Hearing Aid Confusion

I have Oticon Intiga aids. yes, hearing aids will improve your stereo listening experience. they are just very samll equalizers, which compensate for loss of sound above 4khz. they can restore proper balance and the highs you have been missing. The bad news: the best ones cost $6K per pair.

unfortunately, if you have mild hearing loss, only the top of the line aids will help. the behind the ear types do not affect bass at all, they only operate above 4khz, where most of us over 50 have losses, and where speech intelligibility is affected. The best have multiple eq curve, more bands of eq than the lesser models, are individually programmable for each ear, and mine have wireless bluetooth connectivity to my iphone. the "music" progam can turn off the compression and algorithms designed to extract speech data from noise.

A friend of mine designed the Lyric, which is the absolute best sound available from an aid. Only good one left on the market which is analogue. Not for mild loss, they are completely imbedded in the ear canal and invisible. you don't buy them, you subscribe for about 8K/yr. Ear wax clogs them and they have to be replaced often. Supposed to even be a waterproof model now. Very popular in Hollowood and for anyone for whom vanity is a priority.

recprince, that's amazing, where do you live? did you have insurance coverage or some special deal?

Kusina, you might try them, but I suspect you will need the fully programmable model. Each of my ears require a different eq curve. The best audiologists have measurement capabilities inside the ear, for more accurate programming. I think in Texas the law requires a 30-day trial period, so check in your state. the eq curve for speech is not the same as the flat response you want for music, so you need an aid with multiple curves. afaik, no aid (except perhaps the Lyric) is programmable above 8 khz, that's only for the best ones.