Phonak Lumity Life - wonky RIGHT aid keeps squealing

Hearing Aids
#1

OK, I JUST picked up my backup pair of aids yesterday, having sent them in to Phonak to have the rechargeable batteries changed before my warranty runs out. There were no performance issues with them. Before even leaving, I mentioned to my audi that the RIGHT aid keeps squealing. She heard it at one point and said it didn’t sound like “feedback”. We tried pressing that receiver into my ear as HARD as we could, but within seconds, the wailing would start again. She couldn’t hear it, but I heard it almost non-stop in my RIGHT aid.

She ran feedback management on it, but it didn’t seem to make a hoot of difference. In between the feedback noise, that aid has a sound quality that is VERY metallic and unnatural. I absolutely have to take these right back again this week, but does anyone have any idea what part could be failing?

To my non-DIYer mind, it seems like an electronic issue as opposed to a programming one. Some kind of defective part. They were sent in to have the battery changed before my 3-year warranty was up; otherwise there were no issues at all.

Strangely, my OTHER pair of identical aids had the IDENTICAL issue going on with them in the RIGHT aid only - a constant, squealing and metallic sound - the minute they came back from Phonak a month ago. I had them for a month - unused cuz of the feedback - until I got back in to see my audi yesterday.

My audi fixed this pair by running feedback management. One shot and it was done and the RIGHT aid was working fine. It’s as if something is happening to the settings at PHONAK, cuz the problem occured the minute each pair came back with new batteries and supposedly WORKING.

Any ideas would be welcome as I’ll have to ping my audi to give her the news. That squealing, metallic-sounding aid is driving me NUTS. No issues with the LEFT aid on either pair ever.
:thinking:

#2

Putting my production line hat on… It might be worth checking with Phonak on the batch numbers to see if the Lefts had some commonality, such as same electronic components supplier on output circuit, etc.

I would also capture the sound, using a phone to record it, could help Phonak diagnose it. Looking at the recording in FFT would allow your HCP to tweak those problem frequencies for a temporary resolution. I could see how it might be overlooked as feedback to be suppressed if it’s distorted enough - which metallic sounding would indicate.

Is it random, or triggered by external sound?

#3

Straight off the bat I’d swap the receiver’s around and see if the problem persists.

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#4

It’s almost a non-stop whining squeak that gets louder or softer. If I JAM the aids in my ear I may get a respite for a few seconds, but then it comes back. Even when the volume is turned WAY low. So it doesn’t sound like a typical feedback issue, but something is making that RIGHT aid go “wooOooo-WooOooo-woOoOoo” alllllll day long. :face_with_spiral_eyes:

#5

How do I pull the receiver off the wires to swap them (left to right)? I don’t want to risk breaking the dang thing.

It would also be interesting to swap the RIGHT receivers on my TWO (redundant) pairs of rechargeable Life aids. (Swap the right receiver on Pair #1 with the right receiver on Pair #2).

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#6

It’s easy enough, just check this previous post where posted a couple of videos to show the pull/snap out type.

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#7

As far as I remember you do use the Lumity Life version. The Lumity Life do not have a lock pin. You just pull the receiver out!

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#8

That does sound more like an electronics problem. A recoding would help Phonak pinpoint that.

#9

I think I’ll call Phonak Tech Support and see if they can point me in the right direction, cuz these aids are simply NOT wearable as they are. Funny thing is that my audi could pop them in her OWN ear! I have a soft, double-dome silicone “power dome” on the receivers. She could literally put that right one in her ear and HEAR the dang WooOoooWOoOO!

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#10

I’m scared to yank it! I know that’s the ultimate test - just swap the right receivers on my redundant pairs of Life aids, but YE GODS, what if I did something to render the WORKING pair wonky?

As it is, I read in the Phonak manual I could do a “reboot” by pressing the down volume button and holding for 15 seconds. Well I did that, and the aids DID NOT START UP again! I was in such a panic that I parked them in the charger, and this morning, they started up. But no amount of pressing that button would turn them on again last night. Never had that happen before.

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#11

I can understand this, maybe better discuss the problem with your audi.

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#12

That’s the normal procedure after a reset. You need to put the aids into the charger for a few seconds and then remove them for the start up.

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#13

Ah! No wonder. I stumbled across that “fix”, and as you say here, just parking them in the charger got 'em working again.

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#14

I’m glad you figured it out

I think hearing aids are designed by young people for young people. For instance the horrible tiny wax traps. We’ve talked before.