Listening Devices For The Deaf
Beyond the hearing aid help is needed in social gatherings, coffee mornings, meetings, lectures hearing the television and when travelling in the car.   Listening devices are there to help in a variety of situations, but which of the listening devices is best ? We are spoilt for choice. There are numerous devices and gadgets on the market. They all have both good points and weaknesses. The weaknesses are not spelt out in the catalogue and at the same time the benefits are, in general, overstated. For this reason this website is designed to assist those who are thinking of buying one. This website is not sponsored in any way. The advice given is impartial. The opinions are mine. I am moderately severely hard of hearing. I have no hearing in my left ear –therefore an aid in that ear is of no use. My right ear needs a lot of help from the aid. I have a NHS (BTE) Siemens aid. I struggle to hear in company and in social situations. Bear this in mind at all times when you read what I have written.

The golden rules of buying a listening device
1) Keep it simple. Don’t buy something which is overcomplicated to use. Be sure you understand the controls and have the dexterity to use them.
2) Identify the situations when hearing loss is a nuisance. Should one single occasion (say watching the television) be the problem then there is no advantage in spending money on a more sophisticated listener when there is a simpler solution for that particular purpose.
3) Know that the makers’ advice about the listeners is exaggerated. In particular the ability to cut down background noise is only a slight help. Some devices having a directional microphone. You should understand that this capability is helpful but is relatively weak.
4) Most important of all is the need not to accept the device until you have tried it out in the different listening situations. If it does not meet your expectations then the device should be returned. I advise the postal wrappings are kept so that it can easily be repacked and posted.

A word of caution
One is trying to achieve improving the clarity of speech in differing situations. It is clarity rather than sound volume that is the limiting factor. Often there is background noise – pubs, restaurants and the like. Background television noise, and hearing against the engine and traffic noise in cars are also good examples and of course children are difficult because they have high pitched voices and don’t enunciate clearly. Clarity of speech is dependent on the frequency of the sound. Sadly it is the higher pitches which are lost in the usual age-related deafness. If the hearing loss is severe it may be that certain frequencies are altogether inaudible and cannot be heard no matter how loud it is amplified.

Hearing aids are designed individually to compensate for the particular loss in each person. The sound is boosted where the audiogram suggests the need. Boosting the sound beyond a certain level may not help. This should be born in mind when considering the purchase of an expensive device. They should be tried out before accepting the purchase. In general speech the vowels are easier to hear. A E I O and U. It is the consonants which pose the problems, especially Ps and Bs and Vs. Nor is lip reading to distinguish between P and B easy!

Types of listening devices
1) A simple microphone at the sound source which connects to you by means of a wire. Those who don’t wear a hearing aid can use a stethoset . This is worn like a light plastic stethoscope. Hearing aid users can also use a telecoil loop. This is worn around the neck (the hearing aid will need the T-coil setting). This is the least expensive method, but wires can be a nuisance and some people prefer a radio (wireless) link.
2) The microphone which picks up the sound connects to you wirelessly. One wears a receiver which attaches to one’s clothing. This connects to the ear either by stethoset (non-hearing aid users) or telecoil loop around the neck(T-coil setting needed on the hearing aid).
3) A microphone as in (2) above which connects wirelessly direct to the hearing aid without the need of a separate receiver. The receiver is in the form of a small shoe which fits onto the bottom of thehearing aid. This is known as an ear level receiver. This shoe has to be purchased at the same time and needs setting up by an audiologist. This method is a little more expensive but is certainly convenient.
4) There are other methods of transfer of sound from the source to you. These are good in particular circumstances. I do not intend to give further details about them. Bluetooth is one of these. Some listeners are Bluetooth compatible. This is certainly something which could be explored at the point of purchase.