Page 18…Dolby IS supported…DTS is NOT
Note this at the top of p. 13:
“The TV Connector can receive and transmit Dolby Audio™, stereo or mono audio signals. Please make sure no DTS function has been enabled in TV (or on alternative audio source) settings.”
1 Like
If anyone wants one of these, Amazon has a $6 coupon probably today only. With tax it came to $23.31! It might still be available. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098RWHV6R/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Or use the link in first post.
1 Like
I think there may be confusion with the terminology. From your link and the Phonak site manuals:
The TV Connector supports Dolby Audio™, stereo or mono audio signals. Please make sure that the TV or audio source is not using the DTS audio setting. If this audio signal is present, the LED indicator on the TV Connector will be blinking red. Please change the audio signal to Dolby Audio™ or stereo (PCM) in the audio settings menu of your TV or audio source.
Note that Dolby Digital is not specified; that omission is significant. Dolby Audio is simply the blanket term for the various Dolby technologies. The Phonak device is limited to PCM digital stereo, where by comparison to Dolby Digital (or DTS), the “sound does not include discrete audio information for multiple channels. Instead, sound is extrapolated from a two-channel (stereo) signal.”
The distinction is shown more explicitly here in the Resound TV device spec:
*Stereo PCM
*- Sample rate: Up to 192 kHz
*- Sample resolution: Up to 32 bit
*Dolby Digital
*- Channels: Max 5.1
*- Bitrate: 32 kbs to 640 kbs
*- Sample rate: 32, 44.1, and 48 kHz
The Oticon and Signia TV devices (which are the same) state it this way:
TOSLINK. Either digital stereo (PCM) or Dolby® Digital
Dolby Digital and DTS formats utilize “perceptual data reduction techniques to remove useless data in PCM signal output, thereby preserving high fidelity sound." Both are 5.1 channel; they differ in bit rates and compression technology while achieving very similar results: They both remove noise otherwise found in PCM and both enhance sound quality in a way not possible with PCM, using their own codecs.
So both Dolby Digital and DTS are superior and distinct from PCM digital stereo. If the Phonak device supported Dolby Digital it would need to explicitly state so for licensing purposes (as the competitor devices do), but it does not.
2 Likes
Thanks mingus… all I know is my original Phonak TV Converter downstairs serves a Samsung w/ sound settings at Dolby Digital, and is fed via the optic cable. The significantly less expensive Amazon Converter I have upstairs requires PCM setting on that Samsung… the major jest of this thread was to call folks attention to a found alternative, albeit a lesser alternative in some ways, to the brand-name converters that have always been so expensive, and are now becoming more-so & scarce.
Fair enough. Thanks.
How would you get Dolby 5.1 sound when you have only two “speakers,” one in each ear?
You don’t - but then again, you do. The Dolby Digital encoder can utilize up to 6 channels, but it will be delivered in whichever speaker configuration is supported. Here is how it works:
Many Dolby Digital decoders are equipped with downmixing to distribute encoded channels to speakers. This includes such functions as playing surround information through the front speakers if surround speakers are unavailable, and distributing the center channel to left and right if no center speaker is available. When outputting to separate equipment over a 2-channel connection, a Dolby Digital decoder can optionally encode the output using Dolby Surround to preserve surround information.
“Preserving surround information” is what I get through my 2.1 soundbar and is also what I surprisingly experienced while using the Signia “Streamline TV” connector. While of course neither the soundbar nor the connector w/HA’s can deliver a full 5.1 speaker experience, with both I can hear objects which sound spatially separated from other objects and the voices. Essentially the encoder/decoder algorithms mix the sound in such a way as to create a multi-dimension perception for the listener, aka “virtual sound.”
For sound encoded in Dolby Digital, a Dolby Digital decoder is required to deliver that encoded audio. If the device is limited to digital stereo (PCM), the additional DD encoded sound information in the source is lost. This is why I raised the question in my previous post a few days ago: The decoder matters.
1 Like
When I bought the TV Connector for my KS9s the advantage of the TV Connector over a Bluetooth connection was supposed to be in battery life–Bluetooth supposedly used batteries much faster than the TV Connector.
So I will be interested to see what @cottemar experience is with battery life.
1 Like
I have Signia aids. Will this work with those?
Thanks Bob… i’ve noted no real difference between the Phonak unit & the Amazon.
