Costco Way

Well you can either return the hearing aids for a refund and go to a private audiologist, or buy the 100 dB receiver on Ebay and self-fit the hearing aid.

Costco isn’t for everyone. Unfortunately, they didn’t explain their reasoning for refusing to install the 100 dB receiver well enough to you.

The image you posted is very hard to see.

I suspect I’m going to regret commenting. I believe the images you posted are the fitting ranges of the receivers and not anything indicating that you’re able to benefit from the gain. Typically to utilize that much gain would require quite an occlusive fit to avoid feedback (like custom molds with small vents) I don’t suggest you try another Costco as it sounds like you’ve found someplace you like. Good luck!

MDB, the software provides recommended fitting, receiver and domes/molds. Feedback is not an issue, as both the 85db and 100db allow use of power domes which is what was selected and shown. Unless you are DIY hearing aids, perhaps all the information on that sheet is not understood?

That said, I probably should have been put in molds from the start, but again per HA Center the Costco Way is to always start with domes. But power domes are approved by Philips and Philips is very good with feedback. Philips 9050 being similar to Oticon Intent 1, which is sold to private audiologist in USA. Philips 9050/40/30 are only sold thru Costco in USA, have no idea in rest of world.

Thanks, and I have a call in to a private audiologist now based upon hearing up recommendation. I will have to pay more, which is frustrating since if Costco had just done fitting properly, I could handle all my follow ups. In fact, I would do in-situ fitting with Philips software which would be far better dial in than Costco’s poor fitting model. But I was unwilling to pay for a 100db receiver, then calibrate it when I paid Costco to do that already.

User409, if you read my original post, I did return the hearing aids to Costco, and currently do not have Costco hearing aids as of last week. Costco did not explain anything other than saying cost and the Costco Way of fitting. It was a really bad experience. It is 3 weeks wait every time you call to get an appointment, thus this Costco is very busy with excess follow ups due to their poor fittings….. During my 12 plus visits, I mostly saw folks coming in for follow ups not new hearing aids.

Costco’s model is to under prescribe to make hearing aids comfortable, and the average customer is not going to actually go to the trouble to do DIY when after 6 months of tweaking they can’t get it right, and rush you out every trip with not solving all your concerns, and ignoring many complaints.

I went 6 months playing along with their model, and realizing what they were telling me die not make technical sense, hoping eventually they would get it right. After 6 months, I decided I had to become DIY, which I did and improved things by just dialing in settings using their under prescribed curve. That is when I produced test data to confirm my suspicions. I had been telling them since day one hearing aid wires were too long, as they fell off my ears. Took 7 months to get that corrected. And I was telling them left ear hearing was better without hearing aids and power domes, than with.

The positive side of all that I learned about BAD Practices at Costco is that I now have a long list of questions to ask audiologist I will be interviewing to find the right audiologist.

Costco got their panties in a big wad when I told them I had tweaked the settings and made the aids sound better than Costco ever had, but still had left ear problem that could only be solved by correct hardware and valid hearing test for needs, not for comfort.

Well I’m not a Costco hater or fanboy, and some locations are worse then others and some better.

If one does well well with the hearing aid manufactures suggest settings, Costco works out very well for them. Fine tuning is where the person fitting the hearing aid makes a big difference. Note that a doctor of audiology has the same issues. If one is is interested in DIY, then that will probably make the biggest difference.

I don’t think their scheduling is that bad. My Kaiser hearing aid appointments take at least that long or longer.

Yes, it’s been reported before that some Costco’s fitters have a cow with DIY fittings.However when you go to a different store, they are totally fine with DIY.

I hope you find the perfect audiologist, but I suspect you will run into a bunch that are only interested in making a sale.

mindsil, The hearsuite curves provided lots of amplification above 3K, and looked vastly different than your screen shot. However, they were limited by 85db receivers, thus not producing sufficent sound pressure levels above 3K, or even below 3K.
I did not take any screen shots of curves from hearsuite showing amplification.

I am curious. Did you join the forum to complain about Costco or get help with hearing aids? It appears to be complain.

Is this your first set of hearing aids? If it is there is a learning curve that takes time. Pending on a person’s hearing loss this can take more or less time to acclimate.

As far as self programming goes there is a DIY section in this forum specifically for self programming. Members there willing to help you. Discussing self programming on this main forum area is not the best place to discuss DIY.

How did it not provide sufficient sound pressure below 3khz because of 85db receivers? That’s a wild statement.

