As normal, different people respond differently to different aids for various reasons. It took a couple of adjustments, but I hear voices in all environments MUCH MUCH better than then Phonak Spheres. The battery life is even very good, I’m never below 50% after a full day.
The one adjustment that made a big difference is in the HIN program the audiologist set it to focus on voices “mostly” in front of me. Works great now in both dining environments and in the car. But most of the time I don’t even switch to HIN.
Moral to the story is try different aids and find the ones that help you the most.
On Resound, the say that the audi has 17 channels fitting range, but Dr Cliff seams not to agree on that. He said he made a terrible job fitting them because of, I think he said 10 channels🤔 I also heard the have pretty bad feedback causing that you need custom earmolds. I want customs anyway so that don’t matter. But the worst thing, isn’t Resound, it’s Apple that refuses to implimate LE Audio in their iOS
Thanks, that sounds promising. I’m going for custom earmolds because that makes a huge difference, at least for me. It’s a bit disturbing though that people complaining about streaming sounds quality. And ofcorse the fact that Apple refuses LE Audio
I have had Marvel for a couple of years now. How do Resound differ from Phonak regarding the sound of voices, birds and noises outside. And in a car, driving and speaking to a passenger? I’m gonna try Vivia 9 this September. I’m curious: am I going to accept the differences or do I have to wait until my audi can offer me the Spheres? I don’t seem to find many reviews from people that describes the questions I just asked you
I have now had a trial period with Resound Vivia 9 and the Phonak Infini Spheres (over 5 weeks total). Having worn Phonak Bolero H.As. for almost 7 years I always had a problem with the upper frequencies sounding artificial and the lower mids and lows natural sounding due to my hearing loss. Music thru my audio system never sounded right to me. The Resound aids sound natural top to bottom and my music now sounds natural again (not brittle and digital). Pianos, violins, vibraphone, female voices, etc.just did not do it for me with the Phonaks The new Phonaks sounded like the old Phonaks. Now in noise the Infini spheres filtered the voices out a little better. The variety of adjustments in the app were more but a waste to me as they seemed gimicky and just too much tweaking that did not amount to an increase in natural sound. I bought the Resound Vivia 9s. I have a good audiologist who cares and is patient. Plus the Resounds have 1 more year service included at 1000.00 less cost. The size played a part but the battery life was not an issue. I wore the Phonaks one day 17 hours with 50% battery life remaining. YMMV
If it were possible to take all the good things from the Resound and the Phonak Spheres then combine them into one hearing aid that would make a great hearing aid. The Phonak AI and Resound AI I am not sure I like what it does to the sound. It seems to me it muffles everything else and while talking to someone that part works fine. It seems like I am in a vacuum bubble since I cannot make out anything else. I am sure that is the intended purpose. Across the table o.k. in a large venue/room/church I do not use it. I heard 2 audiologists on youtube comment that on auto setting the Phonaks only go into AI 1-3% of the time with their patients on the auto setting anyway. Good luck on your decision as each person hears different. I do like the tinnitus masking and I understand to get any kind of help it takes months and months of daily use.
I have a manual speech in noise and a spherical speech in noise program (ea) from the audiologist. If I’m in a place where I want one of the other, it is easy enough to do with myphonak or the buttons. When you want to hear in a large hall (but not necessarily a conversion in front of you) it goes to speech in noise. For a conversation in said loud noisy hall (but not loud enough to stay in spherical consistently) I apply that program. Learn the tools they have handed you.
Finally picked up my new Vivia 9’s today and WOW what a difference with speech clarity and recognition versus the Sphere’s!! It’s like night and day. I can hear again. Nice and crisp. Amazing tech and the sound is fantastic.
However, the Bluetooth sounds for streaming and calls is absolutely horrendous. I use my HA’s for multiple calls and streaming throughout my day. This sound is so horrible I am tempted to return them just because of this. It’s so screechy and high-pitched almost like nails on a chalkboard. I’ve made adjustments via the app to no avail.
I trialled the Sphere 90 but found the Bluetooth connections buggy… I prefer the sound of voice in noisy environment of my Jabra
I’m also using Jabra Pro 30 (same as Vivia) from Costco with Galaxy S21.
Similar problems as you initially… manually forcing a phone software upgrade to Android 15 which has made a difference.
Jabra support said the problems with the App would reduce with a phone upgrade to S23 which has better Bluetooth streaming connectivity.
I am also using Auracast streaming from a Homespot BA210-CA connected to my Samsung TV… better quality sound especially for Music/Spotify.
Have you HA fitter install the Acoustic Phone program which has more bass and less high’s,(it can be tweaked to your liking, also), and select it for phone calls and streaming.
I am also comparing these - except that the version “Vivia 9” that I am testing are the rebranded Jabra Enhance Pro 30 sold at Costco. In Canada the Jabras cost $2200 CND and the Phonak Infineo Sphere i90 cost $7500. For the price difference, the Jabras are the much better value, for sure. They are small, the noise reduction is excellent and one thing I like the most about the Jabra /Vivia is that - what you see is what you get. The Phonaks are off making decisions for you (in “auto” mode) and you never quite know what that is. I like “stick-shift” cars for the same reason. Plus the feedback is pretty bad on the Phonaks, whereas I can wear the Jabras with open domes and have less feedback on them than the Phonaks with semi-closed domes. Open domes are more comfortable and fit my moderate loss profile better.
On the other hand, for the 3% of the time where what you really want is really good speech detection and amplification - the Phonak really are very good (although, I was a little disappointed in them at filtering ambiant noise in a very-noisy restaurant experience the other day). Plus the Full Bluetooth (as opposed to merely Low Energy Bluetooth) connections to computers / phones make the streaming experience with Phonaks quite wonderful. The Jabras /Vivas are almost unusable as streaming devices.
Tipping the balance, perhaps, the Phonaks are more than 3x the price than the Jabras- and very definitely not 3x the value. And - not an irrelevant detail - I have a lot of faith in my Costco audiologists knowledge of HAs and fitting procedures.
It’s all about the compromises - just like digital photography - bigger sensors → bigger lenses → more weight + higher cost + better low-light vs. smaller sensors → smaller lenses → less weight + lower cost + lower performance in low-light.
I think if I had severe hearing loss and had to go to closed domes anyway and money wasn’t an object, I would go with Phonak. Viva 9 / Jabra will likely do well enough for me in most situations.
Be aware that the fitter can turn off the automatic mode in which case you have to make program changes with the hearing aid buttons or with your phone appl
Feedback is usually a function of the acoustic parameters (domes or earmolds) and the amount of amplification being generated as set by the fitter rather than by the mechanics of the hearing aid. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHHxIeZZJUg although some have better feedback reducing mechanisms than others.
Given that, the price difference very significant. Being a DIY I was comfortable buying from an online site at a greatly reduced price. Had I not been a DIY I would have purchased from Costco as you seemingly are inclined to do. Keep us informed of your final decision. Good luck and good hearing.
I’d like more reviews like this. User experience. Music from orchestra and speakers. Natural voices etc.