narenkona: Interesting possibility that Jabra tweaked the software over time. Do they show software version numbers?
Jim G
Yes they do for SmartFit software, but you may mean the firmware version being used?
BOTH software and firmware revisions are possibilities.
Jim G
Not quite the same, but I have the ReSound Omnias with M&RIE receivers, and I’m quite happy with them. I do have occlusive custom-made ReSound molds with Select-A-Vent, and I choose to fully block my vents - but I could have anything up to a 4 mm vent size with Select-A-Vent. I think the sound is great, but you can get feedback if you’re not careful. The OP does not post his audiogram, but ReSound says M&RIE does not work well with steeply sloping ski slope loss because one part of your frequency range will be highly amplified and the other not. I solve this problem with my occlusive molds. Besides liking the sound, I think, as advertised, the M&RIE receivers give you better spatial sound localization. My audio was willing to let me try the M&RIE receivers and go to standard receivers if they didn’t work out for me. But I paid her $200 for my own custom molds designed to hold the “trial” M&RIE receivers. Don’t know if Costco has a trial policy on receivers, but custom molds through Costco are much cheaper than from an audi. So if you were willing to blow ~$100, maybe Costco would let you try the M&RIE receivers, at least to wear around the store. I’m wondering if a hidden benefit of M&RIE receivers is that since the mic openings are rather hidden a few mm inside the mold openings, whether the M&RIE receivers are less likely to clog from debris from your ears, scalp, and hair. The M&RIE receivers also have “microphone guards/filters,” which can be changed out. So, my theory is that as time passes, the microphone input performance will deteriorate less from accumulated gunk than the unprotected microphones on the HA bodies behind your ear lobes. It seems like HA OEMs should put user-changeable microphone filters on all HA microphones, just like wax guards for the receiver speakers. I’ve changed the M&RIE filters myself, and it’s not much harder than changing wax guards.
I agree with @philbob57, though, if the 20s are imminent, I’d wait and give those a try instead, or at least ask Costco what the possibilities are for trading up. It seems to vary from one Costco location to another.
Thanks, JimLewis. I haven’t posted my audiogram yet for 2 reasons:
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I don’t yet have a CURRENT one. I have several old ones as I have an 18 year history of hearing issues due to my tubes being ouritnely congested. It has up to now required me to use aPulmicort nasal flush every morning to alleviate the symptoms notably, and I have tarcked my hearing via audiograms over the years, Recently my hearing has deteriorated notably, much more at the high frequencies than low, but my WORST spot is at about 4000 hz and is -75 db, so within the workable range for MARIE, I have a hearing test appointment at Costco on 11-15, and so will have a current audiogram then,
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HOW does one post an audigram here atatched to a posting? I don’t see any obvious button for adding attachments.
You have done some great work on your HAs, Jim. I too am willig to be an innovator, BUT, I use only a Macbook and iPhone. No Windows computers, and no desire to rejoin the Windows community, so no DIY HA adjsutments.
Jim G
@JimGnitecki , yes you can see current firmware version from the Jabra app on phone (they call it software version in the app). Below is a couple of forum discussions that might be of interest. If you look at my audiogram, you’ll see my loss in my right ear - I use a custom mold on that ear ($30 at Costco for one mold). My Left ear is not bad at all. However the combination makes it very hard for me to determine location of sound. The M&RIE receivers have helped that. I previously had a Resound Quattro, and going to the Jabra Enhanced (Resound One) with the M&RIE, was a great improvement.
It looks like Costco in the US is now able to take orders for the new Jabra 20, I’m intending on calling my Costco tomorrow and ordering one - I live 90 mins away from my closest Costco, So I’m going to buy over the phone if they let me, and go in just once for the fitting.
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JimL, I paid $30 for a single custom mold from Costco - they come from Resound, so are ‘the real thing’. They actually ended up first using the serial number from my mold from my older Resound Quattro, when I bought my Jabra Enhanced Pro, and then later on, We decided to do a new mold, and that was replaced twice to get it ‘just right’ all for $30 US.
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JimG, when you are in the forum, click along the top “forum”, then “My Hearing Tests” … You can add your audiogram there. And in case you’ve missed it, you can view other’s audiogram within any discussion if they have “audiogram” as a link next to their avatar on the discussion.
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I just posted my last audiogram done in February 2020, so over 3.5 years old now. New one shceduled to be done next week at Costco.
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It’s been a long time since I’ve used a Mac (Mini). And I had Parallels and Windows at academic discount prices. Perhaps the problem is that Smart Fit only runs on Intel/AMD-based computers, not an Apple M-chip design?
Although I see in this post by PVC, summarizing what @drcrandon and @narenkona have found, that the ultimate problem is that there is no Noahlink Wireless driver for ARM-based chips - emulation won’t work there - the driver operates at the pedal-to-metal hardware level: Noahlink on a Mac using Windows emulating with Paralles - #9 by pvc
No that’s not it, I’m sure a number of forum members have been using the software on their Mac OS, but they then run into the Noahlink wireless ARM issue and it’s not just Mac machines, it’s ALL ARM based PC’s which includes windows using ARM.
If you look at the 2nd paragraph of the post you’re quoting, I said precisely that, quoting PVC. If Smart Fit requires the Noahlink Wireless driver that only works on Intel/AMD-based PCs, then that effectively restricts Smart Fit only to running on those chips under Windows. Without the Noahlink, the program can’t connect to GN HA’s, so you couldn’t program a real HA (I guess you could practice programming a simulated HA, though, as Smart Fit allows you to do).
