Thoughts on hearing aids for audiophiles?

[rcstevensonaz]

About 6 months ago I got new hearing aids (at Costco, with audiometric exam). Fortunately they have a Music mode and a custom mode, which deletes any dynamic compression, and they provide a 3-band EQ.

The first bad thing I noticed was a buzzy ?resonance? in the upper midrange/lower treble. Did my best with the 3-band EQ in the user software, and the tech at Costco made an attempt or two to optimize them for me. I don't notice the resonance as much now.

The first good thing I noticed with music is that I'd been going without hearing any "hall sound" in orchestral recordings....it had gradually left me without me realizing that it had gone! That third dimension; how good to have it back!

Still getting used to my "new" hearing, partly by listening to a lot of very familiar recordings, learning to trust my hearing all over again. It will be a while, and I may never again be able to confidently make any critical judgements...but I can now hear spaces, and hear frequencies, that had slowly crept away from my notice. Ideas? Your experiences?

Thanks!

Thanks for the insights. Which brand / model did you get; or are all of Costco's hearing aid brands limited to 3-band EQ in the user software? And curious if that has changed with the newly released Philips HearLink 9050 model.

 

[Jack B]

Thanks for the insights. Which brand / model did you get; or are all of Costco's hearing aid brands limited to 3-band EQ in the user software? And curious if that has changed with the newly released Philips HearLink 9050 model.

I have the Jabra Enhance Pro 20. Although the user app's EQ is limited to three bands, the hearing aid professionals have a much greater number of bands to choose from, like maybe 8...still, nothing like third-octave EQ. I don't know about any of the other Costco offerings. Regarding the Philips hearlink 9050, I don't know, but their app has a feature called a streaming equalizer for adjusting the frequency response of streamed audio, improving clarity and sound quality, especially for music. Since mid-2023, the app has offered a sound equalizer and a journal feature. The equalizer lets you fine-tune streamed audio (but not amplified listening/speech sounds). You could probably download the app and find out more. Regards