Stompin at the Savoy Posted February 9 Report Posted February 9 1 hour ago, mikeweil said: The result is always that your perception of specific frequency ranges is impaired. Hearind aids simply amplify these, just as an equalizer does. Well, they are adjusted like an equalizer! BTW I read a report by some HiFi enthusiast who was extremely dissatisfied with listening to music even with the highest quality hearing aids, but solved the problem with an braodband equalizer that he adjusted to his needs. Only that this kind of thing is despised by hard core audiophiles ... This is how I listen to music. I can't hear mids and trebles as well as I once could so I boost them with an equalizer. And play with the volume. Purists might sneer but it's nice to hear cymbals, rhythm guitar, etc Quote
Brad Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 On 2/8/2024 at 9:55 PM, Stompin at the Savoy said: This is how I listen to music. I can't hear mids and trebles as well as I once could so I boost them with an equalizer. And play with the volume. Purists might sneer but it's nice to hear cymbals, rhythm guitar, etc You wouldn’t have to do all that if you had hearing aids. In addition, not having hearing aids increases your chances for dementia. Quote
mikeweil Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 1 hour ago, Brad said: You wouldn’t have to do all that if you had hearing aids. In addition, not having hearing aids increases your chances for dementia. Do you have a reliable source for this? That said, the sound may subjectively be better with an equalizer in hifi quality, as hearing aids are not build for this standard. Quote
Stompin at the Savoy Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 (edited) I think the dementia risk kicks in when the person really can't hear much at all and becomes isolated. Probably most of us are not there yet. In my case I still have fairly sensitive hearing and can hear quite low level sounds. But the loss of sensitivity to some frequencies is noticeable to me. When I play acoustic guitar I don't feel like I am hearing the richness and fullness I used to hear. If I set up some mics and monitor the guitar on headphones it's almost like before. Same with recorded music. I compensate. Edited February 10 by Stompin at the Savoy Quote
BFrank Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 On 2/8/2024 at 8:46 PM, Chuck Nessa said: Huh? What? Quote
Brad Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 (edited) 8 hours ago, Stompin at the Savoy said: I think the dementia risk kicks in when the person really can't hear much at all and becomes isolated. Probably most of us are not there yet. In my case I still have fairly sensitive hearing and can hear quite low level sounds. But the loss of sensitivity to some frequencies is noticeable to me. When I play acoustic guitar I don't feel like I am hearing the richness and fullness I used to hear. If I set up some mics and monitor the guitar on headphones it's almost like before. Same with recorded music. I compensate. If you had hearing aids that would probably take care of the issue. I’m puzzled why you haven’t done that yet. 9 hours ago, mikeweil said: Do you have a reliable source for this? That said, the sound may subjectively be better with an equalizer in hifi quality, as hearing aids are not build for this standard. Can hearing aids help prevent dementia? Hearing Aids Are More Affordable, and Perhaps More Needed, Than Ever From the second article: “In 2020, the influential Lancet Commission on Dementia Prevention, Intervention and Care identified hearing loss as the greatest potentially modifiable risk factor for dementia.” The second article among, other things, discussed a new study that hearing aids could reduce the loss of cognitive decline. Edited February 10 by Brad Quote
jazzcorner Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 (edited) Interesting topic for us music fans growing older and informative contributions from the members in this thread. a) my eyesight war corrected/improved by lasering the lenses and now beeing in the 80ies still dont need glasses except for reading tiny characters b) due to a hearing loss of 40% in the right ear some 15 years ago I was forced to do something against that and had to have an appointment with an audiologist. He suggested hearing aids after a series of tests. At that time after several sessions with different brands we found out that the Siemens model fitted best in sound. It was this model with the little 'button' batteries running for about 2 weeks and then you had to replace them. You could select treble and bass and the level of sound with a little controller device on your pockets. I had no problems to hear stereo with or without headphones. After 6 years Siemens gave up the production and the following up brand was SIGNIA Model: Pure charge & Go 7x. (there are different brands available in Germany- We tested also WIDEX). The 2 behind-the ear devices are navigated with the cellphone via app & bluetooth and have 5 different programs. Universal / Music & CD-Music/ Loude surrounding (restaurants a.o.)/ big Rooms with echoes/ walking in nature /Silent surrounding. During the night I take them off for recharging in a little device. Full loaded they work between 12 and 14 hours and the diminuishing power is announced by a signal. Costs are around €uro 6.000 for both. Insurance pays 50% & the rest is myself. 