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DFoster

Hearing loss

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I know there are quite a few of us on the forum that are dealing with hearing loss.  I've been a professional musician for over 40 years and unfortunately early on I worked with extremely loud bands.  I haven't played at those volumes in decades but the damage was already done in back in the 80's.  Both of the bands I currently work with use BOSE sound systems and have for over 10 years.  They make an incredible system and they have been as reliable as a steel anvil.  This Tuesday Bose released their long awaited hearing aids which I tried to purchase yesterday but they sold out in 18 hours.  My current hearing aids are done.  The right one is completely dead and the left one is on it's way out so to say I was disappointed is an understatement.  This morning I received a phone call from Bose to let me know they were again available, shipping to be delayed for a week due to production.  I immediately purchased a set. 

For anyone reading this with hearing loss or needs hearing aids here's what you should be aware of-

My current and soon to be previous aids were from Bel Tone.  The Salesman (that's what they are) said they were "top of the line" when I purchased them at $8400.00/pair.  Like most, my insurance paid nothing and the only help I got was for being a AAA member so $6400.00 out of pocket. They could only be adjusted at a Bel Tone office and so I made many visits resulting in "try this setting for a few weeks". Despite 5 years of visits Bel Tone never got it right.  And at each visit I would have to endure the sales pitch about how wonderful the latest models are and they would only cost me another 6 grand!  I already spent 6 grand and still can't hear.   I am still watching TV on closed caption and I annoy everyone around me by constantly asking them to repeat themselves.  Something the salesman "forgot" to mention at my original fitting was that the life expectancy for $6400.00 is 4-5 years.  

The BOSE aids retail for $849.00/pair on line and they offer 12 month interest free financing ($71/month).  Expensive but not insane and I suspect that because it's Bose that the life expectancy will be at least as good as any of the other brands out there, probably better.  They offer a full refund up to 90 days.  What really sold me is that they are immediately adjustable via a smart phone.  No visits/sales pitch and I can tune them to fit the surrounding noise, place to place if needed.  Not just the volume but the equalization.  

So for me this is exciting, not like finding a LAW vise at a yard sale but close because hearing loss is truly depressing.   I am really, really hopeful that BOSE has figured out a way to produce a useful and reliable hearing aid at a reasonable price.   There are tens of thousands of us that need that solution.    I'm posting all this just to make some in the same situation at least aware that there are options other than refinancing your home.  If anyone is interested they can PM me and I will be glad give you a review after I've had them for a while.

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My hearing loss, according to the audiologist, is in the low range which is hereditary. My mother was deaf as a post but refused to get hearing aids. She said she didn't need them. My hearing aids amplify the background noise in an open area so I still can't hear conversation.

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👍🤞

(That's sign language for I'm excited for you and hope they work)

A little off-topic?... My teenage daughter is getting more and more into playing drums over the past few years. Other than "don't play drums," is there any protective advice / device you'd recommend or that you know of to help with reducing hearing damage over the long term?

If it's an unwelcome distraction from the main point of your thread, my apologies in advance and feel free to cut me off or pm with a response.

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1 hour ago, DFoster said:

The BOSE aids retail for $849.00/pair

With the cost of hearing aids being in the thousands for most, I'm totally shocked a top end brand like BOSE only $849 😲 I wish my Mom would look into them so she could up her quality of life. She's 77 and her hearing has gotten so bad lately I have to repeat probably 80% or more of what I say to her.

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Let us know how those Bose work out. There was a recent change in the law allowing other companies to market "hearing aids." Whether this is actually an improvement for the customer is yet to be determined.

So those devices that you see advertised before that look like little transistor radios with earbuds for listening to the TV can now be sold as medical "Over the Counter hearing aids."

https://www.health.com/health-reviews/over-the-counter-hearing-aids

https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2019/otc-hearing-aids.html#:~:text=The change comes thanks to,less than traditional hearing aids.&text=For one%2C they're designed,mild to moderate hearing loss.

 

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Somehow I hear just fine but my wife has been using expensive hearing aids for years. Her initial expensive pair cost around 6 grand but they have come down to about 4 grand. As long as I can remember Hers have always been adjustable through an iPhone app after they have been set for her particular hearing problem at the audiologist. 

Thanks for the heads up though because you are right about the service life. Perhaps she will look into them next time. 

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on a scale of 0 to 75, the volume level on my dads tv is set to 74

i think he needs hearing aids ☝️

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11 minutes ago, chugbug27 said:

👍🤞

(That's sign language for I'm excited for you and hope they work)

A little off-topic?... My teenage daughter is getting more and more into playing drums over the past few years. Other than "don't play drums," is there any protective advice / device you'd recommend or that you know of to help with reducing hearing damage over the long term?

If it's an unwelcome distraction from the main point of your thread, my apologies in advance and feel free to cut me off or pm with a response.

