This hearing problem is something that many of us have or will have by varying degrees as we get more mature, which is ironic since that is the time when we can really afford the exotic goodies and pursue that psychoacoustic nirvana which for some of us is a convincingly lifelike soundstage.
One thing to keep in mind, though, before you decide to forego or delay going to an audiologist, is that there is much more at stake than just your enjoyment of your favorite tunes. Degrees of deafness closely correlate to social isolation and depression and ultimately some types of early dementia. There are lots of interesting studies on this subject that you can google. If you have a friend or a loved one who is in that awkward situation where they can’t carry on a normal conversation unless they are right in your face (not good during Covid isolation) then by all means help them think seriously about exploring this type of help.
There are good hearing aids available (according to Consumer Reports) at Costco of all places but I somehow don’t think I want to go cheap on something like this although they do offer accurate free hearing tests with frequency charts you can take home. A reputable audiologist or chain will let you try out different hearing aids until you find what you want or can live with. I have a friend I grew up with, with whom I shared a small business designing and manufacturing speakers and crossovers who eventually segued into owning a hearing aid shop, and since he was a musician and seriously into audio I looked to him for a hearing solution since he is also starting to need one too. It’s amazing how much technology they pack into those little buggers. And once you’re used to them, I can only explain it by comparing it to your eyesight when going from VHS to HD, Blu-Ray DVD or better.
I got a pair of the “top end” units and after 2 years the technology had improved so much that I had to go to the next step, so I’m on my second set. My first set allowed me to select a setting that reverse mirrored my hearing loss but otherwise was straight thru with amplification, besides the normal conversational modes. This did not have any of the typical feedback dampening or other logic so that I could avoid the strange changes to music in that earlier generation of hearing aids, especially on sustained high notes which otherwise tend to gargle a bit (enough to be really annoying).
The new set I have has a much faster processor and bitrate among other things and I listen to it with music of all kinds and it is amazing how dreary music can be when you forget to put them on until you power them up. And I don’t have to fuss with them when going into a conversation in a crowded room – they compensate somehow. Because my loss is in the upper register, my sets let the low frequencies go straight thru (by not blocking the ear canal) but they still somewhat augment the high frequencies. At my last visit to the audiologist they were able to download an upgrade to the processor in my units and give me the benefit of some tweaks. My brand of choice is Oticon.
I know – it’s a huge leap of faith. Most of us have grown to believe that the less signal processing there is to the music, the better, which of course makes sense. You have to consider, though, that your ear is the last link in the chain. This may not work for everyone, but in my opinion hearing aid technology has improved exponentially to make it possible for even purists to increase their enjoyment. They’re not perfect but they’re way better than the alternative. Just sayin’…
