Can boosting speech comprehension turn down the volume on my aids?

Hearing Aids
#1

I went in last week to have the speech comprehension boosted on my Costco Rexton Bi-cores and I don’t know what happened, but it’s like I can only hear 50% of what I could before. I now have to turn them up all the way to level 15 (top volume) just to hear, when I was fine at volume 8-9 before.

What could have happened? I called my audiologist and she said she has no idea what could have happened, that she made no other adjustments except the speech boost. Over a remote appointment, she turned my volume up 6 more levels and it STILL isn’t where it was before volume-wise! It’s very quiet and somewhat disorienting now.

I’m so upset and frustrated. Thankfully, I have another appointment tonight to do some more tweaking. But I feel like every time I have them tweaked, something is worse. Can they just reset my hearing aids to a prior appointment where they were better?

Thanks for listening to my vent :laughing:

1 Like
#2

Good luck! I’m following this. I’ve been trying to get my Phonak Audeo Paradise P90R’s setup for almost two years. My audiologist is a gentleman. However, he has stepped aside and said I should find another who will help me more.
I hope to learn from you and hope you solve your issue soon. My audi could restore my settings because he had them on his computer until 10 days ago. Then he scrubbed my hearing aid programs and did a quick fit (without REM)

I have had issues with the domes that he put in place. Someone here helped and I am so grateful. I confirmed a problem by putting a finger in each ear. It sealed my ear and the volume doubled. Darn little 2 cent piece of silicone. What dome are you using?
Another suggestion…have you changed your wax guards recently? and cleaned the microphone slots?

Good luck!
DaveL

#3

Just an ol’ NON-techie weighing in here … but it sounds as if you’ve got “Speech in LOUD Noise” set as your DEFAULT program, so that’s what the aids are in the minute they are ON. That is NOT what you want or need.

For me, the boost in speech comprehension is only used when I’m in a very noisy place. Then I MANUALLY put my aids into Program 1: Speech in LOUD Noise. Yes, it completely mutes everything down - ironically, even the people talking in front of me! Even so, I seem to be able to tune in and focus more, therefore comprehend more what they are saying. I turn the volume up a couple steps and do just fine.

Who is your audi? Someone at Costco? If not, go back to the audi and look at ALL the programs you have set up on your aids: Default, Program 1, 2, 3, etc. Write them down so you’ll know. But get the Default program set to the initial setting where it was.

Please return here to update us on the resolution!

1 Like
#4

Whaaaaaaaat?! Is that even legit? I’ve never heard of an audi scrubbing someone’s program setup. They might erase or write over it as a mistake, but the whole point of computers is to keep all versions as a reference. Augh. Now you are essentially back to Square One. :face_with_raised_eyebrow:

3 Likes
#5

@bluejay
I’ve had lots of emotions. The worst is it’s taken so darn long…almost 2 years.
He didn’t tell me what he was going to do. Just hooked them up and erased them. He left me with a quick start up. Reaction at home: “they don’t work; he doesn’t know what he’s doing” Experimenting I did the only thing I could to recover. Turned the volume up. 3 notches. I hear better than I have during the almost two years of setup ordeal. Confession: I’m ticked.
Self programming would be my next step. Except I have an iMac. And I don’t have the skills to use it with the hardware required.
DaveL
Toronto

1 Like
#6

No way should you be forced to learn the programming necessary that your audi should’ve known. That is not your job. But I’d probably consider looking doggedly for a new audi. It seems that just about anyone else would be better at this point.

Maybe a local ENT or your doc can recommend a clinic or audi? Ask around with friends, too, altho it always amazes me how FEW people wear aids. Yes, even oldsters who probably needed them 10 years ago, still live in denial, don’t wear aids and therefore can’t recommend anyone.

3 Likes
#7

Hi Dave! I’m sorry you’ve had so many issues, it really does seem as if finding “the one” (ie, audi) is the real magic. We can have the best hearing aids in the world, but won’t even know it unless our audi knows the right magic!

I cannot believe your audi scrubbed your programs, that is just unbelievable! Have you found someone new yet?

I have closed domes, and they are working pretty well. I don’t have wax guards, but I will clean the microphones - good suggestion. And I’ll keep this thread posted on what happens tonight.

I bought them through Costco, and have had quite the experience. The first guy who sold me these Rextons was pretty new at it, had been training and just taken his exam, etc. But he was pretty great for the 3 times I went to him. Then… I called to make an appt with him, and the receptionist told me that he was not taking appts for the “foreseeable future.” Not sure what that meant, perhaps he failed his exam, lol! So I made an appt with another lady, and that’s where all these issues came about. I could tell as soon as she opened the software and hooked my Rextons up, that something was wrong, even before she did the speech booster! The volume fell to about 50% and she kept saying she didn’t know why it happened, it was an anomaly, etc. That did not exactly inspire my confidence!

