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Broadcasting to hearing aid using dancers

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I recently joined a Square Dance Club. One of my friends is a Caller (Plays the tunes and calls out the dancers’ moves).

He expressed an interest in buying a machine to broadcast the calls and music to dancers.

I told him about systems, Blue Tooth (proprietary systems) and the upcoming Blue Tooth system.

He indicated he has found information on Blue Tooth systems but “they have a delay.” And on systems as well, which he may prefer because it appears they have less delay.

Dancing to music without instruction is relatively easy. Adding in movement instructions (e.g. “Sides Face, Grand Square!” or Alemand Left…) over a speaker system is harder. Particularly when some callers have hearing issues but do not use hearing aids and turn the volume up so that they can hear.

So, is there a broadcast system that is both portable and readily usable with commonly used brands of hearing aids? If so, what is it? Have you used it as a Dancer or a Caller? and is it effective? If it is an FM system, how would that work with commonly used aids?

Thanks for your assistance in this matter.

8 people in this conversation9 min readJump to latest

Thank you, I knew that but appreciate your response.

Do you have experience with or Blue Tooth broadcast systems for crowds?

For remote listening, the options are , , and Bluetooth.

FM requires the listening devices to have an FM receiver, and this is not very common in modern devices, at least built-in. To @Speedskater’s point, churches will hand out headphones, and I think that kind of system is probably the most simple and feasible, although it has nothing to do with hearing aids.

Telecoil is more common, although definitely waning. Telecoils are available in at least some Oticon, Phonak, and Widex devices for sure without digging too deep. This does require the venue to be looped, though.

Bluetooth is the most recent, but Bluetooth Classic streaming is one-to-one i.e. not broadcast to several users. This is where Bluetooth and come in, as it uses Bluetooth to broadcast audio to several devices. The VOCE from Nexum is, according to their marketing, is the world’s first Bluetooth LE Audio transceiver. Theoretically, if the Caller wore a microphone hooked up to one of these he or she could transmit his or her voice to LE Audio receiving devices, such as currently Oticon Intent, Resound Nexia, and Jabra Enhance Pro 20 devices. I personally do not have any experience with the LE Audio capabilities of those hearing aids, so I’d be very interested in other voices on this forum concerning that.

We tried Moer’s models, MoerLink and MoerDuo. No fn good.
I tried to contact mfg twice and they did not respond. The MDuo is either transmit or receive, the MLink it PC USB dongle transmit only.

I sent them back and they wanted me to tell them what was wrong. I don’t mind being an early adopter of technology. I have been doing that since the first PCs came out.

They won’t connect to receive on an android Samsung 23 (supposed to support Auracast). They won’t transmit from either a Windows 10 or 11.

They’re bleeding edge crap. The firm uses customers to test their products.

Not recommended.

Nowadays it’s mostly personal portable transmitters. Like the ones you get in museums, or in planetariums. Wired earbuds with tiny receiver attached; it’s fm.
Of course it’s not great for hearing impaired folks and it won’t be until get more widespread. Auracast is Bluetooth too, but there’s no perceptible delay.

Different callers used similar but disparate machinery to amplify their music and voice for broadcast over loudspeakers. Most use a laptop hooked to a soundboard device which includes an amplifier and perhaps a record player or other sound device as well as microphone inputs. Not all setups have USB, many use stereo 1/8” or .25” banana plugs for the connections. To date, we have used three broadcasters, Flairmesh/Floogoo/Floocast FMA120, Homespot BSA210, and one other with varying degrees of success.

The FMA120 works very well with systems which have USB capability for both hearing aids which have 5.1+ Bluetooth such as my Rexton Bicore aids (with another FMA120 as a receiver) and those which have an App that provides Auracast capable software like my Jabra 30s. But if the sound system being used only accepts banana plugs to connect to the microphone or other inputs to the FMA120, it doesn’t function. The FMA121 is in the works but not yet released.

The Homespot BSA210 works with a USB power adapter and a banana plug (or a USB data port alone) but requires an APP to connect to Bluetooth 5.1+ hearing aids AND an Auracast receiver like the FMA120 dongle connected to the phone with a USB A female to USB C adapter cord. It works very well with just the Jabra 30s and their App.

Since the tech is in the early days, those firms which want to reach a broader market should ship or make available online an App for their transmitters or transceivers that seeks the broadcast. It needs to be able to set the encryption for transmitters or add the encryption code for receivers so that in venues with multiple broadcasts (like large square dance festivals), each broadcast can avoid conflict.

To those who suggest upgrading the equipment, the investment for a new setup for the caller is ~2,000$. And we all know what a new set of hearing aids cost.

The Auracast setup has much more potential to serve large groups inexpensively than do .

Buying an microphone such as the ReSound MultiMic+ or EarisMax is a cheap way to share the callers voice.

The problem now is supporting the listeners who don’t have Auracast enabled hearing aids. Headphones isn’t a great solution. Earbuds could fall out.

Not sure there is a bone conductor headphone set yet that is Auracast friendly.

That might do it! THANK YOU.

We will not get everyone hooked up this early. It will take time for others to get the Bluetooth 5.1+ aids but we will be able to get a good start.

In reply to @PhilCreighton

Ahhh, the hearing industry’s proprietary non-compatibility gremlin rises again. Resound locks out other brands. EARIS won’t even let users look at their web sites without cookies. And they wonder why hearing aids and places like Costco are gathering market share. But it was a great idea.