Not a distraction at all.  First, I played for a decade in loud rock bands (lead guitar and electric bass) and I have no doubt that a major factor in my hearing loss was due to the drummers cymbals being right behind my head.  Often we were on small stages and there was no where to move to.  I did try some of the hearing protectors available at the time but they were to restrictive and made everything muffled.  I do know there are now products available that claim to allow all the frequency's through at a safe level but I have never used them.  I would encourage you to have your daughter try them and warn her of the bad things that can happen when she reaches her 30's.  There is no volume control on drums and they are loud by nature.  Tell her I know people who had to give up music permanently because of worsening hearing issues.

20 years ago I switched to upright bass and began working with more subdued rock bands.  Thankfully the volume levels these days are no where near the face melting levels of the 80's.  My hearing hasn't gotten any worse since that time.  Here's a photo from St Patrick's Day 2020.

bass.thumb.jpg.c70dd7b394bea0a8e1153985cdd85f21.jpg

 

 

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1 hour ago, Steeldrifter said:

With the cost of hearing aids being in the thousands for most, I'm totally shocked a top end brand like BOSE only $849 😲 I wish my Mom would look into them so she could up her quality of life. She's 77 and her hearing has gotten so bad lately I have to repeat probably 80% or more of what I say to her.

Steve they're available on line and they'll ship them to her door.  She may need help with adjusting the levels depending on her tech knowledge (Cell phone and aps).

Be sure to check you local regulations on over the counter hearing aids.

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25 minutes ago, SilverCreek said:

Let us know how those Bose work out. There was a recent change in the law allowing other companies to market "hearing aids." Whether this is actually an improvement for the customer is yet to be determined.

So those devices that you see advertised before that look like little transistor radios with earbuds for listening to the TV can now be sold as medical "Over the Counter hearing aids."

https://www.health.com/health-reviews/over-the-counter-hearing-aids

https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2019/otc-hearing-aids.html#:~:text=The change comes thanks to,less than traditional hearing aids.&text=For one%2C they're designed,mild to moderate hearing loss.

 

From what I've read the hearing aid companies always cite government restrictions and regulations as a major factor to the cost.  Maybe that is the case, I don't know.  Still as an engineer I have to wonder if the 4 year life span is by design .  Corrosion rates of conductive metals are very well understood.  I'm guessing here but I would think that corrosion is a major reason why they fail.  Considering the minute size of the device why not use non corrosive materials like gold for all conductive circuitry?  The amount needed would be minimal when compared to an increased lifespan. 

Maybe there's and electrical engineer out there that could shed some light on this?

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4 hours ago, chugbug27 said:

A little off-topic?... My teenage daughter is getting more and more into playing drums over the past few years. Other than "don't play drums," is there any protective advice / device you'd recommend or that you know of to help with reducing hearing damage over the long term?

If it's an unwelcome distraction from the main point of your thread, my apologies in advance and feel free to cut me off or pm with a response.

Ear protection with any noise louder than a normal conversation. There are ear muff style ear protectors that cut off the loud noises but allow you to hear regularly(kinda like automatic welding glasses), but for a drummer, I'd just stick with the old foam plugs. You don't need to hear nuance, just the beat. 

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DFoster keep us updated I just replaced my old ones last fall with a pair of Widex, really interested in how well the Bose work out. I have a severe high  freq loss on left with moderate  loss in right, has been difficult for the audiologist to adjust for me. These new devices are much better than my last pair but still leave me desiring in crowded conversations.

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15 hours ago, flytire said:

on a scale of 0 to 75, the volume level on my dads tv is set to 74

i think he needs hearing aids ☝️

LOL - Norm that's how my wife got me to get my first set, she couldn't stand the TV volume any longer!

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10 hours ago, cphubert said:

DFoster keep us updated I just replaced my old ones last fall with a pair of Widex, really interested in how well the Bose work out. I have a severe high  freq loss on left with moderate  loss in right, has been difficult for the audiologist to adjust for me. These new devices are much better than my last pair but still leave me desiring in crowded conversations.

I'll be glad to- as you can probably gather from my rantings this has been a frustrating journey for me, first and foremost that my condition was self inflicted.  I'm in the moderate to severe range of high frequency loss myself.  The Bose site states their product is for mild to moderate loss.  Well maybe but I believe that if I can control the EQ of the devices from my phone I can make them work for me at least as well as the Bel Tones which need to be replaced anyway and these are way less money.  With the Bel Tones the problem wasn't their out put volume, they were often too loud,  the problem  was the equalization.   As I'm sure your audiologist did with you they would boost the frequency's that I was missing based on a hearing test.  That approach works for some but not all.  If your in the "not all" category it's almost impossible to describe how you hear with enough accuracy to allow someone else to adjust your aids.  My reality was the world always sounded like an AM radio playing in a gymnasium with the treble maxed and the bass off.  Often people speaking sounded a lot like Charlie Brown's school teacher.  I had no chance in an environment with a ton of ambient high freq noise like a restaurant.  The clinking of silverware on plates would drown everything out literally at sometimes painful levels and I would inevitably have to shut them off.  A simple volume control would have made things so much better.  Why would a company produce devices at $8400 price point and then force you to go to them to adjust something as simple as volume?

 

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