Always appreciate a more economical option. I’m curious about the difficulty in pairing? The advantage of the TV connector is that connecting is pretty seamless. At worst I have to press a button on the back of the unit and it gives me a signal and just starts working. Anytime I’ve tried to bluetooth connect to something (like my computer) it becomes much more difficult (at least for me) I have Phonak Marvels and I find I have to go to my bluetooth settings, forget other devices, put my aids in pairing mode by turning them off and restarting. Is all that required with the device that is available on Amazon? BTW I just looked via the original link and they are saying its no longer available. Along these lines is anyone aware of a device that transmits on the same frequency as the TV connectors. I got one of mine from my audiologist at the Phonak price and bought 2 additional units at Costco for 99.00
Hi Butch!..well, sure 'nuff it’s unavailable. However, the pairing holds once paired, & the process was basically the same as the TV Connector.
That said, I’ll share that I’ve also paired a Unitron uTV-3 that I had bought for my other HAs…paired up fine & uses the optic cable for feed from TV.
There are similar bluetooth transmitters available on Amazon. I tried one of mine that I use for Blueooth headphones on my TV output last night. There WAS a slight echo, but when I turned the TV sound off and just used my KS 10’s I was surprised at how good the lipsync was. It is way off when watching video on my PC and using bluetooth to the hearing aids.
As for the AptX low latency feature on my transmitter, the headphones or hearing aids also have to have the low latency feature built in, and the Phonaks do not have it, so I was expecting bad lipsync. I think that the TV connector from Phonak uses an FM signal which uses less juice and isn’t subject to lipsync issues. I am happy to stand corrected if someone has more info.
I’m sure it’s Bluetooth LE but set to a specific Phonak frequency, called Airstream technology.
You are probably right. Their description is vague, but it is 2.4g so not FM. How do they get the low latency??
The Phonak Tv connector is based on Bluetooth… but they have stripped out everything that makes Bluetooth universally work with many devices and streamlined it to work with just the HAs. It does it very well indeed … very low latency, low power usage etc
I have a from the VA new Phonak P90 pair with the Phonak TV Connector. Mine were molded for my ears. I too was interested in a spare lower cost Bluetooth transmitter so bought one from Amazon for $13.99 and it works as good as the TV Connector when using upstairs in same room as my TV. The Phonak TV Connector stays connected to the same TV when downstairs which is cool. This is the Bluetooth link at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089QJPCDJ?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details. My previous Phonak hearing aids used the Phonak Compilot2 and Phonak TV Link II. Connected to the same TV, same room I could be downstairs and even outside and still hear the TV.
Does anyone have experience with the Avantree low latency BT Oasis device ($50.) as substitute for Phonak TV Connector? ||10% off for AARP members|| There is older thread from about 2018 that said an older model worked well.
I did a quick chat on Avantree website and was referred to their FAQ which I show below and it seems to indicate it should work easily with Phonak HAs, but proof is in the pudding and forum Members often really know how to evaluate a device. {I have no affiliation/connection with Avantree.}
How to use Avantree Transmitter with Phonak Hearing Aids?
You could pair your Phonak Hearing Aid with Avantree Bluetooth transmitters via Bluetooth. Please follow the steps like this:
Step 1 . Disconnect Phonak from Other devices - Turn off Bluetooth on your cellphone and ANY other devices you have used with the Phonak Hearing Aids via Bluetooth before.
Step 2. Get the Avantree Bluetooth transmitter into Pairing mode.
Orbit pairing mode
TC500 series pairing mode
TC418P pairing mode
DG80 pairing mode
DG60 pairing mode
Step 3. G et your Phonak into Pairing mode- Turn OFF and ON the Phonak Hearing Aids. (It will go into the pairing mode for 3min)
Step 4. Connected Successfully - Keep them within distance, wait for them to pair and connect
How to Use HEARING AIDS with an Avantree Transmitter
Nowadays, many hearing aids do not support third party Bluetooth transmitters. To confirm if yours is compatible with Avantree Bluetooth transmitters, we need to know the following -
- When you pair your hearing aids with your iPhone or android phone, do you use an app?
- Do you use Bluetooth function ONLY or you also need to use other settings, e.g. Accessibility function from Setting menu?
- Can you hearing aids enter a special blue and red fast flashing pairing mode?
If your answer to question 1 and 2 are YES, but NO to question 3, then most likely your hearing aids will not work with 3rd party Bluetooth transmitters. If your answer to question 3 is YES, then, it is likely your hearing aids can work with other brands Bluetooth transmitters.
Of course, the easiest way is to ask your hearing aids company this question - “Will my hearing aids working with other brands Bluetooth transmittters on the market?”.
If the answer it YES, then you can use with it with Avantree Audikast plus, Avantree Oasis Plus, as well as Avantree Orbit.
Even if your hearing aids cannot pair up with our Bluetooth transmitter directly, the alternative solution is to have a pair of wireless over the ear headphone set and it will work outside of your hearing aids and serve the purpose for you. You can search for Avantree HT5009 or Opera.
Thanks for your thoughts/input. If I get their device I will add review here.