Resound Linx2

Hearing Aids
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1

Hi,

I am new to the hearing aid world and was fit with the Resound Linx 977TS a few weeks ago. Things are going well and it works well. However they do have their limitations. I have heard that the Linx2 will be released next month and will have improvements in sound quality, among other things.

I saw this course being taught next week about Resound’s “next generation” devices and the preview exam mentions the Linx 2 Exam Preview for 25326: The Next Generation in Smart Hearing Thu, F

I also saw this announcement:

ReSound proudly presents LiNX[SUP]2[/SUP], which is a brand new product family of small and robust devices that take Surround Sound by ReSound to the next level, while still supporting full connectivity to ReSound Unite wireless accessories. In addition, MFi capabilities allow for direct connectivity to users’ supported Apple devices.

I contacted resounds but they would not tell me anything and my audiologist does not know anything about it either. I am still in my 45 day review period and would like to hold off on commitment if the new ones are better for me. If the improvements do not relate to my type of loss, I will commit to these.

I know there is another post that mentions the new device, but there is not a lot of information there so I broke it out into a new post.

Does anyone have any information on the changes?

2

Hi hearingnoob,

We are excited to hear that you are enjoying your experience with the ReSound LiNX. To answer your second inquiry, the new ReSound LiNX[SUP]2 [/SUP]was launched a couple weeks ago in the U.S. Are you located in the U.S.? If so, visit Our hearing aids | ReSound US or call our customer support team at (888) 735-4327 to learn more about the new capabilities of ReSound LiNX[SUP]2[/SUP].

3

@Resound
It is nice to have a visit from the company and I hope you will be available often. Thank you and thank you ReSound.

I did look at the link you provided. It is a great piece of advertising copy but, like most in your industry, it is lacking in details. For many of us, it is the contributing reason we are making use of these forums. There is a level of frustration for us when the technology gets hidden in the hype.

People more and more aren’t settling for the smoke and mirrors of marketing types. We are looking for answers but your industry isn’t prone to clarity.

4

Two months ago I purchased ReSound LiNX 961’s, thinking I had the latest and greatest. So sad to learn that is no longer the case. Can my 961’s be updated or am I stuck with the older model?

Update: I contacted ReSound by email and here is their reply:

“Thank you for contacting ReSound. We are here and happy to assist you! ReSound LiNX[SUP]2 [/SUP]was launched March 2[SUP]nd[/SUP], 2015 unfortunately, the software is unable to be updated into the ReSound LiNX hearing aids that you already own. In order to have the software that the ReSound LiNX[SUP]2[/SUP]has a purchase of the new hearing aids is required. I encourage you to contact your ReSound hearing care professional for information pertaining to a trade-in on the ReSound LiNX to a ReSound LiNX[SUP]2[/SUP]. Please be aware that hearing care professionals are independently owned businesses, and any fees, prices or any other special offerings associated with service or parts are at the discretion of the individual hearing aid professional.”

This tells me, for all intents and purposes that I am out of luck.

I just emailed my hearing aid specialist, requesting she review my audio gram and offer her opinion as to whether or not the binaural directionality with spatial sense in the LiNX2 would be of any benefit to me. I assume she may have to speak to someone at ReSound about this. If she tells me the new features would not make that big of a difference, I won’t go any further.

I will add updates as they happen.

5

TheLatinist posted this just down a few messages.

The LiNX[SUP]2[/SUP] has the following changes from the LiNX:

  • New design and colors.
  • ITC, ITE, and MIH styles now have Made for iPhone support, including streaming.
  • Changes to Smart App.
  • Improvements to directionality.
  • Improvements to tinnitus relief.

You will see there isn’t much difference and the change is mostly about in the ear additions to the line.

6

Hi KenP,

I understand your frustration but your first comment sounds a bit overly aggressive and negative the second isn’t entirely true.

After writing the first comment no one in the forums replied, so I just picked up the phone and called Resound. They gave me all the information I needed about the new device and answered all my questions. I then called my audiologist and he was able to explain how the changes would impact me and was able to order the new hearing aid for me. The changes may or may not be relevant to you, that is your decision but should be done based on the facts.

The relevant changes for me where the new spatial surround and additional control through my phone. I like the phone controls, but many don’t care about them.

I agree that there could be more information on line, but few people actually care to check or understand the tech specs. Also, because hearing aids are medical devices the companies are limited in what they can say or write in publicly available material. Fortunately they will answer the questions they can and direct you to your audiologist for the ones they can’t.

It can get frustrating, but there is no reason for negativity in the forum.

7

@hearingnoob
I appreciate your sharing your view. I remain comfortable with what I said.

