Hearing Aids

[TitanMike]

I have finally gotten old enough that I am now starting to be like my old Uncle who could have a gun go off in the room and if he didn't see it, not realize it did.

Well, not that bad but I am noticing that the "Volume Number" on my TV is going up slowly as time passes.

My Med Advantage Plan covers hearing aids now so I figure it's time.

For those out there that wear hearing aids and would care to share I'd be interested in hearing from them about the good and bad experiences they might have had with different types and brands.

My "Plan" gives me access to the "Big Six" and the benefit makes even the high end aids very affordable so I'd like to make this investment "One and done" rather than having to try this, try that, and eventually find something that works.



Thanks in advance.

Mike

[WoodLark-SC]

I just got my hearing aids last Saturday. I am hearing sounds like I haven't heard for many years,especially at higher frequencies (that is where my hearing had deteriorated the most). I got Costco Kirkland KS9s. The only negatives so far:

Wind noise: If the wind blows across my ears, it can be annoying.

Electric toothbrush: Take the hearing aids out first!

[Jim Pters]

[QUOTE=TitanMike;2218240]I have finally gotten old enough that I am now starting to be like my old Uncle who could have a gun go off in the room and if he didn't see it, not realize it did.

Well, not that bad but I am noticing that the "Volume Number" on my TV is going up slowly as time passes.

My Med Advantage Plan covers hearing aids now so I figure it's time.

For those out there that wear hearing aids and would care to share I'd be interested in hearing from them about the good and bad experiences they might have had with different types and brands.

My "Plan" gives me access to the "Big Six" and the benefit makes even the high end aids very affordable so I'd like to make this investment "One and done" rather than having to try this, try that, and eventually find something that works.

[bikendan]

I just got hearing aids about 4 months ago. I have the typical male hearing loss in the upper range. Probably from being a firefighter/EMT.
I wasn't thrilled about them but the DW wasn't happy with me saying HUH? all the time. When I found out about the new technology in hearing aids, I became more interested.
Ended up with the Phonak Marvel M30. Watch some YouTube video reviews of the Phonak Marvel. They are very well reviewed by the Audiologist community.
Bluetooth capability, better software to sense the environment and adjust, lithium ion batteries that are rechargeable, variety of colors and very thin.
Quite happy with them, especially not having to replace batteries. They are also capable of having different sound profiles for the user to adjust through an app.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by bikendan

. I have the typical male hearing loss in the upper range. Probably from being a firefighter/EMT.

Mine is from my military service and civilian career. Weapons/explosions in the service and air operated impact wrenches in my civilian career. Spent way too much time around the impact wrenches with no ear protection (after all, I was just visiting the shops right?)

When I took up precision marksmanship as my hobby I bought some good ear protection but by then, too late

[Jim Pters]

Mike I am 75 now and have been wearing hearing aids for about 13 years now and Mine are about shot, they are still working but definitely show their age. I did a lot of shopping before I made the decision to buy, and found prices from $7000. down to $2000. the later is where I got mine because some of my friends had the same brand and liked the features they had. The supplier is Costco the aids are very high quality, the new ones use an app on your smart phone to change the channel for back ground noise, or the chanel that suits you for noise control and the volume control. I think the new ones have 3 channels. Mine did but kinda not working correctly anymore. I got mine while still working and had a phone answering attachment that allowed me to hear the caller in both ears which worked great. If you have any trouble with them Costco stands behind them. Mine had been replaced once and repaired once at a minimal cost. I hope this tidbit of info helps.

[D W]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

Mine is from my military service and civilian career. Weapons/explosions in the service and air operated impact wrenches in my civilian career. Spent way too much time around the impact wrenches with no ear protection (after all, I was just visiting the shops right?)

When I took up precision marksmanship as my hobby I bought some good ear protection but by then, too late

TitanMike:

Do you remember back in the day when we used cigarette butts for hearing protection on the rifle ranges?

