Sounds like she does not want to, or does not know how to use the program correctly, I would be either asking for a different audi there or I would go somewhere else. Why have hearing aids with all the functions if you cannot use them if you so wish.
Follow this link. It will take you to the basic fitting protocol of the Ria2/Nera2/Alta2. You should have been walked through this on your initial set up. And that is just a starting point. You need to go somewhere else.
Yes and there are other more advanced parts of the program that can be gone into, My Audi goes in to a lot of the advanced areas due to my cookie bit hearing issues and most of all to get my voice recognition the best she can get it.
You probably already found this out, but the button does work. I tried out a set of Nera 2 Pro’s and the audi gave me 3 programs. The first was “Universal” and automatically adjusted. The 2nd was for loud environments, and the 3rd for Music and had a noticeably wider frequency response. So your audi is very suspect. Is there anyone else in that shop?
I’m very new to HA, and have only tried Oticon Nera2Pro and Widex 440, and am now trying some Oticon Alta 2 Pro Ti. The Oticons, for me, do a great job with speech and spatial orientation, but are a little “harsh” to use the old autiophile term. I was hoping the Widex would have “better high’s” and they did seem a bit better, but I have trouble making out what people are saying with them. They put 4 programs in the: universal, urban, music, and zen (plays random tones). After 45 days I’m taking them back and trying the Alta2ProTi’s. They are a bit harsh on the high end, but I feel like “i can hear” better, and better understand what people are saying. I don’t know if I want to try more brands or not. Will do some more reading on this forum. There seem to be far more adjustments than my audi is interested in using. I hate to bail on them after these trials, but i might.
Take a look at the link I placed in my previous post. You should have been taken through all the steps shown and given options based on your sound preferences. The audiologist I used had two monitors–one for herself and one placed on the desk so I could see everything she was doing and associate the changes with what I was hearing. I had four, 2 hour sessions getting them where I wanted them. Subtle changes can make a significant difference in what you hear. The Alta2s are fantastic but it takes a patient audiologist who knows how to get the best out of the instruments to take advantage of their capabilities. If all yours did is punch in the recommended settings and send you out the door you got cheated.
Concerning the harsh high frequencies Oticons have a fairly broad range of adjustments for that. You can choose to have the sound softened or made brighter and you should have been made aware of that on your initial fitting. I had my set at maximum brightness and I’ll admit that it was harsh. So when I went back at the end of the first week for adjustments I had them reset to a softer sound. It did mellow them but I also lost a bit of clarity. So at the end of week two I had them put back. That was two months ago and what was harsh then is no longer so. You adapt. You can also choose to have more or less suppression of ambient noise. I chose to hear more because I want my hearing to be as natural as possible. People with normal hearing don’t have environmental sounds suppressed, they focus on what they want to hear and ignore what they don’t. That’s what I did prior to my loss and I am learning to do that again with a bit of patience and work. The second day in them, (I’m a new user), I was in a coney island where the ambient noise level was a steady 80 decibels with some spikes higher than that. It was obnoxiously loud. But I could hear the folks I was with. I have been back there several times since then and it is no longer sensory shock, it’s just a loud restaurant. As long as the instrument is able to present the speech at audible levels the mind learns to shut down the extraneous noise just like it used to. Is it perfect now? No, of course not. But it’s really good and it’s still getting better.
Oh so much to say…
The button can do just about anything. It can be a mute, a volume control, a program switch, a tinnitus noise generator, etc…
That being said, Nera2 Pros are great hearing devices and they are full automatic. I would not recommend using the buttons unless you find there is some weird anomalous situation where you want to adjust the volume up or down just a touch.
