Hearing aids

2psyop

thank you for your service!!!

I have enjoyed music nearly my entire 71 years but paid the price on a Roger Waters The Wall concert that gave me hearing loss and tinnitus. I have a very nice audio system that I know I could enjoy more if I could go back a few years. A recent audiology appointment confirmed I have significant hearing loss. I am about to pull the trigger on aids but thought it was worth asking other audio fans. Ty

Despite some upper frequency loss and mild tinnitus, one thing I have always been curious about is the sound quality.

From what I have read, a hearing aid is comprised of three components. A microphone, an amplifier and a speaker. The goal has always been to merely amplify sound volume, with some tweaking of frequency curve.

What I wonder about, given the quality of current in ear monitors and DSP processing, why isn’t there the option to have an audiologist analyze one’s hearing, apply correction and output it via high quality IEM technology?

Granted, this may result in a much larger hearing "aid" than what is typical, but these would be used more for critical listening, rather than listening to traffic and your significant other while driving.

Photon46 TY for commenting. My first audiologist appointment doesn’t allow a test drive unfortunately. I have another appointment soon and maybe they offer a test drive. TY

No regrets here. Mine have app control so the amount of tip up in frequency response can be changed by slider or semi permanently by AI interface. Musically I find them mostly a positive. It depends on the source, music and volume. They’re Bluetooth connected to my smart phone and TV. Dialogue piped directly to the ear is amazingly clear. Movie soundtracks are absolute audiophile quality in the percussive instruments.

I use the 10K tone control to compensate for my 40db down at higher frequencies. Any negative resulting from a tone control goes unnoticed.  Perhaps, there is a slight change in soundstage.