First, I’d like to thank @d_Wooluf for introducing our FMA120 as an Auracast and LE Audio transmitter last year. Without that introduction, we might never have discovered this wonderful place to connect directly with our customers.
Since we launched the FlooGoo FMA120 in November 2023 on Amazon, we’ve received tremendous feedback from early adopters of LE Audio and Auracast, especially from the hearing aid community. As with any new technology, Auracast faces some compatibility challenges, and new devices like hearing aids and smartphones with Auracast support can be quite expensive.
We’re proud to announce a brand-new feature for the FlooGoo FMA120 that lets users receive Auracast on their existing phones and hearing aids! Some users in Australia are already using it successfully with devices like the Zircon 2 miniBTE T HAs, Widex Moment 440 CIC HAs (with Widex COM-DEX), and a Motorola moto G54 5G to enjoy Auracast streaming.
Here’s a brief how-to for Android users (it will take a few more weeks before we can support iOS and bring more users on board):
Load the receiver mode firmware onto the FMA120.
If you’ve used it as a transmitter before, please perform a “Clean All” to clear any paired devices before switching modes.
→ Download firmware
Download the FlooCast app from Google Play or AppStore.
Install, launch, and grant microphone permissions (needed because it uses Android’s standard audio interface to inject Auracast).
→ FlooCast on Google Play
→ FlooCast on AppStore
Connect the FMA120 to your phone using a USB-C to USB-A adapter, or a Lightning OTG cable if you’re using an older iPhone or iPad.
On Android, when prompted, tap ‘OK’ to grant the app permission to access the dongle.
On iOS, go to ‘Setup’ and tap ‘New Pairing’ when the dongle’s LED is flashing rapidly. Once connected, the app is ready for use.
No further setup is needed—just swipe down in the app to scan for nearby Auracast broadcasts.
Tap the broadcast you want, and when an icon appears next to the name, you should hear it through your hearing aids connected to the phone.
Since this is our first release, we warmly welcome feedback on how Auracast works with your specific phone and hearing aid combination. Thanks to this innovative work, we believe we’ve removed one of the biggest barriers that has kept hearing aid users from enjoying Auracast.
I’ve been following your other thread on this forum for a while. This is very exciting. It is so rare to see a manufacturer like yourself seeking out customer feedback as actively as you have been doing. Congratulations. This alone makes me want to buy your product.
I have Phonak Lumity 90 HAs and an iPhone. As soon as you release the firmware upgrade to enable iPhones to work with the dongle I will order one for sure.
I have successfully used my android phone and Zircon 2 miniBTE T HAs and listen to an auracast broadcast transmitted from my PC without problems.
By plugging in a FMA120 into my phone (Motorola moto G54 5g), and using the FlooCast app on the phone I could find and select the auracast broadcast and connect and listen through my zircon HAs. No problem and the sound quality is superb!
You’ll need 2 FMA120 one as a transmitter/broadcaster (plugged into the PC) and the other as a receiver (plugged into the phone).
I can also listen to auracast broadcasts using my Widex Moment 440 CIC HAs which don’t have bluetooth but by using the COM-DEX accessory connected to my phone (motorola moto G54 5G) is able to achieve the same results!
As long as the FMA120 is set as a reciever and plugged into the phone it can select and recieve auracast broadcasts and stream them to the HAs!
Sorry, the firmware can currently only be updated using a Windows PC, as the underlying library for this function (used with the Qualcomm chipset) is only available on Windows.
I suggest asking a friend, visiting a public library with a Windows computer, or seeing if your audiologist can assist (if they’re using Windows in their office). We understand it’s always preferable to have a DIY option, but adding this one-time function to Mac isn’t a current priority for us.
We may soon have resellers in Canada and the U.S., and we’re also exploring the option of offering the FMA120 in separate transmitter and receiver versions by default, so users won’t have to deal with firmware updates for Auracast.
To be honest, this also requires quite a bit of effort on our side.
Auracast itself has been stable for some time now, and users will soon find that neither the transmitter nor receiver firmware will need further updates.
Most of our firmware updates focus on improving point-to-point connections with specific hearing aid brands over LE Audio — and for that use case, users are typically on a PC or Teams setup where they already have the necessary USB connections for updates.
One point to note: in receiver mode, the dongle functions as a standard Auracast receiver, so it can be used with any Auracast transmitter — not necessarily another FMA120 in transmitter mode. Of course, we would be happy if users choose our product for both ends as well.
If an FMA120 is used as the transmitter, it can be set to “Broadcast High Quality Music” mode, which uses a 48 kHz sample rate. On the receiver side, the signal is automatically converted to a suitable format for streaming to connected hearing aids, based on their preferred settings. The benefit is that when sharing the same audio with others — for example, within a family — others can enjoy the stream at the full 48 kHz quality.
I’m going to sound dumb but I’m not fully understanding what this allows you to do that you can’t already do, if you connect the Oticon EduMic to the computer to listen to the computer?
When you say auracast broadcast, is it something that can’t be done by listening via the Oticon EduMic?
Or is it testing the auracast channel so you can listen to things in public when auracast is launched in public areas?
It is more so you can listen to things in public when auracast is launched in public areas.
But also to stream audio from PC at one third the cost of the price of what accessories cost. For example, I have to use the connectclip to stream from my PC that has bluetooth but this will do the job even with a PC without bluetooth and at 1/3 the cost. Currently a connectclip device costs $400 to $500 (in Australia) whereas this solution is about one third the price.