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Checklist to use before leaving my Costco appointment with my new hearing aids?

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Edited

I have a confirmed November 28 appointment at Costco to pick up my first ever hearing aids, a Jabra Enhance Pro 20 pair with M&.

I am an absolute newbie to hearing aids. I also have read a lot that the M&RIE “third microphones” have had mixed actual user satisfaction reports, despite their advantages being touted by ReSound / Jabra advertisements.

So, I am wondering if there is a “checklist” of things I should try, and problems I should look for, while I am still in the store, before I leave, so that the Costco can address any issues BEFORE I leave, and thus maybe save me having to make a folllow-up appointment just days later.

I know some of the basic checks, like making sure I can get my eyeglasses on and off without dislodging the , and verifying that the programmed sound level is not too low, nor too high, for comfortable listening. But what ELSE should I do?

What sort of “testing” should I do while still in the store? (e.g. have the HCP make a phone call to me so I can hear what my HAs will sound like on a call? Stand right beside a glass window to simulate sitting in a car while driving? Test the “narrow cone angle” busy restaurant setting right in the Costco store? Ability to discern direction from which a specific sound is coming? etc, etc)

What sort of problems should I look for, or deliberately try to provoke? ( e.g. unpleasant occlusion? Feedback? Hair brushing against microphone? Bad Bluetooth handling? )

I’d rather find and troubleshoot issues while still in the store, rather than discover them later at home and have to schedule another appointment, especially since the Costco parking lot, and its hearing centre, both seem to be pretty busy much of the time.

Jim G

8 people in this conversation9 min readJump to latest
Edited

That’s a very interesting suggestion. The Costco store environment IS a noisy place, and they have, right about smack in the middle of it, a row of tables on which they display books for sale. She could just pick one up, and “read to me” from varying distances, and I could listen from differing angles.

Jim G

Well you and user990 just brought up my two suggestions already: the phone call test and the spouse talk test! :slight_smile: Goes without saying that you’ll sit right there with the while you pair + connect the aids to your phone, right?

Go to the information desk and ask the clerk where to find something. Be sure you can hear others, too. Try to ask a few other employees questions: go to the pharmacy, even buy a box of blueberries to go through the whole shopping scenario inside the store. Use the john. Is it PAINFULLY loud (um, I mean the ambient sound in the men’s room…)

Try dialing out to someone, too, once you’re paired + connected. I ALWAYS call my robo-attendant at CVS Caremark (Medicare Drug Plan) to ensure that my phone will stream effortlessly and not drop the call.

Cycle through ALL the programs, cuz I’m guessing you’d want one for “Speech in Loud Noise”, or even one dedicated to “Music” (which enhances the dynamic range of the aids without Noise Management).

Good luck! Be sure to come right back here and tell us how it worked out for you! Jot notes as you perform all the tests so you’ll already have that punch-list for the HCP to get crackin’ on.

Oh, and follow-ups are a GIVEN! Never get guilt-tripped, pushed off or think that after plunking down that kind of money you don’t deserve a few follow-ups to tweak the programs and frequencies till it sounds optimal to YOU.

Your wife there is important.

Be sure and make sure you have your phone with you and make sure to make a couple phone calls with your new aids.

Cup your hands over the aids to see if you have feedback issues.

Echo can be a problem.

Make sure you understand the phone app and the TV streamer if you get one.

If they are loud you will need to be patient about that since they are your first hearing aids. It takes time to acclimate.

Have fun with your new hearing.

Here is what I have so far:

Checklist for 2023-11-28 Pickup of Jabra Enhance Pro 20 from Costco

How to achieve proper placement behind & in ear canal

Eyeglasses on & off without difficulty or dislodging of hearing aids

Volume level (Be careful! Might initially sound “too loud” because you’ve had IMPAIRED hearing!)

  • Right ear
  • Left ear

Effects of M& vs no M&RIE

Pair HAs with iPhone

Connect HAs with iPhone

Any feedback? (Cup hands over the aids)

Too much occlusion? Echo?

Any noise from hair brushing against microphone?

Comfortable behind ear & in canal?

See & get copy of report of actual HA adjustment results versus (?)

Stand right beside a glass window to simulate sitting in driver seat in vehicle while driving

Call recorded message (800) 277-9914 & assess reliability & quality of the recording heard

Call Wife’s phone

Ask questions at Pharmacy

Voice quality & comprehension from in-store TV or computer at Hearing Centre or in Electronics Dept

In-store conversation with Wife or someone else, checking:

  • Volume level
  • Noise reduction effectiveness
  • Directionality & directionality control effectiveness
  • Narrow cone angle setting (“restaurant setting”) effectiveness

Conversation at information desk with clerk (where do I find . . . ?), with ambient noise

Inside Costco bathroom: Painfully loud ambient noise given all the hard surfaces?

