Anyone have any issues using their Phonak Marvels outdoors?

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#41

I wear mine outdoors when I go on my (almost) daily walk. I start one of my radio shows, put the phone in my pocket, and away I go. I’ve never experienced any breakup of the Bluetooth signal. This was not the case with previous MFI hearing aids.
The only issue I’ve had so far is wind noise if I make or take a phone call outdoors. (Please note, I do not have an issue with my previous hearing aids. My issue was with the phone.)

#42

I just recently got mine and i can confirm that the Phonak Marvel have some kind of bluetooth connectivity issues.

  1. When outside the streaming will be cut up (Connected to my android phone)
  2. On my tower (direct connectivity) the usb bluetooth adapter is located behind the computer and it’s very spotty and choppy when streaming audio of any kind be it music, games, movies etc. BUT when i moved the adapter to the front of the computer the issues seems to have gone away. This shows me that they might have but in a not that great quality of bluetooth device in the hearing aids or that mine are somewhat defective.
  3. Phone calls are unbearable for the other person, they can barely hear me and and for them my voice would get choppy and missing words.

My normal bluetooth headsets would not have this issue at all and they are quite old now. I will be trying to contact Phonak and my audiologist about my issues. Hope it’s a defect so they can change it/ fix it fast.

But when it does work, the sound is great, has good depth(depending on the molds) unfortunately doesn’t have too much bass. Also works well for basic hearing aids.

#43

They were replaced as they were defective. My new replacement has most of the issues fixed that I had encountered previously.

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#44

Glad your problems are solved!!

#45

I’m glad you got that resolved. I’m really counting my blessings that I haven’t run into some of these issues.

#46

I’m also experiencing frequent drop-outs when streaming outdoors from my Android phone. Interestingly, the drop-outs are affected by my head movements. If I turn my head slightly to left or right, the sound cuts out for a half second. I have to hold very still to keep it from occurring. The problem only occurs outdoors in open spaces, but when it does, it happens every few seconds.

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#47

thats due to sterio zoom vs opns fixed directional

#48

I’m also using a moto g6. The sound quality on my end is OK, but folks on the receiving end complain about the
poor sound quallty. I may have to send them back.

#49

I have been using Phonak M-Rs since they first came out. I have no problem streaming from my iPhone X while indoors, but have immediate cut outs when going outdoors and have the phone in my pant pocket. I discovered that a workaround is to have my iPhone in a shirt pocket, so that it only about 10 inches from the aid that is the receiver (in my case the left aid). I have even discovered that streaming is better if the glass side of the phone is facing outward. The good news is that the sound quality is superb, and I can stream almost all day. I only ran out of battery once … around midnight!
By the way, I have the same symptoms if I pair the aids to my Apple Watch, or an iPad.

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#50

Some outdoor retailers like LL Bean sell jackets and vests with a zippered phone pocket high up on the left side of the chest. This works very well with my Marvel 90 aids, which are set to receive Bluetooth from the left. Example here:

#51

I had a similar issue with my iPhone 6s and resound linux 2. No issues so far with LG G6 and phonak m 90 rs

#52

Phone call problems might be fixed by getting audiologist to change Bluetooth settings from “adaptive” to “fixed”. This was Phonak’s suggestion when I was having problems.
It fixed the problem for me. I do get a little static when it’s dialing but goes away once conversation starts. Good luck

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#53

Those findings sure support my overall experience with my M70-R’s. They are absolutely faultless on BT indoors but trying to listen to an audiobook when I’m out for a walk…forget it. If I hold my Samsung Galaxy S8+ directly in front of me it’s not so bad, but there is no way BT works without fits and stutters if I put the phone in my pocket.

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#54

Thanks, @ribernard–but I returned the Marvels while they were still under the trial period and I went back to Oticon OPN-S, since they’re better for me personally when it comes to speech clarity and phone reception. But everyone has their own preferences, and I know some people just love their Marvels.

#55

One thing that was not fixed that I have observed with some frustration is that the streaming outside is still crap, and gets choppy when in my pocket or if im doing anything outside, BUT then the connection gets better as soon as I’m inside a building or car.

#56

I have the same issue but i just take my phone out and hold it but the thing is it’s not the distance I think something happens to the connection outside. Cause for me if i hold it at the same distance around my pant pocket it still streams alright even though it chops a bit less, but then as soon as i put it inside my pocket it chops like mad. For me it’s just don’t use them outside i guess and try to enjoy the outdoor sounds.

Hopefully Phonak can fix this through software updates.

#57

I wonder if it has anything to do with ISP, cell tower proximity, or whether Android or iOS? I’m using an Android Google Pixel 3 XL, my ISP is Google Fi and in the Atlanta area I always have a strong signal. I’ve had my M90-R’s for 5 months and haven’t noticed any problems.

#58

My LG G6 uses Android Oreo and my carrier is Verizon.

#59

But the connection phone to hearing aids is via bluetooth. I has nothing to do with whether the carrier you are using is CDMA or GSM cellular encoding or what operating system in used by the phone.

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#60

Yes, I understand that. What then is different about my positive experience and that of other’s who suffer extreme reliability issues?

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