2 times a year I go to the audiologist for costfree inspection and cleaning Weekly I clean both ears with lukewarm water in the shower using a little pipette All I can say today for me when listening to vinyls or CD or TV there are no limitations compared to the years before my loss on the right ear. The system boostes up the higher frequencies which everyone of us looses with age more or less. Best listening result is with some of my high-end headphones. My test CD is the track "Snowfall" by Manhattan Transfer arranged by Many Albam. There you have everything as voices, strings in background, big band sound. I'm a big band fan as well as west coast jazz & hard bop & cool jazz The decision to get these hearing aids is one of the best experiences in my life. Edited February 10 by jazzcorner text Quote
Brad Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 5 minutes ago, jazzcorner said: Interesting topic for us music fans growing older and informative contributions from the members in this thread. a) my eyesight war corrected/improved by lasering the lenses and now beeing in the 80ies still dont need glasses except for reading tiny characters b) due to a hearing loss of 40% in the right ear som 15 years ago I was forced to do something against that and had to have an appointment with an audiologist. He suggested hearing aids. At that time after several sessions with different brands we found out that the Siemens model fitted best in sound. It was this model with the little 'button' batteries running for about 2 weeks and then you had to replace them. You could select treble and bass and the level of sound. I had no problems to hear stereo with or without headphones. After 6 years Siemens gave up the production and the following up brand was SIGNIA Model: Pure charge & Go 7x. (there are different brands available in Germany- We tested also WIDEX). The 2 behind-the ear devices are navigated with the cellphone via app & bluetooth and have 5 different programs. Universal / Music & CD-Music/ Loude surrounding (restaurants a.o.)/ big Rooms with echoes/ walking in nature /Silent surrounding. During the night I take them off for recharging in a little device. Full loaded they work between 12 and 14 hours and the diminuishing power is announced by a signal. Costs are around €uro 6.000 for both. Insurance pays 50% & the rest is myself. 2 times a year I go to the audiologist for costfree inspection and cleaning Weekly I clean both ears with lukewarm water in the shower using a little pipette All I can say today for me when listening to vinyls or CD or TV there are no limitations compared to the years before my loss on the right ear. The system boostes up the higher frequencies which everyone of us looses with age more or less. Best listening result is with some of my high-end headphones. My test CD is the track "Snowfall" by Manhattan Transfer arranged by Many albam. There you have everything as voices, strings in background, big band sound. I', a big band fan as well as west coast jazz 6 hard bop & coll jazz The decision to get these hearing aids is one of the best experiences in my life. Excellent! My new hearing aids are rechargeable. Avoids having to deal with batteries. I don’t know if I mentioned this but my new ones have a streaming option; it’s a little device that plugs into the tv and the sound is channeled right into your aids. Makes listening to tv easier. Quote
Dan Gould Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 4 minutes ago, Brad said: Excellent! My new hearing aids are rechargeable. Avoids having to deal with batteries. I don’t know if I mentioned this but my new ones have a streaming option; it’s a little device that plugs into the tv and the sound is channeled right into your aids. Makes listening to tv easier. When I started with hearing aids I heard complaints about the cost of batteries. While I didn't start with aids at Sam's it didn't take long to discover that they sold blister packs of 36 batteries for all of $6.95. That price is $8.95 now. So really really dirt cheap and they last approximately seven days before the tone starts going off. What I find mysterious is how different ears drain batteries at different rates, although my hearing results were very similar for both ears. Quote
Brad Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 12 minutes ago, Dan Gould said: When I started with hearing aids I heard complaints about the cost of batteries. While I didn't start with aids at Sam's it didn't take long to discover that they sold blister packs of 36 batteries for all of $6.95. That price is $8.95 now. So really really dirt cheap and they last approximately seven days before the tone starts going off. What I find mysterious is how different ears drain batteries at different rates, although my hearing results were very similar for both ears. I used to buy mine at BJs, four packs to a blister pack, eight hearing aids to a pack. Quote
mikeweil Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 (edited) My problem is, I can't afford 6.000 for a pait of hearing aids, and, even though they are tiny with sophisticated electronics, I think the price is somewhat high, if you consider what excellent hifi you can get for that money. I tried them and thought they didn't sound that much better than the health care covered basic models that still cost 1.500. Only inconvenience is the need for frequent battery change and oustide filters (my production of ear wax is quite high and triggered by the othoplasts in the ears. Edited February 11 by mikeweil Quote
