Yes, Phonak Naida Paradise UP
Dan
2 Likes
I am having the same problem with Lumity aids after 8 weeks (voices too loud and static-y) , going back for several audiologist adjustments, but still not as good as my old Marvels with speech recognition. I haven’t tackled DIY adjustments (and I was hoping to avoid going that route).
appreciate your comments.
I MUST be able to hear sounds around me. I’m still working. Previous hearing aids were hazardous. I couldn’t hear a loader running fast behind and towards me. Close call. My new audiologist and Phonak Audeo Paradise P90’s suit me much better.
No Vespa (yet). Jeep Wrangler too. Looking forward to windows down, and freedom roof panels off, soon. Still have snow here.
It’s wonderfull having hearing aids that don’t exclude me from the environment. Wind in the trees. Oh my.
DaveL
3 Likes
Hey everyone,
Just another short update and tip for those who are concerned about battery drain with Lumity. I have done a ton of trial and error experimenting to see what causes battery drain. I have noticed that on some days the batteries don’t drain down as quickly as others and I’ve been trying to figure out why.
Lumity uses one of the hearing aids as the “Master” to communicate with a bluetooth device. It’s typically set to the right ear but you can have your audiologist choose the left ear too (mine are set on left). This master hearing aids is responsible for the connection with the Bluetooth device and also transmits the audio signals to the other hearing aid. That is why the master hearing aid uses more battery than the other hearing aid.
I’ve noticed that I typically I end the day with the master hearing aid having about 10-15% less charge than the other hearing. This kinda makes sense given the master hearing aid is doing more work by being the broker for all the bluetooth connections for both hearing aids. What is strange is that on some days, I end the day with the master hearing aid at -30% or less than the other hearing aid. This is odd given that the amount of streaming I do each day is fairly consistent.
I’m quite certain that the extra drain happens when bluetooth is left in the on position on my work laptop. My home office is in the basement of my house and once I finish work for the day, I typically don’t go back to my home office until the next day. My theory is that the master hearing aid chews a bunch of extra power trying to reconnect to my work laptop (which is in the basement) as I walk around the house in the evening as the signal cuts in and out. As you can imagine, the signal strength is very marginal when you are more than 20 feet away from the laptop and/or when you are 1 to 2 floors above the laptop. I do leave my iPhone connected at all times but my iPhone is always quite close to me (in my pocket or on the table beside me).
So my advice is to feel free to keep your mobile phone connected at all times but turn off bluetooth on other devices after you are finished streaming with them. This includes laptops, the Phonak TV Connector, iPad, and any other bluetooth classic connections. This seems to minimize battery drain on Lumity. If you do notice that the battery level on your master hearing aid is 20-30% less than the other, odds are that you have have left one of your bluetooth devices on and your distance from this device is draining your master hearing aid battery as the hearing aid keeps disconnecting and reconnecting as your distance from the device increases/decreases.
As example, my master hearing aid was down 35% last night when I went to bed and when I just started working this morning, I noticed that I had forgotten to turn off bluetooth on my laptop after I finished working yesterday. This isn’t a flaw with Lumity. This is just how bluetooth works. I will also say that you will see the same battery drain on your mobile phone when you are in a remote area where the cell signal is extremely weak. Your phone will chew more power as it keeps trying to reconnect.
Just a theory I wanted to share.
Jordan
13 Likes
I have made the same observation in connection with a cisco landline phone (Cisco CP-8865)
1 Like
Same here @JordanK. Very useful post. I have been suspecting the same thing. What I find maddening is that the Lumity’s connections via Bluetooth is very hit and miss.
Coming from Resound Quattro to Phonak Lumity, I’ve actually found the Phonak Lumity Bluetooth Classic connections to be much more stable than Quattro. With Quattro (which uses Apple MFI), I found the the connection to be weak at times and maybe more susceptible to interference. The Quattro had a much higher incidence of crackling and distortion (especially when you stepped a bit away from the phone) and it was quite common to start streaming something on your phone only to discover that only one hearing aid was receiving sound. That being said, I do miss the extra battery life that comes with MFI and the tighter integration with my iPhone and the app.
Jordan
4 Likes
Jordan I find your comments really helpful. Thanks !
DaveL
Mississauga
1 Like
With my old Widex HAs, I got into the habit of always putting the left HA in first. When I got new L90s I occasionally experienced the highly variable battery usage you described. I also noticed that the app sometimes had more difficulty connecting with the right HA. Something clicked in my brain and I wondered if it might be important to turn on the master before the slave, so I started always putting in the right HA first. I’ve not seen any incidents of variable battery usage since, and it’s been a couple months. Most days the right is 3-5% lower than the left. I’m currently at 46%/46% while 12 hours into my day, with probably 2-3 hours of TV streaming.
