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Hearing aid question

Decades ago I at least thought of myself as a bit of a "Golden Ear"; my Quad ELS/Pyramid supertweeter combo and associated electronics were a source of pride and joy. (All gone over the years, alas.) In recent years I have learned that I have essentially lost the top three octaves of my auditory frequency response, whether through natural aging or some other process I'm not sure; I also have a fair bit of tinnitus at this stage, but that has proved less of an issue in being able to enjoy music. So now I've gone from enjoying the transparent reproduction of great music to struggling to resolve the sibilants in my wife's speech. (In the overall scheme of things, the latter is arguably more important, at least in maintaining peace at home.) I still very much enjoy listening to music, but the high-end losses have somewhat diminished the joy of it.

I am of course starting to think about taking the leap into hearing aids as a genuine quality-of-life enhancement. I was wondering if anyone out there has dealt with similar issues, and perhaps formed opinions about which of the many available solutions has worked best as both a general lifestyle aid and a boost to their enjoyment of live and recorded music. Many thanks in advance.

ericrhenry5488
signaforce's avatar
signaforce
169 posts
 

@larsman 

Unfortunately, there are no audiophile hearing aids. The IEM’s, such as the ASI’s would work for voice also but are ear buds with a small belt pack so not inconspicuous. I also read that while other voices sound fine, your own voice sounds weird. 
Quality hearing aids are very small and inconspicuous, but are designed for voice. They have music settings to improve music listening and help a lot for listening to music for those with hearing loss. 
There is no perfect solution. For me, I think my best solution is hearing aids for the real world and the ASI’s for music. If only one purchase, I would choose hearing aids. However, IMHO doing nothing is not a wise choice.

Side comment, some studies have shown a link between untreated hearing loss and dementia. With dementia and untreated hearing loss in my family, my choice was easy… and my music sounds much better!

larsman's avatar
larsman
1,882 posts
 

@signaforce - yeah, maybe in the future there will be something like that. I've worn hearing aids for over 20 years now and tend to upgrade them every 4 or 5 years. They have gotten better and most have 'music' programs and very basic Bass, Mid, and Treble EQ. No, it's far from perfect but it's the best I've heard in a long time (just got new ones a couple weeks ago), and I can also use them for speech, TV, etc etc. I will be getting a pair of in-the-canal ones for use with my headphones; I've got one pair of those now, but I don't like them that much, even though the headphones still sound a lot better with them than without them. 

troutstreamnm
44 posts
 

Yes, see an Audiologist and invest in programmable hearing aid that correct for your specific hearing loss.  You can’t get this level of correction buying something off the shelf.  Additionally, quality aids will have filtering programs specifically for listening to music.  No hearing aid will solve your loss, but good aids can change your life…and maybe help your marriage 😆

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zorro
44 posts
 

Eric,

I'm musician and audiophile and was in the same boat so after a lot of reviews I've decide it to go with Widex Moment 440 and very happy with it, all the details that I've be missed it's back with a natural sound.This aids it's amazing.

 

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