I chose the Clear 440’s based on 1) research of lots of makes and models for features, and as much reliability data (fewer complaints) as I could mine.
2) recommedation of my Audiologist. These have features that best meet my lifestyle, including the remote control, Bluetooth, and micro size.
Now these work exceptionally well with the Bluetooth, not so well with regular phone receiver, in my opinion. The prescribed method for using a regular phone is to hold the receiver over the ear (HA) at a slight angle, so that the phone is audibly linked to the HA.
For continuous use with a regular, corded (desk) phone, I would suggest getting a desk set with a Bluetooth transmitter, or one with an external speaker jack that connects to the M-Dex (remote). The wired set would not drain the M-Dex battery so quickly, but it limits your range, and the cord could be an obstruction to activities.
One other drawback is that the range from the remote to the HA’s is very limited, about 10" +/-, so you have to use the neck lanyard to keep it in range. I would expect an improvement in this with the next generation.
£6,000 is a high price to pay for these aids. I got mine from a very good audiologist in central London for £4,000 for the pair and that included the remote, TV-DEX and M-DEX.
I have received an MDEX today and noticed a similar issue with my phone - a Blackberry Bold. I have been using the MDEX for streaming music from the phone. Every time the phone reaches the end of a track the hearing aids beep. Looking at the M-DEX it appears that the bluetooth is disconnecting and re-connecting between tracks. Googling around it appears that this is a “feature” of some phones.
Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be a way to switch the beeping off in the M-DEX every time bluetooth connects or disconnects - its settings options are very limited.
Personally I feel that the wireless connectivity of these aids is a great feature but is really restricted by the incredibly short range from the M-DEX/TV-DEX receiver to the aids themselves. Even wearing the receiver high up on my chest I can lose connectivity on one or both ears when I turn my head away. (Maybe the connection is being blocked by my head.) I found that it helps to wear the receiver behind my head rather than in-front but that isn’t always practical or comfortable.
If the range from receiver to aids was just a little longer/more reliable then the wireless features on these aids would be fantastic.
I started trialing the c4-m clear band model a few days ago. Regarding using a regular, corded phone, if you put the MDEX into the telecoil mode, you can put the headset receiver directly onto the MDEX remote, and it pipes the phone into both aids. I believe the microphone in the remote then picks up your voice. It seemed a little weird to use at first, but I actually find it’s much easier to talk on a landline phone this way, as opposed to putting the phone to my ear. It’s disappointing that I can’t hear as well holding the phone to my ear. I am replacing a set of Passion 115’s, and I could hear well on a landline (but not a mobile phone) with them.
I’m finding that after a few days, I’m adjusting well to the difference in sound processing. I’m still feeling like background noise can overwhelm closer sounds, and in loud environments, I am losing speech as it sounds like it’s “clipping” or cutting off. I have a follow up next week, so hopefully this can be adjusted. I’m using custom ear shells with these thin-tube models, as I’ve never had much success with the generic domes.
I’m curious to hear what others’ feedback is on these!
I am trying a pair of clear 440s and it seems like loud noises bother the aids like motorcycles and buses and even the door closing chime on the subway cause distortion even if I turn down the volume to low levels I hear it. It almost sounds like a speaker is broken but it’s not since I changed speakers and aids. I have tried these and spend a really short time with agile pros both offer better hearing results then my Oticon delta but I think it has to do with volume more then processing.
Using both Bluetooth and headphone cable connections to the MDEX I get sound in both ears. I cannot confirm though if it is stereo though - could be the same mono sent to each ear.
do you not know - bluetooth is NOT stereo-voice, only mono
but Widex Clear 440 use not bluetooth, it have WidexLink and it is stereo… but M-dex I don’t nothing - sorry …my ‘english’ too
There is definitely a Bluetooth stereo profile (A2DP) - Advanced Audio Distribution Profile. You need to check if your Bluetooth devices support A2DP in order to get stereo.
I know the Phonak iCom does stereo, but I do not know about your hardware. Their site indicates that M-DEX is for mobile phones. They also say that TV-DEX is stereo.
TV-Dex is definitely stereo - the Widex rep had me listening to Fatboy-Slim ‘Praise You’ on it and you can spatially split the signal to tell which side the drums are etc.
Just got my Widex clear 440 RIC’s today replacing my Widex passion 440’s. Here are my observations. The clear aids are the same shape and size as the passions. The sound seems to be a bit better with the clears than the passions and both at least to my perception, produce fairly realistic sound reproduction. I am hearing more background noises with the clears that I couldn’t hear with the passions(air conditioners, fans etc.) but it doesn’t appear to interfere with hearing voices. I really could not hear the TV in my home at normal volumes with the passions and had to always use headphones. With the clears I can sit further away and at volumes my family typically uses actually hear the TV pretty well.(although to be honest the headphones still sound better). The passions were very good in noise but the clears may be better. I went out tonight to a very noisy restaurant, and it seemed that I could actually hear better than my wife (who has ears like a cat) but needed a few things repeated to her due to the noise levels. The M-dex (2 inches by 4 inches) is bigger than the passion remote but has more functions. I was a little disappointed it did not come with a leather protective cover like the passion remote which could also be clipped to a belt or pants pocket for easy access. The M-dex does come with an attachment so you can wear it around your neck if you wish. The bluetooth was fairly easy to connect with my cell phone. Pushing a button on the m-dex transfers the call to the aids which worked nicely. The M-dex has a microphone on it when you speak. People I spoke to from my car said my voice from the m-dex microphone sitting near my gear-shift sounded clearer than the factory installed Bluetooth microphone in my car did. As opposed to some posts I have read, I could change settings using the M-dex at arms length and it did not need to be right close to the aids themselves. Other settings- I can hear voices better with these than the passions when using the comfort setting, which is a great setting for noisy streets. The Zen setting is apparently not available yet in the US. The directionally function does work to some extent but it is still unclear how useful it will really be. The TV setting is as annoying with the clears as with the passions producing very tinny high pitched noises. Using the forward directional setting when watching TV might be a better choice for most people. The Music setting is similar to the passions which I believe increases bass and reduces noise suppression. Finally there is a phone setting that increases sound in one ear and reduces it in the other. A pretty good first day, but the big test comes at work. I will report back in a few weeks if I have any new comments or observations to make after using them longer.
According to the Widex website the fusions can be used for more profound hearing loss than the other RITE clears. They also use a 312 battery rather than the 10 size the clears use and appear to be slightly larger. The fusion has a telecoil built in and according to the manual has a program button on it. here are the links: http://www.widex.com/en/newsroom/2011/fusion/ http://www.widex.com/WebFiles/9%20514%200165%20001%20%2001.pdf
Oh I see but the processing is the same. I have quit a bit of audio clipping I wonder if it is the programming/processing or would the fusions would fit better.
Sorry, only just saw this: Mono. It’s a timing issue, if you have to send two channels of info down the line it costs you more than double the time as you have to sort out which channel is which. Phone inputs are mono anyway - so it’s of no consequence.
Not any more.
Most, if not all, smart phones are stereo devices.You can play or stream music and videos on them, in addition to using them as a telephone.
