Binaural Hearing Aids for Profound + Moderate Loss

Hearing Aids
#31

I knew I remembered something. :slight_smile: So I now have found this:

What is the difference between dB SPL and dB SL?
Difference between dB SPL and dB SL . There are several types of dB… dB SPL are decibels measuring sound pressure levels. There is an accepted reference point of 0 dB SPL which equals 20 micropascals = 2 × 10 -5 pascals… dB SL are decibels measuring a signal relative to an individuals auditory threshold. For example, if a person’s minimum threshold is 30 dB HL (yet another type of decibel measuring how much worse a person’s hearing is based on a referential dB level) and a signal is at 40 dB HL, the sensation level of this signal to this individual is 10 db SL (40 dB - 30 dB = 10 dB SL).

#32

A friend of mine just got the Costco KS8 and he can make adjustments with his iPhoneX. We were able to adjust the individual ear volumes and ALSO the Mic volume for the crossing sound when in the XPhone Mode. I nearly blew his head off when I snapped my fingers in the phone ear before he reduced the crossing mic volume from the default. I’m impressed because it worked and because he could adjust it rather than having to go back to the Fitter to do so. I’ll be checking into these at my Costco appointment. Not sure if my Android phone will be able to make the adjustments. I’m not interested in streaming just adjustments.

#33

The Android app adjusts using frequencies above human hearing. Works fine for adjustments.

#34

Oticon is still good for anyone if they’re around like me or Mom too if your reverse slope ends at 95-100 when it fluctuate

#35

I had my fitting appt at Costco today. Interestingly in the last couple of months I’ve tried 3 other top of the line hearing aids from different AUds or Fitters. All four used my Doctors audiogram in setting up the various manufacturers software. And all four including today had me try the hearing aids with the factory settings before attempting to make any “how does this sound” adjustments. In all the demos before today I was unable to figure out speech in my Profound Loss ear. Even with adjustments they didn’t work well. Today the Kirkland KS8 demo was different. As soon as I put them in my ears I could hear the fitters words clearly … Even when I covered my good ear. And the sound seemed very natural except for my own voice which we then adjusted a bit. I was amazed and very impressed, shocked really, as I was expecting more of the same. I ordered them with the newly released t coil version which also uses a 13 battery for longer run time. I would only use the t coil in a theater as I don’t need it for the phone. The only hiccup is the Smart Direct software. As I stated earlier my friend was able to make lots of adjustments with the app on his iPhoneX. We were not able to get the KS8s to pair via the Smart Direct app on my LGv30 phone. I was told they only pair with iPhone and Samsung Galaxy phones. I’m eligible to upgrade phones so when I get the HAs I’ll probably change to the Galaxy. I’m not an iPhone person. I thought that the latest round of chips and software was pretty equivalent between brands but that may be an incorrect assumption. The only other thing that I can point to is the power RIC on the KS8 has a 105db max at high frequency and all others said 100db. My loss is around 100db so perhaps we were running into clipping distortion though none of the other Fitters or Software’s indicated this as a problem. Will report again after receiving them.

#36

Your KS8’s use MFi/BLE/iPhone technology (iPhone only).
See Costco Kirkland Signature 8.0 (Product Information) for more info.
Android phones cannot stream directly to KS8’s.

#37

They can still at least pair and let at least some Android phones serve as remote controls.

#38

Not interested in streaming but want full control over features with Android, including Left and Right separate volume and Crossover Mic attenuation in Xphone mode.

#39

I picked up my KS8T’s from Costco today. This model has the T-Coil and uses #13 batteries. The fitting went smoothly. The REM matched well except for a little low in the high frequencies in my Profound Loss ear. The fitter suggested we not make any changes from the Audiogram based fitting for this as it would likely become too tinny…and I’m guessing output too much power. He went methodically through all of the setting screens from the Rexton fitting program as I can attest having examined them on my home PC from the downloaded program obtained thru this forum. We added some manual programs…noise, music, t-coil, etc. to the Automatic one and we’ll see if they make any difference as time goes on. I was particularly interested in the XPhone program as most of you know since I have been trying to accommodate my Profound Loss Ear with sound being delivered to both my ears. An Amp-CROS instead of a Bi-CROS. This model does that…though it expects a telephone and adjusts (reduces) the frequency response accordingly. BUT, after my prior conversations with several Support Technicians at Rexton, they insisted that this model hearing aid was designed to accommodate this need in the Automatic Program. It uses an extremely fast ic that has the ability and does transfer speech between the L and R hearing aids on a routine basis based on the environment and sound location and applies the appropriate audiogram to each.

Well, this KS8T does exactly that. Again, from the moment he actually put them on me I could hear from both sides when turning my head toward the sound source. It’s pretty amazing. We did up the volume a db or two in the Profound Ear in order to balance the loudness in both ears,and then we reduced the base a db or two in the Profound Ear to increase the treble…so the REM was probably correct…and we ended up adjusting for it indirectly! I haven’t tried any of the other programs yet and possibly will never need to…except t-coil in a theater. Interestingly, my right ear is the Profound Loss Ear. I drove home with the radio on and the drivers window on the left wide open. Lots of wind and traffic noise and I could still hear the words of the radio playing at the same reasonable level as when the window was closed…amazing!

