Couple things I forgot in my previous post on my Phonak Brio 312T’s.
Likely I will have keep from touching them or spraying them with bug spray. Guess the easiest is to just take them out ?
Also any ideas to help keep from loosing one or both. I spend a lot of time in the outdoors, walking in the bush etc. Right now I wear glasses so I may put the arms of the glasses over top the wire to the receiver.
Also thinking the custom molded ear pieces to replace the domes would be more secure.
Any thoughts ?
Had my 1st. review June 19th. Determined the domes do not fit causing different levels of loudness. My ear canals are somewhat like a partly flattened tube. Opted for the custom made slim tips, molds taken and appointment for July 10th/ 14.
Also had the right HA button set for increasing volume ( 2 db x 5 up) . The left HA button set to mute or turn off the HA 1st push and turn back on second push, this also resets the volume if required to the normal setting.
thanks for the update. did you ask about the feedback manager?
it’s a button they need to click on with the mouse. in the old ipfg it was a circle with 2 arrows. you see this button on nearly all programing screens. if they don’t know ask them to hover their mouse over all the buttons as this should provide a description of the button. This should take you only seconds.
Yes I mentioned that I had read running the feed back manager was required and she said yes she knew that.
The Audi also mentioned that phonak was coming (forget the date ) and they were looking forward to the update, etc. as these HA’s were new to all and they only had a few sets out. Mentioned there was a lot of interest and most customers were choosing Phonak.
This thread is very helpful to this dazed/confused newbie (me). My private audio recommended Oticon Nera for $5,000/pair and now I’m thinking that’s bc Oticon isn’t selling to Costco. I was thinking KS 5.0 but then researched Resound Linx and now I’m thinking Phonak Brio BTE to get the iPhone compatibility. Is there any reason that the KS 5.0 would be preferable to the Phonak Brio or vice versa, besides cost? And thanks again for all the help on this forum!
The Brio is somewhat smaller that the KS5.0 and has the frequency transfer feature, which the KS5.0 does not. By the way, I was quoted $3800 for a Pair of the Oticon Nera’s from my audiologist, which are a middle of the road hearing aid. The Alta pro’s are the top of the line aids and in the $5-5.5K price range for a pair.
Wow! That’s quite a difference in cost quotations and very useful to know! I’m inclined to pay somewhat more and buy the Brio over the KS 5.0. At least I think I am!
Nera comes in two versions, the base version and the Pro version. If you negotiate, you should be able to get Nera for $1700/ea., and Nera Pro for $2200/ea. One advantage of the KS5 over Brio is the wireless accessories. The KS5 doesn’t require you to wear a neckloop device for Bluetooth or TV connectivity.
thanks for the reply, you may be the first person possibly in the history of hearing aid forums to followup on a post.
Phonaks are considered the top of the line aids. their stereozoom binaural feature has set their aids apart from the pact in that I believe they are the only ones that can fully stream sounds between aids. this feature combines all 4 microphones on the 2 aids (2 mics per aid) to help people to hear in noise. Many other companies have binaural features but they tend to send limited amount of data between aids. the frequency shifting feature mentioned earlier is called “sound recover” which is a feature that other aids have in different forms.
kirkland aids are just rebranded aids from either resound or rexton. ks 5.0 is based off the resound Verso 9 aid.
People on the board considers oticon aids to rival phonaks. I typically encourage people on the board to compare phonak vs oticon aids. if not oticons then widex or a resound aid. This is because oticon takes a significantly different approach to processing sounds vs phonak so you can make a valid comparison. oticon aids tend to support a wider frequency range but have fewer channels supported. People write that oticons and widex aids have a more “natural” sound.
