I have trialed resound quatro and now starkey Livo-al (RIC) Both have problems staying in my ears(which are very small -and left ear has a quirky turn.) We have tried different size domes and two different molds made from impressions of my ears.
It seems to me there are several variables- the different size receivers, the different shape and length of the wires and the domes or the molds. I am wonderfing if anyone has additional information or thoughts
about how the variables may effect the fitting so that that they will stay put.I have a profound ski slope loss.
I always ask them to make my molds extra long. It sort of goes around a bend in my ear and stays in much better when they are made longer.
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My molds are ~hard silicone molds made by ReSound with “Select-A-Vent.” They stay in place very well, perhaps because of the shape of ear canals (matching undulations in molds) but each mold seems to have a slight upper lip or protrustion perhaps designed to catch on my crus helicis arch on the upper outside of each ear canal. Widex Evoke Custom Mold popping out and Widex Evoke Custom Mold popping out.
You’re not the only one, for sure. I’ve got the OPN S1’s and my right ear is like your left. Pops out several times a day. Going back to the VA in a couple of days to get that mini mold redone. Had the same problem with my first set where I had an 85 in left and 100 in right. Thought the problem was the size of the 100. When we ordered the S1’s we made sure to supposedly only have an 85 in the right also. Hopefully a new mold will do the trick.
Same story in here and to add, my OPN S domes moves more frequently during eating . Then I have to play a clown and lot trial /error to reach the optimum position. We decided to go with custom silicon molds for the left as it’s moving much more and this is the only way to stop feedback.
thank you for reply-
What is OPN S1?
i had moulds for a long time, under the false assumption that i needed them. my latest aids (quattros) use soft domes.
i had endless problems with the moulds in as much as they caused discomfort, especially in hot weather when they’d cause unbearable itching. the new ‘double’ soft domes have almost eliminated the itchiness and due to the depth they reach, seem very secure indeed.
of course, ymmv
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I had the backing out problem with my Rexton Trax 42s and got custom molds because of it. That helped but didn’t totally eliminate the problem. I think I should have gone back and had the molds redone to include something that would have fit in the outer ear and held them in place better, but I didn’t. My right ear, which has a straight canal, was always more of a problem than the left which had a kind of twist.
Now I’m trialing the KS9s with a small power dome, and one of the pluses is they stay in place. The audiologist thinks the shape of the receiver, which has a curve to it, is the reason. With custom molds it does’t seem the shape of the receiver should matter, but if I ever get molds again, I’ll start with ones that have one of the forms for the outer ear.
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I went with the soft molds and I put a little twirl on the receiver wire and it helps a great deal… the wire stays inside instead of sticking out for all to see
How did you put the twirl in the wire without it reverting to its original shape?
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Like others, I have had trouble keeping domes in place. I use the simple mushroom domes attached by an elbow to large (2mm ID) tubing. After experimenting quite a bit, the answer, for me, seems to be a custom angle on the elbow. The attached PDF file explains what I did. CustomElbowsLR.pdf (170.1 KB)
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Thank you for that article. Good documentation.
This confirms what I’ve been suspecting that HA companies are just screwing us by not providing for anatomical adaptation at the tubes/domes.
I just twisted the tube/wire and pressed it together between my fingers … it may take a few times for the twirl to stay in it… and I did this over a year ago and have never had a problem with them
Thanks. I just got more aggressive with the bend in mine and unbent that little “reversal” at the end where it points it to the back of the head (my canal goes toward the front of my head.
They’re pretty much keeping the [un] bend and staying in a lot better now!
That is the million dollar question. I’ve worn ear wire aids for 3 years now and they have NEVER EVER EVER kept their shape. I’ve tried heating them with a hairdryer, wrapping them around a chopstick, holding them for 5 min in the twist. Nope. As soon as I let go the ear wire just springs right back to it’s original shape. Perhaps there are wires out there with a different material cover on them? Cuz the Oticon and Phonak ear wires I’ve worn give “memory wire” a whole new meaning.
saburman, I can TOTALLY relate to your situation here. Three years ago, I transitioned from the hard plastic, custom molded ITE aids to RIE aids with the earwires attached to the unit behind my ear. I’ve tried double power domes, tulip domes, custom molded silicone molds - you-name-it, I’ve tried everything but titanium.
Here’s what I’ve come to realize: wearing receivers in the ear is like having a pair of glasses on the nose. You just have to reconcile yourself to pushing them into the canal 100 or more times a day. I know it’s irritating, but I’ve not seen one single device to keep the receiver and dome IN the ear, seated snug for optimum hearing and comfort. If you jam the mold in, you’ll have a compression sore at day’s end. If you wear a softer dome, it’s gonna come out as you articulate all day long: eating, smiling, laughing, yawning, sneezing, talking - all of these movements just work on the receiver to loosen it from the ear canal.
I’ve tried leashes of various length, even 3M medical tape to TAPE the earwire right next to my ear canal - nothing keeps those receivers from sloooooooowly working their way out. In humid climates, I can’t get any kind of receiver into my ear; in dry climates, the receivers slip out over the course of the day.
I’ve fantasized about laser-imaging my ear canal to get a mold that sits in that canal like my own SKIN - but I’ve simply never found anything out there that is a total fix.
Not that we should stop looking, but like a revelation, I finally GET it: don’t expect the receiver to stay in your ear all day! Accept that like eyeglasses, it’s gonna need to be gently pressed back in over and over.
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Kate and I both have Marvel M90-R’s. I recall when we went in to the audiologist for testing and fitting that she carefully measured our ears. The fit we have is just right and we’ve never felt the need to try to adjust the wires or change the shape in any way. Maybe we have standard ears, I don’t know. I only know that after almost a year the fit seems to work just as it should. And she did spend a lot of time measuring with her ruler and making notes before ordering.
Did she use the ruler to measure the EAR wire?! Cuz my audi just put on a long one, and it juts out with a BIG elbow bend. That is why I sometimes tape it to my ear. Drives me nuts, cuz it snags glasses, combs and my fingers. He seems strangely set against every changing it tho, cuz I’ve asked him to do so a few times now. Feh.
The ear measurements for the Phonak RIC “wires” only pertain to the height from the entrance to the ear canal up to where it wraps around the top of the helix to go to the electronics behind the ear.
They have NO measurements, variants, or guidance for how it fits where it enters the ear. Nor was my audi very savvy about it.
The normal Phonak “wire” bend at the end directs the receiver backwards and slightly down as if to point into the canal in that direction.
My ear canals go decidedly forward and slightly upward. In other words my canals are at almost right angles to the natural direction of the receivers due to the one and only wire bend shape Phonak supplies.
As a result, nothing will stay in my canals. Any some I’ve tried immediately works its way out and then turns to point right into the flesh of my outer ear behind the tragus. Not very good acoustics there.
After straightening the “wire”/tube bend through painstaking exercises with tweezers, I’ve finally got them pointing more forward. So far they seem to be staying in more.
This is why I wish Phonak paid more attention to this.