Andy, I agree that price should not be the barrier that it is. With that said, the audiologists time in treatment is a part of that cost. Hopefully, advancements in hearing tech automation will help separate the two so the device is one cost while the professionals time is another (both being covered by insurance). - Steve
It shouldn’t be a barrier but high quality audio equipment should cost that sort of money. I find it hard to accept that one of the most important sensors isn’t worth more than 2000 dollars ;-)
I use airpod pro 2 set as hearing aid, the most wonderful experience is the conversation boost mode, it’s able to exclude noise from the conversation and do two things, 1. amplify conversation only 2. active noise cancellation to noises. I don’t know how they did it but I love the product.
I thought the $5000 aid was the worst in a noisy setting. The cheapest one was the best in my judgment. I recently purchased the Audien Atom Pro and find it helpful in normal conversation in a quiet setting. It doesn’t suppress background noise in a noisy setting. I won’t be using any hearing aid to listen to music, so I don’t care about the performance of these for music.
Hi Dogsnark, thanks for your comment. One problem we observed with Audien Atom Pro is that it does not provide amplification in the higher frequencies (above roughly 1.5 kHz) which is key for speech intelligibility for those with a high frequency hearing loss. The traditional hearing aid was the only device capable of doing this. Our hope would be that more Amazon hearing products keep a lower cost while offering better amplification and features. Regardless, very happy to hear Audien Pro is helping you in quiet settings! - Steve
@@HearingTracker Doesn't matter what the specs say, @Dogsnark is right. Going by your video, the cheapest option does in fact perform the best in noisy environments to my ears as well, while speech enhancement appears to get worse and worse as you step up in price. With the prescription aids, people were more difficult to understand than they were with no aid at all. If that's not the case in real life, then you might want to delete this video and re-upload after you've reevaluated your testing methods.
Thanks so much for doing this test. It’s the best one I’ve seen. I would love to see you do it with some middle of the road cost OTC hearing aids maybe some that were closer to $500. At that level there are some that start to have some adjustability through apps and some that can be tailored to your hearing aid test by the user, and even have circuitry to block out background noises? Even some CIC. I agree with the other person that commented, people don’t realize how much Work went into this video and giving a fair assessment and doing the audio files that we could hear. Again great job, thanks again. you have a new subscriber.
This is all so frustrating for my Dad. He's got a prescription set and they're terrible. He's so burned out on the process of getting fitted again that it's difficult to get him into the clinic again. I was hoping for something inexpensive and easy to help him. I guess there really isn't a shortcut to all of this. Good review. Thank you for putting this up and saving us more frustration.
I understand your frustration, good hearing technology is expensive and unattainable for some. Major hearing aid manufacturers do invest millions of dollars in researching the quality and efficacy of their products. This is not something these lower-cost OTC companies do. In fact, many of them purchase chips or products from oversea manufacturers and rebrand them. Furthermore, some of the OTC products we have measured can potentially hurt speech understanding due to poor programming and amplification. Unfortunately, there is no great one answer for everyone but we are trying to reduce confusing and help sort quality from compost. - Steve
@@HearingTracker When I'm deciding whether or not to even buy a hearing aid because I'm not sure it would benefit my mild/moderate hearing loss, it makes no sense to buy a 3-6K device. The cartel devices are certainly better, I just don't think it's possible for them to be 10X better, because my $250 one works great for me.
I head a pair of Audien Atom hearing aids for one week, one bud didn't work, emailed them, then called, after talking with a rep. they talked me thru a fix. After a week of trying to adjust them, one of the buds volume controls could not be adjusted. Contacted them, they requested I send them back. That was a week ago, today I received an email informing me that a refund was on the way. I had them two weeks! This is a good video
For me, the Audien Atom works for my needs. This testing mode is very good, but in my estimation, it seemed that the prescribed hearing aid didn't sound that good. It's somewhat difficult since not all individuals hear things at the same level as others. What might work for some individuals may not work for others, since we're all not born in the same specifications as others. I guess it should be said that the final decision should be made by the user of such devices, since it'd be based on that person's specific individual needs. IMHO... I can't afford to spend thousands of dollars on a hearing device, if it's affordable and works good for my needs... I'm buying it!
I paid $4200 for the Starkey hearing aids from my audiologist. I tried two others from Costco, but they were tinny and cheap sounding. I spent the money to get the ones I liked. I am very happy with them.
I have bought my hearing aids at Costco for years and never had an issue. There hearing aid fitters can adjust the hearing aids they sell in a multiple different ways to get a great fitting. For most folks, the ones at Costco work just fine.
I think that adding a microphone behind the head along with one in front and the back of the ears would be great to see the directional differences and capabilities of each test subject. This is awesome thanks 🙏👍 I'm trying to help a friend out.
I have the Audien Atom Pro. The charged battery last a long time and they are rechargeable. There is a volume control dial on the amplifier which is turned with a small screwdriver. There are no other settings. They absolutely amplify sound; however, for me everything sounds like it is in a high frequency range. They come with 3 different sized ear domes, the smallest dome is somewhat tight for my ear. However, this is my first experience with an OTC hearing assisted device and I expected too much. I hope to buy a better set in the future. This was a very helpful video.
I use airpod pro 2 set as hearing aid, the most wonderful experience is the conversation boost mode, it’s able to exclude noise from the conversation and do two things, 1. amplify conversation only 2. active noise cancellation to noises. I don’t know how they did it but I love the feature.
I’ve tried some of these cheap devices from Amazon, and returned them quickly. Went to Beltone, got a real series of exams, and hearing aids fitted. They’re incredible. Not cheap, but worth every penny.
Thanks for your comment. After testing many of these cheaper OTC products I couldn't agree more. We hope to shed light on the differences in quality so people can ultimately find technology that works best for them. Thanks for sharing your story! - Steve
I am in Canada. Last week I had audiology test. The clinic tried one hearing aid and then recommended in canal one custom made with another external device called Roger. The cost $7500 after applying loyalty discount and government assistance of $900. I will now try Amazon for $200 to $300 range. I will review their return policy before buying.
Thanks for your comment. I am not sure how things work in Canada, but that sounds very expensive for prescription hearing aids. If you do stick with the OTC route, you can compare audio performance on HearAdvisor.com to make sure you are getting ones that offer speech benefits. - Steve
The autiphon U0 was clearly the best Amzon one imho, with the prescription one being best on music due to the higher frequency performance. The rest were poor and two of the other three made things less clear and worse for my hearing. This is a minefield as I don't believe expensive ones are worth the money and so many cheaper ones are just rebrands of cheap Chinese sound amplifiers rather than proper calibrated hearing aids. The compromise is a digital one with high sampling frequency that works to at kleast 8KHz but how to find out as few I've seen publish specifications. If they did, no one would buy them! I no longer use my pr4escription hearing aid as it is a 10 year old analogue one which suffers from feedback and lag, creating echo. It was a seimens hearing aid.
Hi Paul, our testing did show that one of the devices hurt speech benefit. So good ear. We have since published an article going into greater depth regarding the differences among these devices (www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon). The prescription device can be seen providing respectable gain at and above 8 kHz. Manufacturers have fortunately started increasing their sampling rates extending the high frequency range of their devices. There is always a tradeoff with power consumption, feedback, limitations with the balance armature drivers, and individual needs. - Steve
New Life, there is certainly an amount of markup in hearing aids just like any other technology. It would be nice if audiologists received better reimbursement from insurances for their time. That would help lower costs, or at least make it more transparent as it would be clearer that the price is a combination of technology, professional assistance, and follow-up. Regardless, we hope to see an improvement in accessibility as everyone deserves hearing help! - Steve
Hi Cheryl, glad you liked the video. Here is an article that goes into greater detail regarding the performance of these devices (www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon). The article speaks to the shortcomings of the Amazon sold devices and how they do not provide sufficient amplification in the most important speech frequency regions. The Autiphon device has a more plugged fit which can result in a fuller sound however, it did not show much benefit to speech clarity comparatively. We have seen better performance from similarly prices earbuds and OTC style devices and we will be sharing that soon! - Steve
I have to agree. The Autiphon sounded best even against the control audio and RX hearing aid. Which is probably why it's so hard to find this device (a year later) as the Hearing Aid Industrial Complex goes after these affordable alternatives for amplified audio aids to prevent consumers from buying them on American marketplaces (like Amazon and Walmart), stealing customers that are rightfully theirs.
