If your hearing loss is savere to profound and you own analog hearing aids, do not get rid of them. Analogs will work where digitals will not. Unfortunatekly,the industry seems to have discontinued all production of analogs. I strongly feel this was economic for their benefit, not the customers. Digital hearing aids may be the wave of the future, but they still have a long way to go. Analog hearing aids are simply more powerful and offer far greater volume. And that’s the name of the game here.
Great first post: can I borrow the big wooden spoon please?
Thanks Um
Maybe better we use a bull wip than a wooden spoon. Never seen such hucksters as in the hearing aid industry. To many charlitans
I don’t even . . . we got another one.
While there may be reasons that one with a severe or profound (and relatively flat) loss might prefer an analog aid, power (volume) ain’t one of them.
What is John? I hear with my old analogs. I do not with my new digitals.
Get them adjusted. Tell your pro exactly what you are not hearing well, or the situations where you don’t hear well.
I hear great with mine, loud and clear.
It’s like saying, if your car in the shop, keep your bicycles, cars don’t work because mine is in the shop.
Don,
Your hearing loss is slight to moderate. You obviously do not have a profound loss. I have had more than 40 years at this. I have owned no less than 8 pairs of hearing aids along the way starting with AIC’s. Trust me. There is no “adjustment”. Don’t be taken in by the sooth sayers. At some point in the hearing spectrum, digital hearing aids become useless. This is one step before choclear implant.
I agree the transition can be a bit of a challenge. My loss is severe and I too, have over 40 years experience.
I made the transition to digital 5 years age (Starkey Destiny). My first reaction was the digitals didn’t have the oomph, and I missed the "rich"sound.
But the difference in speech comprehension was stark.
Thinking about it now, I can see why.
In the analog world I’d just crank the volume up as loud as I could stand. But no way could I ever turn up the highs and down the lows. (relatively).
Now the Futures are a quantum leap above.
I have NO recruitment ! Nothing bothers me. All the annoying sounds (microwave beeps, seat belt warnings, etc) are now quiet. But easily audible.
Get those things dialed in. It is worth it.
CarmineB,
Please post your numbers.
John,
The Veterans Administration has millions,perhaps billions of dollars in related equipment. All state of the art. They tried it all. Tuned, retuned, highs, lows, etc. All computerized. They have equipment that the average vendor has not yet even heard of. They have state of the art laboratories. They have a computerized system that can actually, if not virtualy, bring the technicians hearing down to my level so he hears exactly what I hear. If you are suffering from neurological (nerve) deafness as opposed to sclarotic, (bone) deafness and it is degenerating over time, do not discard your analog hearing aids. BTW: I have had two stapodectomy operations. They of course were of no help at all but they were covred by medicare. Also, you can fine tune in the middle ear, but not the choclear nerves. When they die, they are dead.
John,
I do not have the numbers at my finger tips. They are a matter of record at the VA. I do know that they can not go much lower. I am “legaly” deaf. Without hearing aids I would not hear a cherry bomb go off under the seat I am sitting in.
You may well be one of the rare case for whom a digital aid is not the right thing.
I hope the pros will offer you some advice.
What are using now ?
John,
That is exactly what happened. Afer my first pair of digitals, the “pro” (audiologist) read my munbers and said “Carmne, Digital hearng aids are not for you”. He then sold me a pair of analogs at one third the price of digitals and …voila, they worked fine. Still are.
You have a mixed loss with a large conductive portion then. This argument has nothing to do with digital or analogue, it’s linear vs compression. Whether you choose digital or analogue doesn’t really matter: as long as the aid is set-up properly. It’s slightly more awkward to set up a digital aid to act in a linear fashion as the default to standard levels of compression which may be why your audiologist didn’t know how to deal with your loss. Going ‘away from the prescription’ requires an ability to look at the screen and ‘know’ what the numbers are doing.
I think you hit the nail on the head with your assesment that I have a “mixed loss”. Let me explain something here and I would greatly appreciate your opinion of what I say as you apprently do know what you are talking about. 40 years ago I had a stapedectomy in my left ear. (some help at the time) 5 years ago I had a stapedectomy (in desperation) in my right ear. (little or no help) However, now, I must note that I have a problem with the left hearing aid that I don’t have with the right one. The left one seems to be lacking the volume I get in the right one until I press in on the ear mold and minipulate it around in the canal. I almost get the feeling of a blocked canal opening when I push the ear mold in, but it reverts when I Iet go. Now, I am thinking, if I may not have gotten some benefit out of that second operation if only to open the canal and passageways between the middle ear and the inner ear (choclear) allowing for better passage of the sound waves. Has me wondering, “could another operaion in the left ear of some help.” I am a (very) grown mn and I know I will never enjoy better natural hearing again. I am only looking for better assisted haring. I am considering bringing this up with an otologist at the VA. Further, I think there may be some advantage talking to the otologist at the VA since he is most likely in close contact with the audiologist on the floor above. What say you. Any input would be greatly appreciatd and thanks for all your past input.
PS: I do have a very large “conductive” problem thyat has degenerated very rapidly in recent years.
There’s honestly no benefit in ‘widening’ a canal as it has the reverse effect in terms of power. The reason the aid appears to increase in power is that you are temporarily increasing the pressure in the canal, reducing the volume by pushing the mould in farther and reducing the slit-venting a the periphery of the mould.
Your hearing may be improved by trying a very high power aid using a soft silicone carved shell mould and double thick-wall tubing.
Thanks for your input. I will bring this up with the audiologist on my next visit to the VA.
tell the VA everything you have told here… they will get it right or give you something different. if we knew which aids and style of molds you are trying to ‘get right’ with the VA that would help. I trialed 3 pairs at the VA before settling on the Siemens Pure Caret 701 w/molds and a small vent.
I couldn’t disagree more. For me, analog hearing aids caused way more problems than they solved, so I ditched them. I began wearing digital hearing aids right before Christmas, and the difference is astonishing to me. I have far more clarity and ability to understand conversation than I ever did with analogs. That’s not marketing; that’s my experience.