Streaming PC audio via dongle to Oticon OPN S1 aids via ConnectClip 1.1

Hearing Aids
#1

I currently have a ConnectClip on trial loan from my audi. I’m evaluating it for streaming audio from my desktop Windows 10 PC to my Oticon OPN S1 aids. My PC is not equipped with built-in Bluetooth. My audi did not loan me a dongle for my PC, only the ConnectClip . Oticon’s online info recommends using a Sennheiser BTD800 dongle for this application. But I haven’t been able to find one of these locally, so I bought a generic Bluetooth dongle from BestBuy to use for my trial. I can connect to the aids and stream audio using the generic dongle but the connection seems rather ‘flakey’. For example, sometimes I get audio in only one of my aids. Other times, the audio seems to come and go. It sounds similar to if a wired connection were loose. When the connection is solid, the sound quality is fine. I’m wondering if the connection issues are because I’m not using the recommended Sennheiser BTD800 dongle. Should I ask my audi if they can get a BTD800 dongle from Oticon so I can use it during the remainder of my trial? Can the brand/model of dongle that I’m using really be the source of the issues I’ve encountered?

I have one other question. If I’m listening to music, I can switch from the PC audio to ConnectClip microphone mode by a 3 second press of the multi button. But I can’t figure out how to switch from ConnectClip microphone mode back to the PC connection. Can anyone tell me how to do this? The only way I can figure out how to do it is to remove the ConnectClip and re-pair it to the computer dongle. That seems very awkward. Is there an easier way?

#2

I use my ConnectClip to my HP work laptop with built-in Bluetooth. The connection is rock solid and never drops. I use it everyday for 10 hours a day probably streaming 3-5 hours per day. I would make sure the firmware is up to date first for the ConnectClip. If not then I’d imagine the connection issue is due the dongle unless you got a dud ConnectClip. For the microphone-switching , you should be able to choose your input/output for sound on the sound menu in your PC bottom/right taskbar

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#3

To complement what @Abarsanti said about the Sound control panel, below is the screenshot for the Sound Control panel after you’ve successfully connected the ConnectClip to the PC. You will see 2 options in there for the ConnectClip, one is as headphones (my default), and the other one is as Headset. Just pick the one you want. The Headset mode uses the ConnectClip mic. The Headphones mode uses the PC’s mic.

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But this is about whether to use the mic from the ConnectClip or the mic from the PC when you’re using an app for conference or phone calls like Zoom or Skype or something similar when you’re streaming and talking to someone on the other end of your internet connection.

But I think what you’re asking about is a different thing. It sounds like you’re asking about toggling the ConnectClip’s Remote Mic mode ON or OFF for use to hear somebody’s voice you’re looking at face to face (albeit at a distance) who talks into the ConnectClip’s mic to be sent to your hearing aids to be heard. This is like for being in a crowded restaurant and want to be able to hear the person you’re facing much better (albeit that person maybe is much further away from you). If that’s what you’re asking, then I think the 3 second push/hold on the multi button toggles the RemoteMic mode ON and OFF as shown in the manual per the screenshots below.

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#4

Years ago when I got a ConnectClip after Oticon finally started shipping them for the original Opn aids, mine came with a BTD 800 in a separate box. Maybe your provider can get one from Oticon if you decide to purchase a ConnectClip. I have to use the dongle with an iMac Pro but not with a MacBook Pro. Without the dongle, the sound from the iMac Pro is choppy and inconsistent and changes volume but with the dongle it is as it should be and the connection is reliable. The Sennheiser dongle isn’t a general purpose Bluetooth dongle but rather an audio only device that doesn’t require drivers be added to the OS. It was really designed and marketed as a reliable way of connecting Sennheiser wireless headsets to PCs running things like call center software. So it implements Bluetooth including the profiles necessary for a headset and streaming stereo audio. Jabra makes a similar dongle for their headsets and includes it with some high end ones.

As for the brand/model being an issue, I don’t know the answer but the fact that at least two headset manufacturers also make dongles hints that they may be useful or even necessary. I’ve read that many Bluetooth implementations in computers are incomplete and/or buggy (or both) and may cause issues with audio. I expect that can also be an issue with Bluetooth dongles (I have read about serious latency issues with some). When my provider called Oticon tech support when I was asking questions about audio problems via the ConnectClip, the support person suggested that many (but not all) laptops had decent Bluetooth hardware/software but that many desktops did not - I should use the particular dongle provided as it was known to work correctly with the ConnectClip.

My ConnectClip firmware was updated to 1.13.0 by my provider - I know it can be updated using the Accessory Update tool included in the Genie 2 (2020 SP1) version. Your provider can check/update it or you can do it by downloading and installing Genie 2 on your Windows machine and connecting the Clip to the computer by USB.