It sounds like she was trying to either dumb it down for you (probably unnecessary) or she is being lazy. I often tell my patients what I just said above. Think of it this way… if had perfect hearing and walked into a loud restaurant, would you tug on your ear and poke your belly button to lower the volume? Nope. Normal hearing people hear background noise. It is part of life. Exposure to noise over time will improve your brain’s ability to filter it. That being said, Nera2 Pros are Oticon’s mid-line device (however, they are better than the vast majority of devices out there)… So depending on how bad an SNR loss you have, they may still not be as good in noise as the Alta2 Pro, Oticon’s best device.
My practice sells Nera2 Pro minrites for $5500/pair. That is a little bit higher than industry average, but we also provide the most comprehensive and top notch service you can get. So $5500 is not totally out of the ballpark, but for that price, she should have been more communicative and supportive to you.
Online businesses like Truhearing give a good initial price, but you don’t get the same level of service as an office like mine. They have the mistaken belief that a hearing aid is like a cell phone. You just buy it and you’re good to go.
Hope that helps a little.
Thanks for all the info everybody.
HI, new to HA forum and HA. Week 3 of using Oticon NERA2 Pro DesignRite. Mixed results with these highly regarded devices. Ambient noise, restaurant, big box stores and trying to listen to music in the car continue to be a big problem for me. I have another session with the audi tomorrow and would appreciate any comments on solving the amblinet noise issue. If I go to a restaurant the HA go in the pocket since they are of no use. I can hear conversations from tables around me but cannot understand conversation at my own table. One fix proposed by the audi is a streamer, which Im reluctant to do because of cost and having to manage one more device. Wish I could directly connect the HA directly to my iPhone to manage environments / programs.
I would appreciate any comments on how to guide the audi fitting to my needs. The audi has not done a REM test yet. Are there any additional tests they should be doing as a part of the fitting process? Is there a better choice of HA that will directly connect to the iPhone ?
HZ 250 500 1K 1.5K 2K 4K 8K WRS
R - 50 55 60 55 30 55 60 76% @ 60
L - 18 10 10 5 30 55 60 96% @ 60
A REM would be a minimum standard to resolve whether you are getting the right level of sound.
The YouMatic slider in Genie is pretty easy to use - it dictates how actively the hearing aid interferes with noise, how aggressive it is in sensing speech and how the directional pattern is set. Might be worth a move to the more dynamic settings to allow the aid to do its thing better in more challenging environments.
What programs do you have installed? You should be able to change to a noise program with forward direction emphasized with the button programmed to change programs.
Thanks for the reply, Ill bring it up in my meeting tomorrow.
There are no programs installed on my HA. The DesignRite does not have an exterior button to select volume or program, I would need a dongle or remote to select programs if they were installed.
Went back to my audiologist for my first adjustment on my Nera 2 Pro miniRITEs. Things went better than I expected. Told her about all the shrillness and she adjusted my main program an thing sound much more natural. I asked her to add the music program which she did despite the fact that she told me the little button to switch programs didn’t do anything on my model when I initially got them. Wired. But better is better. Anyway I am awaiting the cables to come and I will have everything I need to tweak the music program myself and I won’t have to keep running back to her.
I went back yesterday for my first adjustment. I told her that everything sounded shrill and music was horrible. I asked her to add the music program and she agreed like that was perfectly normal. I was found that a bit funny in light that she told me the button did nothing when I was fitted with them but I didn’t argue. She fixed the shrillness and added the music program. I am much happier. I now believe that her mode of operation is to keep is very simple at first and not let the client know about the advanced features right off the bat. I don’t like the fact that she lied about it to me but she did do a good job at the first follow up so I feel much better about it. I am now testing the music program to see how it works. The shrillness in my general program is gone and everything sounds pretty natural now. I am still planning on tweaking on the music program once the flexi-strips come in from eBay. I now have everything I need to program them myself.
One last thing I do believe that I would recommend Hozers hearing in Caro, MI. now to area residents.
