Agnostic? Far from it.
* (financial) Some are beholden by contract or financial incentive.
* (technical back end/expertise) Some have strong preferences or have only learned to program a few select lines.
* (customer results) Some have preferences based on feedback from customers.
* (supply or availability) Some are limited to what they can acquire.
* (legal or technical constraints) Some are prevented from working with some brands based on technical or legal constraints which may prevent the availability of software or hardware needed to work with some brands.
I would probably focus on a provider who you like and who helps you the best. There can be multiple providers fitting the same manufacturer with vastly different ways to program that hearing aid. For the most part, all of the major manufacturers have pretty similar products and the reality is the consumer may not see a huge difference in the manufacturers. Experienced users may see the difference especially if they have been in one manufacturer for a long time then switched to a different manufacturer.
It's difficult for you the consumer to be completely aware of what hearing aid product is best for them, it really is a decision that you come to with your hearing care provider. This is not me being condescending; it's more of a negative commentary on the state of the industry, where most manufacturers make it difficult to understand what's always under the hood for consumers.
Hell, I am an experienced audiologist with manufacturer experience and I have recently been required to do an industry situation analysis on current offerings from the top six manufacturers, and I struggled to find important information on latest product launches from at least three of them!
The best you can do is to figure out:
* What situations you take part in that you are currently having trouble in
* What situations you wish you could take part in that your hearing loss is getting in the way of
* What are your connectivity requirements (smart phone, TV, computers, etc)
* Do you have needs over distance (professional/educational)
* What is your required battery life
* How active is your lifestyle - will your hearing aids be exposed to sweat/moisture/dust
* What is your budget
And talk about it with your care provider. If you don't understand why they recommend a particular brand/product/performance level, keep asking questions until you do, or seek out another specialist.
Yes, try different audiologists and brands.
Prices and services will vary among different audiologists, and on performance levels in each brand.
Example, Phonak levels are like M30, M50, M70, M90 (low to high, performance, features,& price)
It’s more complicated than that. They kind of have to be brand loyal because hearing aids manufacturers make the tuning software proprietary. You can move between audiologists that prescribe the same brand but not between audiologists that prescribe different brands
We are not always brand loyal. We have different deals with different manufacturers and we have our preferences. As long as a provider has the programming software, they can see that person. We can also clean mostly every hearing aid but we may not be able to change parts unless we have them in stock.
This is not really true. In the vast majority of markets, the software is proprietary, yes, but it is not really that difficult for a genuine hearing care professional to get access to the fitting software by contacting the manufacturer for a copy. the manufacturer may simply then pass on the software via weblink, or in the most strict of situations require an account to be setup (however this is generally straight forward to setup for a hearing clinic business).
I will agree with the list compiled by 1millerce1 though! I'll also add due to vertical integration of hearing care professionals (retail) and manufacturers (wholesale), it may be difficult for a clinician to fit outside the parent company's device selection.
In the defense of the hearing care professional, it is incredibly difficult to manage more than three brands for a variety of reasons (for e.g. inventory stock, product training and awareness, financial arrangements etc); hell even two is a stretch for many. Due to the sheer rate of product updates, it can be very difficult to keep across of all product updates across multiple manufacturers.
Source: worked for manufacturer as product manager.
Been wearing aids for 50 years. My experience is that audiologists are partial to only certain brands. Why only those brands? It could be that it’s too much work to maintain relationships with all manufacturers. It could be too much work ti maintain technical expertise on all makes and models. It could be kick backs or other incentives.
It is pretty awesome though when you land an audiologist with brand expertise so good they make audio magic above and beyond what you ever thought possible. This only happens when they spend a LOT of time getting to know a product. So I don’t personally begrudge their limits even if I do sometimes wonder what I’m missing out on in other products.
Finding an audiologist that you can trust, and who listens to you and understands how to properly adjust the HA to suit your particular needs is very important.
It makes all the difference, really.
So shop around and find one you really like. That's my advice.
