Results of Actual Hearing Test and Next Steps

First thanks to all for weighing in on this topic.  I found all perspectives helpful.  @mark200mph pretty much nailed my situation exactly.

• I'm 67
• My wife says I can't hear her sometimes; I hear her just fine one on one; but with a lot of background noise her voice is can be muddled.  She reserves the right to speak to me under any conditions 😂 and truthfully as long as she's there I'm happy.
• My assessment was mild to moderate; didn't see a rating at 12K Hz.  Audiologist said I'm borderline on benefits of hearing aid; probably don't need one yet.  But I made an appointment to demo since I have the time.
• I got my ears cleaned professionally; that really does help across the full spectrum. Going to do so yearly now.  Clear line of sight to ear drums.
• I thought I heard music just fine; so the EQ tuning is just "fine tuning" I feel I still hear a full spectrum of sound at 70-80 dB.  I can go louder when I prefer, my listening room is away from other living areas.
• I really protect my hearing; have done so for a while, but wish I had done so in my 20s (as well as a few other things). I'm using the new Sennheiser plugs at movies and concerts to reduce sound by 10-15 dB without loss of detail.
• Many of my friends are experiencing the same conditions. At least they are still around to complain about it (They have a long list).
• Both ears are about the same; my left is just slightly better at highs, but not by much
• Thanks again to all; I'd say admonish the young to protect their hearing, but they won't listen.

@mahler123, Ditto!  Can't beat Costco.  I went to both Costco and HearUSA yesterday and found similar results.  BTW; found similar with optical the same frame with prescribed lenses at Costco were hundreds less than private.

Hearing Aid Price: its a bit of apples and oranges; Costco didn't carry the exact same brands as HearUSA. Costco carries Jabra Pro (latest version $1600 and Philips  (latest version $1500).  6 month full refund policy.

HearUSA carries the Widex and Signia plus an in-house option.  Widex and Signa model comparable to Philips were $4550 with a 60 day return policy and this was after my Kaiser $1000 benefit was applied. So figure $5550 at HearUSA.

Note: I found Jabra 200's direct from Jabra online store at $1900.  Philips (new) on eBay for $2600. Philips, Widex and Signia not sold direct online only Jabra.

Consultations:  Both Costco and HearUSA technicians advised while I could benefit, I should have limited expectations since my hearing loss is minimal at higher frequency.  They both said results are very individual and it can take months to get used to wearing the aids.

The Costco tech advised he had patients with musical needs, but he said the aids are optimized for human voice, not music.  Even after many fine tuning adjustments and using music mode the results in music applications were mixed.

My likely next step is order a pair of Philips at Costco (recommended by tech for me) give it a few months and see how they work.  But I may just put this off as the music I listen to sounds just great. 

For TV / Movies, I have a B&W / Sony 5.2 AV system.  I can raise the center channel for vocals or just increase overall volume. The musical presentation with  5.2 is strong and I sometimes lose some background dialogue, but closed captions are an option to just higher volume.

@larsman since you have the personal experience I'd default to your assessment.  But as is often said, "individual results may vary" 😉.

Since you have extensive experience; I tried some on at Costco and I noticed I could "feel" my voice when speaking like when you have a cold and your ears are plugged.  It was a short demo, but my question is: does this sensation go away or is it non existent once they are tuned?  Or is that what you get used to?