Thanks for you comment Bob. Most of the prescription devices will sound very similar, with more available gain in the higher frequency regions, due to the research and development behind them. It definitely sets them apart from many of these cheaper amplifiers. More 1 are definitely great devices! - Steve
I just ordered the Audien 2s for my 82 year old father. His friend went thru the whole process of getting $4000 hearing aids after tests and has had nothing but problems with them. My mother-in-law is currently using the Audien 2s while she waits for her expensive hearing aids to be serviced. She's had problems with the expensive ones and can't hear even while using them. She can hear again with the Audien 2s but still wants to use the expensive ones. I'm hoping my father will like the Audien 2s, but if he doesn't, not much lost.
I have tried several versions of Audien hearing aids and always been underwhelmed. They do not offer much high frequency, or tone, amplification which is what most people need with an age related hearing loss. I'm glad to hear your family members are experience some benefit though and best of luck with their new prescription devices. Be sure your hearing care provider performs real-ear verifications (or probe tube measurements) so ensure appropriate amplification. - Steve
Hi thanks for the review, I find Autiphon to be the best for its price. From their website found a few more products but whats the difference between their u01 and u02. I think their website has ide tical description for both. Or am I missing something too apparent?
I spent over $3,000 USD for a pair of HAs made by Phonak. One of them died after two weeks. So I turned them in for a set made by Oticon. One of them died after six months. I had it sent in for warranty repair, got it back, but it's still unusable. I've been without HAs for two weeks now, and counting. My conclusion is that prescription HAs are grossly overpriced trash. Going back-and-forth to the audiologist constantly is also a genuine hassle. My advice to new users is to buy OTC HAs straight away. If they work sufficiently well for you, you're done. If they help, but not enough, get prescription HAs. You will still be glad you have the OTC HAs as a backup.
Thanks for your comment and I agree that OTC products, offering some benefit, are better than nothing at all. Also, I am sorry to hear your experiences with prescription products were so poor. I experienced this in clinic where some people just seemed to have bad luck and or had lifestyle conditions that caused their hearing aids to malfunction quickly. Many times a quality dehumidifier can help hearing aids sound better and last longer. - Steve
Both Autiphon and HSKlock were better than the prescription, which sounded like a radio (1st test). Music was where the prescription shine. Good for me I don't care about movie. Autiphon is it.
I just got the Atom Pro. I’m still trying to decide if this is good enough. One thing that concerns me is that I had to make one hearing aid as loud as possible. I can’t help but wonder if this will hurt that ear’s limited hearing. What do you think?
Hi Susan, I have concerns regarding the volume capabilities of many of these products. Volume does not always equate to speech clarity and high sound levels can surely harm your ears. Can you schedule an appointment with an audiologist? They can test your hearing and perform measurements to see what exactly Atom Pro are doing for you. - Steve
Hi Xenos, at this time we do not. As you mentioned, they look slightly smaller but otherwise appear to have a similar one microphone with volume adjustment design. If you try them please let us know!
Agreed that the prescription devices gave additional gain above ~2khz, which is essential for those like me that have difficulty in following conversations in the presence of noisy backgrounds. A decent hearing aid needs 1) dynamic noise reduction at lower frequency. 2) programmable levels of high frequency amplification. I am not seeing this in any of the cheap amazon devices.
Hearing is not luxory! Hearing aids devices are way too expensive! People affected are really in need. Cost of devices should be cut down especially the prescription ones. I feel awful going to an hearing specialist thinking of the procedures I’ll be going through! The cost then the maintanance of the devices themselves, I mean repairings, adjustments etc…it’s a terrible nightmare! Wish there will be a cure for hearing loss in the future!
I completely agree. I get to see how much hearing I lost in a few weeks. I hear hardly anything at age 40. It's isn't a luxury, it's a need. I get so tired of having to talk to everyone on my phone on speaker just because I can't hear anything from my phone. Ear buds aren't loud enough. It's heartbreaking really. I miss the sound of rain, birds and wind.
@@hannahking1984 I totally understand that. I’m in a similar situation with my hearing getting worse by the time. I really know how frustating it is living with this awful health problem. It makes us all (affected) feeling so down. Also, I’m very sick of dealing with hearing aids dispensers, audiologists who can’t really help much and they charge a lot. Prescription hearing aids are so expensive and their maintanance is expensive too. Hope Over the counter hearing aids will be available for mild/severe loss one day too, they work (better then the prescription ones) and they are much cheaper. I hope you can manage. I wish you the best, take care 😉😃👋
I have tried several prescription and OTC hearing aides. We havee 9 noisy dogs and worse, large tropical birds, cockatoo and macaw. Macaw frequently lets out screams at 147 DB. Painful with the aides in place. What do I do?
My ears hurt reading your comment! Your hearing care provider may be able to decrease the maximum output of your devices. Altering the acoustics of your house may also help decrease reflections and overall sound levels. - Steve
Amazingly helpful! Actually hearing what those aids sound like across such a huge price range. One happy outcome of your research could well be improvement in 'Amazon' hearing aids, addressing the typically weak high end you mention. C'mon, makers of affordable hearing, make some simple adjustments to your chips! And be sure to add non-distorting peak-limiting, so our ears won't hurt. That's also an easy circuit addition. My own affordable aid (six dollars and a bit clunky to look at) would be more than fine if it just included those two low-cost essentials. The general fidelity, speech and music, is very good on my older-person's typical high-end slope.
I have mild to moderate hearing loss. I’m looking for an iic hearing aide that is very discrete. Out of all the custom fit products available out there, are they any brands that work better than others in noisy environments? Thanks
Thanks for your comment. There are many in-the-ear style OTC hearing aids offering good audio performance. Speech in noise is always tricky though. I would check out the leaderboard on HearAdvisor.com to compare audio performance across hearing aids that meet your needs. www.hearadvisor.com/best-hearing-aids - Steve
@@HearingTracker I've checked Hear Advisor ratings and just about every hearing aide regardless of cost score very poorly in noisy environments. The only ones that score well are the ear bud type one by Sony, Senhheriser etc. It's hard to believe that not one behind the ear hearing aide scored well, I say to myself this can't be possible.
Thanks for your comment. There are many OTC hearing aids that have good audio performance within the mild-to-moderate hearing loss range. HearingTracker works with HearAdvisor to objectively test audio performance. You can look at their Leaderboard and compare OTC against prescription devices. Hope this helps! www.hearadvisor.com/best-hearing-aids - Steve
Does anyone know which one picks up lower tones better? My dog is losing her hearing. For dogs, the lower tones go first, so theoretically they can still hunt and hear the "squeaks" of prey. I need an over the ear kind to attach part of it to a headband kind of thing for her to wear. I won't put it in her ear directly, but just outside of it, so an amplifier type is fine.
From the 4 i choose autiphon they have much clearer sound but i can’t understand the prescription hearing aids came from . Can you show us which model you used for prescription ? And thanks for teaching us .
Hi Mario, thanks for your comment. It was one of the latest hearing aids from a major manufacturer. You can find more information about the testing and how these Amazon sold devices compare to prescription devices here: www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon+hearing+aids - Steve
There has to be an otc brand with software adjustable aids. Literally every piece of audio gear made for consumers since the 1930s has had adjustable dB gain function, crossover slope, multi slope eq etc.
There are many OTC brands with software adjustable aids - too many to include in this comment but Jabra Enhance come to mind! Check out hearadvisor.com which is an independent lab dedicated to testing all hearing products. You'll find a list of top performers on there and more information on those devices on hearingtracker.com. - Steve
Though I agree that the more expensive hearing is the best but the cost for some is unattainable. The manufacturers of quality hearing aids need to come down in cost. The technology is out there for other products which do far more than the hearing aid so why the high cost. The few hearing aid manufacturers on the market keep the price high.
