I guess the problem is Widex Evoke-440 do not have programs. The Phonaks Audio B90 has them. I really think programs are a plus don’t you?
I don’t have programs for my hearing aids, I have always gotten a long without them. My first three pairs of aids didn’t even have volume control. I want my aids just to be a part of my ears and I don’t want to worry about them at all. Put them on in the morning take them off at night the same as my glasses. Now I do have volume controls on my current hearing aids, but very seldom make any adjustments.
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Well, when my husband blasts his music that’s when I need a lower volume, Ha. Or I have to leave the room.
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I have fit hearing aids for 24 years, and have never met anyone who wore hearing aids part time that was at all happy with them.
If one wears hearing aids part time, every time they put them on, their brain and ears have to start over getting acclimated to them, and that never comes.
More importantly, not wearing hearing aids full time allows one’s speech discrimination to plummet because hearing aids are as much about preserving the ears and the hearing centers of the brain for the future as they are about helping one hear better today.
I fit someone a couple months ago who got hearing aids a little over four years ago, and wore them to church, to the store, and to family gatherings etc. Their data log showed an average of less than an hour daily since they started.
When they were fit four years prior, their speech discrimination was 76%R, 84%L. When I retested to fit with new instruments, 40%R, 44%L Forty percent drop in the ability to distinguish and clearly identify words over four years. 
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When my audi does speech discrimination it’s always without hearing aids in ears. It sound like you do speech discrimination with hearing aids in ears, did I get that right?
It’s been six weeks on trial with Phonak’s and I’m still not used to the echo sound in my ear, should it take longer? I wear all day. Should I choose another program?
The audi or tech needs to reduce the compression between 200 and 750 hz, and add a little bit of gain. If you talk loud, or even above normal, your voice is putting the hearing aids into compression too early and too aggressively, which moves the sound from your ears to inside your head.
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Interesting insight about part-time usage leading to deteriorating speech recognition due to cognitive factors. Especially as I am relatively young, had rapid onset, and have always had relatively good discrimination in the booth even with my loss, my audi has long been concerned about maximizing my ability to capitalize on these strengths. It’s why she recommended two aids despite the mildness of my loss in the right–something I have never regretted. And she, too, emphasized wearing them as much as possible (which was, I admit, made easier by my open fitting). From the beginning I have worn my aids from waking to bedtime, usually 16-18 hours per day.
It’s also why we have tried to minimize the use of noise suppression, speech enhancement, etc. in my program as much as possible: we want to give my ears the frequencies they need but still make them work for understanding. This is why I love my Opn aids: the sound is so natural and transparent that it allows me to maximize my own hearing while giving me just enough support to allow me to hear in complex environments. Four years on, I’ve still got 100% discrimination at 20 dB and – more importantly – I’m still getting around 85% discrimination without my aids, unchanged since I started wearing my Alta2’s nearly five years ago.
I will tell my audi this on next appt June 12th. You are very knowledgeable. I thank you.
Thanks for that explanation! There are times when my voice sounds normal to me, but more often it seems like I’m talking in an empty room, and I feel like I’m shouting. I wear open domes, so it’s not occlusion in my case. All the possible adjustments have been made to reduce this effect and I was told this is the best it will get. So even after 9 months, I have not gotten used to my own voice. Now I understand why.
Not only does my voice sound echoy the other person sounds that way too.
Have you noticed this?
See pages 39 & 40 in the Starkey document below. It suggests adjustments based on user feedback on what they are hearing. Some of it is Starkey specific, and other recommendations would apply to any hearing aid.
Interesting and complicated but at least I have something go by, Thank you.
I did notice that intermittently when I first got them. I had what seemed to me like a long adjustment period, but I wore them all day, every day. Once I adjusted, my echoey voice comes and goes, but others no longer sound that way. Now I really notice when I don’t wear them how muffled everything sounds. So when my voice annoys me, I just make a conscious effort to ignore it, and sometimes I actually succeed with not noticing anymore. I wear Oticon OPN 1 btw.
The Widex Evokes have lots of programmes, universal is the base setting which automatically moves between sound classes. Then you can choose from programmes such as comfort, social, party, transport, music etc. They’re great hearing aids, I have the ITCs and my son has the F2s.
This Evokes do not have programs maybe because I wear a CROS. I asked the audi why and he said it’s just the way they are made. They are the 440 Fusion. So, I’m confused. They are at one level of sound and I can’t change it but to pull the one out a bit. I probably won’t buy them. They do fit great thou.
I’m trying the Phonaks Audeo B90 with programs now.
Thank you, I wish I could buy the Widex.
I’m sorry to hear that, it must be frustrating. I am not sure exactly how the cros works. I know if I only have one in I can’t change the programme. I hope you get things sorted to your satisfaction.
The Cros sends sounds on the left side over to the other aid on my right side, it’s not a hearing aid by itself. Well maybe thats why with Widex, you have to have two working aids. But, that’s not the case with the Phonak, hum, wondering why the Widex hasn’t gotten their technology up to date.
Do you have a Widex rep/customer services, I am sure they would be happy to help if needed.
That’s an idea. Thank you.