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Bluetooth TV transmitter for Phonak hearing aids

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Edited

I read a post here that said that I could use any Bluetooth 5 transmitter for my , but I can’t find it now. I recently got some Phonak Naida M70s (in the UK) which are bluetooth enabled. They work with my iPhone which is great.
Is it really true that I can use a third party transmitter rather than the (expensive) Phonak TV transmitter?
Comments really appreciated.
Roger

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Could it work? Probably, depending on your TV. Will you like it? I guess that depends. The least expensive ones out there do a poor job with the audio. Some leave a lag in the audio over what those in the room may hear. If you hear both, that can be disorienting. If you see that the lips don’t match your audio, that can be confusing as well.

Since you are in the marvel line, you may wind up having to repair every swap, tv to phone and back, although I thought Marvels allowed two pairings, one connection, some have complained they don’t get that. So you won’t be able to take a call through your when watching TV with the transmitter. (That wouldn’t be an issue with the TV Adapter. It isn’t using a BT connection.)

I got a TV Adapter this winter for about $100US, which I use on my computer for zooms/google meet calls. I think it is worth it, but they are your beans, so your call!

WH

I have Phonak Audeo Life . I’ve used a Bluetooth 4.2 transmitter and the Phonak TV Connector V2 with a TV and a PC. The Bluetooth transmitter is fairly basic and only has 3.5mm stereo jack, no optical connector.

I was expecting a delay with the standard transmitter but there wasn’t an appreciable one in my particular setup. It can be a little annoying if you wander off to answer the door as sometimes it doesn’t reconnect automatically without turning HAs off/on.

The TV Connector V2 works very well though and reconnects flawlessly whenever you are in range. It isn’t rechargeable like a common Bluetooth transmitter so you’ll need a spare USB socket for power.

I was lucky and picked one up for £100 on eBay. I’m sure that if you are patient and keep an eye out you might be able to bag one for a similar price. There’s only one button and two ports so not much to break or wear out if you are concerned about 2nd hand.

I picked up a TV Connector V2.0 on eBay UK for £55.

They are well worth the money.

@rogerinshoreham said:

I’m still interested in how people get on with non-Phonak transmitters though.
Is pairing a problem?

For me it has been really straightforward.
I haven’t had any pairing issues at all but my are different from your ones: Phonak Audeo Life P90-RL.
I think that I probably stream about 2-6 hours per day: radio, music, TV/film.
I’ve paired my HAs with quite a few different types of device: TV with built in , cheap BT transmitter, BT USB dongle in a PC, Android phone and a surround sound receiver.

As I wrote before the only real issue has been wandering off and loosing connection which sometimes needs HAs to be turned off/on to get everything working.

Normal BT transmitters definitely work, it’s just that the TV Connector V2 offers a more seamless user experience and has so far never had any problems reconnecting. I’m quite techy, so don’t mind fiddling around, but I still prefer things to just work.

I used to be professionally responsible for a lot of audio/video sync and I’m surprised that the lag isn’t that noticeable. TVs, soundbars and audio receivers tend to have audio sync settings to tidy things up but I haven’t really seen an issue that’s particularly noticeable when devices don’t have that option. I certainly haven’t found it pulling me out of what I’m watching

If watching TV with someone else listening through the TV speakers there is definitely a faint echo with the TV Connector V2 connected via optical but this is easily fixed by changing the ambient noise balance of the HAs (in my case via the rocker switch or in the app) or turning the TV down a touch.

I got the Bluetooth transmitter expecting it to be a game changer! Wrong. They worked fine until my husband spoke to me. I would then remove my and have him repeat his comment - constantly. So it’s great if you live alone. :rofl:. What has helped is using my phone app to increase volume and focus direction on TV (and away from suddenly noisy refrigerator).

Edited

When it is connected the volume control on the and phone app alters the ambient balance.
You can use that to turn up background noise and hear people around you

I find it quite handy, turn it up and you can’t hear others nattering away turn it down if you are feeling social. You can also balance this with the volume controls on the TV Connector device itself.

I’d persevere if I were you as it can be set up to behave as you want it to with a little bit of fiddling.
I can hear computer mouse clicks whilst listening to the radio or listen to TV without hearing others chat depending on the settings.

Best of luck as for me it was a game changer once set up!

Thanks all for the comments which are both useful and interesting.
What I’m going to do is try a cheapie and if it works that’ll be great, if not as the man says their my beans so I’ll have to hand them over for the expensive one. The plan is that I can then use the cheap one on my PC for my flight simulator - sound of engines doesn’t mind a lag at all!
All the best to everyone.
Roger

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