The only reason why I am using an oticon aid is because the phonak audio smart I’ve tried could not be programmed to perform as well in noise as the oticon. possibly my audi didn’t run the feedback manager.
anyway back to your question. the phonak brio imo is a superior aid compare to the ks 5.0. but since both are sold at costco you should try them both out as everybody have different ears that react differently to different aids and features. It appears you’ve already got a response from rasmus_braun which probably is more informed than anything I can write regarding the latest oticons. this whole “works with iphone” feature imo is overrated. the only thing that’s worth looking into is the fact that you can use your iphone as a remote mic and get rid of the need for a streamer and remote for your aid. settling for an average aid so you can pair it with your iphone is imo not a good way to go.
BTW please post your audiogram in your signature. honestly nobody can make a valid recommendation without seeing it.
Also if you decide to go with the brio then you may be penalized for not buying an aid from the person fitting the oticon aid for you. if that’s the case I would trial the oticon anyway since you are going to have to pay the penalty. Ask your audi if he or she will refund the penalty if you decide to come back after trialing the phonaks. if the audi says yes then you should go try out the brio. please report back to us.
Thanks for the complement doubledown.
Couple of things I didn’t mention:
After setting the buttons for volume and program the HA’s now play a short musical note at 12 sec. when you turn them on by closing the battery holder. They didn’t do this at 1st. Kind of nice as I use to have to rub them to check they were both on.
When opting for the slim tips at $45 each,which are clear plastic of some type, the audi said she would them made with the largest vent hole possible. She felt this would be best for me. Also I had a choice of 2 versions, short and small or a bit longer with tail that appeared rigid that would hold them in. The audi recommended I try the smaller short ones 1st. as they would be more hidden and likely just as secure. Then if I wanted the others she would have them made at no charge in the 1st 90 days.
That’s the startup delay. You can have it set to 6 or 12 seconds, or none. There’s a startup melody that occurs right after the hearing aids are powered on, followed by a musical tone for the Automatic program. The startup melody can be turned off.
what receiver are you using? are you maxing out the volume on the aids?
looking at your audiogram there’s something you might want to try. you actually have useable hearing in the highest frequency. something that may help you hear people speak in noise. noise tend to be lots of low frequency sounds as they travel farther than high frequency sounds. If hearing in noise is what you are most interested in, I would get the audi, if he or she didn’t try already, turn off sound recover or set it so that it compresses sound only past the highest possible frequency. it compresses all sounds past a certain frequency threshold at the expense of speech comprehension. once set have a conversation in the noisiest part of costco and see if you hear in noise better. It’s a crap shoot and if you don’t like it you can have them reset it back. But I think moving the threshold can go a long way in improving your speech in noise performance.
Don’t know what receivers I have. AS for volume I normally leave the HA’s on normal and have only tried the 5 x 2db for testing. At times even when voices are about as loud as I would want them I still have some trouble with comprehension.
EDIT
The receivers are marked 1xS . Not sure what that means but I’m sure some of you will know.
Sorry for the delay, I have to pay better attention.
I think you have the standard receiver which will give you an insanely good frequency range of 100-8500 Hz. Think SoundRecover uses an algorithm to determine what to set the threshold. This may cause sounds to be compressed down to frequencies you can’t hear well in. There appears to be a check box to disable SoundRecover. I would ask your audi to uncheck the box to disable this feature.
You can also go to the other extreme of lowering the threshold in an attempt to get all speech sounds below that problematic 4000 Hz area for you. But this could possibly cause your high frequency hearing to atrophy and the compressed sounds may hurt your speech comprehension. unfortunately I believe soundrecover is set for all programs universally and not just for a particular program.
Interesting reading!
I have my first appointment for a test at Costco in a couple of weeks so I have no idea which aids they will recommend.
It’s going to be interesting trying out programmed digitals since all I’ve worn up to now were analogs.
Update: Since my last post at end of June I have had about 6 appointments with the audi at Costco. I’m pretty satisfied with the way my Phonax 312’s work, but had trouble with fitting the receivers in the ear.
1st. the domes were not consistant, if I moved them they would be louder or quieter.
Next tried slim tips without the locks. They would work there way out after a short time.
