Another AudioKey 2 and Audio2Ear Wrinkle

[Andrew42]

As a Rondo 3 user my distaste for Audiolink 2 is well documented. Today I came across another wrinkle. I Use Audio2Ear for haptics and so phone calls sound in my ear. Today I received a phone call and, during the conversation, passed the phone to my wife for her to speak. To do soI had to change the phone speaker settings from Med-El to Speakerphone. Phone call ended, I tested Audio2Ear and there was no sound. Audiokey 2 was connected but Audio2Ear was no longer working. To get sound back I had to disconnect Medel-Audiolink from Bluetooth and reconnect it. Why can't Med-El come up with a streaming device which is actually close to current technology?

[Mary Beth]

@Andrew42

Interesting.

At present the streaming options for Rondo3 are more limited than the streaming options for Sonnet2.

I believe if I had Rondo3 I would probably….

- just hold it up to the Rondo3 mics and use the phone as usual for phone calls, then the phone would work fine if passed to someone else or if I wanted to put it on speakerphone

- put it in airplane mode and attach the telecoil adapter and use the Artone for streaming (The Artone can also be used for telephone calls if we are already in airplane mode and have the telecoil adapter attached.). Since I enjoy a 100/0 mix ratio at times for streamed audio only, I would have my audiologist create that telecoil setting in a MAP and have it in a program slot.  I would also have my audiologist create a 0/100 mix ratio- no telecoil audio- that I could use when the telecoil adapter is attached but I don’t want to use telecoil.  I realize this uses 3 of the 4 program slots for the same MAP just with different telecoil settings but it would give me the M, MT and T options that are no longer available for Rondo3 since the telecoil is not internal.  
 

NOTE: airplane mode is recommended by Med-El to avoid a ticking sound when the telecoil adapter is attached.  
 

Using the Rondo3 this way- without the AudioLink- there is no need to run the Audio2Ear app in the background.

One thing that would be important though is to be sure the Rondo3 is in the MAP we want to use with the correct telecoil mixing ratio BEFORE putting it in airplane mode.  Once in airplane mode, it can not communicate to the AudioKey2 app as a remote.

 

I realize this is less than ideal but it’s the best work around I can think of given the present Rondo3 options.  Everyone is different and everyone’s preference for streaming to Rondo3 will be different as well.

[MED-EL Moderator Gordana]

Hi Andrew42, thank you for your message and for sharing your feedback with us. We are aware of this issue and are working on it.
For phone calls, Audio2Ear is not needed for AudioLink. We recommend connecting the AudioLink to the phone with the cable for a better connection.

Please let us know if you have any further questions.

Kind regards,
Gordana

[Andrew42]

@Mary Beth. Thank you for your complete answer. I have not yet tried to use the telecoil adapter but will be doing so at a concert coming up in a week's time. Just for giggles I connected my Telecoil adapter a few minutes ago. I do not have the ticking sound but di have a fairly high pitched whine. I then went through the boring exercise of putting it in flight mode, (whoever though that process up must have been thinking of something else at the time!) It seemed to cure the whining sound. I will know more when I go to the concert next week when I will start out with just the telecoil and put it in flight mode if I think I need to.

 

I have not yet tried out your method of telephoning with the phone position to pick up the Rondo mics. I must try that.

Thank you, again.

[Andrew42]

1 hour ago, MED-EL Moderator Gordana said:

Hi Andrew42, thank you for your message and for sharing your feedback with us. We are aware of this issue and are working on it.
For phone calls, Audio2Ear is not needed for AudioLink. We recommend connecting the AudioLink to the phone with the cable for a better connection.

Please let us know if you have any further questions.

Kind regards,
Gordana

@Gordana. Thank you for your interest. To be frank with you I have Audiolink 2 clipped to my shirt pocket, the lanyard around my neck, my glasses suspended on another cord. That last thing I need is another cable going from Audiolink 2 to The Rondo. In any event that is a totally outdated solution. Med-El is years behind with its streaming concepts. Over ten years ago, long before my CI my hearing aids were connected to my iPhone and iPad without any wires, cables or such. For the TV the interface was exactly what Cochlear use today. Today I have no TV connection because Audiolink is so antiquated it cannot accept a fibre optic connection and my TV system which is also about ten years old requires a Toslink or similar.

I need Audio2Ear because without it calls do not ring in my ear and I have no haptics which means I don't get notifications in my ear when an email arrives 

You do not deserve this diatribe but it is high time Med-El listened to its customer base and came up with an efficient wireless streaming system for Rondo as well as Sonnet. It would be nice if that system were to accept both the CI and a hearing aid but I will be thankful for small mercies and accept a system which is at least at the technical level of my CI and not at least a decade behind. If Med-El can't design it, swallow your pride and buy it.

Thank you again for your interest.

 

[MED-EL Moderator Gordana]

Hi @Andrew42, thank you for sharing your experience with us. We understand that this solution is not ideal which is why we are already working on solutions that would make streaming easier. In the meantime, we have forwarded your valuable feedback to our experts here at MED-EL HQ for future improvements.

All the best,
Gordana

[Dianna]

On 8/31/2022 at 6:43 AM, MED-EL Moderator Gordana said:

Hi Andrew42, thank you for your message and for sharing your feedback with us. We are aware of this issue and are working on it.
For phone calls, Audio2Ear is not needed for AudioLink. We recommend connecting the AudioLink to the phone with the cable for a better connection.

Please let us know if you have any further questions.

Kind regards,
Gordana

Hi gordana, im about to upgrade my phone, the newer galaxy's dont have a jack, just an fyi  💕 

[Joe43]

On 8/31/2022 at 8:18 AM, Andrew42 said:

@Gordana. Thank you for your interest. To be frank with you I have Audiolink 2 clipped to my shirt pocket, the lanyard around my neck, my glasses suspended on another cord. That last thing I need is another cable going from Audiolink 2 to The Rondo. In any event that is a totally outdated solution. Med-El is years behind with its streaming concepts. Over ten years ago, long before my CI my hearing aids were connected to my iPhone and iPad without any wires, cables or such. For the TV the interface was exactly what Cochlear use today. Today I have no TV connection because Audiolink is so antiquated it cannot accept a fibre optic connection and my TV system which is also about ten years old requires a Toslink or similar.

I need Audio2Ear because without it calls do not ring in my ear and I have no haptics which means I don't get notifications in my ear when an email arrives 

You do not deserve this diatribe but it is high time Med-El listened to its customer base and came up with an efficient wireless streaming system for Rondo as well as Sonnet. It would be nice if that system were to accept both the CI and a hearing aid but I will be thankful for small mercies and accept a system which is at least at the technical level of my CI and not at least a decade behind. If Med-El can't design it, swallow your pride and buy it.

Thank you again for your interest.

 

I agree with snd now phone and tablets don't have a darn jack audio input. 

[Lauren]

I can’t speak for Android options, nor the fact that we have to buy more doohickeys to accomplish what could be done several years ago without them… but for those really wanting a plug in option there are these things for Apple phones:

 

I don’t have this particular one, or the other one that allows charging at the same time, so can’t speak to either. Just putting it out there as a low tech solution in case anyone has a favorite set of headphones that are wired. 

[John F]

Yeah, how I tried to get AudioLink to work with the iPhone but alas, the static interference proves too much from the AudioLink.

[Lauren]

@John F no argument there. I used it plugged into my TV and get staticky audio from time to time, even if I never move. It suffers from being able to get and maintain a strong connection. I only use it when steaming to my Rondo 3s from the TV, never else. 

Hoping Med-El has something better that will replace the AudioLink in the near future.