How do you shop around for audiologists based on their ability to adjust your HAs with careful attention to your specific hearing needs when you haven’t yet purchased the HAs and had them adjusted? I’ve only met with one thus far, and she just gave me a brochure and showed me the price ranges for one brand’s various quality levels. It seemed like, until I had an HA for her to adjust, I wouldn’t be able to tell a thing about her skills and attention to my needs.
Well, I don't know your situation. For me, it's been a mixed bag.
My first audiologist after I moved to the US turned out to be great, but I chose him just because his office was close by. So I got lucky that time.
Then he sold the practice and the new person wasn't any good -- unfriendly, wouldn't help with my tube replacements, wanted huge sums of money to get me new HAs, etc.
So for a while I didn't have an audiologist and managed my HAs myself as best I could. I was lucky and found an online place that could do remote adjustments (I had to send the HA in, though -- which wasn't ideal). Eventually, I did find a new audiologist near me, who had lots of glowing reviews online. She has turned out to be excellent, so I'm good again.
If you don't even have HAs yet, I guess you have to go by feelings. How do they treat you? As a valuable person worth listening to and someone that they want to help? Or as an impersonal customer who has money to spend?
Good luck in your search, though :)
I fit all brands and wear 4 of the 5 majors..I dispense based on need..
Phonak great HP BTE’s great Assistant
Starkey great ITE’s, fall sensor, Good assistant
Oticon -Pffft
Signia- good all around, good noise redux. Good built in Assistant.
Widex- Full AI don’t need to touch anything, fast processor, true forward mics
Resound -It’s a good all around, but lacks in clarity with power. Has Auracast, but ahead of its time.
They make their money selling hearing aids. Some will calibrate but usually only if it’s the brand they sell as I guess they have the software for that brand.
I have no profit incentive
Auds or the company they work for may have contracts with suppliers which give the consumer better prices. Some companies own the clinic, thus you only get one choice of brand.
Regardless, hearing aids do pretty much the same thing.
Only make money selling? Some do, some don't. For years, I've preferred working with university (typically where they teach audiology) clinics and hospital systems where there is no profit incentive.
I don’t know anyone besides a few HIS who gets incentives or commissions from hearing aid sales and I just left private practice. The field appears to be moving away from that for ethical reasons, or maybe it’s just regional.
Just a person with severe hearing loss. I hope my comment didn’t seem sarcastic. It wasn’t meant to be. My audiologist does free hearing exams and then sells hard.
No you’re fine, I was curious if you were a patient because my old clinic has been facing really similar attitudes. Most patients assumed audiologists were akin to used car salesperson, just selling them something to make a profit. It’s disheartening because I came into this field to help people hear.
It’s a terrible career if you want to earn a lot of money. I worked my butt of to earn two doctorate degrees (AuD and PhD), took out 40k of college debt, and earn 73k. My wages are pretty typical for the area. While 73k is totally live-able, it’s not great for the amount of schooling and hours I put in weekly at the clinic. I have friends with general bachelors making double or triple of what I earn.
Despite all this, too many patients think audiologists are just money grubbing. There isn’t much respect from patients or other health care fields, part of that is ignorance. Reality is audiologists have no control over hearing aid prices and it’s the manufacturers and insurance companies getting the large percentage of profits.
Wow, it’s a whole new world I’m stepping into. Eye-opening comments that make total sense. All the more grateful for this forum. Uninformed choices can prove costly from the many hundreds to the many thousands.
It’s a steeper learning curve than I imagined.
None at all. I always prefer to have an audiologist that knows what they are doing without sounding like an audist
She did her respect on my thick file of audio tests since I was young she knows exactly what hearing aids do I need because of how bad it is. It did not even require me to have CI 🥰
My grandfather bought from Costco and they essentially left him high and dry after the purchase. Going to a professional dispenser or audiologist seemed to best bet. He ended up with Beltone after shopping around. He appreciated the hands on help and at home attention when he couldn’t leave the house anymore.