Hi Jimenez, your husband would definitely need to see an audiologist versed in this area. Bone conduction hearing aids, while similar to traditional ones, require specific considerations. Thanks for watching and good luck! - Steve
I understand that a person would not want to give a subjective opinion about these results in amplification: I get it. However what we then are to assume is that there is a way to accurately measure in no uncertain terms that the more expensive hearing aid did in fact boost those essential high frequencies. That is where I am not sure I fully hear the results as clearly favoring the 5 thousand dollar hearing device. I thought the second Amazon device was clearly muddy, but frankly I thought the other three sounded like they did boost the highs somewhat along with the overall volume(especially the last one). Therefore I can only take the word of a professional over my own judgement that the 5 thousand dollar product, to my ears reached those higher frequences better. I would be more convinced if there was a sine wave we could look at that would show the presence or lack of those essential high frequencies. I say this because I just ordered the Audien Atom hearing aid from Amazon today in fact, yet interestingly I am also willing to buy a second unit somewhere else at greater cost once I know I am on the right path. I sincerely appreciate your video, and I see exactly what you are looking to show here. My ears are telling me there may still be some high frequencies coming through in a few of the Amazon amplifiers(or hearing aids as they wish to be called). Too bad they don't just come with "tone" controls like most larger commercial amps out there. That might put them a bit closer to the ballpark for those who aren't looking for bells and whistles but just a cheaper solution.
Hi Jon, thanks for your comment. We have objective measures that go along with these recordings and they will be available shortly. Hopefully the data and sound samples will make it much easier for people such as yourself and professionals in the field to better understand the differences that exist among these devices. - Steve
Some of those Amazon sold devices are mere gadgets. To the extent they help a person with hearing difficulty they are worth the investment. The only problem with these devices is how many you have to buy before find one that is satisfactory to one's hearing needs. It's kind of like getting your eyeglasses at the dollar store. Buy a bunch and use the ones that work the best for your needs. Thanks for the demos. Most enhearingly. ;-)
It sounds like you need hearing protection for work or more specialized hearing devices. Musician's/hi-fidelity earplugs can reduce sound levels while keeping speech clearer. There is also active hearing protection which can help amplify speech sounds while reducing noise as much as possible. If you don't have a hearing care provider, you can find an audiologist who specializes in this area on www.tunedcare.com and get some sales-free virtual care. - Steve
Wow this is amazing! I’m new to recognizing my hearing loss and purchased the Ear Centric based on reviews. Your sound recreation is 100%! This is exactly what the Ear Centric sounds like in all situations, unfortunately they truly have the worst sound out of all of them! I really need to go to see a professional!!! Thank you so much!
I'm looking for a hearing aid that is Bluetooth so I can listen to podcasts that is around 100-300 USD Don't have to be perfect but at least decent for hearing aid use any recommendations?
There are several OTC hearing aids, or advanced earbuds, in this price range that fit your description. Apple Airpods Pro and JLab Hear come to mind. You can check-out the Leaderboard on HearAdvisor (www.hearadvisor.com/best-hearing-aids) to find products that fit this price range and listen to their Bluetooth streaming audio quality. - Steve
The video does not mention limiting and compression which hearing aids should have to prevent being too loud while still improving hearing at threshold.
Great point, some of the OTC products we have tested do not offer compression (they are linear amplifiers). We are doing more testing through HearAdvisor and include plots of our measurements so you can see how various hearing aids respond at different sound levels. Here is an example: www.hearadvisor.com/products/lexie-b2-plus - Steve
I read that the Audien is a hearing amplifier. Can it be used instead of an aid (for moderate hearing loss)? Thank you for the video. It's very informative.
I bought the Ear Centric aids within the last couple years. Basically amplifiers I guess. Worked decent for watching TV as i could have my TV volume at 20 and not 80! When used in public though, the amplified sounds were too loud, even on low volume. Had to pull them out of my ears. Plastic ear plug frequently came off the tube and I'd have to fish it out with tweezers. One aid stopped working after 14 months of minimal use. Wouldn't buy again.
Dear Sir, I am 38 years old and I can no longer hear well in my right ear. I have ear damage, tinnitus and there is no low sound when I listen to music or speak. Which hearing aid should I buy on Amazon because I have no money and now it's 2024, are there any new hearing aids?
Hello, and thanks for your comment. There are many new hearing aids, many of which can be seen on HearAdvisor.com. I would strongly recommend you visit an audiologist to better understand your hearing needs (insurance should cover the visit). OTC devices like the ones sold on Amazon are intended for those with no worse than a perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss. It sounds like you need more assistance than what these devices can offer. - Steve
The autiphon U0 was best in this test. Even better than the 5000 dollar model. Don't like how they look at all though. With medicare around the corner I'm looking forward to getting whatever works best for me. Thanks.
Do a video for those of us are comfortable wearing one hearing aid ... especially when we have other problems in the other ear that negates the use of a hearing aid. Thank you.
Hello and thanks for your comment. None of the amazon sold products we tested have a t-coil. You generally need to enter the prescription hearing aid world for those options. - Steve
Thanks for watching and your comment. The prices are listed on the top-left corner when describing each device. You can also find links to all of the products in the video description that will offer you updated pricing. - Steve
I spent €4,300 on 2 Oticon Opn S.2. Which originally worked well. Now (5 years later), the sound is awful. My specialist in Malaga, Spain, says I need to replace them with new ones. at the cost of nearly €9, 000. Is he conning me, or could this be correct? Most importantly, I would like to know how much the hearing aids actually cost him from the factory. I can't find this information anywhere, and no one will tell me. Is this the big secret within the hearing Aid industry?
Even after my insurance, hearing aids will cost me over 4000$, thats ridiculous considering they cost no more than 20$ to manufacture. I should be allowed to have hearing aids that work and are affordable. I flip off audiologists who think the current pricing is acceptable.
New flash! Don't buy a cheap hearing amplifier and expect it to be as good as one that costs a lot more. Secondly, there are over-the-counter hearing aids such as the ones the Jabra manufactures that will work fine for mild to moderate hearing loss at a price much cheaper then what you can buy at an independent hearing aid shop. You will notice they didn't test them! I wonder why! Thirdly, Costco sells real hearing aids that will work just fine for most folks at a price cheaper then the independent shops.
So my question is this: I would absolutely love to have in my ear an Oticon More 1 like the guy hung in my ear on Monday at my hearing aid appointment. A deep neural network would be wonderful for me, but my insurance currently pays nothing and I would have to switch just to get SOME of the money to pay for it. The Amazon solution I ordered does not have the high frequencies I need. WHAT DO I DO? It seems to me as a novice, that from what you say the Audien Atom would give me SOMETHING if it had a TONE CONTROL. Seriously? Really? I have owned probably 30 or 40 ampilfiers in my day and NEVER have I had one with no tone control to boost high frequencies. Do the industry a favor. COME CLEAN with me. Am I missing something. My life is in the hands of professionals like you who have the answers I need. How can I get those high frequencies without buying the "Rolls Royce" of Artificial Intelligence, when all I need is a higher frequency bias like YOU said in your video? Thanks
Hi Jon, my testing of these four amazon devices showed little to no gain above roughly 1100 Hz. Consonant sounds, where clarity comes from, extend much higher towards 6000 Hz. Therefore, these devices will offer minimal assistance with regard to speech clarity. Working with a hearing care professional has many benefits however, cost can be a barrier as you mention. I'd recommend speaking with that professional, or another one in your area, regarding lower cost solutions. Many clinics offer affordable hearing aids beneath the "Rolls Royce" model through various programs, grants, or older generation devices. Older generation hearing aids will vastly surpass the benefits of the Amazon devices we discussed here. If that fails, there are many devices online that can provide gain in the higher frequency ranges. However, this greatly depends on your needs and hearing injury. One example is Apple Airpods Pro, here is a video showing how these low cost earbuds can be programmed to function similar to hearing aids (th-cam.com/video/MoLcMwZa39Q/w-d-xo.html). There are also devices such as Lexie B2 hearing aids, Lucid Engage, Nuheara IQBudsMax, etc. that do a wonderful job of providing benefit at a lower cost. We will have much more information about this shortly on Hearing Tracker. You can also work with an audiologist in-person or remotely to be fit with devices like these. There are plenty of audiologist willing to assist you even if you do not purchase a device directly through their clinic. Best of luck! - Steve
Difficulty hearing conversations in noisy situations is normal for anyone, with or without any kind of hearing loss. A specific condition (that I don't know the name of) is associated with head injury or concussions. I know, because I developed it over time after a head injury. This appears to be a brain thing rather than an ear thing. I hear all frequencies fine according to test tones. In a situation where there are several conversations happening at once, I find it extremely difficult to separate the conversations. Usually after a minute or two, trying to follow a conversation just exhausts me, and I need to escape the environment. The audio quality of the Pro hearing aid sounds horrible, and doesn't make it any easier to hear a conversation. Universally boosting or suppressing audio frequencies won't necessarily create better clarity. Noise is often the same frequencies as those contained in speech; boosting voice frequencies far and near will merely add to the confusion. Most confounding of all of this, is the ridiculous pyramid scheme pricing. Listening to music with the pro model would be odious. I spent some years as a technician in telecoms and electronics firms. In my opinion, the prices being charged for the current technology levels are excessive. Compare to how much technology has been miniaturized and crammed into a smart phone, even those that are less than $100. Check this out: journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0238922#pone.0238922.s001 Hearing aids are essentially mini audio amplifiers with a multi-channel equalizer. Some add some compression or other filters. The smartphone apps to allow user control (of the hearing devices) at specific frequencies are on the right track. They do not go far enough. Well done video: Very methodical, clear and concise.