Cycle through ALL the programs

  • All Around
  • Hear in Noise
  • Music
  • TV 1
  • TV 2
  • Directionality & appropriateness of volume level in all the above programs
  • Test “Outdoor” setting just outside the store - Directionality? Volume level correct? Wind noise?

Return to Hearing Center & to adjust where needed

Driving home:

  • Pair HAs with vehicle
  • Driver side window effects?
  • Overall noise level
  • Volume settings ok for vehicle when driving?
  • Call Wife to check Bluetooth quality in vehicle

In reply to @Raudrive

@Raudrive said:

Make sure you understand the phone app and the TV streamer if you get one.

I have studied the app in advance! I have also found the ReSound videos that show you how to set up and pair the Streamer. However, I do not plan to get the streamer initially, until I know I NEED it, as my wife thinks we will have compatibility problems (based on the slound bar problems we have already experienced). Also, I might not get it from Costco, since I can get it online for $80 less, BUT no Costco support for it then of course.

Jim G

You might want to hold off on the streamer until Drawde reviews the VOCE device.

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The TV streamer will not show up in the app until you are connected to a streamer so don’t look for it in the app. If you are not sure how, ask how to create a favorite in the app and how to geo tag it. This allows you to have to aids go to the favorite when your phone detects your location. For example, I have a favorite called home, if I am out and using a different profile like my restaurant favorite, when I come home the app automatically switches to home. The all around setting in the app is your default prescription. Play around with noise reduction and wind setting. These are all things you wouldn’t do in the store except for the reminder about not seeing TV in the app at the store

Edited

That would make sense, but is not what I found when I checked the app just now (even before actually getting my )! Interestingly, even though I do not have a TV streamer (at least yet), the app displays “TV1” and “TV2” as menu items. When I select “TV1”, I get sliders labeled “TV1 Streamer” and “Surroundings” and “Sound Enhancer” to play with, along with “Bass Boost” and “Treble Boost”. Presumably, the “TV1 Streamer” and “Surroundings” sliders enable me to adjust the streaming volume versus the surroundings volume? And “TV2” has the same options as “TV1”.

I downloaded the app a couple of weeks ago. I wonder if perhaps Jabra has been routinely updating the app?

Jim G

Be resigned to the fact that you will think of some things shortly after the appointment that you didn’t ask about. Make a list, try the forum and accept that using hearing aids is a process, not a one and done procedure.

Edited

In reply to @MDB

@MDB said:

Be resigned to the fact that you will think of some things shortly after the appointment that you didn’t ask about. Make a list, try the forum and accept that using hearing aids is a process, not a one and done procedure.

Yes, especially with my varying degrees of Eustachian tube congestion, in each of “left” and “right”! Right now (even before getting the ), sometimes the electric razor sounds notably quiet and sometimes notably loud, with each ear at a different sound level.

Jim G

Edited

In reply to @JimGnitecki

I have had the Jabra Enhance Pro 20’s for abut 10 days now. The app doesn’t show the TV streamer so that confirms what anytrams56 said, ie they are only showing up now because you are in demo mode.
One tip I can provide regarding the app - I found that in the Jabra app when I enabled a noise filter (for example), it was difficult to see that it was actually enabled. The button is supposed turn a slightly brighter shade when enabled but I found the difference in shade difficult to see. So I tried the Resound app and it is identical to the Jabra app accept it has a red theme compared to the blue/grey theme of the Jabra app. The difference in shade is much easier to see using the Resound app.

The “demo” thing makes sense, And the 2 apps, ReSound and Jabra, are otherwise identical in content? And the ReSound app correctly identifies the Jabra 20 versus a ReSound-baled model?

Jim G

Yes the two apps are identical with the following exceptions:

  • Jabra app has a yellow/gold icon, Resound has a white/reddish icon
  • Jabra home screens have have a blue grey color. In some lighting situations this is where I find it hard to tell if a button for a filter is enabled or not.
  • Resound home screens have a reddish color. I can see change in button intensity much easier.
  • The tab labelled “My Enhance Pro” is labelled “My Resound” in the Resound app.

No where in either app does it identify the model or brand of hearing aid that it is connected to. Both function identically when paired with the Jabra Enhance Pro 20. And you can run them both concurrently if you want to compare. Both will pair at the same time. The Resound App is labelled “Resound Smart 3D” in the App store.
The Resound App also successfully searches for firmware updates for the Jabra ’s.

@Mart_C said:

No where in either app does it identify the model or brand of hearing aid that it is connected to. Both function identically when paired with the Jabra Enhance Pro 20. And you can run them both concurrently if you want to compare. Both will pair at the same time. The Resound App is labelled “Resound Smart 3D” in the App store.
The Resound App also successfully searches for firmware updates for the Jabra HA’s.

Wow! That surely says something about how “different” ( :wink:) ReSound and Jabra products really are, doesn’t it. Thanks for doing the comparison testing.

Jim G

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