8

Well said sir. Many on the forum are still “drinking the coolaid”.

:slight_smile:

9

Hearingnoob,

Sorry, I can’t agree, Ken was merely being honest and factual, not negative. If you want negativity and abrasive behavior there is a guy on the forum who consistently provides that tone. Personally, I find Ken to be one of the better contributors on this form.

10

Ken and Mike,

Thank you for the feedback. I guess I agree and disagree. When dealing with the hearing aid companies we are dealing across technological and cultural divides with the added complication of a regulatory framework. This means there are great limitations on communications that make them much less than perfect and leave much to be desired. One of the main reasons the communications look like ad copy and are limited is because hearing aids are regulated as medical devices and there are significant limitations on what can be said by the company.

I found that we must be our own advocates not only in dealing with audiologists, but in finding the information which is available on line through other outlets.

I saw the reference to ad like copy and “hype” as negative and unproductive, but entirely understandable. Rather than writing things like this with the hopes the company will respond in a positive manner, I find it much easier to pick up the phone and call. The company responds to all calls to the number on the web page and the folks on the phone are responsive, knowledgable and helpful.

11

I think the medical device thing is an overblown smoke-screen. There is a lot of info on many medical conditions that there has much greater info available. More than “medical device” limits are the proprietary views of these companies. All the sites that display hype have an area “for professionals” that is not warded from the public that has much greater information. If what you are saying were true, those areas would be behind a privacy fence.

12

Which raises, in turn, another question. If hearing aids are regulated because they’re classified as “medical devices,” why are they practically NEVER covered by insurance? Our health plan covers many things, including optical coverage (exam every year, lenses if needed, complete glasses every other year). But hearing aids? Nope. It’s a mystery.

13

From the Food and Drug Administration website:
FDA regulates hearing aids, which are intended to compensate for hearing loss. On the other hand, FDA does not consider sound amplifiers to be medical devices when labeled for recreational or other use by individuals with normal hearing. However, certain safety regulations related to sound output levels still apply to these products.

Medical devices range from simple tongue depressors and bedpans to complex programmable pacemakers with micro-chip technology and laser surgical devices. In addition, medical devices include in vitro diagnostic products, such as general purpose lab equipment, reagents, and test kits, which may include monoclonal antibody technology. Certain electronic radiation emitting products with medical application and claims meet the definition of medical device. Examples include diagnostic ultrasound products, x-ray machines and medical lasers.
-Products and Medical Procedures | FDA

The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)801.5 describes labelling requirements for medical devices:
Adequate directions for use means directions under which the layman can use a device safely and for the purposes for which it is intended. Section 801.4 defines intended use.Directions for use may be inadequate because, among other reasons, of omission, in whole or in part, or incorrect specification of:
(a) Statements of all conditions, purposes, or uses for which such device is intended, including conditions, purposes, or uses for which it is prescribed, recommended, or suggested in its oral, written, printed, or graphic advertising, and conditions, purposes, or uses for which the device is commonly used; except that such statements shall not refer to conditions, uses, or purposes for which the device can be safely used only under the supervision of a practitioner licensed by law and for which it is advertised solely to such practitioner.
-CFR - Code of Federal Regulations Title 21

Clearly, the manufacturer is expected to provide labelling and instructions on the use application of devices such as hearing aids. That having been said, there is still a lack of information for the end-user when trying to understand how to select a hearing aid and which hearing aid may be be best suited for their particular hearing loss.

14

Brad,

I definitely agree with your point about a lack of information. I believe the problem is two fold.

First, there is still a significant stigma associated with hearing loss. I am 49 and when I told people I was getting a hearing aid, they asked me what was wrong. I wear glasses as well, but no one sees an issue. Many of the people who need a hearing aid don’t even look because of this stigma and therefore the companies do not see the need to market to them.

Second, and somewhat related, is the target market. Ask your audiologist, most consumers are elderly or children. The minority of people who seek advanced technology and clear information are simply not worth targeting with the extra marketing dollars.

I believe this inefficiency creates a tremendous market opportunity for the company that chooses to take the stigma head on and market to the people who need them. Can you think of anything else a consumer pays 5k to 8k dollars for and hides? Especially when it is something that signals an interest in engagement?

15

Have to disagree a bit. There’s no stigma. Like many appliances/conditions, many feel that asking is a double edged sword. So many people with major disabilities are as offended by people just ignoring the obvious and never knowing who they really are. Hearing aids aren’t in the class of the obvious of canes, walkers, and such. We tend to attach some sympathy and maybe, with a friend, even discuss their experience. Your friends and colleagues asking about the experience seems a good thing.