Thanks for your comment Dean. Fortunately, there is a lot more research looking into issues such as cochlear synaptopathy (hidden hearing loss) and other processing disorders causing what you experience. On another note, all of these devices were programmed as best as possible to a mild to moderate high-frequency hearing loss. The accentuated high-end (most prevalent with the Rx device) will not sound good to an individual without hearing loss. However, it will improve audibility of speech consonants for those with injury in that area. Your comments explains well the difficulties these technologies face with having to provide benefit in such varied situations. We have yet to come close to recreating our actual hearing system! The technologies can still work wonders if they are of quality, programmed properly, and used appropriately. To you later point, I agree that price should not be the barrier that it is for many. Hopefully the pricing structure will change soon. - Steve
I think you’re correct. A hearing aid is pretty much an amplifier, with some signal processing, such as equalization and compression, and the 🔊 speaker. It’s not rocket science, and there’s so much hocus-pocus from EMTs and audiologists used to justify the price gouging. Capitalism what a joke.
Since you make content presumably intended for a hard of hearing audience, why do you play background music while you're talking? I appreciate the effort you've clearly put into the quality of your voice, which is clear and easy to understand, but the music is superfluous and adds no benefit. It just "sounds cool" to hearing people but makes listening harder for hard-of-hearing people. I don't mean to be judgmental either; it seems like a very insensitive editing decision given your target audience.
Thanks for your comment sovrappensiero1. I have thought on this topic at length and the music was not added haphazardly. Several audio engineering steps are performed to minimize the negative effect it may have on speech intelligibility. First, an equalizer is used to remove nearly all frequencies that would otherwise compete with speech consonants. Low frequencies below roughly 100 Hz are also attenuated to reduce annoying bass and or masking. The level of the music is also kept at minimum 10 decibels less than the dialogue. My rate of speech is slower and also processed to accentuate frequency ranges where consonants occur. Ultimately, steps are always taken to make my videos more accessible for individuals with difficulty hearing. - Steve
@@HearingTracker Thank you so much! I really appreciate you explaining the details of how you adapted the music to the video. I admit, I am at a disadvantage because I lost my hearing aids in 2022 (have been saving up for new ones - I've always worn Oticons and I really don't want to switch!) so I'm grumpy (LOL) because I can't hear well (despite your careful steps). I really enjoyed this informative video, and all your videos, and I really appreciate your work. I apologize for my grumpiness!!
It is like only the rich can afford hearing aids , I am Canadian , live in Canada and retired and on a pension with a fixed income was said to have marginal hearing loss but still seem to struggle with it lots , any advice or help would be greatly appreciated .
I liked the way you conducted the tests, but your summary at the end seemed a bit suspicious to me. You didn't talk at all about the positive results from the Amazon aids. You just dismissed them with "we were disappointed" by the results. This seems to be an attempt to lead people away from the Amazon products, discussed as a fair product review. Conflict of interest?
Thanks for your comment and sorry to hear your are unsatisfied. There is generally an adjustments period and further tweaking can be done to your hearing aids. If you are still unhappy, schedule a follow-up visit with your hearing care provider to discuss the specific areas they are not meeting your expectations and needs. - Steve
I found these to be the best also. It would have been a better video if you would show a chart with the frequency results from each device, from 500hz to 8khz.
9:24 -- you are out of your freaking mind -- there was SIGNIFICANT improvement with those amazon devices -- I heard all the conversation MUCH clearer -- in fact, they were all better than the $5000 model
The prescription only shone in the music set. I don't hear music much. I am going to look for this Autiphon. I wished they made these things programmable. This is all we need.
Thanks for your comment. The Amazon sold products performed objectively worse than the prescription device for both speech benefits in quiet and noise. Here is the full article with that information: www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon+hearing+aids - Steve
Overall I thought the cheapest OTC hearing aid, namely the HSKlock produced the best sound quality. The medical hearing aids sounded tinny and artificial by comparison.
@@HearingTracker Yep - when you are making them by the millions the cost is very low Compare them to a Smartphone - a smartphone is much bigger, and many thousands of times more complex with gigabits of memory and GPS and a huge screen and batteries and you can buy a Smartphone for less than $100 - if you can buy one for $100 then the manufacturing costs are less than that Or compare to a modern watch - again much much more complex - with a huge amount more electronics battery and everything - and less than $20 to buy - so probably less than $2 to make
Numerous reports say that wearing prescription hearing aid can prevent dementia. Doctor: Do you think these OTC hearing aids (including the Airpod Pro 2) are also able to prevent dementia?
Hearing aids should never cost $2000 absolutely. But I have tried a few OTC hearing aids, and they are terrible. The sound is tinny, and are either over or under sensitive. The medical fraternity should be brought to task on this. IRS them that hold back 45 million from getting good devices. It’s another American rip off.
At the end of the day hearing aid should not be $2000
Andy, I agree that price should not be the barrier that it is. With that said, the audiologists time in treatment is a part of that cost. Hopefully, advancements in hearing tech automation will help separate the two so the device is one cost while the professionals time is another (both being covered by insurance).
- Steve
It shouldn’t be a barrier but high quality audio equipment should cost that sort of money. I find it hard to accept that one of the most important sensors isn’t worth more than 2000 dollars ;-)
Mine were 4000 still couldn't hear speach
Exactly. Find better ways to improve hearing without filling the pockets of the greedy.
@@HearingTracker
There's very, very limited insurance that I'm aware of that covers such expenses.
The Autiphone U0 was the best of all the amazon earspeakers.
Very well done and informative.
Excellent presentation. People
Don't realize how much work
Went into making this video
I use airpod pro 2 set as hearing aid, the most wonderful experience is the conversation boost mode, it’s able to exclude noise from the conversation and do two things, 1. amplify conversation only 2. active noise cancellation to noises. I don’t know how they did it but I love the product.
I thought the $5000 aid was the worst in a noisy setting. The cheapest one was the best in my judgment. I recently purchased the Audien Atom Pro and find it helpful in normal conversation in a quiet setting. It doesn’t suppress background noise in a noisy setting. I won’t be using any hearing aid to listen to music, so I don’t care about the performance of these for music.
Hi Dogsnark, thanks for your comment. One problem we observed with Audien Atom Pro is that it does not provide amplification in the higher frequencies (above roughly 1.5 kHz) which is key for speech intelligibility for those with a high frequency hearing loss. The traditional hearing aid was the only device capable of doing this. Our hope would be that more Amazon hearing products keep a lower cost while offering better amplification and features.
Regardless, very happy to hear Audien Pro is helping you in quiet settings!
- Steve
@@HearingTracker Doesn't matter what the specs say, @Dogsnark is right. Going by your video, the cheapest option does in fact perform the best in noisy environments to my ears as well, while speech enhancement appears to get worse and worse as you step up in price. With the prescription aids, people were more difficult to understand than they were with no aid at all. If that's not the case in real life, then you might want to delete this video and re-upload after you've reevaluated your testing methods.
I don’t know if I can e ereeeeeeèrreeeeeeeeerrreerrrr
Then you need a hearing aid my friend
I bought my amazone hearing aids with eàr centric Bluetooth on them for 300.00 dollars I get them on friday I can't wait I'm excited to hear again.
Thanks so much for doing this test. It’s the best one I’ve seen. I would love to see you do it with some middle of the road cost OTC hearing aids maybe some that were closer to $500. At that level there are some that start to have some adjustability through apps and some that can be tailored to your hearing aid test by the user, and even have circuitry to block out background noises? Even some CIC. I agree with the other person that commented, people don’t realize how much Work went into this video and giving a fair assessment and doing the audio files that we could hear. Again great job, thanks again. you have a new subscriber.
