h3aring aids make it better at great cost of reality
Results of Actual Hearing Test and Next Steps
Like probably many on this forum I’m getting into that post 60 age where hearing may not hear as well as it once was. To baseline where I stand today, I arranged a professional assessment. Results:
- 10dB loss at 2K Hz
- 20dB loss at 4K Hz
- 20dB loss at 8K Hz
- Word recognition 100% at 70dB
- Sound tolerance to 110dB (that’s loud)
Summary; mild to moderate loss at higher frequencies; muddled conversations in group settings. No urgent need for hearing aids but higher volume may be required for media.
I listen to music mostly at the 70-85 dB range; most theatrical movies and concerts can go as high as 95-100dB which is too loud for me. My McIntosh MA352 has EQ knobs which I rarely use. I prefer direct sound without boosting and play mostly vinyl. Also have EQ in my car.
I tried enhancing EQ settings at 2K and 10K Hz and found it did add more detail; at least it was an agreeable sound. My hope is to avoid hearing aids for as long as possible and still get maximum music enjoyment.
Anybody else encountering this or have some workarounds to suggest?
- ...
- 43 posts total
@mahler123 Congrats on retirement! I did it in 2015 and it has been challenging. You've got to look for ways to stay busy. |
One item that going to an audiologist v. OTC is the option of having custom earpieces molded for your aids. Yes, it does add $, but the comfort factor (imho) is worth it. I've lost count of the times I've gone to bed to remind self to put them into the charger; there was the time I got into the shower and realized I was still 'aided' just as I began putting my pate under the showerhead... The shock of bailing out nude and wet into a cold room to hastily dry off 'enough' to remove them Will embed that routine. Trust me on that, if nothing else... ;) 🙄 *L* There are some 'side effects' of wearing aids over the long term (4ish years in my case) one may notice...(this or these may be distracting to some, and tend to be of a transient nature of notice....).... Jaw movement can cause the in-ear aid to wiggle slightly, a 'rubbing' sound, typically when eating or a yawn... There's a slight 'tin can' quality that shows up in certain situations; hard to quantify if it's due to the space one's in (room eq strikes again! *L*). Widex has a 'demo' that exhibits this, although slightly exaggerated to make the point.... ....but I'll hold off until under IRL experience.... I was classified as 'severe', everything above 6~7Khz rolls off and down. The eq curves on my 31 band units, before and after (the latter 'tweaked for taste v. need') is depressing on the one hand; the other a testament to how much and how well aids can restore ones' enjoyment of the music we live for. Look @ it this way, go get tested. The majority will do it for free, the better ones will tell you precisely what's 'gone south'. Even mild losses can be corrected for, the ones' that age almost inevitably causes; if you find a way to avoid getting old (or older), please share it with us.... ...and don't limit it to hearing, either... ;) |
@dweller thanks for the good wishes. I’ve already started by tackling some cleaning and downsizing projects that I always claimed that I would tackle in retirement. It’s a great excuse to pull CDs that have been unplayed for years off the shelf as background. There is enough to keep me going for a few months here. I have a pile of books that I’d been wanting to get too and have already read two of them. I started Piano lessons a year ago and now have more time to practice (unfortunately the results don’t seem to reflect the increased elbow grease). I have joined two book clubs that meet monthly and already me a great groups of people, and I am looking to sign up for a creative writing course. I haven’t missed work for one second. Last night I dreamed that I had to return to work for some reason and that I was going to be unable to do all of these activities. I’ll take this “nightmare” as a good sign, as I years past that dream would have had different content. fwiw, I had asked my audiologist at U of C about having custom molds, and she blew me off. I don’t think she understood the importance of music to me ( she also looked to be about 12 years old, and we all know that generation views music listening in a very different way than we seniors). The audiology tech at Costco, who looked more like my contemporary and who also listens to my genre, was more sympathetic but advised me to try going without them first. We actually have two family friends in the field, one a retired audiologist and the other in her early 30s, whom I intended to curbside |
- 43 posts total