Comfort - Earmolds vs. Domes

I moved from custom ear molds to domes and hope I never have to go back. I love the domes, the feeling of openness, and the natural sound.

I switched from tulip domes, which I loved, to custom molds when I switched to the power receiver. They were OK but I missed how well the tulip domes fit and felt.

I thought with the custom molds that the receiver wires were too long but not long enough to change. There was just a little slack in the wire.

Well… I cleaned the molds a few times and I was always careful to note their positioning before I took them off the receiver. Then, this last time, I forgot to note the positioning. So after cleaning I looked at them from every angle and decided since there were only two ways to do it, I would just have to try each way and see which orientation was right.

When I got them right they went further into my ear than previously, and they don’t move. Before, besides having a little slack, they would work their way out a little.

So they had been upside down from the beginning. Now that I have them oriented correctly, I see what everyone else has been saying. I do like the molds better than the domes, although the tulip domes were very comfortable and I had no occlusion. When I had the impressions done the audiologist did deep impressions and I really don’t have any occlusion because of that.

So, oriented correctly, the molds really do fit better.

I have the small, soft Westone mold (from Costco), and the orientation is that the receiver wire comes out of the mold at the lowest position possible, not the highest. You would have to see one to know what I mean, but originally mine were oriented so the wire was on top, and the vent was on bottom. Now that the wire is on bottom, it takes up the slack and the wires are perfectly up against my head and going around my ear right at the base of the external ear.

I am curious as to whether the choice of domes vs custom molds relates to the degree/frequency of hearing loss, ie whether those with better residual hearing are more likely to find domes better as they can hear natural sounds. My impression from other posts is that even custom molds with the largest vent are more occlusive than domes.

— Updated —

I am curious as to whether the choice of domes vs custom molds relates to the degree/frequency of hearing loss, ie whether those with better residual hearing are more likely to find domes better as they can hear natural sounds. My impression from other posts is that even custom molds with the largest vent are more occlusive than domes.

I think you are right when it comes to what an audiologist would first recommend but when it comes to the choice of the wearer this could be the reason but this was not the reason for my choosing the custom molds over the domes. My preference is to have all of the sound I hear come from the aids, even frequencies not needing amplification if I was using open domes. My audiologist said my preferences are not the case with most people but she has no problem with my preferences. I had an annoying variance of mismatch of sound comparing one side to the other with the double power domes to which I attributed it to inconsistent placement of the domes in my canals plus will all domes I could perceive them slipping out after awhile after placing them in. With the custom molds everything is always equal in placement, no slippage so therefore no varying mismatch.

By the way my molds are very minimally vented only sufficient to reduce a suctioning effect when removing them. The very minimal vents are not for letting natural sounds in.

@AdamsHouseCat said:

jay_man-

What is the Costco price for molds such as these?

Thank you.

$79.98 for the pair. And I’m trying the custom molds to get a better low frequency response and try to reduce the slight feedback I do get even with the power domes.

I have less occlusion with my custom molds than I did with the closed double domes. Maybe that is because they are in there deeper as well.

Are the domes and the molds made of the same material? I really like the non-occlusive feel of the open domes. These are my first aids; I have not tried custom molds. However, I continue to have problems with irritation and itchiness especially by the end of the day. I have been driving home from work with them out of my ears and using Miracell.

I would get some itchiness the first day or two with new domes. The domes would last about a month, then another couple of days of itchiness with the new ones.

Are you cleaning the domes and how long between changes?

There shouldn’t be any irritation. That sounds like either a fit issue (too large) or an allergy, unless you are scratching in there because of the itch.

The molds are made of different materials, some hard, some soft. I have the soft Westone mold from Costco and I haven’t had even one day of itch.

@jay_man2 said:

This thread and other comments have inspired me to try custom molds. I wear Kirkland Signature 5.0 aids with power domes, and just today went to Costco to get impressions done and place an order for acrylic molds made by Westone. I’ll let you know in a couple of weeks how its going.

I picked up the molds last Friday, and had the aids reprogrammed. It took a while to get everything done, but so far I’m happy with the molds instead of the power domes.

When the molds were first installed, which involved popping off the domes and stuffing the receivers into the receiver opening in the molds, we discovered that the receiver wire was now too short. The fitter removed the molds, swapped in #3 receivers to replace the shorter #2s, and fitted the molds on again. It’s important that they place the receiver in the mold in the correct position. I discovered after a day of wear that the left one was a quarter turn out of the proper position, and made it hard to keep the mold in the ear properly. The fitter was able to correct that without another appointment, and while I waited.

The fitter reran the feedback test and the REM test, and was able to lower amplification in the 1-4000 range by 3 decibels. The sound quality seems slightly better than before, and TV Streamer performance is much improved.

The only downside that I can see is that the way these are set up, I’ll have to go to Costco to have them pull the molds to clean the receivers and put in new wax guards. With the power domes I could do all of that, but the way the receivers fit into the molds, it takes some strength to pop them off and push them back on.

It will be interesting to see how frequently we’ll have to go in to have the wax traps replaced.

@Don said:

and the orientation is that the receiver wire comes out of the mold at the lowest position possible, not the highest.

Thanks!

Apparently, I had them on wrong, too! My own voice now sounds normal again and everything is clearer. I can again hear people in the other rooms…well at least it’s not random noise anymore. Great!

My audiologist said for me to stop in and she will show me how to change the wax traps in my molds.