Hearsuite loves to recommend double vented domes. Typically with a loss such as yours, they leave the user feeling plugged.

It’s really difficult not to respond to you with the same energy that you have put into your posts. I don’t know that they violate any rules, but certainly the spirit of this forum which is help, support, and advice.

I had hoped to have a technical discussion as to why Costco’s HA mis-fit was the problem, but that has not been possible with all the noise on this channel.

Costco fit an 85db receiver to a 100db prescription loss for left ear. What I noticed is I heard nothing in left ear above 3K, which is amplified at 85db, with higher frequencies requiring more amplification. I know hearing aid was putting out high frequency because I could hear it when placing left HA in right ear.

Below 3K in left ear, volume was way lower than right ear volume. Costco claimed HA was fine, but did absolutely no trouble shooting of problem or try to fix it. Comparing my Doctors audiogram to Costco’s, Costco was under prescribing in the below 3K area, so that is likely the reason for under 3K being an issue, and not the 85db receiver.

If you don’t amplify the upper frequencies I have read, then those areas will continue to die? Day one when Costco was selling me the HA’s they said they could make me here in all frequencies. Well they never did that, nor even tried. Costco’s performance was so BAD, I learned a lot because I researched what I needed to know to ask them the right questions, which went on deaf ear. I have NOT received a call from Corporate HA Manager, so I have to assume the experience I had is the Costco Way, and folks that have better experiences are because their fitters are going above and beyond Costco Policies and Training?

I don’t think there is a “Costco Way.” I purchased from Costco for many years. There are great HAS’s and not so great HAS’s sometimes at the same store. They have always been fair and very responsive to my requests. If you don’t have another Costco near by, I suggest you try a private clinic. There you will find some great audiologists and some not so great audiologists. I suggest that the best fitting, absent some physical issue that requires special treatment, is to “do it yourself”. Many of us do that because you can adjust the aids to your own liking or try an online clinic if you need to save a few dollars. Good luck.

At the risk of being crude, I will respond, only relaying my own experiences with both Costco and private Audiologists. Then leave this post. First, a couple of questions for yourself..

1. Not sure where you live. United States, Canada, UK, other countries that may have Costco.
2. If in USA are you on Medicare?
3. Do you have private insurance through an employer?
4. Are you a U.S. Veteran?

You do not like Costco. That is fine. IMO, move on and do not go back and refund your aids, but first get a copy of your audiogram. They are required to give it to you.

If any of the above apply, you are entitled to get an audiogram once a year through Medicare or private insurance in US. You also potentially have benefit for new aids under private insurance, but you can get tested. If you are a US Veteran, you can not only get tested, you can get aids through the VA. Maybe start there.

I have worn aids 39 years, starting with analog Argosy and several other brands and Phonak for last 4-5 fittings and got my Spheres 3 weeks ago. You have been avoiding for 20 years per your post. Costco…, some are good, some are bad. No different than Doctors, Lawyers, Claim Adjusters, Cooks, Car and mattress salesmen. You are the shopper and the customer.. Believe another poster said get the receivers online and see what happens. May need tweaks but you will notice difference in the big picture. If it is the answer, walk back into Costco show them, get your receivers, re-REM the aids and be done. If you want a different fitter Demant and Oticon have fitting cliinics near a zip code on their sites. They use Genie software. If you want to help yourself, there are ways and resources, use them and if none work, go back to no aids at all. I may be missing a ton of information and my two cents.

My old man used to ask me, when I went into complaining mode - “Would you like some cheese with your wine?.”

Peace and have a good weekend.

Becausssse the skyyyyy is blu-u-u-u-u-ee-uuuuue… (with apologies to The Beatles)

Edited to add: @flashb1024 - Masochism?

Six times, if there’s an upcharge for an increased challenge.

The receivers are ordered by each individual hearing aid center at zero cost. $0 for a 100 power receiver and $0 for a 65 receiver. In no way shape or form is this a cost saving thing. Receivers are handed out like candy if they break and are replaced frequently when they don’t need to be.

I’m with Benji. I had a complaint one time that it seemed my right aid had dropped in volume and sounded “fuzzy” despite my changing the wax guard. I expected they’d check the wax guard, check the receiver with their testing/fitting gear, etc. but they just popped on a new receiver. (It solved the problem, BTW.) A couple months ago the wire between the earpiece and receiver broke, and they replaced the receiver.