Almost everyone has an idea of what a hearing aids looks like and how they are supposed to work. But those ideas may be based on some very out-dated types of hearing aids and not at all realistic. If you are at the stage of life in which you hearing may be gin to decline, but are reluctant to see an audiologist and be tested for a hearing aid because of some inaccurate ideas, some information about the types of hearing aids now available may ease your concerns.
Conventional hearing aids, the types of hearing aids with which you are probably most familiar, are the hearing aids on which the hearing devices industry was built. These types of hearing aids are also known as analog hearing aids, and contain the same kind of electronic circuitry as the traditional telephone.
Analog Hearing Aids
The most recognizable feature of analog types of hearing aids is that they will amplify sounds of every frequency, from booming bass to shrieking treble, to the same degree; and that feature is also their greatest drawback. Many of those who have tried analog types of hearing aids have simply been unable to adjust them to a level of sound appropriate for their degree of hearing impairment. It was because of this deficiency that two other types of hearing aids, programmable and digital, were researched and developed.
Programmable Hearing Aids
Programmable hearing aids are types of hearing aids which can be programmed by a computer to match an individual’s specific degree and kind of hearing loss. Having a computer establish the settings in these types of hearing aids creates more opportunity to fine tune them to be as comfortable as possible for their users. But programmable hearing aids still rely on analog electronics.
Digital Hearing Aids
The final of the three types of hearing aids, digital hearing devices, have the most sophisticated hearing aid technology currently available. Digital types of hearing aids actually contain microchips which are also computer-programmed but are far more able to match a specific individual’s amplification profile than is analog circuitry
Digital types of hearing aids have separate circuits which are capable of categorizing incoming noise and dividing it into separate channels and bandwidths. They can then process the sounds on each channel or bandwidth independently of all the others. They are capable of amplifying those frequencies most affected by the user’s hearing loss, while letting the other frequencies remain unchanged.
Anyone considering getting a hearing aid of any type will have to visit an audiologist and be tested to determine the best of the types of hearing aids for his or her situation.
You can also find more info on old digital hearing and digital sound processing. FirstHearingAids.com is a comprehensive resource for people suffering from hearing loss to get information on hearing aid options, prices and maintenance.
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