This is all so frustrating for my Dad. He's got a prescription set and they're terrible. He's so burned out on the process of getting fitted again that it's difficult to get him into the clinic again. I was hoping for something inexpensive and easy to help him. I guess there really isn't a shortcut to all of this. Good review. Thank you for putting this up and saving us more frustration.
A couple of these (Audien and Autiphon) sounded great! Thanks to you, I can avoid the hearing aid cartel!
I understand your frustration, good hearing technology is expensive and unattainable for some. Major hearing aid manufacturers do invest millions of dollars in researching the quality and efficacy of their products. This is not something these lower-cost OTC companies do. In fact, many of them purchase chips or products from oversea manufacturers and rebrand them. Furthermore, some of the OTC products we have measured can potentially hurt speech understanding due to poor programming and amplification.
Unfortunately, there is no great one answer for everyone but we are trying to reduce confusing and help sort quality from compost.
- Steve
@@HearingTracker When I'm deciding whether or not to even buy a hearing aid because I'm not sure it would benefit my mild/moderate hearing loss, it makes no sense to buy a 3-6K device. The cartel devices are certainly better, I just don't think it's possible for them to be 10X better, because my $250 one works great for me.
I head a pair of Audien Atom hearing aids for one week, one bud didn't work, emailed them, then called, after talking with a rep. they talked me thru a fix.
After a week of trying to adjust them, one of the buds volume controls could not be adjusted.
Contacted them, they requested I send them back.
That was a week ago, today I received an email informing me that a refund was on the way.
I had them two weeks!
This is a good video
Thanks for your comment and sorry to hear about the rigmarole. I hope you find devices that work longer than a week!
- Steve
For me, the Audien Atom works for my needs. This testing mode is very good, but in my estimation, it seemed that the prescribed hearing aid didn't sound that good. It's somewhat difficult since not all individuals hear things at the same level as others. What might work for some individuals may not work for others, since we're all not born in the same specifications as others. I guess it should be said that the final decision should be made by the user of such devices, since it'd be based on that person's specific individual needs. IMHO... I can't afford to spend thousands of dollars on a hearing device, if it's affordable and works good for my needs... I'm buying it!
How are they performing for you?
I paid $4200 for the Starkey hearing aids from my audiologist. I tried two others from Costco, but they were tinny and cheap sounding. I spent the money to get the ones I liked. I am very happy with them.
I have bought my hearing aids at Costco for years and never had an issue. There hearing aid fitters can adjust the hearing aids they sell in a multiple different ways to get a great fitting.
For most folks, the ones at Costco work just fine.
I have tried the Costco and Miracle Ear ones, both were garbage.
I think that adding a microphone behind the head along with one in front and the back of the ears would be great to see the directional differences and capabilities of each test subject.
This is awesome thanks 🙏👍 I'm trying to help a friend out.
I have the Audien Atom Pro. The charged battery last a long time and they are rechargeable. There is a volume control dial on the amplifier which is turned with a small screwdriver. There are no other settings. They absolutely amplify sound; however, for me everything sounds like it is in a high frequency range. They come with 3 different sized ear domes, the smallest dome is somewhat tight for my ear. However, this is my first experience with an OTC hearing assisted device and I expected too much. I hope to buy a better set in the future. This was a very helpful video.
I use airpod pro 2 set as hearing aid, the most wonderful experience is the conversation boost mode, it’s able to exclude noise from the conversation and do two things, 1. amplify conversation only 2. active noise cancellation to noises. I don’t know how they did it but I love the feature.
I’ve tried some of these cheap devices from Amazon, and returned them quickly. Went to Beltone, got a real series of exams, and hearing aids fitted. They’re incredible. Not cheap, but worth every penny.
Thanks for your comment. After testing many of these cheaper OTC products I couldn't agree more. We hope to shed light on the differences in quality so people can ultimately find technology that works best for them. Thanks for sharing your story!
- Steve
I am in Canada. Last week I had audiology test. The clinic tried one hearing aid and then recommended in canal one custom made with another external device called Roger. The cost $7500 after applying loyalty discount and government assistance of $900. I will now try Amazon for $200 to $300 range. I will review their return policy before buying.
Thanks for your comment. I am not sure how things work in Canada, but that sounds very expensive for prescription hearing aids. If you do stick with the OTC route, you can compare audio performance on HearAdvisor.com to make sure you are getting ones that offer speech benefits.
- Steve
The autiphon U0 was clearly the best Amzon one imho, with the prescription one being best on music due to the higher frequency performance. The rest were poor and two of the other three made things less clear and worse for my hearing. This is a minefield as I don't believe expensive ones are worth the money and so many cheaper ones are just rebrands of cheap Chinese sound amplifiers rather than proper calibrated hearing aids. The compromise is a digital one with high sampling frequency that works to at kleast 8KHz but how to find out as few I've seen publish specifications. If they did, no one would buy them! I no longer use my pr4escription hearing aid as it is a 10 year old analogue one which suffers from feedback and lag, creating echo. It was a seimens hearing aid.
Hi Paul, our testing did show that one of the devices hurt speech benefit. So good ear. We have since published an article going into greater depth regarding the differences among these devices (www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon). The prescription device can be seen providing respectable gain at and above 8 kHz. Manufacturers have fortunately started increasing their sampling rates extending the high frequency range of their devices. There is always a tradeoff with power consumption, feedback, limitations with the balance armature drivers, and individual needs.
- Steve
New Life, there is certainly an amount of markup in hearing aids just like any other technology. It would be nice if audiologists received better reimbursement from insurances for their time. That would help lower costs, or at least make it more transparent as it would be clearer that the price is a combination of technology, professional assistance, and follow-up. Regardless, we hope to see an improvement in accessibility as everyone deserves hearing help!
- Steve
This helped me a lot. The Autiphon sounded the best. Think I'll try them. Thanks
Hi Cheryl, glad you liked the video. Here is an article that goes into greater detail regarding the performance of these devices (www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon). The article speaks to the shortcomings of the Amazon sold devices and how they do not provide sufficient amplification in the most important speech frequency regions. The Autiphon device has a more plugged fit which can result in a fuller sound however, it did not show much benefit to speech clarity comparatively. We have seen better performance from similarly prices earbuds and OTC style devices and we will be sharing that soon!
- Steve
But I searched in Amazon it's saying Auto phone not Auto phone are they the same and Alexa compatible?
I have to agree. The Autiphon sounded best even against the control audio and RX hearing aid. Which is probably why it's so hard to find this device (a year later) as the Hearing Aid Industrial Complex goes after these affordable alternatives for amplified audio aids to prevent consumers from buying them on American marketplaces (like Amazon and Walmart), stealing customers that are rightfully theirs.
If no prices were posted I wonder which device would have fared best?
The prescription device sounded very like my More 1.... of the others I thought the Autiphon sounded the most natural to me.
Thanks for you comment Bob. Most of the prescription devices will sound very similar, with more available gain in the higher frequency regions, due to the research and development behind them. It definitely sets them apart from many of these cheaper amplifiers. More 1 are definitely great devices!
- Steve
I just ordered the Audien 2s for my 82 year old father. His friend went thru the whole process of getting $4000 hearing aids after tests and has had nothing but problems with them. My mother-in-law is currently using the Audien 2s while she waits for her expensive hearing aids to be serviced. She's had problems with the expensive ones and can't hear even while using them. She can hear again with the Audien 2s but still wants to use the expensive ones. I'm hoping my father will like the Audien 2s, but if he doesn't, not much lost.
I have tried several versions of Audien hearing aids and always been underwhelmed. They do not offer much high frequency, or tone, amplification which is what most people need with an age related hearing loss. I'm glad to hear your family members are experience some benefit though and best of luck with their new prescription devices. Be sure your hearing care provider performs real-ear verifications (or probe tube measurements) so ensure appropriate amplification.
- Steve
Hi thanks for the review, I find Autiphon to be the best for its price. From their website found a few more products but whats the difference between their u01 and u02. I think their website has ide tical description for both. Or am I missing something too apparent?
I spent over $3,000 USD for a pair of HAs made by Phonak. One of them died after two weeks. So I turned them in for a set made by Oticon. One of them died after six months. I had it sent in for warranty repair, got it back, but it's still unusable. I've been without HAs for two weeks now, and counting. My conclusion is that prescription HAs are grossly overpriced trash. Going back-and-forth to the audiologist constantly is also a genuine hassle. My advice to new users is to buy OTC HAs straight away. If they work sufficiently well for you, you're done. If they help, but not enough, get prescription HAs. You will still be glad you have the OTC HAs as a backup.
