@stringreen
well... unless they BRING BACK good hearing, which is what they did for me. I had no idea what I had been missing, for twenty years or more. I am hearing better now than I have for at least twenty years... I’m 60 now, and I don’t remember hearing this well unless I think back to when I was in my 20s, maybe early 30s... My audio systems sound amazing, as does the rest of life.
I was actually worried that the aids would diminish my enjoyment of stereo, that they’d sound "artificial" ... TO THE CONTRARY, sir. What was artificial was my diminished hearing, which the aids corrected brilliantly. The new-tech aids are nothing like the ones available in the past, even the recent past. Their specs up to about 10k or 12k or so, rival extremely fine stereo gear.
When I first got my aids, I CRIED when I heard my stereo, the sound is so beautiful... Audeo Paradise, indeed! The aids completely re-opened my ears to fine hi-fi, and now I’m just loving it again. I am so relieved, and I enjoy not only my audio and video much more now with them than without them, but also the rest of my hearing life outside the hi-fi world as well, hearing a subtle wind rustle small leaves, sand slip down a bank, my cat Ranger quietly purring as he sleeps on the recliner footrest, etc...
It is my well-considered belief that many on this forum could benefit from the best of the new aids.... before one drops yet another 10 or 20k on a new amp, reaching for that elusive sound you once thought you glimpsed or imagine you might glimpse, get yourself to a top-notch audiologist and get your ears checked, and look at your graphs (you might be stunned)... then drop 5k on some top of the line Phonaks or Widex, customized and adjustable later as needed to your specific curve like a graphic equalizer and room correction software, bring them up gradually over the course of six months... a quality audiologist will do this for you: 70% for a few weeks, then 75, then 80, like that until you finally get up to 100% power, and be amazed.
