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Adjustment for Echoey Sound on Oticon Opn S 1

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I have been wearing Oticon OPN S1 since the beginning of May.
I have been to the audiologist about a dozen of times, but still my hearing is so echoey that I cannot understand people in conversation or on phone. I realized that my hearing itself was echoey. I mentioned this to my ear doctor - he said that it sounded echoey because I don’t hear well.
I updated my hearing test result but couldn’t change speech scores. The new results were:
Left - speech level 80dB, 68%
Right - speech level 90dB, 52% (it was difficult to hear words on right ear because the sound was too loud. I mentioned that to the audiologist, but she didn’t tell me which ear the sound was coming to, so the test continued…)
Do you have any suggestions that I should ask my audiologist to do?
Thank you!

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What type of fittings do you have? Open, Closed, custom molds (vent size?)? If you have open fittings you may be getting sound through the vents as well as sound through the hearing aid microphones and receiver. Due to delays in processing through the hearing aids, there can be time delay and echo effect. Just a WAG!

In reply to @Sierra

I have . I used to wear custom molds with Resound.
My current domes seem to move around especially when I put on and take off my glasses.
Also depending on the positions in my ear, the sound is different.
Do you think I should get custom molds?

Sorry, this ended up being a long post. I’ve been thinking about domes a lot lately.

The position of domes in your ear will definitely change the sound, mostly from the resonance in the ear canal changing with the length of canal between the dome and the eardrum. Also, if it’s slipping to a point where the seal opens and lets ambient sound around it, it’ll change the sound a lot. I think you have to figure out what the average position is going to be, and then have your audi repeat your adjustment with the domes at that position.

You can try custom molds. They may stay in place better. In fact, for some people they stay in place so well they can’t seem to get them out!

I’ve tried all kinds of dome styles. In my ears, everything seems to work its way out. I went through 6 tries of custom molds unsuccessfully, but that was 15 years ago, and they don’t have the tech they have now. I was dreaming of the soft-silicon-coated acrylic core back at that time but no one made them.

Anyway, I ended up using “tulip” domes back then. They inserted really easily, and provided a little more resistance to working their way out, but I still had to push them back in regularly. But they don’t give you the sound isolation or low-frequency response that real do.

So I lost that old but I’m back in the game for the last couple of months now with new Phonak M70-R’s. I’m ciurrently embarking on trying their closed domes. The open domes work for my milder loss but just don’t go in or stay in correctly. I think the tubes are too short so I’m going for longer tubes.

In reply to @Tomo

Custom molds give the best fit, if leakage around the domes is an issue. Some molds have select a vent (SAV) options which let you adjust the vent size. You should probably ask your audiologist if having sound leak through or around your domes could cause the echo issue.

@Sierra said:

Custom molds give the best fit,

Another advantage of custom molds is better feedback control. The degree to which you might get any leakage around the mold depends on the size and shape of your ear canal, etc. My right and left ear canal differ significantly in size, the left uses a much smaller mold, and the fit on the left (if I want it) can be almost totally occlusive and no leakage of sound around the mold. The right mold being bigger has much more surface area in contact with the ear canal and feedback tests by the audi show a very small modest amount of leakage around the mold but for all practical purposes by my use of a solid plug for the Select-A-Vent vent hole insert into the mold, it’s ~totally occlusive, too, with excellent feedback control as well. So I can get all the amplification I want to match my prescribed fitting without worrying about feedback.

Aids can only make your hearing better If set up correctly. And to get it set up correctly you have to have an Audi that is worth his/her salt. Meaning they have to do there job and not make excuses.

My Audi works for the hospital here in, Calif. He told me he can only do what he has with the programs they provide. Does that make sense? It’s a hospital situation don’t you think they would have the up date computer technologically for hearing aid adjustments?

Each hearing aid company has their own software which is used to program the aids. The Audi would have to work within what the program and your aids are capable of doing.

I understand the software issue, thank you for letting me know. I need to find a better software company in my area.

In reply to @cjpines

Sounds like they are not updating their computer and software. It sounds Like they aren’t giving their patients the best service and fittings that are possible.
I go to the clinics which aren’t always known for being up to date. But I go to a small VA clinic in a small town and it keeps its equipment and services up to date with all the latest possible for the Veterans. And unlike going to most Audis I have no limits on the number of adjustments. And and supplies I need or given to the Veterans. And that goes also for any and all extras that are really needed.

One more thing that I often wonder is if I am hearing one sound in different tones.
The height of the tones are different from right to left.
Is it possible or am I just imagining it?

@Tomo said:

my hearing is so echoey that I cannot understand people in conversation or on phone.

I describe my hearing problem as fast echo and sound that seems to be coming from the bottom of a barrel with distortion. I now have truncated cone (closed?) domes on Costco KS7’s but earlier had tulips.

— Fred

Just as a bit of a note, if you’re experiencing echoing or booming with domes, I wouldn’t recommend a closed/custom fit as this is likely to further exacerbate the issue.

Custom fits are great, we use them a lot where there’s greater power needs, but there’s less compliance in the solid mould materials - in addition to less venting.

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