Hi all. Entering my 4th month of hearing loss in one ear. It’s down about 20db from the other ear. Unfortunately there is also tinnitus and vertigo. I just purchased a new s300 to go with my SGCD, and it sounds really good compared to my old Rotel RB 1080. I wish I could appreciate all the soundstage subtleties that I once could. Has anyone have a recommendation on a hearing aid that has the sound quality that will satisfy a music lover? I’ll be seeing an audiologist next month, so currently in the research phase. Thanks.
Many years ago when my Dad needed hearing aids, I asked an audiologist what hearing aid brands they recommended and they said, Oticon, Starkey and Resound. These are not the brands that you see advertised, and my Dad did not try any of them. Instead, he went through at least three different brands like Miracle Ear, and was never really happy with any of them.
My recommendation would be to find a good audiologist and ask what they recommend. I am sure that hearing aid technology has improved significantly in the past decade, so the brands that I mentioned may no longer be the best.
I use Widex Evoke 440. Custom programmable, special music program, bluetooth, streaming, etc. I’m down about 40dB at 8kHz and they compensate. Tinnitus also. Great phone app that lets you customize on the fly. Look them up.
I wear an Oticon hearing aid on each ear for high frequency loss in both ears. I am fortunate, my niece is my audiologist so I knew I could trust her. I tried 3 or 4 different different brands of hear aids before settling on the Oticons. My niece tried to talk me into other brands because they were cheaper, had better warranties, more features, etc. All of the other brands I tried were very good for peoples voices but if I walked into a room where music was playing, it sounded so bad I quickly turned it off or left. My niece said Oticon is the black sheep of the hearing aid makers. Pretty much all the rest take a very similar approach to the technology but Oticon is different. With the Oticons music sounds good to me.
All hearing aids are digital these days. If you remember how bad some of the original CD players sounded you know how bad poor digital can sound. And hearing aids are expensive. I knew I needed them but I also knew I was going to be living with my choice every day for a very long time. Audition them like you would any piece of audio equipment. The deal I was offered was, wear them for 60 days and if you don’t like them, return them and don’t pay a dime. So yes, it took a while to fine the right pair for myself but in the end I’m very happy with them all around. And don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t hear whether or not a stereo sounds good just because you wear hearing aids.
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My Wife’s been hearing impaired (both sides) since she was a Toddler due an ear infection caused by an improper dosage of medicine at a Hospital in Mexico City. She can’t hear a Damn thing above 5kHz due to many Surgery’s as a kid. Anyway, she’s been wearing Oticon’s for the last few years and they are VERY durable. She can sense about 5kHz and can easily discern a good a pair of Speakers over a schiitty pair. I even had her put on the Koss Electrostatic’s with no hearing aid’s on, I adjusted the dual concentric volume knob’s, and cranked the gain on the DSD Sr., and she couldn’t believe how nice it sounded.
Thanks for the suggestions. The concern about digital quality is what motivated this post. PSA goes to great lengths voicing their products. Hearing aids must have a microphone, ADC, DSP, amplifier, DAC, and speaker all working together. They are all capable of adding their own distortion. I will definitely try the brands suggested.
An excellent example of why I continue to maintain neither the quality of the recording nor the listener’s hearing is all that important in judging the quality of audio reproduction.
I couldn’t agree more. While my unassisted high frequency hearing is not good, my new normal is with an aid on each ear. You can definitely hear sound stage, imaging, and detail improvements. I’m probably 5 years from needing new hearing aids, based on expected life for my aids. I will definitely audition several pairs with the same seriousness I put into any audio equipment audition. One could argue it’s even more important for the hearing aid because I live with them almost every waking minute of my life, not just when listening to music.
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I too re Rec Oticon ,also reinforce how important it is to have audiologist You can work with To help getting everything set for music .
Have gone thru process several times am amazed what difference correct setting/fitting makes and ads to music enjoyment