Widex Mind to Clear and M-Dex

Has anyone out there gone from a Widex Diva or Widex Mind440 to a Widex Clear?

I have unilateral hearing loss, right ear moderate to profound. (sorry I can't find my last audiogram to post the stats). I've been wearing a hearing aid for 25 years, and am pretty brand loyal to Widex but have used a Starkey and Oticon in the past.

I loved my Diva, and two years ago was talked into a Oticon Agil as a step up that didn't work out. I swapped the Agil for the Mind (was also to be a step up) and have never been 100% happy with it like I was with the Diva. I'm now contemplating a Clear as the Mind just frustrates me.

I have the hardest time hearing in noisy situations and in groups larger than six, which unfortuantely makes up a large part of my job. The audiologist demoed the Clear for me using the party sounds in the background and so far things seem like this might be a good fit for me. She has answered all my questions and has been very patient, but since she isn't a hearing aid user I'm not certain that she can truly relate. My questions are:

If you went from the Mind to the Clear did you find that it actually was an improvement? I know everyone is different, but knowing someone else had a good/bad experience helps.

Is the M-Dex as a remote control helpful or just a pain to carry around? As an experienced hearing aid wearer is it still just as easy to click the button on the aid or are there just to many program options to make that practical?

Does anyone stream music on their M-Dex through an Ipod? I am intrigued by this feature and think it will be pretty awesome to hear music in stereo .

Thanks in advance for any insights you can provide.

Amy

[Um bongo]

Consider a CROS system to give yourself better spatial awareness. If you aren't that happy with Widex, perhaps try out another brand before you buy. The m-dex is one of the better mono streaming options.

[Otikid05]

Originally Posted by Um bongo

Consider a CROS system to give yourself better spatial awareness. If you aren't that happy with Widex, perhaps try out another brand before you buy. The m-dex is one of the better mono streaming options.

I agree with that dude, there are CROS systems by Phonak

[Emily]

Hello Amy,
I have been using two aids for nearly 40 yrs. I started with Starkey, proceeded to Widex and apart from one disastrous attempt with Oticon have remained loyal to Widex ever since. I changed from Diva to Clear last October and have been very pleased with them when used with the small remote control. My hearing loss is quite severe and I did find after using them that it was very difficult to use the telephone. This problem was resolved by buying two special Widex phones and I now have clear conversations for the first time in many years. They are Bluetooth, as is the phone which speaks directly to the aids. My problem now is that I cannot hear on my mobile and am having to consider buying the m-dex. That means paying out another small fortune but I guess that we are only here once and spending the kids inheritance seems to be becoming a new hobby for me.
I wish you the very best of luck in your search for the right solution for you.
Emily

[drg]

I have used the Widex Mdex for 6 months, I have gone through 3 devices for a combination of failures. It is a wonderful and frustrating device. It works flawlessly with my iPhone 4s, sends music, alerts, phone calls to my aids [I wear two]. However, try reading this link which explains well the frustration of a device that should be perfect but is not -- link disabled since I haven't posted 15 time but try going to hearingaidhacks and search "widex clear C4fsbr - the good and the bad"

If you want a way to get you phone calls, listen to books and music [audio quality is not wonderful], and can put up with the frustrations listed above, get the Mdex. One word of warning in addition, I use ITE Clear 400 with NO EXTERNAL controls!! If the Mdex goes down, you have no way to adjust volume or programs besides losing the blue tooth option. I obtained a second Mdex remote as backup and have used it twice when my first device broke.
I have been more unhappy with the Clear 400 ITE since the feedback problem with jaw motion or something close to my ear is so much worse than my Widex Iteo [that I still have to use when eating!] I can't talk on the phone without the Mdex because the feedback is so bad if I put a regular phone near my aid. Two trips to the audiologist have not fixed the problem, heading back again for a fix.
That being said, the ability to listen to my iphone with the "room off" is worth its weight in gold. I finally can go the the gym, turn off all that noise and listen to a book while I work out and still here text message alerts and phone calls!

