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Occlusion with Custom Molds with Vents vs Closed Dome

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I’m currently using with M& on Jabra Pro 20s and have some degree of occlusion but acceptable. Hearing is good with occasional controllable feedback but it is may understanding that with M&RIE it may be better with custom molds. Costco assistant told me that custom molds would greatly increase my occlusion effect even with vents, convincing me not to try them. I tried custom molds about 8 years ago without vents and it was not acceptable. Anyone here with custom molds and vents please let me know what you think about occlusion severity and your experience in general versus other alternatives.

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I have custom molds with vents and do not now notice occlusion (did originally for a short while) Feedback is eliminated for me. Note: Depending on your ear canal custom molds can still slip out a bit resulting in feedback. This can be prevented with a skeleton lock.

I’d have to say that I have more itching with my acrylic molds than I did with domes, but it’s still pretty minimal.

I am transitioning from Earlens with a custom vented 3d printed silicone mold (per Google Bard search) to Phonak Audeo L90’s, currently with a Power small . I have ski slope loss so need closed, but also don’t want the occlusion.

I am hoping I can get a mold as close to the Earlens mold as possible because it is very comfortable and I don’t feel the occlusion. It’s soft and somewhat pliable. It also makes the device much more secure against accidental loss. I understand they use some form of silicone that is hypoallergenic.

I’m attaching some photos to give you an idea of what the Earlens mold looks like as I have not seen any others that look anywhere near like this. In the first photo, that dark spot is the part that sends the signal to the ear drum. Slightly above and to the left of that dot appears another dark dot. That is the open vent. The other photos show how large the opening is at the wire end. The last photo for size comparison includes my new Phonaks with power receivers and smallest closed dome (that constantly pops out of my ear canal). I have rather small ear canals.

1D403513-ABA3-4095-ADCB-D3F5CBC395E6_4_5005_c
C7FB0CF6-F6BD-43C4-80E7-E6DFF70258DE_4_5005_c
8AC5442A-5630-4C1E-B96F-127A24DDD3C2_4_5005_c
66EEE504-1A41-4F98-A3A1-9828B6B22BC2_4_5005_c
EB019983-DBFF-4902-A69E-61D463BC1AF9

I suspect it’s a YMMV thing–you won’t know until you’ve tried it. I had vented molds made for my KS10s. The occlusion was completely unacceptable. Conversation at meals was impossible. I am an amateur musician, and when playing a brass instrument or singing, the occlusion was so bad and loud that I could not hear the ensemble I was performing in–even in a loud band indoors.

This may have to do with my relatively large and deep ear canals. Currently I am using double domes with no vents. I takes some fiddling to get them in right, but then I’m good.

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