I was prepared, resigned, to try every hearing aid on the market and had made my way through 4 of them. No need to continue, this one is superb. I heartily recommend you try them for your hearing loss and see if they perform as well for you.

Then, as if by magic the un-think-able happened. At the fitting just like at the original demo, we were not able to pair these aids with the Connexx Smart Direct App on my LGv30 Android phone. My phone would install and run the app but would not pair the hearing aids to the app. So, I went into T-Mobile to investigate changing to a Samsung brand having been told that these would like work. At the store we could not get the Samsung S8 or S9 to even install the app for some reason. But we did try to pair the hearing aids with the app on my LG phone again…and they paired…and have been working correctly since then today. Amazing.

I’ll continue to report my progress as everything settles down.

#40

Great! Also testimony that you can find a good aid and fitter on first try.

#41

Good to hear your success story! I’m having very good results also with the KS8.

I have a Galaxy S6 and the Smart Mic Bluetooth device and if Bluetooth is not on, the phone app communicates with the hearing aids using acoustic signals for remote functions. However, not all functions are active in acoustic mode. For example you can select the programs but there are also listening environments for program 1 like Cafe and Group Conversation, and those are grayed out in acoustic mode.

But, the Smart Mic is almost always on and that results in all the app options working.

Costco Kirkland Signature 8.0 (Product Information)
#42

Thank you so much for your input. I think I will be getting the KS8 soon also but I think I will opt for the telecoil due to the extended battery life and will hopefully just shut off the telecoil, if that is possible?
Please continue updates.

#43

The telecoil is mostly passive. It only operates in the presence if the magnetic properties of old fashion phones or in a room designed for it. I doubt you’ll notice it. If you are in an auditorium that has it, you’ll probably see it as a benefit.

#44

This is pretty exciting. I have moderate to severe loss in both ears (see audiogram), kind of better than your right ear and worse than your left. I’m wearing Phonak Audeos now which are about three years old, and I hear pretty well with them. Do you think it is worth trying Kirkland KS8Ts? --Steve

#45

If you have future problems, the way to repair is to remove the app, unpair anything left; then do a full reboot and start from the beginning. It seems to happen from time to time to all brands of phones and aids.

#46

Steve (simring), my layman’s observations are that your audiogram is considerably better than mine with your largest loss at 90db. Mine is at least 100db. I believe that I observed that the KS8 has wider frequency range and higher amplification than any of the other 4 I tested or others that I investigated. I’m suspect that my loss made the others distort at the edge of their amplification range. Maybe not. The KS8 has more leeway with its stated 110db amplification…and speech is very clear to me.

Also, and most important for me…as the title of this forum chat says…I believe that I need to have some transfer of speech from the Profound loss side to the Moderate loss side. That was what I have been investigating from the beginning of my search. You’ll see that I have attempted this by fooling the hearing aids into thinking that I was using a phone and have their various telephone modes perform this function. The KS8 is the only one that actually provided speech to the other ear between the hearing aids in their default automatic mode. To be fair, I believe some of the others implied that they did too. But I could never achieve that result with them. The KS8’s did this automatically from the get-go.

From your audiogram, it doesn’t appear to me that you need this crossing speech so much as your losses are similar in both ears. Rexton’s (KS8) tech support will tell you that this ability really helps everybody, and I’m guessing it probably does. Also, your loss is below the amplification level of most of the hearing aids I looked at so this doesn’t appear to be an issue. Therefore, It’s hard for me to specifically say that the KS8’s will help you better than your current aid. I would ask however, why have you decided to look into this matter. To satisfy your question, perhaps you should make an appointment with Costco, they take quite a while to get, and try the KS8’s out. I could have said that in the first sentence, but I prefer the long-winded approach. Let us know after your trial as others have requested that this forum chat be continued.

#47

Steve, you could try the KS8 for up to 180 days, so you could give it a good long trial, with multiple adjustments.

#48

Thanks for the detailed response. Also from a lay prospective, my audiogram looks better only in the sense that both ears are balanced. You seem to have a lot better hearing in your left ear than either of mine. It looks like these hearing aids are worth trying. Are the KS8s only at Costco? It takes forever to get an appointment there. --Steve

#49

The KS8 is the 312 or 13 RIC version of the current/latest Signia or Rexton hearing aid. I think the bid-by-bid eBay guy sells them, if you want to do the DIY route. Otherwise available at a much higher cost at independent hearing aid offices. Costco is the cheapest way to get that model with full service.

#50

Initially true. When you have them, it has never taken me more than 10 days to 2 weeks to get adjustments. If it has a problem like an aid dying, I just show up and get taken care of when the fitter is free for a few minutes.