#1

My audiologist said all “top tier hearing aids” would to basically the same for me. She only wants to make 1 recommendation.

#2

She’s probably not wrong. What’s your impression of her otherwise? If you’re convinced you want to try multiple aids, you should go elsewhere. Are there costs involved in trying a pair of aids? If not prohibitive and you like her, no harm in seeing what she can do.

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#3

For a given hearing professional, you will likely get the best results from them by choosing the brand they are most experienced with.

It is difficult to comment further without seeing your audiogram.

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#4

Some practices only sell one brand, so they can only recommend that brand. Others sell a couple brands, but may be more experienced adjusting one brand or another. I have used Starkey, Phonak, Oticon, and now back to Phonak. Each worked better than the last due to technology advances four years later. But all did the job for me as long as they were the appropriate level for my loss at the time.

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#5

Don’t buy HAs on any audiology clinics recommendation, most people don’t buy a car or mobile phone just because someone tells you to, you should always trial HAs before buying, so you know which one works best for you, no one else can possibly tell you this.

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#6

IMO you need to trial a few different brands of aids. They each sound different and could be different in clarity. Take your time and shop around different clinics to find the HA that suits you best. If your current clinic won’t give you a trial if different brands move on to another. Be aware a cost might be charged.

You always have Costco where you have 180 days trial with full refund if the aids don’t suit you. Good luck.

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#7

That is a decent idea with the caveat that US Costco tend to train many of their HIS staff and have few if any audiologists on staff. The care and skill of the hearing professional is vital to the best outcome.

All top tier hearing aids are not the same. The brands use different strategies and results are extremely user subjective.

#8

Although being an HIS vs Audi does not mean one is automatically better though.

It’s tough if it’s a first time aid user. It took me months to get used to the aids initially. All aids are fairly similar, although they can sound different. Hence trialing is a very good idea.

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#9

In a word all top tier hearing aids aren’t the same, it all depends on the individuals needs and what they are use to hearing. For my as an example I have worn Oticon aids for over 13 years I have become so accustomed to the Oticon sound I will struggle with any other brand of hearing aids, sure given time, afford and being miserable with what I was hearing I could adapt to different brands of aids.

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#10

It’s like saying all luxury cars are the same: Lexus, Acura, Lincoln, Cadillac, etc. Of course they aren’t the same.

Different processors and different software in different HA brands will present sound in different ways. Some people can quickly adjust to many different brands, while others can’t do that and their brains are able to cope with the sound presentation of one brand significantly better than the others.

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