April 2024 firmware update for AudioStream

[Mary Beth]

https://www.medel.com/support/product-support/accessories/audiostream/audiostream_firmware_whentoupdate

[Tim]

I'm a fan of the updated firmware even if it didn't add any major and obvious features. 

I noticed it does a much better job of maintaining the connection or reconnecting with my phone.  (Pixel 6a with Android 14). 

[NathalieM]

I really like the updated firmware and hope they continue to update regularly.

I love the use of Audiostream and found the "click" noise they refer to is greatly reduced.

[Lauren]

Finally got around to updating mine. Ironically I had no trouble with the update but it was a little tricky getting them to connect in AK2 again and also for streaming but I’m up and running.

I have four devices showing under Bluetooth though. Both as Sonnet 2 and both as AudioStream Cover DFU. I dare not delete anything at this time just in case I mess it up.

[Kilgary]

Okay.  I’ve been using the AudioStream more and more since I updated the firmware and really love that it connects so much better now, but there’s a significant flaw - at least for me: it doesn’t play the left channel from my iPhone at all. 

Note: I’m SSD and have a CI in my left side only. When I configured my AudioSteam it was for my left processor (as I had done before), but I noticed when I was playing the song “Riders on the Storm” by the Doors that the accordion solo was seriously lacking about half the notes. When I went to check my balance, it was centered. I slid it all the way to the left - silence. All the way to the right - sound. This is especially bad with song designed to pan left and right. A song like “Fat Lip” by Sum 41 will literally pan syllables back and forth between the left and right channels. My AudioStream only plays the right channel. So I get half the words. I tried setting my audio to “mono”  but it made no difference  - still nothing from the left side of the mix  

To test if this was a flaw in my iPhone vs the AudioStream, I  connected my Sonnet 2 to my AudioLink and sure enough I hear content from both channels into my processor with Audio2Ear.  The words and instrument notes are all back - and I don’t have to set the mix to Mono to hear it all.  What gives?  Do I need to configure AudioSteam differently or is this an actual flaw in Med-El’s  firmware update?  I’ve been singing the update’s praises since it came out because of the superior connection but missing half the mix is not a great user experience. Please advise on a solution. 

[Mary Beth]

@Kilgary that is very interesting 

@MED-EL Moderator tagging to be sure you see Kilgary’s post above

[Tim]

@Kilgary Interesting post and investigation!

I am SSD on left side too but use Android 14 (Pixel 6a) with the updated Audiostream firmware.

I tried various tests (mono on/off; balance set to left, right, or centered) with both of the songs you mentioned and can't discern any problem.  I think you have higher musical acuity already than I do. 

I needed to simplify the test.  I'm using the youtube video linked below. 

Stereo: (i.e. Mono set to off in Android audio balance)

• Balance set to Left only:  Results in only hearing left. (Nothing on right).  Correct.
• Balance set to Right only:  Results in only hearing right on my CI worn on the left side. (Nothing on left).  Is this correct?
• Balance set to Centered:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Is this correct? 

Mono: (i.e. Mono on in Android audio balance)

• Balance set to Left only:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Correct.
• Balance set to Right only:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Correct.
• Balance set to Centered:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Correct.

If I'm reading the test results correctly, the CI is doing its own conversion of both channels to a single blended mono signal.  I see no settings in the BT device for adjusting this. 

Perhaps this is only an issue for people using just one processor (SSD'ers like us.)  One question then is whether for music you are best off letting Spotify make the music mono, the phone make it mono, or the CI.  Come to think of it, I can't find where the "mono" vs. "stereo" setting is in the current Spotify app.  They keep messing around with the app trying to add other features like audiobooks and tour ticket sales.  Found it on the desktop app but I don't see it under the phone app.

Curious to see if people with Audiostreams on both sides hear from left and right out of the correct ears when the phone is set to stereo.

Do you get the same results with your iphone?

Perhaps @John Schulz has a perspective on the "correct" behavior for audio mixing.

 

 

[John Schulz]

@Tim the behavior you witnessed is what I would expect. It's worth noting that the CI/AS does not do channel mixing; it is controlled entirely by Android's ASHA implementation. @Kilgary MFI is different from ASHA and is a closed standard so I have no ability to say if it's Apple's fault or Med-El's. Hypothetically, switching it to mono should fix it as a temporary solution but best of luck on getting either party to fix it.

[Tim]

@John Schulz Thanks. 

It would seem that Android's ASHA implementation is then doing a conversion of stereo to mono (blending left and right together) when there is only one device.  That seems logical and would explain all my test results on Android.  Curious to hear if results on iPhones are different.

