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Phonak Roger On switch repair guide

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Apologies to all for me continuing to take this off topic. Thank you all for your replies. Thank you CombatWombat: it would be helpful to know if you see the same effect as me. To be a bit more clear on what I did: Plugging in the standard Roger cable (USB C male to TRS (two rubber ring) plug with nothing else connected (to the cable) causes the Roger ON to display the musical note streaming symbol. Connect a cable with USB C plug either end – and nothing else connected – and you don’t see the musical note symbol. Seeing as the Roger spec says its USB C port accepts digital AND analog inputs, I’d have expected Roger to have been happy with both cable types with USB C plugs. Hence I felt that Phonak would have gone non-standard with its cable so that Roger only detects streaming when a Phonak cable is connected. I now think this could only be achieved by Phonak incorporating a chip in the Roger cable. It’s worth noting that USB C cables, unlike earlier USB cable are not directional – so it’s not an in/out issue. Yes USB cables vary but only according to voltage AND current capacity (for rapid charging) and for different data rates but the cable wiring remains the same – the beauty of USB C. I guess the big question perhaps is “has anyone seen a USB C to USB C cable from Phonak that does work for streaming digital audio straight into Roger?”

@Trampus said:

so it’s not an in/out issue.

Either way, Phonak cables are different to what can be bought on Amazon as Amazon ones don’t work.

Been much talk about it on here before.

In reply to @Trampus

The music note only shows up with the Roger cable? Interesting! I often stream audio from my ipad through the On using an Apple cable with USB-C at both ends. I do it that way because my work cell and personal cell use up both available bluetooth connections. It does work.

The one I’m talking about here is v1. I have a new-to-me v2 that I haven’t tried out yet, so maybe I’ll mess with that this weekend.

The only time there’s a music note is when there’s sound playing from the ipad. When it’s connected with no sound, it will charge from the ipad, and the On mic will work normally if switched on. If switched off, it just charges, and the battery icon shows up. The mic shuts off and the music note appears when I start playing audio on the ipad.

When the other end of the USB cable isn’t plugged into anything, nothing happens. No icons.

Interesting, I just experimented and my mac will play through the Roger when it is in and connected through a USB cable.

WH

In reply to @Trampus

@Trampus said:

Seeing as the Roger spec says its USB C port accepts digital AND analog inputs, I’d have expected Roger to have been happy with both cable types with USB C plugs. Hence I felt that Phonak would have gone non-standard with its cable so that Roger only detects streaming when a Phonak cable is connected. I now think this could only be achieved by Phonak incorporating a chip in the Roger cable. It’s worth noting that USB C cables, unlike earlier USB cable are not directional – so it’s not an in/out issue. Yes USB cables vary but only according to voltage AND current capacity (for rapid charging) and for different data rates but the cable wiring remains the same – the beauty of USB C. I guess the big question perhaps is “has anyone seen a USB C to USB C cable from Phonak that does work for streaming digital audio straight into Roger?”

I think the thing you’re missing is that the signal coming in via the roger cable is analog. There is a chip in all these cables that have an analog audio end. The chip does A2D conversion and passes the audio to the mic through the USB. The other cables either are designed for a mic (third wire) or to take audio from the USB port, convert it to analog and push it out the audio connector. These functions all need different wiring, and perhaps there isn’t an easy way to engineer these to “just work.”

WH

In reply to @CombatWombat

This is intriguing. What you describe is exactly what I’d expect as normal, logical operation: digital audio input is triggering your Roger to go into streaming mode. In my case, as I’ve said, the simple act of plugging in the Phonak cable (with no signal, nothing connected) causes the music note to come on – not what you’d expect. What are others on the forum experiencing when they plug in the standard Phonak cable (not connected to anything) and also when a USB C to USB C cable is used to connect the Roger to a digital source like an iPhone?

In reply to @WhiteHat

Thanks WH. Routinely, my Roger has been used with digital output from an iPad using Lightning/TRS jack adapter with an A2D chip inside (as you describe), then to the Phonak cable. So in this case the Roger is getting an analog signal via its jackplug. Please take a look at CombatWombat’s latest post and my reply: his Roger is behaving as I’d expect and mine isn’t – whether it’s analog via the Phonak cable or direct digital via USB C.

