Skip to content
HearingTracker
Log in

AI recommendation for cookie-bite / reverse slope hearing loss?

This topic is closed.

18 replies429 viewsLast reply

Link to this topic

Have an appointment to order new hearing aids on Wednesday. My last pair were ReSound Linx2. They were tolerable in quiet situations, appalling in noisy ones.

I don’t have an to hand, but I have a moderate to severe hearing loss, which is roughly cookie-bite shaped in one ear, and closer to reverse slope, but still somewhat cookie-bite shaped, in the other. Speech in noise has always been a real problem for me.

I’m considering the Phonak Sphere, ReSound Vivia 9 and Oticon Intent 1. I never liked the last pair of ReSounds, and seriously regretted not returning them (I was travelling a lot at the time and it just wasn’t practical), but I understand, from what little is currently available regarding the Vivia 9, that they are rather impressive? Also, I’ve read that the transition to the mode is very natural, and battery life is good.

From what I’ve read, it seems the Phonak are probably the best overall at AI speech in noise, which should make them the frontrunner, but I have concerns about battery life. I’ve also read a lot about a brief ‘static’ noise as the AI mode springs into life. I have ADHD and am worried this will drive me up the wall.

The Oticon Intent 1 sounds like it may have the least-effective AI noise reduction, but seems to be a very popular hearing aid.

In theory, I should try all three. But let’s say there’s a 90% chance I will settle on whichever I try first, regardless of how well it works (sigh I’m sorry), where would you start?

6 people in this conversation6 min readJump to latest
Edited

I know nothing about the Phonak aids except what I have read on here, but I have the INTENT1 aids and they are so great that I only have and only need the default general program. I have been wearing aids for 20 years and Oticon aids for 15 years. I have a cookie bite hearing loss but as I age I am losing my high frequencies. I have acrylic custom ear molds and i have no issues with feedback or background noise. I just put my aids on when I get out of bed and don’t take them out or touch them until I take out my aids at bedtime.

@tappenden said:

From what I’ve read, it seems the Phonak are probably the best overall at AI speech in noise

Well I’d take that with a pinch of salt please, yeah the “best” is the one that works best for you in these situations, you’ll not know which one that is until you do a trial to see for yourself, you can’t compare such older models with what is available now, I had the linx2 models and absolutely they worked fantastic for me, before that Phonak and Oticon, both of which I’ll never go backwards on, so there you go, what works for one doesn’t mean for everyone, do the trials to find out.

Perhaps I’ll try this one first. Your looks pretty similar to mine, from memory, except reversed. I can hear high frequencies better than low.

Right, same for me. But according to your , you can hear lows better than highs, whereas for me, highs are better than lows. But yeah, midrange is the big problem.

I am 77 years young, so my high frequencies are getting worse. But there was a time that my highs and lows were above normal and my mid range was right at normal, but that was a very long time ago and before military service actually destroyed my hearing. Flying around the world a dozen times or so in military cargo jets without any hearing protection will do that.

Makes sense. I’m 35, and have had a cookie-bite loss since birth (well, presumably… it wasn’t picked up until I started school). I don’t have normal hearing in any frequencies, but only moderate loss in the low, severe in the mid-range and then mild or moderate int he high. Something like that, anyway. I’ll have my first hearing test for quite a few years on Wednesday, so I’ll see then.

In reply to @cvkemp

CV: although the audiologist told me my hearing loss was due to a loss of cilia due to aging/family trait … I spent the first 70 hours of my flying without headphones in a small, loud 4-cylinder Piper. And I probably wasn’t a regular headphone wearer until about the 100-hour mark. I can’t help but think that and all the flying around I did with the military (as a reporter) in which headphones were sort of a take-it-or-leave-it thing, had some impact on my loss.

I am 50% disabled by the benefits standard. I spend 8 years in the Navy. My medical records show me with normal hearing going in the service and with mild to moderate hearing loss getting out of the service. But I believe now that my hearing has never been really normal as I couldn’t understand Morse Code even whem my hearing was considered normal.

I think it has been said before, but I want to emphasize that the programming is far more important than the choice of any of these very good hearing aids. I researched this for a student in my class on hearing tech and found that only a few audiologists are familiar with and know how to program for reverse slope hearing loss (in the low frequencies) as it is a relatively unusual type of hearing loss. Be sure to call your audiologists office and ask if they handle and have experience with low frequency/reverse slope hearing loss, then call around and see what other offices say. I’ve heard some sad stories of people whose programming did not work at all because just the usual programming standards or computer generated “first fit” were used that work for the typical high frequency hearing loss instead of what was needed.

Yeah but the software and can be configured for any type of loss, first fit can be used for any entered, reverse slopes and any other are not difficult at all for the software, this is all worked out automatically and correct frequencies are programmed on whatever audogram has been entered, what’s actually difficult is getting the client to accept these settings, so definitely a work in progress to get right.

In reply to @LawyerFL

Yup. The clinic where I got the Linx2 was just awful. I’m trying a different place today, and will definitely question the audiologist. I do think modern software is better at fitting for deviant than in the past, but fine tuning is important.

I was actually able to move my appointment from Wednesday to today, so I’ll be back in a few hours to let you know how I got on!

PS The clinic offers Oticon, Phonak, ReSound and Starkey. Unless the audiologist very strongly recommends something else, I plan to start with the Oticon Intent 1.

I can’t see where to add my ? Anyway, it’s come out as more of a reverse slope rather than cookie bite. Very slightly curved. 70dB at the lowest frequencies, 20dB at the highest.

I’ve ordered the Oticon Intent 1. I’ve got an appointment for the fitting next Monday, although they might be in by Thursday and I’ll get a call if so.

In reply to @tappenden

My dispensing Audi did a lot of things right. But he tried to set up my Paradise P90 hearing aids for a year and a half. He never did do it right. I wish him well.

I wish our wonderful hearing aids had a dufus alarm that went off if the setup person made mistakes in setup. Like left hearing aid can’t talk to the right hearing aid…

The audiologist I saw today seemed very good. But we’ll see how they are next week. I’m on vacation March 29th to April 5th, which will mean lots of outdoor time, and lots of restaurants and bars. That’ll really put them through their paces.

Related discussions