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Minor feedback only one ear?

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For some reason, in a really quiet room, certain sounds create a really faint and quick feedback chirp, only in left ear (maybe because its amplification is higher)

Thoughts?

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I think there is an audible initial feedback, subsequently attenuated by active (WhistleBlock). Something similar happens when you cover your by hand.

IIRC, months ago you wrote that you considered more occluded coupling; what about it?

I’m an audiophile, used to have golden ear hearing :slight_smile:

In the end, I’d rather not have my $4k ’s reproducing what my $30k system produces :slight_smile:

In reply to @jeffpa

Maybe you need just a step-up more closed fitting, especially in the left ear. I am not suggesting a power dome or earmold right away.

@jeffpa said:

Its just the faintest, one quick chirp and thats it

It’s undesirable to have WhistleBlock constantly activated because it can decrease sound quality and even speech understanding in some people.

A slightly increased battery drain may also occur with WhistleBlock, however, not so much.

It is all about balancing and experimenting. You may have WhistleBlock turned to 0 (or 1? I can’t recall the smallest numer on Target slider), but you risk feedback which may force you to set stronger WhistleBlock …

OR

step-up more occluded dome with still minimum WhistleBlock.

I understand, but my point is that for the best possible sound quality, you should minimize the need to activate WhistleBlock. This can be achieved only with a less open dome.

I had it low or 0, but I’d thought that was causing the chirp, but restoring to previous session still had it, so wasnt whistle block. Even restored back to original, Still had it, but has to be dead quiet.

I just cant figure that a 4k hearing aid is going to reproduce better sound than my 30k$ audio system :slight_smile:

Thus why I leave open domes

In reply to @jeffpa

@jeffpa said:

I had it low or 0, but I’d thought that was causing the chirp, but restoring to previous session still had it, so wasnt whistle block. Even restored back to original, Still had it, but has to be dead quiet.

I am not sure I understand what you mean. I have the impression that we are discussing quite different issues.

To get the most out of your 30k sound system listened to in a “free field” (not via headphones, for example), you need proper gain at higher frequencies as well.

If your hearing aid is forced to activate WhistleBlock due to a too-open fitting, it may cause insufficient amplification of the same tones that caused the feedback and had to be suppressed.

Lack of sufficient amplification of those tones may lead to a decrease in sound quality.

Edited

It may not solve the problem if your gain at higher frequencies is in subcritical level to achieve feedback.

There are other negative consequences at that level, even if you do not hear whistling—such as oscillations or distortions. Audible whistling occurs only when the gain exceeds a critical level.

@jim_lewis reads a good book about hearing aids; maybe he has time to look into other negative consequences of feedback besides whistling.

Currently whistle block is set…

whistleblock
Calm 13
speech in noise 13
Spheric 13
speech in car 13
Comfort 16
Music 0

That was straight from the audiologist

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