So, I called another Costco altogether (which is actually closer to me), and asked to have my file transferred. I’m going to see a new lady tonight. Fingers and toes crossed!

All of this has also led me to think more seriously about buying the software and learning to program them myself, but I’m still wary because it seems like quite a learning curve.

3 Likes
#8

So, you are hearing better now than you have in 2 years?

1 Like
#9

Yes. It’s been a rough 2 years.
Thanks for asking…

The funny thing is he always did REM until this last time…
If he had done a quick fit in the beginning all would have been better.

I went in with hearing aids that had been poorly set up by another audiologist. Perhaps he just copied their setup.

DaveL

#10

@Bubbly
I’m on a roll! :wink:
When you take off the domes is there something whitish in colour, a circle shape? That’s a wax guard. I used to see a Zen Monk in a group every week. None of the people there who used hearing aids knew they had wax guards to change. I change them often. Every time I swear I hear better.

DaveL
Toronto

#11

There is a white circle! Wow, I never thought these had the wax guards, but they must! I’ll definitely ask about it in my appt tonight and see about getting them changed. Thank you!

1 Like
#12

It’s my pleasure.
the holes in the wax guard are so small! They must plug easily.

DaveL
Toronto

#13

When I was a pro photographer I used to check my equipment. I used to ask, “what can shut me down”.

As a HA user it used to be batteries; so I carried them.
And Receivers; so my audi used to change them when I saw him.
And Wax Guards; so I carried them (they are easy to change, unless you have my hearing aids.)
And a cleaning kit for my hearing aids is essential.

And now it has been masks–every time I take a mask off I can lose my hearing aids forever.

#14

You are playing with FIRE!!! I haven’t changed my wax guards on these Lumity Life aids since I bought them last fall. I’ve had nothing but trouble trying to get those itty bitty thingies out of my speaker tips.

The flying saucer tool to REMOVE the wax guards simply doesn’t work. And trying to punch a NEW wax guard in with that same flying saucer tool is equally dicey. It shouldn’t be this hard. My Oticon wax guards were FUN to remove and replace.

These Phonak wax guards? I invent cusswords if I even go there.

1 Like
#15

You’re forgetting ONE more thing that no one should be without - especially when out of house for 17+ hours: a socket to plug in the charging base, AND the actual charging base.

Lol. One more reason for battery powered aids.

3 Likes
#16

I go with lithium USB charging packs for power if I’m out of the house. I have about ten in a drawer at home so if bad weather is coming up, I top them off and I’m ready for a long time. Generator, UPSs and those battery packs should get me through not needing to run the car to charge things…

I didn’t enjoy fishing out the wax guards on the conventional receivers on my audeo p-90s. The wax guard on the activevents took some time to learn how to do it. There is a skill you need to learn to get them to come out. And I was pretty frustrated a few times. What I hate worse is they allow wax to go through and I’ve discovered wax in my receivers. Ugh.

WH

WH

1 Like
#18

Hey sorry it’s been a bit frustrating for you, yeah your audiologist should of offered to reset them to where you started, of course they will have that session in Connexx for you, just remind them of the date you first went in and have them program them back to that session, I cannot see any “speech comprehension boost” in Rexton
Connexx, so who knows what she “boosted” you won’t be in the “wrong” start up program as this would need to be changed by your audiologist, they wouldn’t do that and definitely not to speech in loud noise, that’s a Phonak thing, your Rexton bi-core are actually Signia AX and very good HAs at that.
So you have a program called noise/party and focus 360°that sets the microphone directional beam technology to focus on in front of you, this can change the way you hear for sure, it can also be changed in the “start up” program called “Automatic” but changing this would make such a difference that they would of told you if they were doing this, I’d say she just used the SoundPro 2.0 or the"fitting assistant" in Connexx and something has not quite worked out, but why not go into the Rexton App and see exactly what’s been set up, as in program set up, microphone, features etc

Now your talking, DIY is always an option, it’s easy enough, with a little bit of trial and error you too can play “Audiologist of the week” there’s plenty of us on hearingtracker doing this to help along ; )

1 Like
#19

Hm. That’s a great idea! I have one of those power banks that I’d sometimes take on a trip to use with a music player, but DOH, I should’ve been taking one on EVERY trip just in case it’s needed for my Phonak charging base. You never know what the power situation is on the road these days.

Note to Self: add power bank to packing list for road trips.

1 Like
#20

With my current use (power needs due to cinderblock ears, streaming at night, phone calls during the day) I get about 17.5 hrs MAX per day. It’s enough to get me thru a typical 16-hr day, but if I needed 24 or 36 hrs of use before charging up my Lumity Life aids, I’d be S-O-L.

#21

Be careful about choice, I read on here that some banks switch off with charging bases.