I've been losing hearing for the last several years - really became apparent during covid when everyone was masked - apparently I'm pretty good at lip reading.

Now that there are a lot of OTC sellers, I'm wondering if anyone has real life experience.

Just took an online hearing test and shows I have "moderate" loss in both ears. Since I wear glasses full time I'm thinking in the ear would be best? Or should I just wait for Apple to retrofit airpods???

As a late adopter (at least later than I should have), I now can't imagine not wearing them. Sadly, they're still not perfect, but there have been so many improvements in recent years. Yes, the good ones are pricey. If you find a good hearing specialist, I believe they'll let you try a couple of versions to see which is best for you. Especially if you find one who sells or represents more than one brand.

There are quite a few hearing aid forums out there where you can ask specific questions, or just browse around and take in the info. Also, I found this Dr. Cliff guy to be pretty informative. [www.youtube.com]

This is just my opinion, but make an appointment with an audiologist to have your hearing evaluated professionally. Secondly, do not make a purchase decision before you price them at Costco. Their Initial cost plus ongoing service are very good.

I agree you should check with Costco and also with Sam's Club. They have audiologists who do comprehensive hearing exams.

A year ago I got my hearing evaluated at Sams Club. It shows a pretty common loss of high frequency hearing that is likely related to me standing in front of big speakers at Fillmore West as an adolescent/young adult. My Medicare Advantage program subsidizes hearing aids. Last year their lowest prescription hearing aid was the Jabra Enhance Select 50R Hearing Aids. I paid right at $400 for my co-pay for a pair. The interesting thing is that anybody can buy exactly the same thing as over the counter direct from Jabra. Right now those are $1200 if bought from Jabra. I bought the cheap ones because I didn't really know if I would use them. I do use them and I'm satisfied with how they work for me. I do still have some problems, particularly in environments with a lot of people talking. But, I'm readily able to hear individual conversations when there's not a lot of other noise around.

I will look at more expensive hearing aids maybe in a year or so. There has to be a reason why the same company will sell hearing aids that have a very large range in price. In my case, I'll look at my Medicare Advantage company's captive hearing aids and I'll go to one of their in-network providers so that I can try several levels of hearing aids. The subsidized cost of their best hearing aids is $2500 a pair. If they provide a better experience than the $400 I paid for my current ones I'd pay the price.

Definitely get checked by a licensed audiologist - not just a salesperson. Avoid the places the advertise the most or have their own house brand of hearing aides.

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Michael
I agree you should check with Costco and also with Sam's Club. They have audiologists who do comprehensive hearing exams.

AFAIK, the people who evaluate your hearing at Costco are not audiologists (Doctors). I would describe them as hearing aid techs. There’s quite a bit of difference in the amount of education each one has. I had my hearing evaluated by an Audiologist and brought the report with me to Costco for the tech to see.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 09/30/2024 09:17AM by Numo.

I bought a pair of Costco hearing aids and had them tuned by technician number one. After a month or so I realized they weren't quite right so I went back to see technician number two who returned them according to what he saw on the graph. Six or eight months later, I thought my hearing might've changed so I went back for further tuning to number three technician. The bottom line was none of the technicians got the tuning right. I wore them for another year and a half until one failed . I tossed the whole package out.

Set up an appointment with TruHearing. Poor pair of the same type for the same price as Costco. Had them retune the left ear once after two weeks of wearing. They've been fine ever since(over a year now).
The Costco units had replaceable batteries. The TruHearing units are rechargeable. I'd like that much better.

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Ed (modelamac)

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/30/2024 09:57AM by modelamac.

Whatever device you get, make sure that it is MFI. MFI Link
The “live listen“ feature improves the ability to hear people across the table from you in noisy restaurants, and in other situations. It leverages the microphone in your iPhone to transmit the voice of the person you have the phone near directly to your hearing device.
Costco offers free hearing test to anyone, and it can give you a baseline.
No matter what device you get make sure it is MFI, Made for iPhone.

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modelamac
I bought a pair of Costco hearing aids and had them tuned by technician number one. After a month or so I realized they weren't quite right so I went back to see technician number two who returned them according to what he saw on the graph. Six or eight months later, I thought my hearing might've changed so I went back for further tuning to number three technician. The bottom line was none of the technicians got the tuning right. I wore them for another year and a half until one failed . I tossed the whole package out.

Set up an appointment with TruHearing. Poor pair of the same type for the same price as Costco. Had them retune the left ear once after two weeks of wearing. They've been fine ever since(over a year now).
The Costco units had replaceable batteries. The TruHearing units are rechargeable. I'd like that much better.

That’s why I recommend getting your hearing tested by an audiologist rather than a technician. Maybe things were different when you went to Costco, but when I got my last hearing aid there (about a year ago), I had the choice of replaceable or rechargeable batteries. I choose replaceable because I go off the grid (w no electricity) from time to time.

The Phonak hearing aids I got two years ago—yeah, I was late in getting them too—have been life changing. I think retail is around $3500, but my Medicare Advantage covered all but $500. An audiologist did my analysis and I had the typical too-much-loud-concert-music loss at upper frequencies.

They were tailored to my hearing response curves, but that compensation isn't effective in all environments, so I can tailor them to specific equalizations on my iPhone, which stores up to six of my programs. But it wasn't until I got hearing aids that I realized just how sophisticated natural hearing really is.

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But it wasn't until I got hearing aids that I realized just how sophisticated natural hearing really is.

Ain't that the truth. If you still have your (good) hearing, be thankful and do what you can to preserve it, because it'll never be as good as it once was.

I should schedule a visit to Kaiser to have my hearing checked.

There aren't too many 'What you say Mistah?!' moments, but I see in subtitles that sounds have occurred that I didn't hear, though dialogue sounds fine.

I use subs/CC because when occasionally, some words are garbled, and no matter how loud I boost the volume, they make no sense.

Then when I see it I wonder how the sound was so far off.

So I'd at least like to know where I stand; the tinnitus is a given.

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Numo

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Michael
I agree you should check with Costco and also with Sam's Club. They have audiologists who do comprehensive hearing exams.

AFAIK, the people who evaluate your hearing at Costco are not audiologists (Doctors). I would describe them as hearing aid techs. There’s quite a bit of difference in the amount of education each one has. I had my hearing evaluated by an Audiologist and brought the report with me to Costco for the tech to see.

My mistake. Thanks for that information.

fwiw, lots of folks at the 'audiologists' are techs even if they are backed up by docs. It is just economics. ENT specialties are getting rarer. It is true that some insurance coverage requires a special exam.

I have had a couple of Costco techs through the years. They have been very professional. One was an engineer for one of the hearing aid companies and another was trained by/worked for an 'audiologist.'

All the systems and software they all use are provided by the manufacturers.

The hearing aid choices range from 'over the ear' to 'in the ear' to 'in the canal'. Costco offers all of them. Costco no longer sells their own label (Kirkland, made by one of the big firms).

The industry hates Costco. I mean really, really hates them. The industry had pushed the prices up over $5k all in...and Costco was below $2k. It is a Biz school case of disruption.

Also, they are all moving toward a low end OTC offering. Costco offers the Bose product at $1k. These OTC offerings are 'self-fitting' with an app and your phone.

What about the new Apple AirPods Pro 2? Supposedly coming very soon.

[www.apple.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/01/2024 10:00PM by bfd.