4 Likes
Just an observation I wanted to share: It seemed like the performance of my Lumity 90’s wasn’t as good as it was in the beginning, three months ago. I thought it was either my imagination, or that I had gotten used to the hearing aids and didn’t notice the difference as much anymore.
I had received a couple of packages of Phonak Cerustop wax guards with my new aids and was curious about how to change them. Historically, I’ve never had a problem with wax, and I only changed my wax guards every few months, but I thought it would be a good time to learn how to change the Cerustop guards (super simple) even though I didn’t think they were ready to be changed.
The old guards didn’t look blocked, but after I put the aids in with the new wax guards I was astounded by the change in sound quality. It was back to how I remember it the first time I put the Lumity 90’s in my ears!
Perhaps these wax guards need to be changed more often, or I wasn’t changing my wax guards often enough on previous hearing aids. I don’t know, but I’m going to be much more aware of the sound quality and how it relates to clean wax guards.
I was pleasantly surprised that the Cerustop wax guards weren’t as expensive as the old Cerushield wax guards. They were $25 for 80 Phonak brand Cerustop wax guards on Amazon. At that low price, I can change them as often as I feel is necessary.
5 Likes
I’ve used Phonak hearing aids for about 20 years; 3 pair. The Cerustop wax guards baffle me. I often change them and find that the Cerustop isn’t in straight; I must have put it in crooked last time around.
I complained to my audiologist from day one. Told him there are a number of complaints on this forum. He called Sonova/Phonak’s head office which is only 3 miles from my home. The person who helped him said they have had no complaints.
My habit is to change my wax guards every week. Every time I change them I notice an improvement in my hearing aid’s performance.
I use a plastic anchor to position my hearing aids in place. I have closed domes. The anchor makes it really hard to change the cerustop wax guads.
I’m old; vision issues (farsighted, and correction for astigmatism, and reading); dexterity. These are the worst wax guards I’ve used.
My audiologist says I don’t have wax issues.
Thanks for the amazon suggestion.
DaveL
1 Like
Yup. It’s a good idea to change the wax guards regularly. Especially if you work out or are in a hot and damp climate. I have checked my wax guards using a high power magnifying loupe a few times to see if they are blocked up and you would be surprised how tiny the sound hole is and how little wax it takes to block them up.
Another thing I do when my hearing is off is to check my ears to see if my ear canals are partially blocked with wax. I do this using a fibre optic ear cleaning camera I bought on Amazon. You basically connect it wirelessly to your iPhone and download their app. I looks like a pen and has a tiny light and camera at the end. You stick this carefully into your ear and watch the live video feed on your iPhone. Lets you see inside your ear and inspect your ear canal and ear drum. It was quite cheap ($30-$40) and a good way of checking your ears. It comes with tools to remove the wax but this is something you may want to have a professional do. At least you can see if you need to book an appointment.
Jordan
6 Likes
@DaveL I can understand how having vision and dexterity issues would make it difficult to change this type of wax guard. I have custom molds. Perhaps I just got lucky on my first try, but I found the Cerustop easier to change than the Cerushield. (No vision or dexterity issues)
1 Like
@JordanK I’m going to get a high power magnifying loupe if I can. It would be interesting to see what is actually in the filters!
I’m also going to check out the fibre optic camera. I had no idea anything like that was available! I’d also like to know exactly what is inside my ear canal…
Thanks for the suggestions! Heading to Amazon…
Joni
Hi @jonifoz I did get my Lumity 90 RLs last Tuesday 3/7. I like them but adjustments are needed. Speech is not good. I was interested in your post about wax guards. I had P90s. Are the wax guards different for Lumity. I have wax guards from my Paradise but if not compatible, that’s good to know. Thanks.
I have an Audi appointment tomorrow so hopefully we will get the improvements required for speech.
1 Like
Hi @Sequoia_Woman!
So glad you were finally able to get your new Lumity! I, too, have had a couple of adjustments made and with each adjustment they get better.
I don’t know what your old wax guards were. I had the Marvels, which used Cerushield. The Lumity uses Cerustop. I’ve attached a photo of the package.
2 Likes
Both my wax guards for Paradise & Lumity are the same. CeruShield Disk. I’ll ask Audi tomorrow. I am just looking at what was in my bag when I bought the aids.
UPDATE: I just looked up Cerustop wax guards. These are different. Mine are in a disk. When I had Resound Aids I had the stick kind. With your Marvels , was this wax guard the same or did you have the disk type.
@Sequoia_Woman I had the disk type CeruShield with my Marvels. Yes, the CeruStop are the stick type.
1 Like
Further complication: The wax guards (HF3) for the Phonak Activevent receivers is different than the CeruShield and Cerustop.
2 Likes