Hearing aid accessories / enhancers

Liam2500 · 09-01-2026 07:18PM #1

Hi!

There's products out there that claim to improve your hearing aid's capability/strength even with background noise.

I find it a little overwhelming trying figure out which device would make any difference or not. Any they can be expensive!

I can see two main offerings, described below. Excuse my naivety - I'm sure there's a lot more options (I have 'played' with some work-arounds/alternatives and they're not great).

(1) Hearing/Induction Loop systems, which apparently only work with hearing aids with T/loop-coils.

and

(2) Roger microphones which connect to most hearing aids (for an eye watering price) or for a fraction of the cost, a Roger Neckloops. I've no idea why the wide range in cost or if they're worth the money. There's other less expensive brands with less dramatic claims as to their ability to deliver "speech clarity" in "crowded" environments.

Has anyone any experience/thoughts? Thanks!

TomOnBoard · 09-01-2026 08:08PM

The two sets of technologies serve two separate but related functions.

Induction loops are used in halls, churches, public offices, special telephones etc. They are basically a system that allows a source to push audio into hearing aids that have telecoil receivers. Its old tech now and us about to be replaced by a system called Auracast.
Roger is a sophisticated point to point send/receive technology set, comprising a number of different devices to amplify a sound source and send it seamlessly and without delay to HAs that have Roger receivers installed. VERY expensive, but if you need them, they're priceless. They generally sit in the Phonak family.

Liam2500 · 10-01-2026 01:37PM

Thanks

I have "profound" hard-of-hearing which means I can hear/interpret most folk in quiet rooms, however with the gentlest of background noise I can't hear people at all.

My hearing aids are Phonak Paradise P90-R which I believe don't have telecoil so it rules them out for induction-loop integration.

I talked to an audiologist in ss recently. She said folk getting the Phonak Infinio Sphere on trial are generally returning them because "its not meeting their expectations".

I don't have money to throw around but if Roger breaks the elusive barrier of not being able to socialize, then I'd have no issue paying the money. I'll see if its possible to get it on trial!

TomOnBoard · 10-01-2026 03:34PM

I would recommend that you don't bypass a possible trial of the Phonak Sphere.

Others' assessments are based on THEIR hearing and social environment, not yours.

From what I've read, they are absolute game- changers in a noisy environment, for many folks.

Any trial MUST have a dedicated Spheric program under user control, so that you can switch the AI noise removal on/off as desired.

None of this is speaking against the Roger devices. However, their use case is quite different.

TomOnBoard · 11-01-2026 10:00AM

This is a comparison that you may find helpful.

Comparison of Phonak Audeo Sphere and Roger Wireless Systems.pdf

Liam2500 · 11-01-2026 12:03PM

Thanks. I'll chase up a trial on the Phonak Sphere. It's the cost thats off-putting. Especially after forking out for Phonak Paradise only two or so years ago - then there's not knowing what will appear on the market in another couple of years. But as you say, definitely no harm doing a trial

Liam2500 · 17-01-2026 04:47PM

As an interesting aside, @TomOnBoard have you done any experimenting with mobile phone apps that translate speech live to headphones/hearing-aids? i.e. the app speaks what it hears directly into headphones in real time. Might be useful for some hard of hearing scenarios.

The only app I've found so far that keeps up with the pace of a typical conversation is the built in Android/Google "Live Transcription" app/feature but that doesn't have the option to speak to your headphones.

Zoom and Teams are both good but I'm not sure if they offer anything extra in this scenario.

Cheers

TomOnBoard · 19-01-2026 02:25PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124156631#Comment_124156631

I'm confused by the scenario you're asking about.

Hearing aid accessories / enhancers

Comments