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

I have a similar hearing loss.  Hearing is normal up to about 2 k then falls sharply after that.  About 5 years ago I purchased my first set of hearing aids.  My current devices are Signia AX.  I have 6 hearing settings universal, noisy environment, television, recorded music, outdoor sport, and stroll.

 

My audiologist had tweaked the universal profile to boost upper frequencies by about 2 db to help with hearing conversations.  The recorded music profile takes the 2db boost away.

 

If I listen to music on the universal profile highs will seem a bit bright and harsh.  On the recorded music profile it clears it up immensly.

After going to the hearing aids my quality of life and enjoyment of music has increased.

 

I have seen some people here fretting about the da converters in the hearing aids and so on.  Never occurred to me to worry about that.

 

The cost of the hearing aids was very reasonable at about $2100 for the pair.  For me this is a great investment.

 

Do they sound the same as my original equipment (ears) no but getting the harmonics back through the hearing aids has given me plenty of enjoyment.

 

Just my 2 cents worth.

One more thing.  The hearing aids I have have 48 frequency bands for the audiologist to adjust hearing with.  I got mine though my insurance and they are a rebranded signia hearing aid which is why the price is relatively low.

ericrhenry5488

I’ve been pleased and surprised by the number of thoughtful responses ...

Me, too @ericrhenry5488. I’ve been an audiophile for a l-o-n-g time. I’m sure that any discussion about hearing aids would have been met with derision by the audiophile world of my youth. In fact, they were used as insult, as in, "You really need to get some hearing aids if you like that amp."

It’s refreshing to see the supportive tone of this discussion. It may be that we will all rely on hearing aids at some point in our future, so it might be beneficial to learn a bit about them now. Thanks to to all that have contributed.

I have been using hearing aids for a number of years now. The first two pairs I had were just awful! They were Costco's best and Phonak. I have Widex now and they are absolutely the best. Recommended by musicians. But you need a good audiologist who is willing to work with you. Make sure they understand that you want to listen to music, not just tweeked for voice. 

Eric . . . this is NOT a gag or a joke. For $12.98 on eBay you can buy “Earglasses” . . incredible. Sit in front of your tv or sound system. Cup your hands behind your ears . . . difference is beyond belief !  Depth and clarity are incredible improved. We should have dog ears !  Earglasses are decidedly not for public use but at home they would be amazing. Full disclosure, I do not own Earglasses but often sit with my hands cupped behind my ears . . . and envy dog hearing !