Hi Justin. I have been severely hearing-impaired since age 8 (55 now) and currently use a 3-year old Phonak Ambra M H20 in my right ear. My left ear is 90-95% dead and is a CI candidate, but I’m holding off on that in hopes that I can get the left ear into Dr Staecker’s Atoh1 trial at Kansas soon. My Phonak has been malfunctioning, so I have a choice of getting a new Oticon Nera Pro or the Phonak Audeo Q50 via my insurance company. Could you recommend one or the other and some reasons why? I cannot function in my job as an Auditor without a good aid that helps me hear speech in an around-the-table setting. The results of my last Audiogram are below. I know, my hearing is REALLY bad 
Thanks! P.S.- What city are you in?
250—500—750----1K----1.5K----2K----3K----4K-----6K----8K
35-----45-----65----70-----85-----115—115—115—115—115
65-----80-----95—115----115----115—115—115—115—115
BigRamy
why do you not try Oticon Dynamo or Phonak Naida Q UP or ReSound Enzo? These models are best choice for you.
I’m in Southern Utah. If I were you I would look into an Oticon Dynamo, as good as they will cover, or Chili SP as good as they will cover. Or if you HAVE to choose between those two options (both are a bit outdated), I would say to go with the Audeo Q50 as your first choice. See if you could try both, but Nera Pro was limited to the NAL-NL2 rationale, which I am not a HUGE fan of. Audeo Q50 at least will give you more high frequency help… and SoundRecover (frequency lowering, although with your loss it still won’t be ideal).
You’re in tough situation. Like I said, I would try both if thats what you are limited to.
you need to do more research.
Thank you all for taking the time to advise me. I really appreciate it. I can get the Phonak Audeo Q50 for only $1,200 via my insurance company, but if the Oticon Dynamo or Chili SP, or one of the Widex aids with Audibility Extender would help me hear a lot better than the Audeo Q50, then I am willing to pay more for that. I was unaware of this Audibility Extender technology. It sounds AWESOME and EXCITING, so I will be reading up on it. Thanks again. I appreciate all input.
P.S. I don’t see any bone-conduction test results on my last Audiogram, but I know I’ve had those before. My speech recognition, unaided, was 50% in the Right Ear at 90db and <10% in the Left Ear at 110db. My left ear is worthless. If I plug my right ear, I am in total silence unless a tugboat goes by blasting its Foghorn or a lightening bolt hits next to me. My left ear has been a candidate for a CI for at least a decade, but I’ve avoided doing that, as I said before, because I don’t want that cochlear destroyed. I’m hoping that the work Dr Staecker is doing down at Univ of KS will help the left ear within a few years and if I do a CI, it can’t ever help it. I have functioned fairly well using the most powerful aid there is in the right ear, with a built-in FM receiver for use at times. I have a Roger Pen microphone too. It’s just time for a new aid because the current one is 4 years old and is malfunctioning. After reading about the Widex Unique (thanks doubledown), it looks like it may the aid for me. My insurance program is partnered with TruHearing and it looks like I’ll be able to get the Unique 440 for $2,000. I am wondering though if the Widex SUPER would be the better choice. I need the best aid there is for PROFOUND hearing loss.
I am actually trying to mix with my Sears top of the line BTE 5300. First, my audiologist told me they would work directly with Bluetooth. No. Proprietary streamer. And he just is not knowledgeable about eq or anything. I do have some luck in being able to wear headphones without the feedback I have gotten on earlier models. At my age, and at this expense, if I cannot get him to do what I want I am going to have to go above him. I hope not, but I am retired and fairly intelligent and literate. And it sounds like you and I have the same problem. I am glad I can play bass. Those frequencies have not been affected. I have noticed that pitch is a problem now. I can hear a song I know how to play, for Gods sake, and it will sound atonal until my mind hones in on it and then it sounds right. This is a wonderful thing for a musician, yes? Most of these people just rip off old people because they do not have to do so much work. My gut actually said to me that I am the only one who uses the streamer. What does that say? It is really a racket. I might have some fun if I put my mind to it.