First time hearing aid user - Rexton Bi core. Help needed

Hi, I’ve just purchased the Rexton BI Core rechargeable hearing aids from Costco. I have had them for a week, and I’m not sure if my expectations are unreasonable.

I have an android phone AX5s, which is running the very basic Smart Remote App. This has been problematic. There are only 2 settings, Party, and Automatic.

I can adjust the microphone direction initially, but after approx 30 seconds, the soundscape changes, and the sound changes directionality, and I feel quite deaf, as it cuts out a great deal of sound.

I am also hearing clicking in the right HA, which I assume is the program changing on its own, but it only changes in one ear. The volume seems to only change in the right ear also.

I have the open fit domes(?) as I have cookie bite loss, which means (for me) I still have my high and low frequencies.
Human speech is the frequency I am needing, so I wanted to retain some of my natural hearing sounds, as opposed to closed ear fitting (?) Not sure of the correct terms.

That being said, i have ordered an iPhone 12, to see if that gives me more functional usability with the IPhone app version.
I have an appointment to see the Audiologist at Costco in a week.

To say I am frustrated is an understatement. The hearing aids actually make me feel deaf. I can lip read quite well, and it’s very tempting to just stop using them altogether.

I’ve had to ask my husband to repeat himself, even when I’m wearing them.

What is the reasonable expectation of hearing aid assisted hearing?

Thanks for reading.

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Your not alone being in this situation, but it’s not hard for Costco to sort everything out for you, as it’s definitely not set up correctly, but the first fit rarely correct first time, it’s common practise to go back to ones audiologist for adjustments, take note of the issues and let sort it, but yes you should update you phone, MFi is better then the android experience for a lot of people, you should have more then 2 programs set up, you could if you wanted have 6.

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Yes, I too had problems with my Rextons on the initial fit but after Inbrought them back for an adjustment, they were great.

iphone is much better for controlling MFI (made for iphone) HAs. Part of the difference may be that the iphone screen is simply more responsive than the screens on Android phone. I know I almost always nute/unmute my aids with 1 tap on my iphone when it almost always takes multiple taps on my one-time high end Samsung.

Alas, Android soes everything else I care about (text messaging, playing music, clock/timer/alarm) much better than the iphone does.

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It can take a few adjustment appointments to tweak things to suit your situation. You may always notice some changes and transitions, so try to look at the overall situation. Others may notice you hearing better before you do. It is not perfect, but hearing aids are helpful. Hang in there. It also takes your brain a bit to adjust and get accustomed to what to notice and what to sift to the back of your awareness. Wearing from morning til night and daily is the best way to optimize them - you may need to ramp up to that if they are not completely comfortable. At some point you will realize you don’t notice them anymore.

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Thankyou everyone for your kind responses. I have been back to the Audiologist at Costco, and she changed the domes, and the program settings. I also have an iPhone now and am finding it great for Bluetooth streaming my calls to the hearing aids. Hearing on the phone was a bit of a nightmare before. So that’s a huge win there :smiley: The capability for music streaming is there also, but at this point doesn’t sound that great. I may have to ask for a dedicated program setting for music?

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Hi Ruby,

I’m in a similar situation as you. I’ve been using Costco Rexton hearing aids for over 10 years and upgraded to the Rexton Bi-Cores about a year ago. Since then, I’ve returned to the Costco audiologist more than 10 times, but the adjustments they make during in-office tests don’t reflect real-world conditions for understanding speech clearly. Unfortunately, the results are often either worse or only slightly better, with new issues arising after each visit.

I’ve now decided to take matters into my own hands and tune my Rexton Bi-Core hearing aids myself. I recently ordered the Noahlink 2 programming device and a Windows tablet, as the software isn’t compatible with Mac systems, which is all I currently have. I’m planning to download the appropriate software from another thread on this forum and appreciate how helpful everyone here has been.

Sharing feedback and experiences is so valuable, as it helps all of us improve our hearing aid setups. Hopefully, within a couple of weeks, my Windows tablet and Noahlink 2 will arrive so I can finally get these hearing aids tuned to meet my needs. Keeping my fingers crossed!

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I tuned my Rexton Reach to my liking, a bit of trial and error. I tuned the music program using head phones while listening to music and my wife’s voice in auto program while listening to her read a book. With the Connexx program you can make changes while wearing you aids and hear the changes you make live as you make them.

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I tried this brand last year and sent them back. Could not get on with them and peoples voices sounded shrilly and tinny.

I recently reprogrammed my hearing aids using the Noahlink 2 and Connexx software, and within just two days, I can now hear speech clearly again. My hearing loss is in the severe range, so if self-tuning has worked this effectively for me, it could certainly benefit those with milder hearing loss as well.

To fine-tune my aids, I used live tuning while watching TV, adjusting to different voices. Once I could hear a particular program clearly, I switched to another channel with different voices and repeated the process until speech clarity improved across the board. I believe compression tuning played a significant role, particularly in enhancing the syllables I typically struggle with due to my high-frequency loss.

After years of wearing out-of-tune hearing aids—this being my second set of Rexton devices from Costco—I’ve realized that much of the difficulty in achieving clear hearing stems from the fact that hearing aid specialists cannot hear what the wearer hears; they primarily rely on interpreting graphs. I currently have the Rexton Bi-Core hearing aids, and while I had considered upgrading to the Rexton Reach based on positive feedback, I now find that, once properly tuned, my Bi-Core aids work very well for me. Speech clarity is my top priority, and I plan to make further slight adjustments as needed. The help I received on this forum is unbelievable and it’s good to share information to help others.

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I live adjusted my Rexton Reach the same way using over the ear headphones and listening to you tube videos and music I am also now happy. I may use your idea and watch tv and live adjust just a little more.