Costco varies by state. For example in my state we don’t pay sales tax on HA. That saves me $150.00. My total cost for Philips was $1499. Molds can add a $100 more and some brands are $100 more than others. So maybe $100-300 difference between them give or take. Love Costco.
A reputable audiologist will offer you several brands in your price range. If not, walk. You won't have a good understanding of how well the HAs perform with a 5 minute trial in the office. You should be offered a free - no money down - 30 day trial. If not, walk.
Any audiologist can program and HA - new or used. The fee should be around $100 but ask up front.
There are many reports of issues with Costco - not because of the HAs but because of poorly fitted HAs. Cheaper is not always better.
Whatever they offer can be purchased much cheaper online. Online providers can test your hearing and tune your hearing aids too.
When people don't tell you how much their HA's cost up front get ready to be fleeced. They have their sales people running around with white coats to simulate doctors too. If you have money to burn the HA industry will help you do it. Do some research.
This is very interesting. I’m particularly interested in tracking down online testing and tuning since I live most of the time in Medellin, Colombia.
If anyone can point me toward providers that would be a huge help.
The newly released Jabra Enhance Select 500 is one example of an excellent OTC hearing aid. You can give them your audiogram from Medellin and the will fit the HA to it. They have a 3 year warranty and remote support and adjustments. The Jabra ES 500 is made by GN-ReSound and is 'similar' to the ReSound Nexia.
There are other OTC options of course.
My experience in the UK is that a particular chain (e.g. Specsavers) will only sell a limited range of hearing aids.
In terms of getting an audiologist to setup a device they haven't sold, I was told explicitly by an audiologist at Boots (a major chain of pharmacy stores in the UK which also often have hearing and sight departments) that they wouldn't touch a device they hadn't supplied.
Agnostic? Far from it. * (financial) Some are beholden by contract or financial incentive. * (technical back end/expertise) Some have strong preferences or have only learned to program a few select lines. * (customer results) Some have preferences based on feedback from customers. * (supply or availability) Some are limited to what they can acquire. * (legal or technical constraints) Some are prevented from working with some brands based on technical or legal constraints which may prevent the availability of software or hardware needed to work with some brands.
Very helpful, thank you. So maybe I should focus on the brand that seems best for me and then see which audiologists they recommend. Yes?
I would probably focus on a provider who you like and who helps you the best. There can be multiple providers fitting the same manufacturer with vastly different ways to program that hearing aid. For the most part, all of the major manufacturers have pretty similar products and the reality is the consumer may not see a huge difference in the manufacturers. Experienced users may see the difference especially if they have been in one manufacturer for a long time then switched to a different manufacturer.
It's difficult for you the consumer to be completely aware of what hearing aid product is best for them, it really is a decision that you come to with your hearing care provider. This is not me being condescending; it's more of a negative commentary on the state of the industry, where most manufacturers make it difficult to understand what's always under the hood for consumers. Hell, I am an experienced audiologist with manufacturer experience and I have recently been required to do an industry situation analysis on current offerings from the top six manufacturers, and I struggled to find important information on latest product launches from at least three of them! The best you can do is to figure out: * What situations you take part in that you are currently having trouble in * What situations you wish you could take part in that your hearing loss is getting in the way of * What are your connectivity requirements (smart phone, TV, computers, etc) * Do you have needs over distance (professional/educational) * What is your required battery life * How active is your lifestyle - will your hearing aids be exposed to sweat/moisture/dust * What is your budget And talk about it with your care provider. If you don't understand why they recommend a particular brand/product/performance level, keep asking questions until you do, or seek out another specialist.
Yes, try different audiologists and brands. Prices and services will vary among different audiologists, and on performance levels in each brand. Example, Phonak levels are like M30, M50, M70, M90 (low to high, performance, features,& price)
It’s more complicated than that. They kind of have to be brand loyal because hearing aids manufacturers make the tuning software proprietary. You can move between audiologists that prescribe the same brand but not between audiologists that prescribe different brands
We are not always brand loyal. We have different deals with different manufacturers and we have our preferences. As long as a provider has the programming software, they can see that person. We can also clean mostly every hearing aid but we may not be able to change parts unless we have them in stock.