[arni]

Originally Posted by Nine16

Has anyone out there gone from a Widex Diva or Widex Mind440 to a Widex Clear?

I have unilateral hearing loss, right ear moderate to profound. (sorry I can't find my last audiogram to post the stats). I've been wearing a hearing aid for 25 years, and am pretty brand loyal to Widex but have used a Starkey and Oticon in the past.

I loved my Diva, and two years ago was talked into a Oticon Agil as a step up that didn't work out. I swapped the Agil for the Mind (was also to be a step up) and have never been 100% happy with it like I was with the Diva. I'm now contemplating a Clear as the Mind just frustrates me.

I have the hardest time hearing in noisy situations and in groups larger than six, which unfortuantely makes up a large part of my job. The audiologist demoed the Clear for me using the party sounds in the background and so far things seem like this might be a good fit for me. She has answered all my questions and has been very patient, but since she isn't a hearing aid user I'm not certain that she can truly relate. My questions are:

If you went from the Mind to the Clear did you find that it actually was an improvement? I know everyone is different, but knowing someone else had a good/bad experience helps.

Is the M-Dex as a remote control helpful or just a pain to carry around? As an experienced hearing aid wearer is it still just as easy to click the button on the aid or are there just to many program options to make that practical?

Does anyone stream music on their M-Dex through an Ipod? I am intrigued by this feature and think it will be pretty awesome to hear music in stereo .

Thanks in advance for any insights you can provide.

Amy

I have the same story to tell. I like Widex Diva ITE but I haven't been satisfied with Widex Clear Fusion RIC or Clear 330 ITE. The difference is in the bass, it is gone!

[arni]

I think it is because Widex uses microphones which are designed to reduce wind noise. This may affect frequencies below 500 Hz.

10 years ago I was happy with my Widex ITE and I could notice wind noise (which did not disturb me at all).

Now I am very unhappy with my Widex Clear 330 ITE, and I cannot notice wind noise at all.

[Um bongo]

Originally Posted by arni

I have the same story to tell. I like Widex Diva ITE but I haven't been satisfied with Widex Clear Fusion RIC or Clear 330 ITE. The difference is in the bass, it is gone!

In fairness, your loss would indicate that you barely need any bass amplification at all (5 dB or less). If you want bass to be artificially 'added' that's fine,but it's usually an indication of past over amplification.

[arni]

Originally Posted by Um bongo

In fairness, your loss would indicate that you barely need any bass amplification at all (5 dB or less). If you want bass to be artificially 'added' that's fine,but it's usually an indication of past over amplification.

I use ITE with 1 mm vent. Therefore no bass is travelling the direct path to the ear drum. All the bass needs to come from the hearing aid. I believe there is less bass entering the ear drum from the hearing aid than naturally with no hearing aid. The resulting sound is harsh and not tolerable.

[Um bongo]

Originally Posted by arni

I use ITE with 1 mm vent. Therefore no bass is travelling the direct path to the ear drum. All the bass needs to come from the hearing aid. I believe there is less bass entering the ear drum from the hearing aid than naturally with no hearing aid. The resulting sound is harsh and not tolerable.

Unfortunately, that isn't true, a partially occluded canal still gets inputs from venting and your skeleton. The absence of bass my be down to the receiver being out of phase with the naturally occurring signal and actively damping the signal.

You might 'need' the lower pitch to make the aid sound more natural, but you don't 'need' it to hear clearly. However, without seeing the actual output on a REM system, I can't tell you whether the high pitches are over amplified either, which is the other half of the equation.

What's your audiologist's opinion of the sound being too harsh?

Don't forget also that there is a particular adjustment on this system to increase audibility: if that is set more aggressively than you like, it will make the system sound very harsh without any change to the normal frequency response of the aids.