Thanks for your comment and I agree that OTC products, offering some benefit, are better than nothing at all. Also, I am sorry to hear your experiences with prescription products were so poor. I experienced this in clinic where some people just seemed to have bad luck and or had lifestyle conditions that caused their hearing aids to malfunction quickly. Many times a quality dehumidifier can help hearing aids sound better and last longer.
- Steve
What an incredible review!
Both Autiphon and HSKlock were better than the prescription, which sounded like a radio (1st test). Music was where the prescription shine. Good for me I don't care about movie. Autiphon is it.
I just got the Atom Pro. I’m still trying to decide if this is good enough. One thing that concerns me is that I had to make one hearing aid as loud as possible. I can’t help but wonder if this will hurt that ear’s limited hearing. What do you think?
Hi Susan, I have concerns regarding the volume capabilities of many of these products. Volume does not always equate to speech clarity and high sound levels can surely harm your ears. Can you schedule an appointment with an audiologist? They can test your hearing and perform measurements to see what exactly Atom Pro are doing for you.
- Steve
Hi do you have any info about the Autiphon Advanced Digital Rechargeable Hearing Aids? They're like the ones in the video but smaller.
Hi Xenos, at this time we do not. As you mentioned, they look slightly smaller but otherwise appear to have a similar one microphone with volume adjustment design. If you try them please let us know!
Agreed that the prescription devices gave additional gain above ~2khz, which is essential for those like me that have difficulty in following conversations in the presence of noisy backgrounds.
A decent hearing aid needs
1) dynamic noise reduction at lower frequency.
2) programmable levels of high frequency amplification.
I am not seeing this in any of the cheap amazon devices.
Hearing is not luxory! Hearing aids devices are way too expensive! People affected are really in need. Cost of devices should be cut down especially the prescription ones. I feel awful going to an hearing specialist thinking of the procedures I’ll be going through! The cost then the maintanance of the devices themselves, I mean repairings, adjustments etc…it’s a terrible nightmare! Wish there will be a cure for hearing loss in the future!
I completely agree. I get to see how much hearing I lost in a few weeks. I hear hardly anything at age 40. It's isn't a luxury, it's a need. I get so tired of having to talk to everyone on my phone on speaker just because I can't hear anything from my phone. Ear buds aren't loud enough. It's heartbreaking really. I miss the sound of rain, birds and wind.
@@hannahking1984 I totally understand that. I’m in a similar situation with my hearing getting worse by the time. I really know how frustating it is living with this awful health problem. It makes us all (affected) feeling so down. Also, I’m very sick of dealing with hearing aids dispensers, audiologists who can’t really help much and they charge a lot. Prescription hearing aids are so expensive and their maintanance is expensive too. Hope Over the counter hearing aids will be available for mild/severe loss one day too, they work (better then the prescription ones) and they are much cheaper. I hope you can manage. I wish you the best, take care 😉😃👋
I have tried several prescription and OTC hearing aides. We havee 9 noisy dogs and worse, large tropical birds, cockatoo and macaw. Macaw frequently lets out screams at 147 DB. Painful with the aides in place. What do I do?
My ears hurt reading your comment! Your hearing care provider may be able to decrease the maximum output of your devices. Altering the acoustics of your house may also help decrease reflections and overall sound levels.
- Steve
get rid of the animals
Amazingly helpful! Actually hearing what those aids sound like across such a huge price range. One happy outcome of your research could well be improvement in 'Amazon' hearing aids, addressing the typically weak high end you mention.
C'mon, makers of affordable hearing, make some simple adjustments to your chips! And be sure to add non-distorting peak-limiting, so our ears won't hurt. That's also an easy circuit addition.
My own affordable aid (six dollars and a bit clunky to look at) would be more than fine if it just included those two low-cost essentials. The general fidelity, speech and music, is very good on my older-person's typical high-end slope.
Too Power from amazon good to use against background noise and tinnitus?
I have mild to moderate hearing loss. I’m looking for an iic hearing aide that is very discrete. Out of all the custom fit products available out there, are they any brands that work better than others in noisy environments? Thanks
Thanks for your comment. There are many in-the-ear style OTC hearing aids offering good audio performance. Speech in noise is always tricky though.
I would check out the leaderboard on HearAdvisor.com to compare audio performance across hearing aids that meet your needs. www.hearadvisor.com/best-hearing-aids
- Steve
@@HearingTracker I've checked Hear Advisor ratings and just about every hearing aide regardless of cost score very poorly in noisy environments. The only ones that score well are the ear bud type one by Sony, Senhheriser etc. It's hard to believe that not one behind the ear hearing aide scored well, I say to myself this can't be possible.
i want to replace my mom's old hearing aid, is there one that is very close in specs with the medical grade hearing aid?
Thanks for your comment. There are many OTC hearing aids that have good audio performance within the mild-to-moderate hearing loss range. HearingTracker works with HearAdvisor to objectively test audio performance. You can look at their Leaderboard and compare OTC against prescription devices. Hope this helps!
www.hearadvisor.com/best-hearing-aids
- Steve
Does anyone know which one picks up lower tones better? My dog is losing her hearing. For dogs, the lower tones go first, so theoretically they can still hunt and hear the "squeaks" of prey. I need an over the ear kind to attach part of it to a headband kind of thing for her to wear. I won't put it in her ear directly, but just outside of it, so an amplifier type is fine.
lmao
From the 4 i choose autiphon they have much clearer sound but i can’t understand the prescription hearing aids came from . Can you show us which model you used for prescription ? And thanks for teaching us .
Hi Mario, thanks for your comment. It was one of the latest hearing aids from a major manufacturer. You can find more information about the testing and how these Amazon sold devices compare to prescription devices here: www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon+hearing+aids
- Steve
Is the hissing from your recording? It sounds like your recording has issues
Why does the earcentric have vastly more and higher reviews on Amazon?
I purchased the Earcentric hearing aids and to me they are terrible. The company even lies about the free stuff they'll send. I never got it.
There has to be an otc brand with software adjustable aids. Literally every piece of audio gear made for consumers since the 1930s has had adjustable dB gain function, crossover slope, multi slope eq etc.
There are many OTC brands with software adjustable aids - too many to include in this comment but Jabra Enhance come to mind! Check out hearadvisor.com which is an independent lab dedicated to testing all hearing products. You'll find a list of top performers on there and more information on those devices on hearingtracker.com.
- Steve
Though I agree that the more expensive hearing is the best but the cost for some is unattainable. The manufacturers of quality hearing aids need to come down in cost. The technology is out there for other products which do far more than the hearing aid so why the high cost. The few hearing aid manufacturers on the market keep the price high.
Hi! Thanks for the information. For my husband’s case he would be needing some sort of bone conductor device. Could you suggest some, please?
Hi Jimenez, your husband would definitely need to see an audiologist versed in this area. Bone conduction hearing aids, while similar to traditional ones, require specific considerations. Thanks for watching and good luck!
- Steve
I understand that a person would not want to give a subjective opinion about these results in amplification: I get it. However what we then are to assume is that there is a way to accurately measure in no uncertain terms that the more expensive hearing aid did in fact boost those essential high frequencies. That is where I am not sure I fully hear the results as clearly favoring the 5 thousand dollar hearing device. I thought the second Amazon device was clearly muddy, but frankly I thought the other three sounded like they did boost the highs somewhat along with the overall volume(especially the last one). Therefore I can only take the word of a professional over my own judgement that the 5 thousand dollar product, to my ears reached those higher frequences better. I would be more convinced if there was a sine wave we could look at that would show the presence or lack of those essential high frequencies. I say this because I just ordered the Audien Atom hearing aid from Amazon today in fact, yet interestingly I am also willing to buy a second unit somewhere else at greater cost once I know I am on the right path. I sincerely appreciate your video, and I see exactly what you are looking to show here. My ears are telling me there may still be some high frequencies coming through in a few of the Amazon amplifiers(or hearing aids as they wish to be called). Too bad they don't just come with "tone" controls like most larger commercial amps out there. That might put them a bit closer to the ballpark for those who aren't looking for bells and whistles but just a cheaper solution.