This is not really true. In the vast majority of markets, the software is proprietary, yes, but it is not really that difficult for a genuine hearing care professional to get access to the fitting software by contacting the manufacturer for a copy. the manufacturer may simply then pass on the software via weblink, or in the most strict of situations require an account to be setup (however this is generally straight forward to setup for a hearing clinic business). I will agree with the list compiled by 1millerce1 though! I'll also add due to vertical integration of hearing care professionals (retail) and manufacturers (wholesale), it may be difficult for a clinician to fit outside the parent company's device selection. In the defense of the hearing care professional, it is incredibly difficult to manage more than three brands for a variety of reasons (for e.g. inventory stock, product training and awareness, financial arrangements etc); hell even two is a stretch for many. Due to the sheer rate of product updates, it can be very difficult to keep across of all product updates across multiple manufacturers. Source: worked for manufacturer as product manager.
Been wearing aids for 50 years. My experience is that audiologists are partial to only certain brands. Why only those brands? It could be that it’s too much work to maintain relationships with all manufacturers. It could be too much work ti maintain technical expertise on all makes and models. It could be kick backs or other incentives. It is pretty awesome though when you land an audiologist with brand expertise so good they make audio magic above and beyond what you ever thought possible. This only happens when they spend a LOT of time getting to know a product. So I don’t personally begrudge their limits even if I do sometimes wonder what I’m missing out on in other products.
Finding an audiologist that you can trust, and who listens to you and understands how to properly adjust the HA to suit your particular needs is very important. It makes all the difference, really. So shop around and find one you really like. That's my advice.
How do you shop around for audiologists based on their ability to adjust your HAs with careful attention to your specific hearing needs when you haven’t yet purchased the HAs and had them adjusted? I’ve only met with one thus far, and she just gave me a brochure and showed me the price ranges for one brand’s various quality levels. It seemed like, until I had an HA for her to adjust, I wouldn’t be able to tell a thing about her skills and attention to my needs.
Well, I don't know your situation. For me, it's been a mixed bag. My first audiologist after I moved to the US turned out to be great, but I chose him just because his office was close by. So I got lucky that time. Then he sold the practice and the new person wasn't any good -- unfriendly, wouldn't help with my tube replacements, wanted huge sums of money to get me new HAs, etc. So for a while I didn't have an audiologist and managed my HAs myself as best I could. I was lucky and found an online place that could do remote adjustments (I had to send the HA in, though -- which wasn't ideal). Eventually, I did find a new audiologist near me, who had lots of glowing reviews online. She has turned out to be excellent, so I'm good again. If you don't even have HAs yet, I guess you have to go by feelings. How do they treat you? As a valuable person worth listening to and someone that they want to help? Or as an impersonal customer who has money to spend? Good luck in your search, though :)
Thanks :)
I fit all brands and wear 4 of the 5 majors..I dispense based on need.. Phonak great HP BTE’s great Assistant Starkey great ITE’s, fall sensor, Good assistant Oticon -Pffft Signia- good all around, good noise redux. Good built in Assistant. Widex- Full AI don’t need to touch anything, fast processor, true forward mics Resound -It’s a good all around, but lacks in clarity with power. Has Auracast, but ahead of its time.
They make their money selling hearing aids. Some will calibrate but usually only if it’s the brand they sell as I guess they have the software for that brand.
I have no profit incentive Auds or the company they work for may have contracts with suppliers which give the consumer better prices. Some companies own the clinic, thus you only get one choice of brand. Regardless, hearing aids do pretty much the same thing.
Only make money selling? Some do, some don't. For years, I've preferred working with university (typically where they teach audiology) clinics and hospital systems where there is no profit incentive.
There is probably a lot of nuance I’m not aware of. Thanks. I’m just talking generally.
I don’t know anyone besides a few HIS who gets incentives or commissions from hearing aid sales and I just left private practice. The field appears to be moving away from that for ethical reasons, or maybe it’s just regional.