My Roger works just like the description in CombatWombat post

Plugging in the phonak roger media cable causes the mic to get a music note immediately. Using the USB-toUSB cable makes it act similarly to how it acts in a dock when using an analog input.

WH

Recently started experiencing the issue described in the OP. Aggravating that such an expensive device is manufactured to such a low standard, but I guess not too surprising. Mine is still under warranty so I’m going to get it serviced before ’ing it. Has anyone gone this route to address this issue? Did you get the same device back or an updated version without this defect? I see people mentioning the V2, but it’s not clear how it differs from V1. Google suggests it’s mainly software improvements.

V2 lets you use the mic as a headset plugged into a device for calls or video meetings. When I plug in my V1, all I get is headphones.

WH

In reply to @libc

Finally got my device serviced by Phonak. I sent along a link to this thread via my audiologist but they claim they’ve never seen this issue before. Wasn’t clear at first whether the device I got back was mine because it was missing the case (but did include a lanyard for some reason). While sorting that out I found out they did send my device back (same S/N but I can’t verify this) and all they did was take it apart and clean it. It still has the switch issue, which is pretty frustrating considering I sent it in UNDER WARRANTY. Usually a warranty means they’ll err on the side of the customer unless there’s obvious damage. I’m sure there’s some legalese somewhere that spells out why this isn’t the case.

On the upside, while figuring out how to reconnect the device to my hearing aids I found that putting it into “shipping mode” works to make sure it stays off when I know I’m not going to use it for awhile. To do this hold the connect button on the back when switching it off. You’ll see a little plane icon. This will disable the power switch completely. To get the device out of shipping mode you have to switch it on, then hold the connect and center buttons for a second or two until you see it boot up. Emphasizing that bit because it’s not documented in the manual or anywhere else I could find. This will break the bluetooth pairing to the myRogerMic app for some reason but the hearing aids should still be connected.

I also seem to have gotten the new V3 firmware with the improved muting functionality. I’ve seen reports that it’s not actually any different but I feel like the old functionality muted the microphone without disconnecting from the hearing aids/switching out of the Roger program. Now it does both. Considering my relatively infrequent use of the Roger On both this and the shipping hack make the switch much less of an annoyance to deal with and I wish I’d known about about them sooner. Not an excuse for Phonak refusing to acknowledge it however.

My audiologist sent me a new case.

Update on my saga: Ended up sending my device back a second time and this time Phonak finally honored their warranty and sent me a new replacement.

Reached out to my audiologist basically echoing the sentiment I shared here and offered to record a video documenting the issue with the switch. Recorded the video and provided the link to my audiologist to pass along, and gave them my device to send out again. Got a brand new device back, different S/N, protective film still on the screen, etc. Noted the switch is much stiffer on this device and there is almost no play in the cover. I’d be interested if anyone here that has gotten a replacement for the switch issue had their new device also develop the same problem. I noticed even as I was switching it on and off to connect the aids that there was a tiny bit of play in the switch that wasn’t there the first time I turned it on. I kind of suspect that the switch and cover are contacting each other in a way that causes the cover to loosen over time, until the underlying switch can’t be fully moved properly.

We’ll see how it goes, but at least I finally got the outcome I wanted.

In reply to @libc

@libc said:

On the upside, while figuring out how to reconnect the device to my hearing aids I found that putting it into “shipping mode” works to make sure it stays off when I know I’m not going to use it for awhile.

What is the role of “shipping mode”? What reason is for it?

In case you need to return the Roger On for repair it is
recommended to put the device in shipping mode. To do
that, press and hold the connect button and switch the
device off.

Shipping mode forces the Roger to not turn on even though the switch might have failed in such a way that it will not shut off even when disassembled and the on-off switch is confirmed to be in the off position.

When my Roger On In would not shut off I took it apart and dissconnected the battery from the circuit board. Later whan I remembered the Shipping Mode I reconnected the battery and now keep my Roger in Shipping Mode when not in use.

David

In reply to @Bimodal_user

The other answer covered it pretty well but I’ll just add: it’s not something you should ever need if the Roger on is working correctly. My audiologist never instructed me to use it when I had my device sent out. It just happens to be a useful workaround for the defective switch issue.

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