Why are hearing aids so bad at doing the job they are made for?

I think a couple of folks have the right idea. The ear buds are removing a good chuck of the background noise with the noise canceling. So that’s part of the reason.

In my case urs, why? Because I pushed because i wanted my life back. I was raised to not accept what people say, I was raised to push to know for sure. I was also raised to trust my guts, or just that inter feel of right and wrong. I was raised to walk the path that no one else would attempt. You call it whatever you wish, i call it my inter compass.
My great grandmother and grandmother called it listening to my spirit’s guidance. It has lead me and guided me in the right direction my whole life.

@mystuart

I think i know why. We’re not the manufacturer’s client. The hearing instrument specialist is like a mechanic who fixes all makes of cars.
In our case, the hearing instrument specialst has to understand our hearing disability and has to setup the hearing aids before we get them.

Sure, i recommend you to start with understanding central auditory processing,
https://sci-hub.se/https://doi.org/10.1097/00019052-200202000-000063
This paper in english talks a bit about without going too specific into what is central auditory processing

This paper also talks more about central auditory processing:
https://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0718-481620060003000143
Unluckily is only in my native language, but any proble with translation, let me know.

Then you can start with papers like this one
https://pubs.aip.org/asa/jasa/article/151/3/1741/2838229/Adaptation-to-noise-in-normal-and-impaired-hearing7

i don’t have much time right now but if you want more.
i hope i doesn’t become a boring reading

A year ago I would never have considered Phonak aids. I thought there wasn’t any other hearing aids but Oticon aids could work for me. I received my Phonak Spheres in early December and I have been eating crow as the old saying goes. Yes the Oticon INTENT1 aids are excellent hearing aids, and I thought there wasn’t any aids that vould work better for me. The Phonak Spheres has shown me that it is possible to hear in extremely noisy environments, which I never did fully with the INTENT1 aids. Phonak has proven to me that a hearing aid app can be useful, the Oticon app was mostly useless. The fact that with the Phonak Spheres I haven’t needed extra devices to stream from my other devto my aids has changed my life. Yes I have the Roger ON3 and seldom use it. It is a very good microphone and TV streamer in a single package but the Spheres are do good I seldom even find the need to stream from the TV. The Myphonak app is very useful and I have even created my own program for when I am in the forest walking or hiking. I believe the INTENT1 aids were good for when I was at a concert, lectures, or meetings but the Spheres has even made life easier.

@cvkemp

Thanks Chuck. Wonderful post. I’m glad you hear better.

DaveL