On my Mac when using the dongle with the ConnectClip, the audio output device I choose is the “Sennheiser BTD 800 USB for Lync”. As with Windows, I can independently select that as the input or use the iMac built-in microphone. Note that the firmware of the Sennheiser dongle can be updated. There have been quite a number of updates, some to add new features (or support new headsets) and some to fix issues with particular software such as Teams (I haven’t used that as I typically do video conferencing using an iPad that connects directly to my current Opn S 1 aids without a ConnectClip). The BTD 800 firmware can be updated on a PC running EPOS Connect software.

Good luck - bluetooth audio with hearing aids is great when it works as one expects but there are possible issues along the way :slight_smile:

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#5

Thank you for your detailed reply. After reading all the replies to my original post, I decided to order a Sennheiser BT800 dongle from Oticon. The generic Bluetooth dongle I was using for the test had way too many connection issues and was getting frustrating. The BTD800 arrived yesterday and it seems to connect flawlessly. The only thing that puzzles me is that it only lists one connection mode: “Headset”. The generic dongle listed both “Headset” and “Headphones” as per your description. It’s not a big deal but just something I noticed. The PC sound seems to be streaming fine now thru the BT800 and the ConnectClip to my aids.

Edit: After some further testing with the BT800 dongle and ConnectClip, I have realized that the sound in my aids is delayed by about 0.2 seconds compared to what I hear when using a normal headset or earphones. This is not enough delay to cause lip-sync annoyance when watching videos but it is enough to totally interfere with audio editing activities using programs like Audacity. I was trying to digitize some 45 rpm vinyl records when I realized that the sound in my aids is about 0.2 seconds behind the Audacity waveform position. This does not happen with an analogue or USB headset connected to the computer. The delay makes it very difficult to locate the exact points for click removal and audio repair. I thought the BTD800 dongle was going to be the answer to all my concerns but now this delay has become an issue. Has anyone else encountered this problem?

#6

I haven’t tried anything time sensitive but I do use headphones with my computer at times. I have some old-school (and old) Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro phones that have large ear cups that seal - they don’t cause feedback, at least as far as I can tell, with my Opn S 1 aids. That allows for the aids to provide the correction I find helpful, especially at higher frequencies, and for good bass. In your case, headphones would probably fix the time delay introduced by the signal chain including Bluetooth with the typical encoding latencies. You would need to find headphones that don’t cause feedback - I expect the large cups of the DT 770 pro are helpful in this regard for my case.

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#7

Audio editing activities are best done using over ear headphones as @biggar suggests.
I don’t know your level of audio fidelity demands, but you aren’t getting a true representation of the bandwidth and dynamics of music by streaming.
Of course, this may not be an issue with older 45rpm vinyl.
Any decent over the ear headphones should work well from Beyerdynamic, Sennheiser, or Sony.

#8

FWIW, I have stumbled on an interesting thing with the ConnectClip using OPN1 (not S1). If I’m streaming and I really want to focus on what I’m streaming, and I don’t want to be distracted with other sounds around me, I’ll mute the HAs but that doesn’t effect the streaming volume.

#9

Yeah, I do this all the times.

#10

One other thing that might work if headphones over your aids won’t work is using a TV Adapter 3 instead of a ConnectClip. It is one-way only - stream stereo sound from the input (either analog or digital (toslink - inexpensive plastic optical fiber)) directly to the aids. In this case, there isn’t the typical latency of Bluetooth as it uses the same frequency band but a different protocol that controls latency. Oticon in the technical data sheet for the TV Adapter states that the latency (input to hearing aid receiver outputI is 25 msec for analog, 28 msec for Digital and 45 msec if Dolby Digital. That isn’t the zero latency of headphones but is significantly lower than the 0.2 sec you found with the ConnectClip. I have not found a specification for latency of the ConnectClip - I would guess that depends more on the details of the Bluetooth adapter hardware/software in the source device.

#11

Thanks to both you and @biggar for your comments. I use a Microsoft LifeChat LX-3000 Headset and it works fine for my needs. As you mentioned, high fidelity is not a big concern with the 45 rpm vinyl I’m digitizing. I had been thinking a wireless connection from the computer to my aids would be nice but I hadn’t realized the latency issues would be such a big problem with the ConnectClip.

I found this PDF article entitled, “Wireless Hearing Assistive Technology Demystified” that presents some interesting information about latency for different HA brands and technology.

#12

That article is dated 2019, but her technical specs seem to be pre bluetooth 4. She even shows the Oticon streamer from 2016! Generally good basic info, though.
One other thing I overlooked, was to ask if you have a dedicated music program included w/ your OPN S’s?
Even the stock music program vastly improves the sound of live, recorded, and streamed music.