Bluetooth Reset on Artone Products

[artkup]

For those who have used any of the following Artone products -- Maxloop 3, TVB, and microphone -- if you have successfully RESET the Bluetooth in a fashion that is reliably replicable, I would appreciate it if you would explain what you did. (I'm hesitant to pair more than one to another for fear the BT will get confused, I won't be able to reset the BT, and then I'd be stuck.) 

As an example, the Maxloop 3 could be connected to the TVB, the microphone, one of my two smartphones, or my BT enabled laptop. I'd be more comfortable trying new pairings if I knew I could always go back to factory settings if the BT gets "confused." The alternative to this is what some in this group have done --  that is to dedicate a maxloop to each of the other devices. With numerous devices, this could get out of hand.

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

I have paired the same neckloop with 2 devices with no problem.  One neckloop paired to both iPhone and iPad.  You just need to control the BT settings on your device to switch the neckloop from one to the other.  For example, on phone disconnect (not forget device) Artone.  Then on iPad connect Artone.  These are under BT settings.

It can actively be paired to 2 devices at the same time and stores 8 devices in memory.

So no need to remove a pairing.  Just control where you want it to connect.

[artkup]

@Mary Beth  The phone is not the issue. It has a display that one can read, and alter the BT settings, by disconnecting, forgetting, pairing, or connecting a previously paired device. The problem arises with the TVB or the microphone for which no display exists. I have 2 maxloops, 2 phones, a mic, and a TVB, which I would like to seamlessly use. The two neckloops are so that one is always charged, but I wish to use either neckloop with any of the transmitting devices (TVB, mic, phone(s)). I believe you said you marked one maxloop and dedicated it to one transmitting device, but ideally that should not be necessary. If the TVB, for example, is only pairing with one of the two neckloops, it must be RESET. Similarly for the microphone.

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

I believe you can seamlessly use one neckloop with various devices.  The Artone Mic, after initial pairing to the neckloop, will connect to that neckloop when it is turned on.  If however we already have that neckloop connected to 2 devices, it will not connect.  For me I just turn off BT temporarily on devices I do not want the neckloop to connect to and then power on the neckloop.  After it connects to the device I want, I turn on other devices BT again.

I have no experience resetting the TVB.  I can not help you with that.

In the past when I have had questions about Artone products, I reached out to Artone through their contact us info on their website and received responses.  Maybe they will be able to help.

For people who choose to pair a dedicated Artone neckloop with their TVB, it really is a personal choice for ease of use.

Different things work for different people.

Let us know how things progress when you get your Artone items set up the way you want to use them.  Learning from each other is one of the best features of HPs.

 

Added thought:  it helps to make sure the neckloop you do not wish to use is powered off so devices do not automatically connect to that one.

[artkup]

@Mary Beth

So it seems like I can connect the first maxloop to the mic, to the TVB, and to my phone. It seems to be able to switch back and forth cleanly from the mic to the TVB. Now I need to figure out how to do the same with my 2nd maxloop without destroying/confusing the pairings with the first maxloop. I don't believe I've read of people successfully pairing the TVB and/or the mic to two maxloops. Not simultaneously connected but simultaneously paired so one can seamlessly swap out maxloops as the battery of the first dies out, and the other one is then connected. 

Has anyone successfully had the artone TVB or mic successfully paired to two maxloops to permit swapping maxloops as battery runs out?

[Mary Beth]

Try it first with the mic.  
 

Turn off the neckloop that is already paired and set it aside.

Start with both the mic and second neckloop turned off.  Turn them on making sure to press and hold the button on the neckloop long enough that it starts flashing intermittently blue and red.  Then turn on the mic close to the neckloop.  If it pairs successfully you will see blue lights.  Listen and make sure it is connected.

Once successful, turn off the neckloop.  Set it aside.

Then turn on neckloop 1.  If it does not automatically connect, power off the mic and then back on.  The mic may only search after being powered on.

This is what I would try.

[artkup]

As a minor(ish) aside, I paired the same phone to two neckloops. On my Android Phone version, I could edit the names of the devices on the BT pairings menu to distinguish Artone Maxloop 1 from Artone Maxloop 2.

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

We can rename devices on iPhones too.  I have named each neckloop with the date of purchase.

[artkup]

To update on my progress, the 2 phones and the mic are successfully paired to the maxloop. The TVB is paired to one maxloop, but I was unable to pair the 2nd maxloop. I have a call into the customer service for help.

If I don't hear back from customer service, i will try to RESET the TVB by switching from transmitter to receiver mode and then back again, as suggested in the instructions. I think the TVB may have inadvertently paired to my hearing aid the first time I turned it on, and perhaps that is causing the problem. [I find connectivity is more seamless if I turn off my hearing aid before trying to connect.]

[artkup]

I tried re-setting the TVB by following the instructions (switching from TX to RX and back again), & now it doesn't pair or connect to either of my neckloops.

@Mary Beth is there some reason you dedicated one neckloop to the TVB? Is it a known issue that the TVB has problems pairing to two loops? Also, you suggested above that I first try pairing the mic to the two neckloops. Do you think that the TVB has issues pairing to 2 loops? Please advise. 

 

Feeling more than a tad frustrated at the moment.

