Regarding your OPNs - you say that the streaming quality through your iphone connection is “brilliant” - is this in comparison to streaming through a Connect Clip-to-android connection?
There is no difference in audio quality streaming from iphone, android or a pc.
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I concur. The set up with iPhone is more seamless, but the sound quality should be the same.
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I did say connectivity/control is so much better on iPhone than Android. I didn’t mention sound quality, which, as other members have said, is the same. With Android, I found that because you can control the streaming volume via the HAs, the phone and the ConnectClip and the volume ratio between the HAs and the streaming is set by your audi in Genie 2, I was always juggling to get it right. Nightmare.
With the iPhone, streaming volume and radio stations can all be controlled from the lock screen independently of the HA surroundings volume setting. This is a real benefit. With a couple of taps from the iPhone lock screen I can adjust the radio or telephone call volume and mute my surroundings. Sheer bliss!!!
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Incidentally, I’m not being paid by Apple. In fact I’ve always preferred Android and for many things I still do. But on my iPhone 7, the Oticon On app is vastly superior to the Android version in my humble opinion.
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I have an android phone, running oreo, and an iphone 7, running ios 12.2. There are a few slight cosmetic differences, I don’t think Oticon could make the Opn apps more functionally similar if they tried. Exactly what are you claiming is “vastly superior” on ios compared to android?
If you were comparing MFi to the non-existent feature on android, I would agree, but based on the Opn app, there is no difference, at least nothing that I’ve noticed.
Great to know. Thanks. I was soooo hoping that my new OPN-S HAs, with power domes, would deliver Bose-quality sound for music streaming. But, alas, that is not the case. The sound quality is not terrible, and is much improved over my previous Alta Pro HAs, but doesn’t hold a candle to other earbuds and headphones I have. Ah well.
*I threw in the towel on the Marvel M70 R and am now trialing the OPN S2. I had many problems with Marvel despite repeated adjustments. I was a long time Oticon user and perhaps I’m used to their sound. The Marvels seemed harsh and I often had a sense of disorientation as to where sound was coming from. Voices sometimes sounded distorted like audio clipping. There was no perceivable benefit for speech in loud noise, a real test for any HA. Also, the Bluetooth was very low quality, almost unusable and then there’s the problem with having to repeatedly pair being a major downside. I also did not like the button placement on the top of the aids.Big no no for me. hard to access and they get in the way of the temples of glasses, sometimes even turning off when I adjusted the glasses on my face. But the sound quality is primary and in the end it was that which led me return them. Two days into the OPN it is too early to say much. So far I like them better. My Audi claims the Marvels are more unidirectional in AS 3.0, as compared with OPN which has the open sound as its namesake says. I can’t notice any such differences. Voices sound clearer to me with OPN. It have yet to know in noisy environments.
One strange thing. My insurance covers up to 5K but not including the very top of the line. Whatever is right below it. So, for example, the Marvel 90R would have cost me an $800 whereas the M70 R was fully covered for the cost of $4K. The OPN is only available in rechargeable in the top model, the S1. I would have to pay 800 for that. And the stated price for OPN S 2 is $5K. The S2 is fully covered but battery operated. It also has 4 dB less noise reduction than S1. That’s where the rubber meets the road so I’d like the premium S1. Conversely, Phonak does not have this kind of lower tech in the M70 v M90. It more about having a couple programs as manual v part of AS. 3.0. So Phonak Is actually providing a better deal than OPN S IMO. But OPN S seems, at least at first, to work better for me. I also don’t use iPhone so at present I lost the Bluetooth connection. I miss that despite Phonak’s less than adequate Bluetooth implementation for Android. I will say that the rechargeables are overrated. It’s easier to change a battery once a week than to have to charge them nightly, especially if on the road. And I don’t have to worry about running out of juice (always have extra set). Plus they are smaller and thinner which I find a significant benefit. The Marvels actually pushed my ears out a little. And who know how long those rechargeable will last. Also, program changes on Marvel is very noticeable. OPN is seamless. Ended up disappointed with Marvel for a number of reasons as stated. For all of you who benefit from Marvel, lucky you. Cheers!
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I also chose Opns due to the BT on the Marvels.
So you’re saying your insurance will cover $5000 of the Opn S2, but not the S1? Seems strange, why should they care what model you chose? Can you make an arrangement with your audi to trade them in? My insurance company didn’t cover the entire cost of the Opns, but I thought it was worth the money to get the top model.
I found the Marvels and Opns sound different, but I didn’t find one to be noticeably better than the other. It was a wash.
I challenge you to find ANY RITE hearing aids that can approach Bose quality sound. I challenge Bose to deliver their same Bose quality sound when they have to deliver it in a tiny receiver that has to fit inside of the human ear canal.
You simply have the wrong expectation that surpasses the law of physics. Bose can only deliver the quality of sound that you enjoy only because they can package a much bigger speaker inside their product.
The OPN S does not promise high fidelity music quality. It only promises better feedback prevention and better speech understanding.
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Yes. I’m sorry, your’e right. It’s the Made for iPhone functionality that I find so much better than the Android.
