#1

I have mild hearing loss in just a few frequencies, so a strong cookie-bite scenario. I seem to have had this since childhood, but it’s only becoming a problem now, at 30 years of age, with tinnitus becoming an issue. Will ITC-type hearing aids be a good option? I am thinking of Starkey Evolv AI or Customs by Resound, for example. Or would it be better to go with a BTE option?

#2

Short answer is that ha sound differently to different people. There is no best unfortunately. I’d suggest seeing a specialist and trying some. Any of the aids avail would certainly work for your loss, it just depends on how they sound to you. I always suggest Costco if it’s an option, mainly due to their prices, but as long as you find someone competent and you like you will be good. Most places have trials (Costco is often 180 days)

One thing to keep in mind is that if you’ve never worn aids, they are probably going to sound very odd. Give it a try for a week or more consistently to really hear it well.

Good luck!

#3

You’re unlikely to be happy with an ITC hearing aid because you have near normal hearing in the lower frequencies which means you’d be likely to suffer what’s called “occlusion.” Occlusion results in your voice sounding abnormally loud, as well as chewing noises, etc. The “best” hearing aid is a well adjusted one. The basic BTE (behind the ear) style is split into two types. The classic BTEs are generally larger and for more severe losses. The amplifier (called a receiver) resides in the hearing aid and the sound is transmitted through a tube into a custom mold that is in your ear. The other type is called a RIC (receiver in canal) It’s smaller and the receiver is actually in your ear. It’s connected to the aid by a thin wire and for your type of loss would have an “open dome” This lets the frequencies that you hear ok in come in to the ear naturally, but can supply additional gain to the higher frequencies you’re missing out on. All of the major manufacturers (AKA as the Big 5) do a fine job. We have afficionados of different brands on the forum but it’s like asking which is better, chocolate or strawberry.
In short, I think you’d do fine with RICs with open dome.

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#4

Thanks, that is helpful! I might try ITE, just becauce I cannot quite come to terms with the idea of BTE getting in the way of glasses, hats etc., but if the occlusion effect is too annoying I will definitely revisit and try open dome.

Since I have lived my entire life so far with this level of hearing loss, I have also adapted to it (a child does not necessarily notice that he has sub-par hearing!), so I also wonder if I need to wear them all the time. I realise that the brain needs to adjust to hearing aids, and thus it is best to wear them as much as possible, but I would like to see if I can get some benefit from them for just tricky scenarios like in restaurants, at trade shows (which I do a lot of) etc. without having to wear them all the time at home, in the office etc. where I can understand people well enough without hearing aids. Is part-time wearing like that even a thing?

#5

If you want to try an in the ear aid, try the Signia Silk. It comes with replaceable domes so you can try it out right away instead of needing to wait for a custom aid to be built. RIC aids generally cooperate well with glasses and hats. (A bit of pain if you throw masks into the mix.)
Aids work best if used most of the time. Used as you’re suggesting, things are likely to just sound loud and irritating with not much help in speech understanding. Yes, people do try part time wearing hearing aids. My suspicion is that those are more likely to end up in a drawer. Good luck. Keep us posted how it goes.

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#6

My loss is similar to yours and I much prefer RIC (aid behind the ear style). For me there is no comparison. My last HAs (which I wore for 6 years) were ITE which I think I was drawn to because I thought they were less ‘noticeable’. I definitely felt the occlusion effect but I could deal with that. What I didn’t like was the sound (which I guess is due to the occlusion, but not in the way I expected). Because the ITC blocked my entire ear with the exception of the vent, they replaced my hearing. I could definitely hear better in some situations, but there were situations in which I actually felt they made it worse - for example trying to order in a cafeteria. I was never able to get them adjusted to get them to sound better. Several months ago I was ready to replace them and my new audi convinced me to trial a behind the ear (RIC) style and the difference is night and day. Because these ones don’t block my entire ear, and I can still hear through them ,I feel like these ones are ‘aiding’ my hearing instead of replacing it. Everything sounds much more natural, and I have not come across any situations where I feel they are worse than no aids - in fact they are a big improvement. I can’t say for sure that the entire improvement is due to the style because I also changed brands and have newer technology, but I do feel like a lot of the improvement is due to the style. I would not go back to ITC or CIC now.

