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BT changing from LE Audio to ASHA

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I’m still pretty new to this. I’ve been using Oticon Intent for about a year and a half and just upgraded my phone to a Samsung Galaxy S26. has been working for me but occasionally I find that my phone connection has reverted to . Usually I figure this out when tapping my HA doesn’t answer an incoming call. Most recently it seemed to happen right after I ended a call by tapping, which should have reverted to my streaming audio but did not. Is there a way to make the LE Audio setting stick, or to track down what is causing it to change to ASHA? I really appreciate the better sound quality through LE Audio, even without the two-way communication. I did also discover that the person on the other end of the call is hearing more background noise when I’m using my HA microphones instead of the phone microphone, but that’s a topic for another day.

Thanks, Dan

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Bluetooth is on paper a newer and better standard than (Audio Streaming for Hearing Aids), many are currently experiencing that it seems more unstable on Widex Allure and similar hearing aids..

This is primarily due to three technological reasons:

  • Immature software (Phone manufacturers): Widex itself points out that LE Audio is a new technology and that stability depends enormously on how the individual phone manufacturer (e.g. Google or Samsung) has implemented it in their software. ASHA, on the other hand, has had over 6 years to mature and fix bugs.
  • Connection Rights (Handshake): LE Audio and its associated codec are more complex as they have to handle true two-way audio (where the hearing aid microphones send your voice back to the phone). If the phone's Bluetooth operating system drops a small data packet, the connection may stutter or drop out completely.
  • Automatic "Fallback": Many newer Android phones attempt to jump between LE Audio and ASHA if the signal becomes weak, which paradoxically creates dropouts and instability instead of helping.

What can you do to improve stability?

  1. Temporarily disable LE Audio (Revert to ASHA): If you want a stable connection right now, you can turn off LE Audio on your phone. Go to Settings -> Bluetooth -> Tap the gear next to your Widex Allure -> Turn off LE Audio . This will force your phone to use the older, but more proven ASHA connection.
  2. Keep your phone updated: Since bugs are most often in the phone's Bluetooth software, stability is continually fixed through Android system updates.
  3. Check placement: LE Audio is sensitive to body obstruction. If your phone is in your back pocket, the signal may have a harder time reaching both hearing aids consistently compared to a front pocket.
@widexallure said:

Check placement: LE Audio is sensitive to body obstruction. If your phone is in your back pocket, the signal may have a harder time reaching both hearing aids consistently compared to a front p

That hasn't been my experience. For me, using a Pixel 10 with Phillips 9050 hearing aids, has been rock solid. I can move to a different room and it still stays connected.

In reply to @requa

@requa said:

. BT LE Audio has been working for me but occasionally I find that my phone connection has reverted to ASHA.

I don't have a samsung, but my pixel 9 has never switched to asha by itself.

As long as you have LEA toggled on in your hearing aid bluetooth settings, it should not switch, but just to be sure, you need to enable developer options in your phone settings, and make sure bypass bluetooth LEA allowlist is enabled.

If the background noise is to causing issues using the mics, you can switch to phone mic from the dialer app, or your Hearing aid shortcut in the notification shade while on a call.

In reply to @widexallure

@widexallure your information may apply to widex, but certainly is totally contrary to Oticon, Resound, and Starkey.

has been much more stable, and has much better connectivity than .

Both Samsung and Pixel phones have been LEA compatible since 2022 for pixel, and early 2023 for samsung. No immature software there. Oticon Intent has had LEA since 2024, so no immaturity there.

Connection rights? What? is a giant step forward for connectivity, audio quality, and overall stability over , or ASHA. Packet loss is unheard (not a pun) of.

Sorry, but you are very misinformed.

Maybe can be completely disabled in Android's Developer options. After that, try testing how it works.

Thank you for the thoughtful responses. As the OP, I should note that this switch back to has not been happening recently -- possibly not since my original post. Maybe it's like the rattle that won't happen when your mechanic is test driving your car.

Dan

Hopefully it was some sort of a one-time glitch. I have used my Oticon Intent 1's with a Samsung Flip 5 and now with a Samsung Fold 8, and I am an engineer that worked with Bluetooth in the semiconductor industry. Audio should be much more stable than since any Bluetooth chip that supports BLE Audio is much newer technology. Once you select BLE Audio in the phone it should not change unless the phone is out of range. Both of my Samsung phones have been rock solid until I get about 50 feet from the phone. But even in those cases, the 's will reconnect using BLE Audio as soon as I am within range of the phone.

And the earlier comment about phone software is probably wrong; more likely it is the HA software. There is much more effort put into for phones; I would expect HA manufacturers to put their effort into sound quality rather than BT.

I have the Galaxy A36 and Resound Vivia 's. Occasionally, I find my phone has switched to . I suspect this may have happened after using "speaker" on a call, but I don't know. On one occasion, I remember finding it in ASHA, and thinking, "yeah, I did that," but I don't remember what "that" was. My feeling is that when the phone switches to ASHA, it's operator induced, not just some random switching by the phone itself.

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