The songs that @Kilgary mentioned are too muddied for me to give any direct results. Based on my youtube tests though, on Android, if set to balanced, neither left nor right sides should be "missing" whether it is set to mono or stereo.

[Kilgary]

1 hour ago, John Schulz said:

@Tim the behavior you witnessed is what I would expect. It's worth noting that the CI/AS does not do channel mixing; it is controlled entirely by Android's ASHA implementation. @Kilgary MFI is different from ASHA and is a closed standard so I have no ability to say if it's Apple's fault or Med-El's. Hypothetically, switching it to mono should fix it as a temporary solution but best of luck on getting either party to fix it.

I tried switching to "Mono" on my iPhone (14 Pro Max running iOS 17.4.1) and it made no difference.  The elements meant for the left channel were 100% muted using AudioStream as an Accessibility Hearing Device.  Conversely, I can hear the left and right elements all mixed together when I stream via my AudioLink (and I don't need to set my phone to "mono".  The AudioLink just works).  

[John Schulz]

3 minutes ago, Kilgary said:

I tried switching to "Mono" on my iPhone (14 Pro Max running iOS 17.4.1) and it made no difference.  The elements meant for the left channel were 100% muted using AudioStream as an Accessibility Hearing Device.  Conversely, I can hear the left and right elements all mixed together when I stream via my AudioLink (and I don't need to set my phone to "mono".  The AudioLink just works).  

I would reach out to customer support then. It's possible that the AudioStream didn't write the update correctly some how? Do you have an Android device to test with?

[Mary Beth]

@Kilgary

Is it possible for you to reset the AudioStream and configure it again and ensure the firmware update is applied?

[Anthony Canada]

@Kilgary depending on the streaming ap you can control this in ap. For example in Spotify under settings about halfway down is "Mono audio" under the playback options. On an Iphone you can also go into Accessibility / Audi & Visual / Mono Audio.

[Kilgary]

1 hour ago, Mary Beth said:

@Kilgary

Is it possible for you to reset the AudioStream and configure it again and ensure the firmware update is applied?

How do you mean reset?  Last night I "Forgot" the device and then updated the firmware again, then configured it to be my left processor - again.  Nothing changed.   The firmware definitely updated because the clicking noise has greatly been reduced and it streams podcasts outdoors while my phone is in my pocket - never did that before I updated.  Is there a different method I can try tonight?  I don't bring my AudioStream to work since it's so fragile.  I don't think I have an Android device to try it on at home.  We're an iPhone household.  

[Mary Beth]

@Kilgary

 

[Kilgary]

9 hours ago, Tim said:

@Kilgary Interesting post and investigation!

I am SSD on left side too but use Android 14 (Pixel 6a) with the updated Audiostream firmware.

I tried various tests (mono on/off; balance set to left, right, or centered) with both of the songs you mentioned and can't discern any problem.  I think you have higher musical acuity already than I do. 

I needed to simplify the test.  I'm using the youtube video linked below. 

Stereo: (i.e. Mono set to off in Android audio balance)

• Balance set to Left only:  Results in only hearing left. (Nothing on right).  Correct.
• Balance set to Right only:  Results in only hearing right on my CI worn on the left side. (Nothing on left).  Is this correct?
• Balance set to Centered:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Is this correct? 

Mono: (i.e. Mono on in Android audio balance)

• Balance set to Left only:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Correct.
• Balance set to Right only:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Correct.
• Balance set to Centered:  Results in hearing both with equal volume.  Correct.

If I'm reading the test results correctly, the CI is doing its own conversion of both channels to a single blended mono signal.  I see no settings in the BT device for adjusting this. 

Perhaps this is only an issue for people using just one processor (SSD'ers like us.)  One question then is whether for music you are best off letting Spotify make the music mono, the phone make it mono, or the CI.  Come to think of it, I can't find where the "mono" vs. "stereo" setting is in the current Spotify app.  They keep messing around with the app trying to add other features like audiobooks and tour ticket sales.  Found it on the desktop app but I don't see it under the phone app.

Curious to see if people with Audiostreams on both sides hear from left and right out of the correct ears when the phone is set to stereo.

Do you get the same results with your iphone?

Perhaps @John Schulz has a perspective on the "correct" behavior for audio mixing.

 

 

With my AudioStream, all I hear in this clip is “Right” over and over. If I pan left, I hear nothing at all. Center or right panned, I just hear “Right”. 