[RedLdr1]

I've had hearing aids, bilateral, for about four years. I needed them for years but I just didn't feel my hearing was that bad. Well it was bad...about a 60% loss that wiped out higher frequencies and the mid range. I spent about 15 years in the Army around things that go bang and boom and they took their toll.

The first thing I realized is you don't get hearing aids for "you" per se. You get them for the people around you. Like Dan my DW was getting tired of the "Huh" responses and the TV volume blowing her out of the room. And I suddenly felt a lot more comfortable in restaurants and other locales where the background "buzz" kept me from hearing much of any conversation before I had them.

I'm vain enough that I insisted on having in the ear hearing aids. The excuse I used to hide my vanity was between wearing reading glasses and sunglasses I didn't to hassle with over the ear hearing aids. I ended up with Phonak Virto V70 that are very small and unobtrusive. The downside was they couldn't correct my hearing to 100% due to their limitations. But they corrected my hearing to approximately a 10% loss which is a huge difference.

When I first started wearing them I wasn't sure about them. I heard too much that I hadn't been hearing for years. An example my wife has a nylon jacket that is a really noisy fabric when she moves around. I almost tossed that jacket because it was so annoying. I also started speaking much softer as I realized I'd been "shouting" for some time to hear myself. That made my family and friends wonder about their hearing loss! Both of those issues, and a few others, worked put over the first couple months of wearing my hearing aids.

Do not buy something you're not happy with...you won't wear it. My audiologist has told me a very large percentage of hearing aids end up tossed in a drawer because the wearer isn't happy. Find a competent audiologist who will work with you to make sure you're happy with the end results.

Cost can be a big factor. My set was just under $5K four years ago. To help offset that join the AARP and use their hearing program. That will get you interest free financing for 12 months as well as free batteries and other user replaceable parts. And a three year warranty. Since I wasn't sure I'd wear mine I minimized add-ons like blue tooth, TV receivers, and rechargeable batteries on this set. When I replace mine next year I'm going to add a few frills as I know that I will wear them.

Hope this helped, feel free to ask any questions you may have.

[AZ Pete]

Today's hearing aids are worlds better than those of a few years ago. They are programmable and can be adjusted to your individual needs. However they will not give you the hearing of your youth, yet, at least in my experience.

I would recommend Costco, as has been mentioned. You will get very good aids for your insurance dollar. If the ones they provide don't give you what you want, have them reprogram them until you are satisfied, or give them back.

Chances are that which ever aid you get, or from whom, you will find the need to have them adjusted one or several times as you acclimate to them.

Good luck with your new hearing.

[aceinspp]

Originally Posted by Jim Pters

Mike I am 75 now and have been wearing hearing aids for about 13 years now and Mine are about shot, they are still working but definitely show their age. I did a lot of shopping before I made the decision to buy, and found prices from $7000. down to $2000. the later is where I got mine because some of my friends had the same brand and liked the features they had. The supplier is Costco the aids are very high quality, the new ones use an app on your smart phone to change the channel for back ground noise, or the chanel that suits you for noise control and the volume control. I think the new ones have 3 channels. Mine did but kinda not working correctly anymore. I got mine while still working and had a phone answering attachment that allowed me to hear the caller in both ears which worked great. If you have any trouble with them Costco stands behind them. Mine had been replaced once and repaired once at a minimal cost. I hope this tidbit of info helps.

Bought mine at Costco 2 1/2 years ago and very happy with them and the price. Free check ups every 3 months for cleaning and replacing battery's. no charge. Later RJD

[24_Byron_fan]

For me the worst part about hearing aids was getting used to having them in my ears. They felt a little weird for the first few hours but it wasn't a big deal. But by the end of the first day and into the second the inside of my ears started to itch a lot. I was constantly pulling the hearing aids out and scratching my ears. After a few days it went away but it was a pain at first.

[mudman2]

I’ve been wearing hearing aids for about 3 years now. I was in Vietnam in field artillery and pretty much did in my high frequency hearing. These new type have an amplifier that fits behind the ear with clear sound tube that goes in your ear.
Hard to believe the improvement I got.
You know the difference when you take them off at night.
If your ex military they’ll check u out and fit u for them.

