Anyone own med el Adhear?

I’ve used Adhear (trial version) for almost 6 months now as a temporary device while waiting for my permanent BAHA abutment surgery. This was due to an accident which made me bilaterally deaf. To make it short, trying out the Adhear, I was resistant to the idea of getting proper surgery to get the BAHA. But after 6 months of using the Adhear device, I now couldn’t wait to have the surgery and get the permanent one. I’ll explain further below.

First of all, I couldn’t imagine how I could’ve returned to work after my accident without the Adhear, and without wearing the head strap for the BAHA. It wasn’t the best but I was able to work and function with it. It worked just well enough and wasn’t very conspicuous.

I think it’s great for augmenting your hearing if you have single sided-deafness or moderate hearing loss. But when I trialed the Oticon Ponto and Cochlear BAHA options (using their straps and metal head clamp), the difference was astounding. I think the clamping pressure and sound processing technology made the difference. I expect the quality to get even better when the conduction is direct to the bone. Having just a sticker to the skin is just not comparable in terms of volume and clarity of sound.

Other things you need to consider are the consumables - the sticker and battery. I think they recommend you replace the stickers every 4-5 days but I managed to extend that to 7 days max. The battery may last longer but I also replace them at least every week. You might need some help to put on the sticker at first, but I was able to do it by myself eventually.

In terms of technology and features, I think it’s inferior to Ponto and BAHA. The noise cancellation, while available, is not very effective in comparison. It also doesn’t have the bluetooth connectivity features. Also, I think I’ve worn out the on/off/mode switch. Changing modes and turning it on/off eventually became a pain after several months of use. It may be because the test unit was already used by someone else before me, I don’t know for sure.

Like I said, I am very happy that this option was available for me when I needed it. But I know it was just a temporary one, and I couldn’t wait to get my implant done. I suggest you give the three options a try. Try the Adhear on for a month, see if it works enough for you. People have different needs, and for me I just don’t see myself using this in the long term.

Hope this helps.

I also tried the MedEl AdHear, Cochlear’s SoundArc and Oticon’s Ponto 4 on headbands. I agree with tsiklots evaluation. The AdHear had too much feedback and the volume control didn’t seem to work well (I never tried the program settings). The SoundArc provided a much better quality, but the headband gave me headaches. I have only had the Ponto for a couple days, but the headband is way more comfortable and the sound is the best so far, plus it has find my hearing aid and other phone apps (I couldn’t use Cochlear’s App with a Demo).

I don’t know if I will go with an implant or just buy a nonsurgical Ponto.

I’m not overly impressed with the Adhear. The volume is too soft and it constantly gives feedback noise. The Softbands work much better for me. Of course they’re annoying to wear all day. An implant is probably the best way to go.

I’m trying it out right now. I’m not convinced so far. The sound quality isn’t good; it sounds distant and isn’t very loud. Speech clarity seems better, and at least I don’t get feedback from my own voice. Is there a specific place to position it? What is its operating range? It seems to have fewer features. No Bluetooth. It was released in 2017—that was a long time ago now.