Hi Jon, thanks for your comment. We have objective measures that go along with these recordings and they will be available shortly. Hopefully the data and sound samples will make it much easier for people such as yourself and professionals in the field to better understand the differences that exist among these devices.
- Steve
Some of those Amazon sold devices are mere gadgets. To the extent they help a person with hearing difficulty they are worth the investment. The only problem with these devices is how many you have to buy before find one that is satisfactory to one's hearing needs. It's kind of like getting your eyeglasses at the dollar store. Buy a bunch and use the ones that work the best for your needs. Thanks for the demos. Most enhearingly. ;-)
🤣 nice pun
I work in a steel mill and have always been hard of hearing. I just need to hear voices more, machines less. Will these amazon devices help with that?
It sounds like you need hearing protection for work or more specialized hearing devices. Musician's/hi-fidelity earplugs can reduce sound levels while keeping speech clearer. There is also active hearing protection which can help amplify speech sounds while reducing noise as much as possible.
If you don't have a hearing care provider, you can find an audiologist who specializes in this area on www.tunedcare.com and get some sales-free virtual care.
- Steve
I am currently "answering my own questions" watching some of your other videos, like the one on Be Hear Smarto. Thanks again for the videos.
Glad you found that video helpful Jon.
- Steve
Wow this is amazing! I’m new to recognizing my hearing loss and purchased the Ear Centric based on reviews. Your sound recreation is 100%! This is exactly what the Ear Centric sounds like in all situations, unfortunately they truly have the worst sound out of all of them! I really need to go to see a professional!!! Thank you so much!
Thank you very much for the feedback. Best of luck going forward with better hearing aids!
- Steve
I'm looking for a hearing aid that is Bluetooth so I can listen to podcasts that is around 100-300 USD
Don't have to be perfect but at least decent for hearing aid use any recommendations?
aren't we all
There are several OTC hearing aids, or advanced earbuds, in this price range that fit your description. Apple Airpods Pro and JLab Hear come to mind. You can check-out the Leaderboard on HearAdvisor (www.hearadvisor.com/best-hearing-aids) to find products that fit this price range and listen to their Bluetooth streaming audio quality.
- Steve
The video does not mention limiting and compression which hearing aids should have to prevent being too loud while still improving hearing at threshold.
Great point, some of the OTC products we have tested do not offer compression (they are linear amplifiers). We are doing more testing through HearAdvisor and include plots of our measurements so you can see how various hearing aids respond at different sound levels. Here is an example:
www.hearadvisor.com/products/lexie-b2-plus
- Steve
I read that the Audien is a hearing amplifier. Can it be used instead of an aid (for moderate hearing loss)?
Thank you for the video. It's very informative.
I bought the Ear Centric aids within the last couple years. Basically amplifiers I guess. Worked decent for watching TV as i could have my TV volume at 20 and not 80! When used in public though, the amplified sounds were too loud, even on low volume. Had to pull them out of my ears. Plastic ear plug frequently came off the tube and I'd have to fish it out with tweezers. One aid stopped working after 14 months of minimal use. Wouldn't buy again.
So which one would you have chosen?
Dear Sir, I am 38 years old and I can no longer hear well in my right ear. I have ear damage, tinnitus and there is no low sound when I listen to music or speak. Which hearing aid should I buy on Amazon because I have no money and now it's 2024, are there any new hearing aids?
none
Hello, and thanks for your comment. There are many new hearing aids, many of which can be seen on HearAdvisor.com.
I would strongly recommend you visit an audiologist to better understand your hearing needs (insurance should cover the visit). OTC devices like the ones sold on Amazon are intended for those with no worse than a perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss. It sounds like you need more assistance than what these devices can offer.
- Steve
Do any of these work with tinnitus?
The autiphon U0 was best in this test. Even better than the 5000 dollar model. Don't like how they look at all though. With medicare around the corner I'm looking forward to getting whatever works best for me. Thanks.
Do a video for those of us are comfortable wearing one hearing aid ... especially when we have other problems in the other ear that negates the use of a hearing aid. Thank you.
I have the last pair of hearing aides. They are excellent to wear, but the batteries keep going flat after a month.
Hi Dawn, thanks for sharing. Do they help you hear speech better? How do they work when you are in a noisy situation?
-Steve
@@HearingTracker Yes they do to both.
Sorry, which particular hearing aid?
Isn't the cost of the fitting audiologist part of the cost of the prescription hearing aids?
Yes, the hearing care provider's time is absolutely part of the cost. It is commonly "bundled" into the cost of the hearing aids.
- Steve
Do any of these have TeleCoil capability?
Hello and thanks for your comment. None of the amazon sold products we tested have a t-coil. You generally need to enter the prescription hearing aid world for those options.
- Steve
Rated bu Amazon by sell ??
What about trying to pass a hearing test for a job?
Camera needs to be a few inches higher ... audio is very good....
Please quote prices
Thanks for watching and your comment. The prices are listed on the top-left corner when describing each device. You can also find links to all of the products in the video description that will offer you updated pricing.
- Steve
I spent €4,300 on 2 Oticon Opn S.2. Which originally worked well. Now (5 years later), the sound is awful. My specialist in Malaga, Spain, says I need to replace them with new ones. at the cost of nearly €9, 000. Is he conning me, or could this be correct? Most importantly, I would like to know how much the hearing aids actually cost him from the factory. I can't find this information anywhere, and no one will tell me. Is this the big secret within the hearing Aid industry?
How about britzgo hearing aids?anyone know this brand from china please advice me
Great video. You should update your Amazon links. Thanks!
Even after my insurance, hearing aids will cost me over 4000$, thats ridiculous considering they cost no more than 20$ to manufacture. I should be allowed to have hearing aids that work and are affordable. I flip off audiologists who think the current pricing is acceptable.
No los desprecies por favor. Dios Santísimo y La Virgen Santísima te bendigan.
New flash! Don't buy a cheap hearing amplifier and expect it to be as good as one that costs a lot more.
Secondly, there are over-the-counter hearing aids such as the ones the Jabra manufactures that will work fine for mild to moderate hearing loss at a price much cheaper then what you can buy at an independent hearing aid shop. You will notice they didn't test them! I wonder why!
Thirdly, Costco sells real hearing aids that will work just fine for most folks at a price cheaper then the independent shops.
You should have equalized the audio to simulate typical hearing loss. Like -35 db above 3khz.
So my question is this: I would absolutely love to have in my ear an Oticon More 1 like the guy hung in my ear on Monday at my hearing aid appointment. A deep neural network would be wonderful for me, but my insurance currently pays nothing and I would have to switch just to get SOME of the money to pay for it. The Amazon solution I ordered does not have the high frequencies I need. WHAT DO I DO? It seems to me as a novice, that from what you say the Audien Atom would give me SOMETHING if it had a TONE CONTROL.
Seriously? Really? I have owned probably 30 or 40 ampilfiers in my day and NEVER have I had one with no tone control to boost high frequencies. Do the industry a favor. COME CLEAN with me. Am I missing something. My life is in the hands of professionals like you who have the answers I need. How can I get those high frequencies without buying the "Rolls Royce" of Artificial Intelligence, when all I need is a higher frequency bias like YOU said in your video? Thanks
Hi Jon, my testing of these four amazon devices showed little to no gain above roughly 1100 Hz. Consonant sounds, where clarity comes from, extend much higher towards 6000 Hz. Therefore, these devices will offer minimal assistance with regard to speech clarity.
Working with a hearing care professional has many benefits however, cost can be a barrier as you mention. I'd recommend speaking with that professional, or another one in your area, regarding lower cost solutions. Many clinics offer affordable hearing aids beneath the "Rolls Royce" model through various programs, grants, or older generation devices. Older generation hearing aids will vastly surpass the benefits of the Amazon devices we discussed here.
If that fails, there are many devices online that can provide gain in the higher frequency ranges. However, this greatly depends on your needs and hearing injury. One example is Apple Airpods Pro, here is a video showing how these low cost earbuds can be programmed to function similar to hearing aids (th-cam.com/video/MoLcMwZa39Q/w-d-xo.html). There are also devices such as Lexie B2 hearing aids, Lucid Engage, Nuheara IQBudsMax, etc. that do a wonderful job of providing benefit at a lower cost. We will have much more information about this shortly on Hearing Tracker. You can also work with an audiologist in-person or remotely to be fit with devices like these. There are plenty of audiologist willing to assist you even if you do not purchase a device directly through their clinic. Best of luck!