The target market thing is something that is changing. The market is becoming disrupted. The old business plan is under pressure. Time will tell how it plays out.

16

There’s more to the industry than wanting to hide specifications from customers.

if you wanted to bench test each of the top five manufacturers, you could and you’d probably find ‘a winner’. However, if you were to alter the parameters of any of those tests, you’d be able to disprove your answer. Whether that be the performance in noise (what noise/what signal) or the degree of directionality: the degree of beamforming will suit some situations but not others.

You can also scramble this result with some very minor programming changes.

Now the real kicker is that any of the manufacturers provide a range of hearing aids that will cover all losses, so the best aid for a given loss is one where the hearing fits into the range of the instrument’s fitting range.

If you think that the average customer wants to know about the sensitivity/noise floor of the mic, the 1/3 octave noise as you near saturation or even the FloP processing speed of the chip, then you’re mustaken: simply because very little of the information is pertinent to how the system performs in practice. Just because you do/don’t understand how the Wankel engine works in my Mazda Rx8, doesn’t mean you know what it feels like to drive it to the red-line, and how the low centre of Gravity means it goes corners faster than most other cars.

17

Actually, I believe that the best experience for the end user currently lie in the hands of exceptional practitioners more than various, proprietary silicon. I see a number of such folks offering advice here. But, what you and others here do is separate the market chaff from the wheat. Feature hype by the manufactures is obtuse at best. That leaves poorly informed clients who have a difficult time becoming reasonably informed… For those who don’t find a practitioner with ethic and skill, they are lost.

As to your vehicle, I hope the red line stays below the ragged edge. :slight_smile:

I noted in the Hearing Economics Blog that the market for aids is a fraction of the available market. The current business plan fails the majority. That is sad. It is also something that the marketplace will need to resolve. To service a broader market, changes in licensing and automation are likely. The successful with their added skills available will adopt.

While your industry is in a state of flux, I see great opportunity to those who select the new path – rocky as it currently is.

18

This kind of thing should be posted on one of the main forums. most on the site probably will not bother reading this and are probably thinking the same things.

phonak, oticon, widex along with other companies provide specifications sheets on their sites. I believe resound, starkey, siemens and others are notorious for not providing them. the following phonak audeo V is probably the closest thing to match the linx aid. these datasheets are just 1 page. you really should read them.

I really suggest you closely look into their adaptive stereozoom technology. don’t know what it is? look it up on their site. it’s a game changing technology. siemens binax is the only competitor to this technology. linx does not have this.

this more of a new user concern. new users tend to buy the smallest aid possible. older users realize they are shortchanging themselves in terms of hearing technology and battery life when they do so. older users realize not being able to hear is more noticeable than wearing a bte unit.

the target market is the uninformed market.

resound never had a good reputation amongst the long time users here. they got lucky with their costco deal which led them to be able to develop the linx. and they got lucky with that too. who would have thought that people rather hear their iphone than the person across the table in a noisy restaurant?

once again this is only applies to new users. you do not see a lot of long time users writing about hiding their aids. seriously you don’t see senior members here wearing small aids. we rather hear as well as we can. so the key here to become more informed as a consumer.

What is concerning on this subforum is that I think only one person tried a different model vs the linx. we should be encouraging all users, especially new users to try at least 2 different brands. nobody buys a car and tries one brand. the audi will try to discourage this as it will cost them in time to have you try another brand. but everybody in this forum needs to understand that it’s their right to do so. and it should be done.

19

But that’s just the point: experienced users are only a tiny fraction of the population of hearing-impaired individuals who could benefit from hearing aids. He’s talking about expanding the market to help more people—those who for one reason or another have not considered hearing aids. And he’s not talking about pushing more discrete designs, but about marketing the benefits of hearing aids to the tech-savvy baby boomers and even Gen-Xers who would be sold by real, solid technical information rather than puffery-filled ad copy.

I personally think that aggressive marketing and demystifying the technology so that patients can understand and make informed decisions are the future of hearing aids. I also think that unbundling of the cost of aids and professional services would benefit consumers. The problem is that currently no hearing aid manufacturer considers the hearing-impaired its customers; its customers are the audiologists who buy and fit their aids. As long as that is the case, they will have no incentive to educate consumers or change the change the current broken system. The only hope I see is that Costco is shaking up the industry in a way that my actually force changes in the way private audiologists do business.

20

Has anyone else downloaded the Linx2 app? If the spatial sense, speech focus, comfort in noise and comfort in wind features in the Linx2 aids are as good as the demos on the app, I will cry with happiness.