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#7

I would not worry about them getting in the way. I have bte aids and wear glasses. I still forget they are there sometimes. Same with hats

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#8

Glasses are really a minor issue except I still occasionally bounce calls due to the tap feature on my HAs.

Masks are a different matter. I have to stop anything else I’m doing or thinking to get them off and untangle the things if they get engaged. It has never flipped them off my head, but they have flung the body of the HA out from behind my ears so they only hang by the molds in my ears.

WH

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#9

I have a cookie bite hearing loss with a not massively dissimilar audiogram to yours (you have more hearing in the high and low frequencies though). I have the discontinued KS10s from Costco, aka the Phonak Paradise 90, which is a great hearing aid. Its successor, the Lumity, seems even better.

Here in the U.K., I also receive free HAs on the NHS, which are Phonak BTEs.

#10

Hate to quibble, but yeah, I’d say your audiogram is massively dissimilar to OP’s. OP has near normal hearing up to 1500 Hz.

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#11

I have found several kinds of masks that go around the head instead of behind the ears. They tend to work well for this.

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#12

The dangers of looking at something on a smartphone screen…:man_facepalming:

#13

All good :+1:
The occlusion effect will likely be an issue :neutral_face:. I will be at a very large exhibit next week, so will have the chance to try something out in that setting. My audi will let me try out any entry-level devices from all the top manufacturers. Any particular advice on which would be best to try in a situatio like this? I go to a lot of events like this, which is also why I was leaning towards an ITE (block out noise and let the HA filter what I need…). I have been trialing Starkey Livio 1000 BTE, which is terrible in background noise situations. It is fine in the office, but in the break room, with coffee machines and lots of talking, it’s impossible! I am thinking of trying Resound product next, but let me know if you have a better idea…maybe open dome would suit better in noisy situations?

#14

Yesterday I got a different pair to try, this time Resound Key 3 (also BTE). A totally different experience! There is no annoying background noise, and speach clarity like I have never heard before!
My audi gave me 4 different ear pieces to try, some closed and one open. Frankly I don’t mind the closed at all. It makes the lower tones a little more muffled, but I can compensate for that by pushing up the low frequencies in the app. How does closed dome compare to ITC (such as Customs by Resound) for occlusion?
Since I am so happy with these entrance-level devices, I am wondering what additional gain I will have with a better device? My insurance will cover top-tier Omnia, or whatever the newest from Resound is, or I might try their Customs. Hopefully better BT musinc streaming, as that is not great with the Key 3 (but the BT connectivity is good, and audio books/phone calls are fine).
Mostly I am really happy with these, after a disapointing first trial with Starkey Livio 1000. I am finally able to understand conversasions without straining.

#15

Our audiograms are pretty similar. I’m wearing RIC, Oticon OPN 2 for about 4 years. I can’t miss the BT streaming for phone calls.
I also wear glasses, and don’t have problems with the combination.

#16

I have a cookie bite type hearing loss similar to yours. Currently wearing Oticon More 1, previously the Oticon OPN 2. Love them both. Although I had adjusted well enough to life with hearing loss, once I got the aids I wondered why I hadn’t done so 10 years ago.

#17

I am now trialing the Customs by Resound. Right out of the chute, I am really happy with them. The occlusion effect is not near as bad as I expected – possibly my head physionomy is such that it is not as much of a problem as others might have :slight_smile:
The main problems I am having though:

  1. Wind noise is much worse. I guess BTE were more protected from wind.

  2. The left ear HA seems to either have a mal-adjustment, or the speaker is faulty. At certain frequencies at higher volumes, it sounds like a damaged speaker (you know, that sort of crackle-rushing sound, similar to wind noise, you associate with abused speakers.) Hopefully my audi is able to tell me if this an adjustment he has to make, or if this is indeed a faulty HA.

On the whole however, I am very happy with these – they are clearly built on a better/newer tech platform than the Resound Keys I had. I am still considering whether it would be better to go with BTE long-term. There are trade-offs, but wind noise is a problem that I didn’t expect to be this bad.

One other question I had: is it possible to call Siri (or other voice assistents) from these devices?