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What are users' experience with CROS and BiCROS hearing aids?

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Is anyone pleased with the bicross solution?
I have hearing loss in my left ear and have profound loss in my right ear. I am considering a bicross solution, but I am not very confident that it is worth the money and adjustment.
I do have terrible issues in conversations, stores forget it

Try it, it might work out well and it might not.

Just verify what the trial / return period is, and walk away if it is not acceptable.

My ‘story’ is posted above (Jan '20) so I will not go on and on, but just say I’ve had one excellent experience with a rig and one wretched one (my fault for persevering and not just rejecting it).

But if they will let you bring it back if it does not work for you, go for it. It is a shame COSTCO does not do BICROS, their return period is 6 months. Ask the dispenser what their policy is.

The possible upside is hearing people and environmental sounds on your right side. The downside risk is you get stuck with something that does not work - but only if you allow it to happen.

Hang in there, best of luck.

In reply to @jolo100

I have loss of high frequency in my left ear and profound in my right. I have worn a for years and it has work really well for me. I have asked to try a hearing aid in my left ear, but the audiologist said they do not recommend it for my loss and won’t even try it. Costco said they won’t try a hearing aid either.

But, give it a try if you can return for a trial.

I have the Signia 312 paired with a Signia Pure 312 7X. So far I have been fine with them. Obviously no directionality (I have total hearing loss in my left ear in any event.). However, the Signia has low energy bluetooth, which allows me to have the CROS function, and to have streaming from the iphone and the television (with a streamer.) I have had other CROS aids in the past (audabel) and the Signias are far superior.

In reply to @BoCat

Great post.
I will be seeing a, audiologist from my group Kaiser Permanente. They don’t make commissions, to go over my options.

  • Cost is a big issue of course, no insurance to cover. By federal law, 45 day return.
    My concern is spending lots of money and time for a option(bicross) that won’t help my difficulties with understanding speech and direction confusion. I only recently had a audiologist explain why my current situation with 2 hearing aids is frustrating for me. She was aghast that I would have been sold two aids for mild to middle hearing loss.
  • I find it difficult to get solid information from the web as sooooo much of it turns out to be marketing, posing as objective advice. I truthfully don’t trust the commission based audiologists at brick and mortar stores. I keep looking for feedback from people who actually use bicross.
  • I agree about Costco, they just came out with their new Kirkland 10.0 , wireless charging, Bluetooth aids for 1,399 , made by from Sonova, the manufacturer behind brands like Phonak, Unitron, and Hansaton.

In reply to @rdlackey

Thank you for the post.
On a recent year, I understood only 2 % of words via my right ear, but “heard” the words.
Have loss in my left ear, the type of loss that mild to mid hearing aids would help.

They have mentioned as an option, getting a better aid in my left ear and nothing in my right ear. Don’t see that working well.

Jon

I have just been recommended for BiCros aids. I have been using a single Brio in the left ear which has about 50% loss. My right ear has deteriorated to 90% loss.

Any recent (2023) information on current brands. I know Costco doesn’t offer any BiCros aids

I have trialed the Phonak lumia and the resound nexia in a bi-cros. I think I like the phonak sound better. But the nexia is smaller and more comfortable. And the cros process chews up the battery on the Phonak to about 12-13 hours. Maybe not a huge problem but irritating. Also the nexia has a case with an embedded battery—sweet. In the end both are acceptable. Both apps are good. Phonak can connect to multiple devices but that has been cumbersome to actually do. Nexia uses low energy Bluetooth which makes for longer battery life.

I am also trialing a nexia 2 hearing aid solution with a in my bad ear and also what the audiologist called frequency trans-something or the other that tries to reproduce sound I cannot process in the uppermost frequencies down to what I can.

Really to me both approaches seem to work reasonably well except the 2-ear solution would cost an extra grand. 🥹

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