[bob213]

I have had a Beltone (GN ReSound) hearing aid for almost 7 years. I am completely deaf in my right ear due to Minieres disease. The same hearing aid is sold at Costco for half the price. I will say that Beltone's service has been above and beyond what anyone could expect. Unlike our 3 in town Costco stores, there is always someone in the office at Beltone(except weekends) to help me with a problem. I'm ready to replace mine with the new blue tooth capable,rechargeable battery model and weighing the value of Beltone's service compared to Costco's price. Beltone will buy back my old one so I'm leaning towards service(Beltone) rather than price. One nice thing about Costco is since we are RVr's, while traveling it is easier to find a Costco than a Beltone store.
Good luck in your search. I'm happy with the behind the ear model and will go that way again no matter who I buy from.

[SlowrideHD]

Years in the bowels of an ammo ship in the Tonkin Gulf took my hearing over 2K hz. The VA supplied my aids at no cost and they are ReSound LINX Quattro, rechargeable. Fit behind the ear with a clear tube to the inside ear. Hardly noticeable. The case I drop them into at night recharges them and then they are good for about 30 hours. The case itself will charge them up about three times and then the case itself is rechargeable by plugging it in. I would guess they would be very expensive if I would have had to buy them. They work extremely well. Bluetooth and all that jazz.

[JayArras]

I just got the Oticon Opn S hearing aids in August because my biggest issue was understanding speech in noisy environments. Like others have mentioned, they are programmable and have a phone app that you can use to customize your settings. They have some neat features like answering phone calls, remote microphone and using them as headphones via Bluetooth. They are also cleverly designed to be undetectable when you are wearing them.

I only wear them when I go out, so I am still getting used to them. They're definitely an improvement for my type of hearing loss, but are not perfect, as I'm still having some issues trying to understand speech but I'm still experimenting with the settings. And I too find that they itch and give me a chill from time to time.

They now have a version that is rechargeable. I have the one that takes the 312 batteries. The best prices for batteries are on Amazon.

[AZ Pete]

JayArras...check Costco for battery prices, last I checked the Kirkland batteries were cheaper than anything on Amazon, and are good batteries.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by AZ Pete

JayArras...check Costco for battery prices, last I checked the Kirkland batteries were cheaper than anything on Amazon, and are good batteries.

Or you can can get the newer tech hearing aids with rechargeable lithium ion batteries. No need for battery replacement.

[SRN]

Newcomer to the hearing aid world myself. Went with the "Unitron D. Moxi Jump R7" aids as recommended by my audiologist. Rechargeable, Bluetooth compatible, very small. The Bluetooth feature is great. An app on my phone lets me raise or lower the volume without touching the hearing aid itself & I can answer a call without taking my phone out of my pocket. I never realized how much I wasn't hearing!

They are not cheap, but you get what you pay for. A lot of the ads on TV or on-line
claim they're "Hearing Aid Specialists" - even Costco. A lot of people are happy with Costco, and good for them, but they do not employ audiologists. Pay attention to what type of after-care you get as well as the warranty and ease of any repairs you may need and deal with an established, reputable business.

[AZ Pete]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Or you can can get the newer tech hearing aids with rechargeable lithium ion batteries. No need for battery replacement.

rechargable is fine, when you have 120vAC on tap, not so much if you are out of the US or in hunting camp. I prefer batteries.

[FordHauler]

My first set were Beltone and they were good. And expensive. When they died after 5 years I could not swallow the replacement price.
I too found the Costco ReSound brand to work great for me at about one third of the cost of Beltones. They were the same unit as my Beltones. The same company owns both brands and manufactures both in the same plant according to my audiologist.
Just last month, after wearing them for 31 months, the Costco audiologist asked me to leave them with him for 7-10 days. He returned them to the factory for service and when they were returned the packing slip showed they were basically new units.
The warranty was not extended but I had had no problems. I am expecting at least 3 more years troublefree. Good luck with whatever your decision is. The outcome will be a positive experience for you and your family.
Travel safe