Many deaf participants may still rely on observing what others are doing. So another way to approach the problem is to use a structured learning approach like EDIP method, with and without music:

1. Explain

2.Demonstrate

3. Imitate

4. Practice

In reply to @KingsPoint

Have you contacted the folks at Avantree? One of their representatives posts here on a regular basis.

When Will Auracast Actually Be Enabled for Phonak, Oticon, Signia, etc.? (From a Device Maker’s Perspective)
Hi everyone, I’m Phoebe from Avantree, and we design LE Audio / Auracast transmitters like: C82 Aura (for phones, laptops via USB-C) Voyager (portable, 3.5mm for travel) Audikast 4 (for TVs – optical + AUX) We’re seeing excellent real-world results with Beltone Serene, ReSound Nexia, and Jabra Enhance Pro 20, which support Auracast natively—no app or phone needed. But many customers ask us about Phonak, Oticon, Signia, Rexton, and Philips HearLink—all of which are labeled “Auracast-Ready” b…

Have you seen this thread?

Upgrades for church sound system? Auracast? Anything else?
I’d like to share my experience installing an Auracast transmitter in my church, which has a seating capacity of approximately 400 people. We use this transmitter (link). [IMG_6149] The transmitter is positioned in the front right area, behind a concrete pillar where the choir and audio equipment are located. It is mounted on the back of the sound mixer desk. [IMG_6152] For the sound setup, we used the included RCA-to-analog 3.5mm cable to connect the sound mixer to the transmitter and po…

Thanks, I read the forum when I get regular updates and I search posts so, yes, I saw those. I haven’t contacted Avantree but I have searched for Auracast mic’s and they didn’t crop up. I did mention the FMA121 and have contacted the parent firm.

The GN …mic+ seems to come in multiple brand specific variations. It MAY be true Auracast but the promotional material mentions the individual brand(s) and hints other brands might not work. To me, that’s akin to making a product intended to be shared with others in their home, church, etc., then telling them they can’t participate. are personal. Broadcast devices’ outputs are meant to be shared.

Thanks @user990 for mentioning us. @KingsPoint We’ve had the same need in churches and conferences. We wrote up a short guide on how to get a microphone into an broadcast (wiring options, gain settings, and what to hand out to folks without Auracast):
https://support.avantree.com/hc/en-us/articles/50271162494361-How-to-Use-a-Wireless-Microphone-with-the-Avantree-Group-Listening-System1

Quick summary (works with existing PA):

  • From the mixer/PA: take an AUX/Monitor/Sub out (line level) → adapter to 3.5mm TRS → Auracast transmitter (fixed: Audikast 4; portable: Voyager). Keep house speakers as-is.

  • No mixer? Use a wireless mic kit (TX+RX) or a small mic pre/USB interface, then feed its line out to the transmitter (3.5mm or USB-C).

  • Tips: start gain low to avoid clipping, use line vs. mic level correctly, don’t loop the Auracast return into the PA, label the broadcast and (optionally) add a short code/QR.

  • For listeners without Auracast: loan clip receivers with single-ear/ear-hook earpieces (more secure than loose buds).

In reply to @KingsPoint

You don’t need to worry about the inter compatibility with the ReSound MultiMic+, it is pure .

I know this as I tried it at a demo day organised at St Paul’s Cathedral by ReSound, Samsung and the deaf charity RNID.

I blogged about it here: Auracast in action at St Paul's Cathedral: astonishing sound on a tour and at Evensong - Aurahear3

The EARISMax headphones again work across Auracasts. I can confirm this as I used it to pick up a signal from my ReSound TVStreamer+, blogged about here: Hands-on with earisMAX Bluetooth 5.3 headphones – crisp and clear Auracast streaming - Aurahear3

I did use the ReSound MultiMic+ on Friday during a Jack The Ripper tour of Whitchappel. It was a test of how well it would cope with outdoors - wind, traffic and background noise. Very impressive! My review will be published this week.

Auracast will, once more products come to the market, be realitively cheap way of sharing audio to many. We will one day come to view it as ordinary, but for now it’s extraordinary in every way.

Good thing come to those who wait…and keep digging! PhoebyY and PhilCreighton, thank you both! You are right, this is a magnificent product. Town crier to Newspaper to radio, TV, …. The companies which try to make it proprietary won’t be as successful as those who make it easy.

I don’t know if the square dance callers will buy ear pieces to loan out. Hygiene issues and expense would be issues. But the price of some compatible earbuds are low enough for dancers if the broadcast can be made available. Some dancers travel to several clubs and will be more likely to purchase buds if they don’t have compatible aids.:saluting_face::+1:

In reply to @PhilCreighton

@PhilCreighton said:

ReSound MultiMic+

Thanks both @PhilCreighton @KingsPoint for sharing :folded_hands:. As someone with hearing loss myself, I really look forward to the day I can hear clearly anywhere.

Clip-on mics are still the most reliable today, whether to hearing aids or Bluetooth buds. But with , Unicast, and noise filtering coming, I think soon these remote mics will work with AirPods or any earbuds. Maybe even focus just on the direction you’re looking at :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:.

For now, we just keep bringing out the best tech available, and can’t wait to see the new solutions arrive!

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