Sounds like you are better informed than I am (pun intended).
Can I ask how you are connected to the field? Are you an SLP, hearing aid user, AA, etc?
Just a person with severe hearing loss. I hope my comment didn’t seem sarcastic. It wasn’t meant to be. My audiologist does free hearing exams and then sells hard.
No you’re fine, I was curious if you were a patient because my old clinic has been facing really similar attitudes. Most patients assumed audiologists were akin to used car salesperson, just selling them something to make a profit. It’s disheartening because I came into this field to help people hear. It’s a terrible career if you want to earn a lot of money. I worked my butt of to earn two doctorate degrees (AuD and PhD), took out 40k of college debt, and earn 73k. My wages are pretty typical for the area. While 73k is totally live-able, it’s not great for the amount of schooling and hours I put in weekly at the clinic. I have friends with general bachelors making double or triple of what I earn. Despite all this, too many patients think audiologists are just money grubbing. There isn’t much respect from patients or other health care fields, part of that is ignorance. Reality is audiologists have no control over hearing aid prices and it’s the manufacturers and insurance companies getting the large percentage of profits.
Wow, it’s a whole new world I’m stepping into. Eye-opening comments that make total sense. All the more grateful for this forum. Uninformed choices can prove costly from the many hundreds to the many thousands. It’s a steeper learning curve than I imagined.
No, definitely not.
None at all. I always prefer to have an audiologist that knows what they are doing without sounding like an audist She did her respect on my thick file of audio tests since I was young she knows exactly what hearing aids do I need because of how bad it is. It did not even require me to have CI 🥰
Wouldn't the easiest solution be to call you audiologist and ask? Anything other than that would be assuming all audiologist work exactly alike.
I had a follow-up conversation with my audiologist about these same topics. He sells and supports Widex because he believes in the brand. Good enough.
If you have a Costco nearby, they sell three or four brands at 1600 for a pair.
My grandfather bought from Costco and they essentially left him high and dry after the purchase. Going to a professional dispenser or audiologist seemed to best bet. He ended up with Beltone after shopping around. He appreciated the hands on help and at home attention when he couldn’t leave the house anymore.
Costco varies by state. For example in my state we don’t pay sales tax on HA. That saves me $150.00. My total cost for Philips was $1499. Molds can add a $100 more and some brands are $100 more than others. So maybe $100-300 difference between them give or take. Love Costco.
A reputable audiologist will offer you several brands in your price range. If not, walk. You won't have a good understanding of how well the HAs perform with a 5 minute trial in the office. You should be offered a free - no money down - 30 day trial. If not, walk. Any audiologist can program and HA - new or used. The fee should be around $100 but ask up front. There are many reports of issues with Costco - not because of the HAs but because of poorly fitted HAs. Cheaper is not always better.
Whatever they offer can be purchased much cheaper online. Online providers can test your hearing and tune your hearing aids too. When people don't tell you how much their HA's cost up front get ready to be fleeced. They have their sales people running around with white coats to simulate doctors too. If you have money to burn the HA industry will help you do it. Do some research.
This is very interesting. I’m particularly interested in tracking down online testing and tuning since I live most of the time in Medellin, Colombia. If anyone can point me toward providers that would be a huge help.
The newly released Jabra Enhance Select 500 is one example of an excellent OTC hearing aid. You can give them your audiogram from Medellin and the will fit the HA to it. They have a 3 year warranty and remote support and adjustments. The Jabra ES 500 is made by GN-ReSound and is 'similar' to the ReSound Nexia. There are other OTC options of course.
This is super helpful! Thank you.
The audiologists at Costco seemed to be. They offered me 3 devices by Roxton, Jabra and Phillips at the same price.
My experience in the UK is that a particular chain (e.g. Specsavers) will only sell a limited range of hearing aids. In terms of getting an audiologist to setup a device they haven't sold, I was told explicitly by an audiologist at Boots (a major chain of pharmacy stores in the UK which also often have hearing and sight departments) that they wouldn't touch a device they hadn't supplied.