s because they performed better for ME in the environments that I live.
Also, in my opinion, your purchasing them from an audiologist that you have faith in is a big plus. I could go the VA route, but also choose to use a local audiologist because he understands and is responsive to MY needs.
DD will chastise you for your choice, but I’m with you 100%.
RodeoGeorge
Well said, RodeoGeorge!
This is my first post being I just signed up today. I have had a hearing problem in both ears since I was born. I started wearing HA’s since I was around 30 (I will be 65 soon). My current HA is a Phonak Nadia BTE due to my hearing loss is labeled severe. What brands/models will Costco have for my hearing loss? I am not a member of Costco and the closest one is an hour drive away. It sounds like getting a membership just for the HA is a good deal. I have only worn one HA being I needed the other ear for the phone and work. I am retired now, so this is not an issue.
Severe loss these days can be address by any brands RIC type aid. This is a fairly recent event. I wear the KS6 – house brand. Other here like the Bernafon and Siemens Trax42. All good aids. I particularly like the KS6 for it iPhone and the excellent phone clip + that streams to Bluetooth devices including Android phones.
I’d suggest the premium membership at $110 over the $55 membership. This gets you a 2% rebate annually from Costco. With your purchase around $2000 or so, you a $40 leg up on getting a nice year end rebate. Make an appointment now as there will be a lead time based on how busy they are with new accounts. The first appointment runs about 1.5 hours. Followups are easy to get set up as they are about 10 minutes or so and they can usually get you in within a couple of days.
If you’re comfortable with your Naída and want the same sound quality, Costco sells a line of Phonak hearing aids called Brio. The Brio P-UP is very similar to Naída Q90-UP.
I have been satisfied with my Nadia, but it is about 8 years old now. Many of its features have been disabled due to issues. My Nadia has a custom ear mold. Will the Brio have this and will Costco be able to do custom ear molds?
The hearing aid fitter at Costco can take impressions of your ear canals for new earmolds. They don’t come with the Brio, but are $40 each.
What is the deciding factor if you get an ear mold or not?
Depends on your ear anatomy and degree of hearing loss. Some people can be fit using off-the-shelf generic silicone domes that don’t require an earmold impression.