Beltone Imagine 17 and soft molds wrestling match: is an audiologist with REM and NOAH a pipe dream within 2 hours of Toccoa GA (NE GA, next to SC)?)

Hi, again, all, and to folks new to my continuing problem.

As seen in the title, I’ve got some-years-old BTE-FullMold HAs. However, my metrics seem beyond anyone in the Beltone world within a couple of hours’ drive.

To refresh those who may not have read the full thread/s, and those with fatigue, going back a couple of years, now, I wanted 3 things only from the 4 different vendors/6 different brands’ HAs I tried, when the 3 successive local reps, and in despair, the Beltone factory rep, and any prior attempts were failing:

Accurate tonality presentation to my ears from Piano (percussive issues leading to compression and alteration of tone, apparently) and any other music source
The ability to hear my own voice while singing to match those proper pitches, including while in a group
The ability to hear and understand speakers, particularly my wife, without the need for external assistance such as the MyPalPro microphone

Seems simple, no?

Not so much, as I’ve been at this now for years, in some cases weekly. (Weakly, too, but that’s another story)

I moved away from the couple-dozen-weekly-visits-to the audiologist/Beltone-and-other-lines rep I was using in FL and moved to the Beltone-wilds of NE GA. After a set of replacement full soft molds and a half-dozen or so meticulously recorded weeks (a dozen potential tweaks without including the equalizer function) of experience, all neatly presented in spreadsheet form, in those weeks’ followups/tweaks by the 70-minute-drive to the closest Belton rep, my Gainesville GA audiologist threw up his hands, and suggested I find an audiologist with:

NOAH software (to adjust the Beltone HAs, and centrally record the results so we could go from there)
REM (they don’t have the gear and without, we’re shooting in the dark)

My issues are as above, and to save your having to go back searching, a couple of years ago I, in despair, went to 4 different providers (who used, in two cases, two different makers’ gear) attempting resolution. And variously, 60-90 days later, at the end of the (extended) trial periods allowed, gave up on them.

My current Beltone guy said I needed to go to someone with the above-mentioned 2 requisites; without an REM, he felt, there was no possibility of success, and without NOAH software, no way to make changes to Beltone (and presumed related brands from the same maker, to, also presumed, make it easier to find someone who could do that) gear. Of minimal importance other than to defer suggestion, I “pipe-cleaner” clean the mold’s receiver and vent canals, toothbrush-clean the mold, and change the wax guard, weekly. Nearly always there’s no occlusion in the canals, nor any wax in the guard at the end of the receivers, but I’m out of other ideas, so I’m doing everything possible (or at least that I know of) to assure that what I have is delivering the best output possible to my eardrums…

To the pros here: Is there any hope, or am I faced with the need for another 5-9K investment (note, particularly, that the 6 brands tried with, variously, a month to 90 days’ attempts, didn’t succeed) which MIGHT succeed in meeting my minimal requirements?

Sigh. For head-scratchers on my ennui, go here: Bitch, Moan, Threaten: How do I get my spouse to accept my loss of hearing acuity as a disability instead of a character fault? - #69 by Skip. It’s beyond tiring WRT her, and terribly disappointing to me in the musical world on top of the same sorts of speech issues faced by anyone with a hearing loss.

My apologies for logorrhea; I can’t seem to make this information come out without a long post, and the prayer that someone might be able to direct my energies in solution…

(PS for some reason I can’t find my Beltone folder, or I’d send along the most recent [3-4 months; I forget] audiogram - but it hasn’t changed much…)

@raylock1 said:

Shonder Bailey in Cumming GA

Hi, ralock1,

I’d considered the self-adjust route back during my half-dozen brand explorations, and got so far as to investigate the fancy Bluetooth receiver. Searches for NOAH haven’t been as easy this time around; the first time it appeared to be free, but I’ve not found it (like that) yet, now. I’ve not yet attempted a NOAHLink because if I don’t have the SW, I don’t need the receiver.

But I get pretty nervous when I’m up against folks with degrees and decades of experience, who are comfortable tweaking specific frequencies’ behavior(s) - using NOAH - in the various categories which present in the HearMax program. FWIW we had a guest this past weekend; his HAs had the same program in different clothing, as his was one of the not-Beltone labeled HAs (ReSound or Jabra), and could use my charger until he finally found his, so I have some confidence that others COULD work on my HAs…

All that said, there’s a computer inquiry to AudiologyHEARS, and as the phone link in their web page shows a cell and not a handset, I sent a text in case it can read it. Now we wait…

But, in the meantime, my wife, who’d confidently expected a 10 minute resolution - and when I said it would take a while, insisted she take over the search has found (no surprise to me but a fulfillment of my defense against why I spend so much time on my computer) that, a full day later, she’s not yet got a single checkmarks-capable contact. Apparently, REM and the Beltone family (GN Hearing) don’t play well with each other, as our radius has moved to a 2-hour drive without (at least so far) success.

But, perhaps Shonda can be the exception…

Thanks for the lead.

L8R
Skip