optatio Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 15 minutes ago, mikeweil said: My problem is, I can't afford 6.000 for a pait of hearing aids, and, even though they are tiny with sophisticated electronics, I think the price is somewhat high, if you consider what excellent hifi you can get for that money. I tried them and tought they didn't sound that much better than the heath care covered basic models that still cost 1.500. Only inconvenience is the need for frequent battery change and oustide filters (my production of ear wax is quite high and triggered by the othoplasts in the ears. Same here ... Quote
Stompin at the Savoy Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 4 hours ago, Brad said: If you had hearing aids that would probably take care of the issue. I’m puzzled why you haven’t done that yet. I will probably get some at some point. I really wonder, though, if the fidelity of those tiny, tiny transducers that most of them have is as good as a good pair of speakers or cans. Quote
jazzcorner Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 (edited) 3 hours ago, Brad said: Excellent! My new hearing aids are rechargeable. Avoids having to deal with batteries. I don’t know if I mentioned this but my new ones have a streaming option; it’s a little device that plugs into the tv and the sound is channeled right into your aids. Makes listening to tv easier. Yes same is here. Have the same feature. How long do they work recharged dayly in the morning. 2 hours ago, mikeweil said: My problem is, I can't afford 6.000 for a pait of hearing aids, and, even though they are tiny with sophisticated electronics, I think the price is somewhat high, if you consider what excellent hifi you can get for that money...... Had to smile a bit about this. Having my self a record collection worth several ten thousends + high-end equipment (everything paid with cash in the past). IMO You should treat yourself the best for the rest of your remaining live. Otherwise we have to leave the cash behind. That makes no sense to me. BTW a weekly cleaning with warm water with a pipette (costs cents) in the shower solves the 'wax' problem. ;-]] Edited February 10 by jazzcorner text Quote
jlhoots Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 21 minutes ago, jazzcorner said: Yes same is here. Have the same feature. How long do they work recharged dayly in the morning. Had to smile a bit about this. Having my self a record collection worth several ten thousends + high-end equipment (everything paid with cash in the past). IMO You should treat yourself the best for the rest of your remaining live. Otherwise we have to leave the cash behind. That makes no sense to me. BTW a weekly cleaning with warm water with a pipette (costs cents) in the shower solves the 'wax' problem. ;-]] A few drops of mineral oil in each ear a couple of times a month helps too. Especially after you've had wax removed. Quote
jazzcorner Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 18 minutes ago, jazzcorner said: Yes same is here. Have the same feature. How long do they work recharged dayly in the morning. Had to smile a bit about this. Having my self a record collection worth several ten thousends + high-end equipment (everything paid with cash in the past). IMO You should treat yourself the best for the rest of your remaining live. Otherwise we have to leave the cash behind. That makes no sense to me. BTW a weekly cleaning with warm water with a pipette (costs cents) in the shower solves the 'wax' problem. Someone had the question: why are batteries run differently left & right. Depends on the hearing loss on the 2 ears as documented by the audiologist Greater loss on one side needs greater amplifying = more consumptation of enery. ;-] 2 minutes ago, jlhoots said: A few drops of mineral oil in each ear a couple of times a month helps too. Especially after you've had wax removed. Ah interesting. Is the waxremoving without costs? ;-]] Quote
JSngry Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 I got a set of Phonaks with lots of bells and whistles, BluTooth and multiple/adjustable EQ presets being the most useful. Got them before retirement, so insurance paid a good portion of the cost, allowing me to put in some of my own funds for the extras. I can say without hesitation that they have improved my quality of life, including listening to records. But even more importantly, my granddaughter does not come with EQ. And that's the best sound there is! Quote
jlhoots Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 1 hour ago, jazzcorner said: Ah interesting. Is the waxremoving without costs? ;-]] My health insurance covered the wax removal. Quote
jazzcorner Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 46 minutes ago, jlhoots said: My health insurance covered the wax removal. Thanks for the Info. How often do you this per year? Quote
jlhoots Posted February 10 Report Posted February 10 1 hour ago, jazzcorner said: Thanks for the Info. How often do you this per year? Once / year for wax removal has worked for me. I think it varies for each person. Quote
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