[Kilgary]

4 hours ago, Mary Beth said:

@Kilgary

 

@Mary Beth I tried this. Reset it. Re-updated it. Re-configured it to be for my left processor. Left channel is still muted on my AudioStream.  Just for yucks, I reset it again and configured it to be my right processor. It still mutes the left channel. 

[Kilgary]

14 minutes ago, Kilgary said:

@Mary Beth I tried this. Reset it. Re-updated it. Re-configured it to be for my left processor. Left channel is still muted on my AudioStream.  Just for yucks, I reset it again and configured it to be my right processor. It still mutes the next channel. 

Okay. I just tried to connect my AudioStream to my iPad (which is iOS 16.3.1) and the left and right channels both play on that YouTube video from my iPad. So it seems it’s an issue with my iPhone rather than the AudioStream device. At least I figured that part out. Now I have to figure out why my iPhone is routing the audio incorrectly.  Maybe the next iOS update will fix it? I really appreciate all the advice. This is frustrating. 

[Mary Beth]

@Kilgary

I am glad you have narrowed down the issue.  Tech (phones, tablets, streaming devices) is great when it works and so frustrating when it doesn’t.  Smile 

[Tim]

@KilgaryThis is an example of one of the important benefits of the Hearpeers community.  Being able to have good conversations on our CI issues with others. 

By the way, you might try reporting it through iOS bug tracking.  I did that for Android 14 in the beta testing program and it might have helped in getting things resolved and before the general release of 14.  Our CI devices are too low volume to get much testing in the phone OS development cycles but Apple & Google do want to ensure hearing assistance devices work well.

 

[Kilgary]

9 hours ago, Tim said:

@KilgaryThis is an example of one of the important benefits of the Hearpeers community.  Being able to have good conversations on our CI issues with others. 

By the way, you might try reporting it through iOS bug tracking.  I did that for Android 14 in the beta testing program and it might have helped in getting things resolved and before the general release of 14.  Our CI devices are too low volume to get much testing in the phone OS development cycles but Apple & Google do want to ensure hearing assistance devices work well.

 

Thanks.  I just reported it to Apple.  I also signed up to their iOS free developer program so I can download the latest iOS beta builds.  Will try installing 17.5 Beta 4 tonight to see if it resolves the issue.  Wish I could just downgrade to iOS 16. I found a YouTube video complaining about phone OS updates breaking bluetooth connections to hearing aids and Apple and Google not responding - the hearing aid manufacturers have to end up fixing it with firmware updates to repair what the phone companies are breaking.  Sounds very similar to my issue.    

 

[Kilgary]

1 hour ago, Kilgary said:

Thanks.  I just reported it to Apple.  I also signed up to their iOS free developer program so I can download the latest iOS beta builds.  Will try installing 17.5 Beta 4 tonight to see if it resolves the issue.  Wish I could just downgrade to iOS 16. I found a YouTube video complaining about phone OS updates breaking bluetooth connections to hearing aids and Apple and Google not responding - the hearing aid manufacturers have to end up fixing it with firmware updates to repair what the phone companies are breaking.  Sounds very similar to my issue.    

 

iOS 17.5 Beta 4 installed. No change. Left channel still MOS. Shaking my fist at Apple!  😡 

[John Schulz]

1 hour ago, Kilgary said:

iOS 17.5 Beta 4 installed. No change. Left channel still MOS. Shaking my fist at Apple!  😡 

I think there's an option to reset the Bluetooth in iOS. This sounds like the best next step if upgrading the OS didn't change anything. You may loose your paired devices. It's been a longgggg time since I've use iOS (I like to think I moved to greener pastures but many will contest this 😅).

Edit: Sometimes an update doesn't read configuration files the same and this leads to incorrect behavior. Resetting Bluetooth should remove old config files that may be causing issues.

[John F]

@Kilgary Silly question but is your AudioStream appearing under the BT menu by chance?  When I updated my AudioStreams they were showing here and the sound was fairly bad.  Fast forward a week or so, found my iPhone was having a few more issues than I was aware of.  Meanwhile, I couldn’t get rid of the AudioStreams showing in the BT menu and not showing under the accessibility menu like normal.  I’ve gotten a new phone since, started from scratch and ran through the update process on new phone.  Had the dfu’s show in the menu but deleted those and haven’t had issues since.

 

Theres always the balance bar in the Audio & Visual menu within the Accessibility stuff you could try moving all the way to whatever side you’re wearing your CI on.

 

I’d also consider simply talking to MedEl support 1:1 to see if maybe something can help.  

[Mary Beth]

I am hoping that the issue of updates on phones impacting connectivity disappears when everyone, including typically hearing people, use the same protocol BTLE Audio and Auracast.