Or you could just use any other programming device (HiPro etc) so long as the HAs supported it,then no worries about ARM based PC’s.
FWIW, I was just talking to Costco fitter about the M&RIE (for my probable upgrade from KS9 to Jabra Enhance 20) and he suggests not - his experience is the in-canal mic clogs and clears too much in most people and results in localization artifacts (he made in/out motions at his ear like a trombone player), says most get returned. Another Costco fitter (same store) said too many people find them uncomfortable. Both agreed “great in the fitting booth but often a failure in the real world”
I also asked him to distinguish between the Jabra and the Phillips and the Rexton and he summarized to: Jabra wins for most speech clarity in noise and for app control capabilities (“it’s like driving a stick shift where the others are on auto”); Phillips is better for musicians/audiophiles (“amazing for music”); and, Rexton is for specialized situations (“like after facelifts where the pinna lies really close to the skull”)
But before he sells me the Jabra 20 he wants to redo the hearing test and REM/setup on my KS9 then use that test to set up the Jabra for compare: “don’t want to sell you something that isn’t enough better” and he pointed out “you get 6 months to return”
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Sorry, but does anyone know when the Pro 20 will be available? My local Costco doesnt have it yet and they act like its some top secret when asking if they have a release date. Tnx
See this other thread, starting about here: Costco to get Jabra Enhance Pro 20 - #13 by AlanFriend My Costco in San Antonio, TX has them in stock and on display as of Friday, 11/10/23.
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The clogging hasn’t been my experience. As I mentioned, the M&RIE mic filters are replaceable. The standard mics don’t have any dirt filters, and I can see the standard mics on my Omnias already have some debris in the mic openings. I’ve been wearing my Omnias for almost a year, and the M&RIE mics have performed very well. I also clean my HAs under a table stand magnifying glass with extremely bright LED illumination daily. There is always some debris on my HA bodies. I hardly ever see any debris near the M&RIE microphone filters on the receivers, and these openings point down and away from my head - so it’s hard to see how debris is going to fall into them. Every day, when I boot my HAs, I do a finger/thumb rubbing test by each ear. With my Quattros, where I had problems with the standard external mics giving out, I would get a diminished sound from that rubbing test as the standard mics were giving out. With the Omnias, when they boot in the All-Around program in a quiet environment where ~all the input should be from the M&RIE mics, I hear my fingers rubbing around each ear loud and clear every day. Perhaps the Costco you’re referring to is in a city with very dirty air or some such thing, but I’ve had zero problems with the M&RIE receivers as far as dirt and sound quality goes. With my relatively steep ski slope loss, I probably couldn’t wear M&RIE receivers without an occlusive fit. So I can see that could be a problem for some if they try to wear M&RIE receivers with a more open fit than appropriate for their loss; those folks will likely suffer feedback issues. My audi has something like 40 years of practice experience - so possibly the fitters at Costco are not so experienced in making impressions, adjusting fits, etc. My audi did a great job, and the Costco talk might be a reason to keep forking over the $$$ for my audi’s skills. She did not try to discourage me from trying them but did tell me if I didn’t like them, she’d be happy to exchange them for standard receivers at no cost. One would hope Costco would be so generous to users who want to try M&RIE receivers there…
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Thank-you, Jim Lewis for that guidance. Since it is very likely I will be buying the Jabra Pro 10 or Pro 20 at my local Costco this week, your description of how you check and maintain the M&RIE mics is very relevant for me.
Jim G
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You might really want to go with the Jabra Enhance Pro 20’s.
This is from Jabras website. You will have the very latest bluetooth tech in them so you will not have any problems in the future in that regard. According to what it says at the bottom of the page you can get them at costco now.
“Jabra Enhance Pro 20 is equipped with the latest Bluetooth® Low Energy (LE) Audio along with Auracast™ broadcast audio”
It doesn’t make any sense to me to go for the 10’s when these 20’s are available.
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Rather than rambling on as I did, I think a much shorter reply would have been better. That is, we should average over the experience of all reported Costcos and user experiences with the M&RIE receivers rather than rely on a particular Costco or Costco fitter or me for advice. On the forum, there certainly has been a wide range of experience at Costcos, audis, and with users, e.g., different Costcos favor the Phillips vs. the Jabras, or vice-versa, etc.
The M&RIE mics reside just inside the opening of the ear canal on most users, so undoubtedly, the filters are there to guard against stray wax, especially in inserting and removing receivers. But in my experience, the worst opportunity for wax to spread around is in my Omnia plastic case, which is provided for disposable battery versions of the Omnia. I think it must be from static electricity as I walk across the floor holding the case or maybe just the vibration and rubbing of the receivers on their wires as I walk. After overnight air drying, wax debris is all over the place in the case when I go to open the case at my cleaning table. But since the M&RIE mics still basically point down with the receivers pointing up in the air on their wires, the mics remain very clean, I vacuum up as much wax as possible with a consumer-version Jodi-Vac (bought on Amazon), but then I have a blower that I bought on Amazon (to blow dust out of computer insides when I take the opened case outdoors). https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B082XR3987/ I wet our kitchen sink bowl with the sink sprayer and try to blow out any remaining wax debris from the case down into the wetted bowl so I’m not blowing it all around the kitchen (too much of a hassle to go outside as for a computer/electronic device cleaning). (using a can of compressed air might be an alternative to the blower).