[artkup]

Unsuccessfully tried resetting my maxloop by plugging in the charging cord for 3-5 seconds. Tried to reset both with the plug unconnected and then connected to power cord.

I thus come back to my original question:

Has anyone successfully RESET the maxloop?

 

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

I believe I have exhausted everything I know about the Artone products.  I have followed their instructions for resetting neckloops successfully.  I have never had a need to reset the TVB.  Dedicating one neckloop to the TVB is just for simplicity and ease of use.  I have never had an issue with my set up.   

I hope Artone can help you.

[artkup]

7 minutes ago, Mary Beth said:

@artkup I have followed their instructions for resetting neckloops successfully.

Their directions say to "plug in the charging cable for 3-5 seconds and disconnect it."

When you did this was the charging cables other end plugged into the outlet?

[Mary Beth]

Yes

[artkup]

Looks like I'll be returning everything. With two phones, two maxloops, a TVB, a microphone, and a BT enabled hearing aid, I think the BT settings (which I can't see on the Artone products), have become overly confused. I suspect many of you have set up dedicated pairings for a reason, because at some point you had issues with multiple pairings. I left Artone a message and contacted them by email on early Tuesday morning, but haven't heard back. I will return my current 4 products and maybe try to start over at some future date. The lack of clarity in their directions, coupled with the non-responsiveness of their customer support, I find highly troubling.

@Mary Bethhas been very helpful, but there is only so much she can do without seeing my entire setup. 

[artkup]

Ok, now have 2 maxloops connected to my phone and to my TVB. Everything is connecting / reconnecting seamlessly. I still want to connect both maxloops to the Artone mic but I'm worried it will upset / confuse my setup. Not sure if it's worth the risk.

[Dianna]

Hi art, i am thoroughly confused, but i am clapping you on the back for making it work!!!!

[artkup]

On 12/1/2021 at 5:29 PM, Dianna said:

Hi art, i am thoroughly confused, but i am clapping you on the back for making it work!!!!

I decided to try to reset all the BT connections and try again before returning. I still need to get the mic set up to connect to the 2 maxloops but I'm holding off for fear of messing up what's currently working. I will try the mics later on. At a minimum, looking at the Amazon reviews which are horrible (the TVB has 1.7 star review), there are known issues with the BT connectivity, the included instructions, and the lack of customer service. I still haven't heard back from Artone and it's been 10 days since I contacted them via phone and email. Additionally, Adco hearing no longer sells the maxloop, I suspect because of the problems with connectivity. Many MedEl users have come up with workarounds with multiple dedicated maxloops, but I think presenting these products as a pollyannaish fix to bimodal streaming is doing a disservice to users.

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

I am sorry you feel that way Art but I respect your opinion.

I have been using my Artone neckloops since 2016, almost every day, and they have been very easy to use and reliable.

I hope you find tech that suits you better.

[artkup]

I think these products are great for more simple dedicated setups. For those who want them to work in multiple device setups, working with the instructions and customer service as given, they're horrendous. Each step in the instructions is vague/ambiguous/wrong and the multiplicity of guessing required in configuring a multiple device setup grows (literally) exponentially. I think once one has a system that works, it's great, but getting there is a nightmare.

[artkup]

After another week or so of experimenting, I suspect that the maxloop prioritizes linking from the last connected device. Thus if your TVB was the last device connected to the maxloop, it re-connects fairly easily. If there were intervening connections since the last maxloop connection with the TVB, for example if the maxloop was most recently connected with the microphone and the phone, it has problems re-connecting to the TVB, though it seems to eventually re-connect. This, I believe, is why people are having success with dedicated pairings, and I was having trouble using the maxloop with 3 distinct transmitting devices. 

On the streaming Google Meet a couple weeks ago, John suggested that many BT systems prioritize by order of first-time pairings. But the Artone system seems to prioritize by last connections, rather than initial pairings. This is only a guess based on my last couple of weeks of experience.

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

Yes Artone connects to the last device it was connected to when it is turned on.  Many people control which of the paired devices Artone connects to upon start up by making sure BT is temporarily turned off (or the Artone Mic is turned off) in those devices you do not want the Artone to connect to. In other words, steer the connection.

[artkup]

I recently turned off my mic and my phone (the only other devices my maxloop were ever connected to), yet upon trying to re-connect the TVB again to the maxloop it still it had trouble. But after numerous attempts, the maxloop-TVB connection finally succeeded. Then when I turned off both devices (TVB and maxloop), and tried re-connecting the same two devices, the connection was made immediately. This is why I suspect it re-orders the prioritizations based on most recent connection rather than initial pairings.

[Mary Beth]

@artkup

When I was using my Artone neckloop with both my iPhone and iPad, it would reconnect upon start up to whichever one it had been connected to last.  

[artkup]

Interesting article on BT technology and why pairing in certain home environments may be easier than in other homes - https://www.audio-technica.com/en-us/support/audio-solutions-question-of-the-week-what-causes-bluetooth-interference/?back=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fsearch%3Fclient%3Dsafari&as_qdr=all&as_occt=any&safe=active&as_q=What+electronic+devices+can+interfere+with+Bluetooth&channel=aplab&source=a-app1&hl=en