With Android, the controllable functions on the locksceen are very limited. Just HA volume and program change as I recall. But on the iPhone this is merged with control of the streaming volume, radio station selection etc. etc. which I find far better. Personally. I found the ConnectClip to be a real pain to set right and each time I took a phone call or streamed music the volume needed adjusting. But which one to adjust? The hearing aid rocker, the ConnectClip buttons or the phone buttons? They all change the volume but I always finished up in a tangle and hated it.
Another point with ConnectClip which I found annoying is that you have no info as to the charge level of its battery and occasionally it would die on me.
If Android could develop a Made for Android feature and Oticon adopted it, then that would surely be a good way to go. Otherwise I’m stuck with Apple.
Off topic but any HA will not provide headphone quality audio. I have NX 7 and compared with Philips HA with ANC no match with headphone headphone always wins
Darylm, They will pay up to $5K for any aid, but if I choose the top model like OPN s1 I have to pay $800. The insurance will cover up to $5K but not the top of the line without a copay. Kaiser makes deals with each company and each is different. So I can get the M70R for free ( they say it’s $4K) and have to pay 800 for top of line M90R even though it’s below 5K. Or I can get OPN S2 for free ( they say it’s 5K) and pay $800 more for S1. They made a better deal with Phonak than with Oticon. The other two manufacturers they carry are Signia and Starkey.
Much has been written about Marvel bluetooth. I tried pairing with both Android and IPhone. Both has tons of crackling at both ends of the line. Then there’s the pairing issue.
My Marvels were in trial so I now have the S2 in trial. I may try the S1 to see if the $800 would be worth spending if it has a big benefit for speech in loud noise
Okay, I agree that the MFi does work quite well. However, the connectclip isn’t as complex at you seem to think. The volume buttons on the connect clip have the same function as the volume in the opn app or using MFi. Call it the system volume. The volume on the phone is just for the phone. If you change the volume using the connectclip, you can see it change in the opn app or mfi. You can change the volume individually using the opn app or MFi, but not on the connectclip.
There will be a “made for android” capability, similar to MFi. The specifications are on the android website. Not sure which release of android it will be in, but it will probably only be available on devices from manufacturers who are good about updating (unfortunately, not very many).
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Music is a whole different ballgame from the HA’s main function. Some users reported loving the sound of music through Phonak or Oticon. I don’t know about Oticon because I haven’t had the chance to do music, but Marvel, while sounding very clear, does not have the kind of presence I like to hear with music. It sounds very flat to my ears, such as they are. Much prefer to use my headphones with an equalizer app. There’s no way an HA can faithfully reproduce the recording with that tiny package, as others have pointed out. But if it works for you that’s all that matters.
It sounds to be like you don’t have enough Bass. Have you had an REM test or AudiogramDirect?
I agree with what you said. When I’m watching a movie or listening to music on my desktop computer, I use Sennheiser HD 280 Pro headphones with a Fiio Alpen 2 headphone amplifier. The sound is much better than the hearing aids.
AH! You’ve crossed to the “other” side then - from Android to Apple. 
I guess I’m glad I’m NOT a techie user, cuz Android apps seem to have their limitations. I’m surprised that you found the Marvel sound quality no better than the Opn!! Proves that hearing preference is truly unique to the individual.
Um_bongo had posted this about MPO a while back:
"ALL the MPO does is provide a ‘soft-stop’ limit to the peak output of the aid. It doesn’t make anything sound muffled as the same amount of gain is applied as normal, right up to the limit value.
The ‘Screech’ is the aid going into full saturation, during very high input signals the aid has unstable feedback. This ought to be properly controlled by the feedback manager not the MPO, as you want the feedback manager to adaptively damp the feedback rather than let the MPO control deal with it. The reason being that the MPO doesn’t modify the gain of the aid, only the limiting function - this could leave you with a signal that’s still feeding back at high level, but sits below where the MPO kicks in."
So you should not get muffled speech with a lower MPO, but perhaps the maximum gain would not cover a desire for more volume?
Someone please correct me if this is NOT the case.
I think this is a personal preference thing and for me, MFi wins every time. As a septuagenarian, I don’t have the time to wait for Android to release their version of MFA.
But we seem to have drifted off topic here. The original subject was regarding sound quality rather than connectivity, and this, I think is still personal choice.
For me, OPN wins over Phonak Marvel, but only just.
They are both far from perfect and grossly overpriced for what you get including the support.
I have now resorted to self programming with my audiologist’s approval and find that Genie 2 is very intuitive and simple to use.
I’m not saying that I have set everything right yet, but my OPNs are now better than they have ever been.
There are some sound anomalies that only the HA wearer can appreciate and they can readily be corrected with Genie 2 while they are happening rather than trying to explain them to the audiologist some time later.
Thanks to everyone for their input to this thread.
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They are actually not grossly overpriced. Sorry to disagree. Phonak has over 300 scientists working in their research division that goes into the technology. So probably, does Oticon.
I pay £2500 every 4 years for aids. I would actually pay more for what I get - which is participation in this thing called life 
Hearing aids are not televisions or cars. It is not mass market. It is a niche.
You may not like my answer, but these people are highly skilled and have to be paid. It’s an unfortunate fact of life.
Of course, some providers may sell them at a hideous margin, and rip you off for a pathetic service. But that is a different issue. The wholesale price is probably fair, if not well received.
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