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RIC wire stiffness

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Of the numerous mfg’s that provide hearing aids are there differences in the plyability of the wire?
I’m asking because it seems I have issues with receivers migrating out of my ear canal and I honestly don’t remember having those issues with Phonak.

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There should be no or almost zero difference in between MFG wire flexibility.

If you have a problem with the receiver begin slipping out of the ear canal.

You should check wire length and dome or mold size fits correctly.

@alpine1 said:

I honestly don’t remember having those issues with Phonak.

If it’s any comfort to you alpine1, I’m a longtime, 10-year wearer of Phonak aids that have the receiver-in-ear with a power double-dome of silicone. I can assure you, the receivers work their way OUT of the ears allllllll day long!

I think it can be a combination of facial articulation (speaking, eating, YELLING, whatever!) and even humidity or the slipperiness of silicone against our ear canals. Like pushing up one’s eyeglasses, I push IN my aids 100 times a day.

The only tip I’ve found that stays PUT with no need to push in is a custom-molded silicone tip. I had one made for my new Life aids, but it was SO painfully tight I had to stop wearing it after 2 days. I’m supposed to pick up a re-made one this week, so maybe it’ll fit better

That silicone tip was GRIPPY. It stayed PUT. It didn’t slip or slide OUT at all! I was amazed. And for whatever reason, I didn’t experience any ear itch wearing it at all either. However, THE PAIN! It radiated clear out to my temples.

Even so, I’ll give it another try, cuz I find it annoying to always have to push my receivers IN the ear canal. Sound improves a good 10+ percent with a nice tight FIT.

So I don’t think it’s the ear wires. I think it’s facial articulation going on here. That said, I LOATHE the utter unbendability of wires. We should be able to trim them and bend them to fit the curve of our ears and not stick out like goofy antenna to catch on combs, fingers, face masks and eyeglasses.

It seems to be the plastic coating on these wires that is COMPLETELY INCAPABLE of being reshaped at all. Try using a heat device on them; curl them around a pencil, press them in half and nothing will happen when you let go. They spring right back to that BIG GOOFY loop that manages to stick out from the ears and catch on things.

In reply to @mami2529

I know for a fact REsound has at least 2 different wires varying in “stiffness”. I always wanted (preferred) the stiff wires but the audiologist I had seldom had the stiff wires. I am no longer wearing REsound aids, and the ones I now wear only come with weak, floppy, long wires which I really dislike.

In reply to @1Bluejay

Thanks for your reply @1Bluejay. As a user I very much value your reply having read many of your posts over the last number of years.

On a different note. I to was a long time phonak user and switched to OPN3 when they first came out and now the More 1. I like them both, BUT! Thinking of going back to Phonak! I know you’ve worn both. Could you please relive a tiny bit :wink: of your choices to go back to phonak. Thanks

Last year Doctor Cliff Aud had a review, I think with Oticon, that the wire can be reshaped according to the shape of the ear, but it has to be done by an audiologist because he builds that wire using 3d scanning. Cliff put a comparison of the receiver now and before with the regular one, you can see a big difference, it looks nicer with this one.

@markoo355 said:

he builds that wire using 3d scanning.

WOW! I never even knew that was the case! My long-time audi guy refused to change out a long snergly wire for a shorter one that fit my ear/head better. The new audi I have swapped in a shorter wire, but she was out of the room a good 15 min or so. I thought she was just hunting all over for wires or something, but maybe she was shaping it a bit?

In reply to @alpine1

@alpine1 said:

Thinking of going back to Phonak! I know you’ve worn both. Could you please relive a tiny bit :wink: of your choices to go back to phonak. Thanks

alpine1, I am probably a very ATYPICAL person who switched from Oticon to Phonak, but perhaps my says it all? I found that the years I wore Oticon the device worked well, the streaming fabulous!

But when I traded up to the OPN about 4 yrs ago … disaster! That was the year that 1) Oticon came out with the “total open sound” kind of hearing, For me, I just want aids that FOCUS - mainly on speech coming from the lips of a person I’m facing.

Also, 2.) there was NO - repeat NO - phone streamer for this first release! We kept getting optimistic news of the ConnectClip due out any day! That’s why I plunked down the money for one. But after 9 agonizing months of not being able to comprehend speech in just about any situation OR having a phone streamer, I went back to my dear audi of many years, and he totally agreed. He took back the Oticons and got me my first pair of Phonak Audeos - the lame B-Direct! I say lame cuz those aids only streamed phone calls through ONE ear.

I traded up in a couple years to the Phonak Marvels (now my backup aids) LOVE THEM TO DEATH! They stream beautifully on the phone or with TV Connector, and I have the frequencies tuned and programs set up to hear pretty darn good - in fact, sometimes I catch things normal-hearing folks miss; other times not, so it’s a draw.

I’ve had my new Phonak Audeo Life aids (supposedly waterproof) for 3 weeks now, so I’m still in trial mode. LOVE THEM TO DEATH! These could be the game-changer for me if I can resolve what tips to put on the receivers. I’ve tested them twice in the shower - NO PROB! I want to jump in pool (still under construction) and ocean, too, cuz I want to do a Dr Cliff number on these. He said he tried for 500 hours to kill them with moisture.

There are many folks here with different audiograms or preferences who would wax just as passionately about Oticon aids! So in the final analysis, you have to try them both yourself (use the trial period), put them through the wringer in as many situations as you can, and decide which one is best.

I’m a Phonak poster-gal for now tho! :smile:

For those with problems of keeping the receiver in place…I use acrylic skeleton molds. They never move, and the hearing aid can not be dislodged if the mold fits correctly. When I got my first ever hearing aid, I tried the little generic ear pieces, I could not keep them in place ever. The audi offered to make skeleton molds…END of problem. Correctly fit ear molds are comfortable. I can’t feel them at all. My humble 2 cents worth…
Dan

In reply to @1Bluejay

I searched for that video, found it. It’s a microshell earmold, pay attention when it talks about the wire. What is impressive to me is that it has a nice support along with the shape of the ear and head.

I thought it could be done with standard receivers, but it can’t. It must be completely handcrafted by Oticon.

I use Oticon miniFit Ear Grips (sized specifically for 85 receivers);

In reply to @danhuddleston

@danhuddleston said:

I use acrylic skeleton molds.

You are right about that … but I’ve tried them twice in a space of about 12 years, and both times I had a real bad allergic reaction to the acrylic. So far, no reaction to molded silicone tips. And if I’ve just jinxed that … I’ll find out this week!

In reply to @markoo355

@markoo355 said:

pay attention when it talks about the wire. What is impressive to me is that it has a nice support along with the shape of the ear and head.

BINGO on the button! This is the earwire/fit prob I’ve had for years - well, ever since my first pair of aids! I think due to my allergic reaction to acrylic, my audi just had me wear the standard double domes that sit on the tip of the receiver. My new audi was AMAZED that I could hear as well as I do with this configuration, given my . So she was the trail-blazer that had me fitted with custom SILICONE (not acrylic) tips into which the receiver is embedded.

I am hoping that the re-cast silicone tips fit better when I get them this week, cuz I totally get what Dr Cliff is saying about the acoustic optimization AND the fit, with the wire wrapping snug to the head and not looping out (as mine have done for years!) due to the current standard dome tips.

Will keep y’all posted on this. GOD BLESS DR CLIFF for sharing all these observations! He is right on the mark, and thanks for your finding the video to post here, markoo355!

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