- Steve
I just bought hearing aids off of Amazon I haven't got them yet there coming Friday.
Excellent video.
Difficulty hearing conversations in noisy situations is normal for anyone, with or without any kind of hearing loss. A specific condition (that I don't know the name of) is associated with head injury or concussions. I know, because I developed it over time after a head injury. This appears to be a brain thing rather than an ear thing. I hear all frequencies fine according to test tones. In a situation where there are several conversations happening at once, I find it extremely difficult to separate the conversations. Usually after a minute or two, trying to follow a conversation just exhausts me, and I need to escape the environment. The audio quality of the Pro hearing aid sounds horrible, and doesn't make it any easier to hear a conversation. Universally boosting or suppressing audio frequencies won't necessarily create better clarity. Noise is often the same frequencies as those contained in speech; boosting voice frequencies far and near will merely add to the confusion. Most confounding of all of this, is the ridiculous pyramid scheme pricing. Listening to music with the pro model would be odious. I spent some years as a technician in telecoms and electronics firms. In my opinion, the prices being charged for the current technology levels are excessive. Compare to how much technology has been miniaturized and crammed into a smart phone, even those that are less than $100. Check this out: journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0238922#pone.0238922.s001 Hearing aids are essentially mini audio amplifiers with a multi-channel equalizer. Some add some compression or other filters. The smartphone apps to allow user control (of the hearing devices) at specific frequencies are on the right track. They do not go far enough. Well done video: Very methodical, clear and concise.
Thanks for your comment Dean. Fortunately, there is a lot more research looking into issues such as cochlear synaptopathy (hidden hearing loss) and other processing disorders causing what you experience. On another note, all of these devices were programmed as best as possible to a mild to moderate high-frequency hearing loss. The accentuated high-end (most prevalent with the Rx device) will not sound good to an individual without hearing loss. However, it will improve audibility of speech consonants for those with injury in that area.
Your comments explains well the difficulties these technologies face with having to provide benefit in such varied situations. We have yet to come close to recreating our actual hearing system! The technologies can still work wonders if they are of quality, programmed properly, and used appropriately. To you later point, I agree that price should not be the barrier that it is for many. Hopefully the pricing structure will change soon.
- Steve
I think you’re correct. A hearing aid is pretty much an amplifier, with some signal processing, such as equalization and compression, and the 🔊 speaker. It’s not rocket science, and there’s so much hocus-pocus from EMTs and audiologists used to justify the price gouging. Capitalism what a joke.
I lost over 25 percent hearing in my right ear. Im hoping that i find a hearing aid that works. I cant wait for my appointment next week.
Cost would be much less of a factor for millions of older people if Medicare covered hearing aids. It's a crime that they don't.
gotta support those illegals u know
I could not agree more, especially as we learn more about the impacts hearing loss has on our overall health and wellbeing.
- Steve
I would have liked to hear Sony's offerings.
The prescription ones sounded the worst to me.
Now that they are OTC you can acquire them and tune/program them the way you desire, without excessive cost or having to see an audiologist.
The prescription device sounded best for my poor hearing.
Since you make content presumably intended for a hard of hearing audience, why do you play background music while you're talking? I appreciate the effort you've clearly put into the quality of your voice, which is clear and easy to understand, but the music is superfluous and adds no benefit. It just "sounds cool" to hearing people but makes listening harder for hard-of-hearing people. I don't mean to be judgmental either; it seems like a very insensitive editing decision given your target audience.
Thanks for your comment sovrappensiero1. I have thought on this topic at length and the music was not added haphazardly. Several audio engineering steps are performed to minimize the negative effect it may have on speech intelligibility. First, an equalizer is used to remove nearly all frequencies that would otherwise compete with speech consonants. Low frequencies below roughly 100 Hz are also attenuated to reduce annoying bass and or masking. The level of the music is also kept at minimum 10 decibels less than the dialogue. My rate of speech is slower and also processed to accentuate frequency ranges where consonants occur. Ultimately, steps are always taken to make my videos more accessible for individuals with difficulty hearing.
- Steve
@@HearingTracker Thank you so much! I really appreciate you explaining the details of how you adapted the music to the video. I admit, I am at a disadvantage because I lost my hearing aids in 2022 (have been saving up for new ones - I've always worn Oticons and I really don't want to switch!) so I'm grumpy (LOL) because I can't hear well (despite your careful steps). I really enjoyed this informative video, and all your videos, and I really appreciate your work. I apologize for my grumpiness!!
It is like only the rich can afford hearing aids , I am Canadian , live in Canada and retired and on a pension with a fixed income was said to have marginal hearing loss but still seem to struggle with it lots , any advice or help would be greatly appreciated .
thanks for making this easy. NONE of the Amazon devices were acceptable. However, the clinic devices were NOT 25 times better.
I liked the way you conducted the tests, but your summary at the end seemed a bit suspicious to me. You didn't talk at all about the positive results from the Amazon aids. You just dismissed them with "we were disappointed" by the results. This seems to be an attempt to lead people away from the Amazon products, discussed as a fair product review. Conflict of interest?
I’ve just paid $4,300 for a set from Amplifon much too expensive and I’m still not happy with them
Thanks for your comment and sorry to hear your are unsatisfied. There is generally an adjustments period and further tweaking can be done to your hearing aids. If you are still unhappy, schedule a follow-up visit with your hearing care provider to discuss the specific areas they are not meeting your expectations and needs.
- Steve
@@HearingTracker I was much happier with my last set, I’ve been back many times but unable to feel more comfortable thanks Ann
Pls review Bluetooth hearing buds
HSK lock sounded the best to me
Thanks for sharing Dean. Have you tried other devices similar to these?
-Steve
I found these to be the best also. It would have been a better video if you would show a chart with the frequency results from each device, from 500hz to 8khz.
9:24 -- you are out of your freaking mind -- there was SIGNIFICANT improvement with those amazon devices -- I heard all the conversation MUCH clearer -- in fact, they were all better than the $5000 model
The prescription only shone in the music set. I don't hear music much. I am going to look for this Autiphon. I wished they made these things programmable. This is all we need.
Thanks for your comment. The Amazon sold products performed objectively worse than the prescription device for both speech benefits in quiet and noise. Here is the full article with that information: www.hearingtracker.com/top-amazon-hearing-aids?q=amazon+hearing+aids
- Steve
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Thanks for your comment!
- Steve
It's ridiculous to think hearing aids should be over 1k dollars for something that is so important.
Audien + Autiphon sounded the BEST. HSKLock was always awful.
So all of these hearing aids is Alexa compatible?
Overall I thought the cheapest OTC hearing aid, namely the HSKlock produced the best sound quality. The medical hearing aids sounded tinny and artificial by comparison.
Just ordered Atom Pro 2
Will see how they perform
Please let us know. The Atom Pro (original) was tested and not a strong performer: www.hearingtracker.com/hearing-aids/audien-atom
The super expensive $5000 hearing aides cost less than ONE DOLLAR to make
I don't mind a decent profit margin but that is taking the piss
Less than a dollar. Gosh really? Matthew
@@HearingTracker Yep - when you are making them by the millions the cost is very low
Compare them to a Smartphone - a smartphone is much bigger, and many thousands of times more complex with gigabits of memory and GPS and a huge screen and batteries and you can buy a Smartphone for less than $100 - if you can buy one for $100 then the manufacturing costs are less than that
Or compare to a modern watch - again much much more complex - with a huge amount more electronics battery and everything - and less than $20 to buy - so probably less than $2 to make
Numerous reports say that wearing prescription hearing aid can prevent dementia.
Doctor: Do you think these OTC hearing aids (including the Airpod Pro 2) are also able to prevent dementia?
Hey Nuuk, IMO technically it’s one of the big reasons for the push of OTC hearing aids in the US! Thanks for watching, Matthew
Hearing aids should never cost $2000 absolutely. But I have tried a few OTC hearing aids, and they are terrible. The sound is tinny, and are either over or under sensitive. The medical fraternity should be brought to task on this. IRS them that hold back 45 million from getting good devices. It’s another American rip off.
To me the 139 was the best
Thanks for your comment, was this for speech in noise, music, or both?
- Steve
Mostly speech in a noisy room@@HearingTracker
Autiphon
I looked into getting a hearing device and teated it for 1 week. The cost was $7000. Total robbery.
Hell no. I think the prescription was the worst one.
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