Then tried slim tips with locks, poor fit.
Next another set of slim tips, better fit but still worked out.
Tried new receivers. #2 had #1’s to start, this is just longer wires. Better but still worked out.
Another set of moulds about 3rd or 4th time and wore the domes with the #2 receivers/wires while waiting for new slim tips. Now the domes were the best to date and I could live with them.
New slim tips are pretty good with new #2 wires, kept the old #2 receiver with domes so I could change back if required.
The left always stayed put better than the right so some wear in this back and forth I bent the right wires to match the left and it helped so did some other bending which also helped.
In hind sight I suggest if anyone is getting new HA’s, on receiving have audi fit them without domes so that receivers are pointing dead center up ear canal. The audi was trying for a perfect fit that looked good/hidden and I thank her for that cause I was at the point of just excepting them as they were. It was just that 1 first step that was missed.
Although I am new to HA’s I think the Phonax’s are very good. Work good with phone, no whistle like some people have, no wind noise cause they do so many things in the auto programs. Also small so most people don’t even know I have HA’s
The domes are likely the most hidden, but not as secure as the slim tips with locks and being an outdoor person my biggest worry is losing them.
Couple years back my hunting partner had to use my phone to order a left HA cause he lost one in the bush, next day he asked to use my phone again cause he lost the other one. I suggested he get his ears pierced along top for rings to attach the HA’s. He didn’t think that was funny. lol
After years of trying compensate by turning up the volume, trying to casually cup my ear to hear better, turning my head when listening to someone speak. Constantly saying pardon me, excuse me, say again, what? … None of it was very effective and my family and friends were getting more and more frustrated with me all the time. Some of them, I’m sure would avoid me so they didn’t have to deal with constantly repeating themselves. Can’t say that I blame them, I was just as frustrated. Finally, I went into a local hearing center for testing to find out what I already knew, that my hearing was greatly reduced in one ear and significantly diminished in the other.
They told me it wasn’t a problem to get back most of what I lost with a HA. Then they told me the price, $8400. I was crushed, it was beyond what I could afford. I left thinking that I would just have to continue to struggle while I try to save up some extra $$. Then someone mentioned Costco and that I should check them out.
Expecting similar pricing, I went in half-hearted. The fitter sat me down and went over things then recommended a Phonak Brio. Ok I thought, lay it on me $7600 - $7800? Nope $1200 each. Still not cheap but I could afford one for now at least!
They got it all programmed and setup for me. Now I’m not an emotional guy, most people would probably describe me as cold and unfeeling, but I have to say when it was turned on for the first time, it just about made me cry. I couldn’t believe all sounds I was missing out on for all these years!
I don’t know if the Brio is a good hearing aid or not but I can say this. I can hear things now that I haven’t heard in 20 years. If it wasn’t for Costco’s reduced price, it would probably have been another 5 years before I had. I’ll continue to put away a few dollars here and there until I can get the other one and enjoy what I have for now.
It saddens me to know that there are many other people out there in the same boat. Needing a hearing aid and having to go without because of the over inflated prices. At least one company is brining them down to a more reasonable level.
The Brio is a good hearing aid, but so are the other lower-priced hearing aids that Costco sells for $900/each. For example, the Bernafon Juna 7, ReSound Saxo 6, and Rexton Accord 16. Wearing two hearing aids will allow you to understand speech significantly better than wearing one. You would be much better off buying two of the lower-priced units now versus saving for the second Brio.
I am in agreement with you. Hearing what you have been missing for a long time is very emotional. And it is sad that so many people don’t know they have a hearing problem or are in denial. I was pretty sure that I had only a slight issue, until I heard the difference that HAs make.
but I have to say when it was turned on for the first time, it just about made me cry.
brass. If getting fitted for one aid almost made you cry. Try wearing two. You’ll be bawlling.
Do not wait to long on getting two, the Brio’s are made to work in tandem. A HUGE advantage.