RIC vs BTE - why is sound quality so different?

Hearing Aids
#1

My RIC hearing aids are phonak marvel m90 with c-shell ear molds - although I don’t think they meet my HL needs anymore - the sound has always felt so natural, especially when using bluetooth so I pretty much just use them at home as very expensive headphones now!

My BTE hearing aids are oticon xceed1 UP provided by NHS and fitted around 6 months ago. Tbh I am not very fond of them and have been slacking wearing them for a number of reasons, mainly because the sound does not feel smooth and natural like my RICs and because the bluetooth is iphone only unless I purchase the connectlip which i currently don’t want to.
I do occasionally use bluetooth on my ipad and the sound quality is extremely inferior to my old phonaks which was very disappointing to discover.

My hearing loss is severe to profound and mostly conductive due to otosclerosis so I am aware that I’m quite limited when it comes to hearing aids unfortunately - which is why I haven’t upgraded my phonak marvels despite them being over 5 years old.

Why is there such a massive difference in sound quality when it comes to RIC vs BTE? Why do RIC give natural sound and BTE do not?

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#2

Not an expert here, but I guess it is the distance that sound must travel between the miniature speaker and your eardrum, plus those plasticky tubes deforming the sound. Similarly, sound from headphones sounds far better than a TV at the other end of the room, regardless of the volume. Summarizing a discussion elsewhere: Distance to the microphone is also why sound picked up by your HAs from people talking meters away does not sound great- whereas sound transmitted by e.g. Bluetooth from people talking directly into a microphone (e.g. podcasters) sounds OK.

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#3

Go back to your provider, it’s the fit not the device.

Except for the Bluetooth. The classic Bluetooth audio sounds better than the MFI to me. You might want that connect clip.

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#4

I agree with @Neville

I have worn RIC and BTE devices. If fit well, there is virtually no difference in clarity, regardless of the brand.

In your case, if fit well, given a severe to profound loss, the BTE should be much more suitable.

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#5

Yes, basically this, but the tuning of the aid should compensate for the tubing resonances. The RIC placement is genuinely optimal though and the output is tuned to emulate your natural ear canal response.

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#6

I agree with getting the oticon aids adjusted better for you. They are good hearing aids.
Tell the fitter what you have told us.

Took a quick look on eBay, that connect clip can easily be bought for about $100.

Good luck

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#7

I definitely do have issues with the fit of the device. I’ve made a list of them to take with me to my appointment later today, hopefully they can be addressed and resolved.
I have been unsure about buying the connect clip because I’ve been humming and harring about whether I want to keep using the xceeds as my main hearing aids or to upgrade my phonak marvels to the newer lumity model and keep xceeds as backup. So in my mind, getting a connect clip isn’t worth it if I’m not going to end up using the xceeds daily.
Anyway, regardless of which I choose to use as my main/primary they should still meet my day to day hearing needs.

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