Leah Posted November 6, 2015 Report Share Posted November 6, 2015 My processor was turned on about 8 months ago, and so far I have seen no evidence that the Automatic Sound Management, as described by Med-El, works for me. "Sound Management detects changing listening situations on the go, adapting automatically so you don't have to." When I go to a restaurant it takes me about 10 minutes of playing with the remote before I get something that works...but nothing really works well in a restaurant. Once the background noise is reduced to a comfortable level, I can hardly hear my husband. "Dual stage also ensures that a sudden increase in loudness does not result in an uncomfortable change in volume for the user" When my husbands voice is at a comfortable level, my voice is too loud. If the automatic volume control was working, wouldn't both voices be at a comfortable level? I can hear very little on TV. The volume changes within a single word. One syllable is too soft and the next is too loud. What I hear on TV sounds just like my neighbor's little dog barking. My processor is changing something...but not to optimize anything. One day my husband and I can sit down an have a conversation. The next day, with the same program and remote settings, we are back to writing notes to talk to each other. It is hard to persevere when practice is so unpleasant and my patience is wearing thin. Leah Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 6, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 6, 2015 Leah I would say that it does. I really don't use my fine tuner One thing we have to remember is that implants, just like hearing aids are an aid, not a cure. There will be certain situations where you might have trouble. A lot of my hearing friends can struggle in noisy environments. The automatic sound management helps you not have to change a program going from say a quiet room talking to one person then walking into a room of say 10 people talking. If you still really struggle in certain situations, by all means, contact your Audie. Maybe they can create a program for the situations that you really struggle in. I hope this helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Mary Beth Posted November 6, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 6, 2015 I would say that the automatic sound management works as well. I only use my Fine Tuner to switch to MT or T. I can listen in a quiet setting close to the speaker, quiet setting at a distance from the speaker, noisy setting close to the speaker, music, TV, etc all without adjusting programs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 6, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 6, 2015 Agreed maryBeth I mainly use the fine tuner to switch to T or MT I don't even have any programs stored on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Mary Beth Posted November 6, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 6, 2015 I have three programs- primary, one for noisy places and one for music- and I had my audiologist put another copy of the primary in slot 4 (because it was open and if something corrupted that program in slot 1, I could use it)- but I really just stay in program 1 always. Leah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted November 6, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 6, 2015 Possibly contacting a ;ED-EL representative wouldn't be a bad idea... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 7, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 7, 2015 What do you mean by something corrupting a program? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Mary Beth Posted November 7, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 7, 2015 Adam, It rarely happens but sometimes a program becomes corrupted. It can happen due to static, but it is rare. As a TOD, we always want a back up to the primary program if a student runs into problems. This way we can switch to the back up program on their processor and know if the problem is a corrupted program or a problem with the actual processor itself. So when I had an empty slot, it was habit that had me ask for a duplicate of program 1. I doubt that I will ever need to use it. Also, I am fortunate because I have a Rondo as a back up. Some of our students are not as fortunate. Mary Beth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Adam Posted November 8, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 I agree with Ivana. I would contact your MEDEL rep. Ivana Marinac 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HearPeers Heroes Ivana Marinac Posted November 8, 2015 HearPeers Heroes Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 I would ask - there has to be an explanation about these specific difficulties. Device should be totally reliable, anything except that is - unacceptable for a longer period. Even it it happens from time to time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leah Posted November 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 To Everyone... Thanks for the replies. It is good to know that the Automatic Sound Management works for all of you. Maybe I'm just expecting too much from my CI. I don't think my problem is with the processor hardware, because I have the same problems with both the Opus and the Rondo. Could be the programming. I'll talk to my Med-El rep if things don't get better after my next audiologist appt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikHaugsby Posted November 9, 2015 Report Share Posted November 9, 2015 To Everyone... Thanks for the replies. It is good to know that the Automatic Sound Management works for all of you. Maybe I'm just expecting too much from my CI. I don't think my problem is with the processor hardware, because I have the same problems with both the Opus and the Rondo. Could be the programming. I'll talk to my Med-El rep if things don't get better after my next audiologist appt. Hey there Leah, I'm Erik and I work at MED-EL. Thanks for writing to us about your hearing. As usual Adam, Ivana, Mary Beth have all got some good input--thanks guys and girls ! So what I can add is hopefully a bit of reassurance. First, you've got the right attitude with wanting to persevere. Since you've been hearing with a cochlear implant for only 8 months, that isn't a very long time at all. Everybody's hearing and hearing journey is different, but there's usually lots of changes that happen in the first 12 months of hearing. It's important that you keep in contact with your audiologist about this, because he or she is firstly the one who can change your processor's programming depending on how you're hearing. Automatic Sound Management is automatic in use, but before it can be automatic it requires some settings to be manually entered in during your fitting sessions. Secondly, your audiologist is the one who can help give context to your hearing: how others at your "hearing age" are hearing, how others with your specific hearing loss are doing, and so forth. Again, everyone's hearing is different and because of that it's hard for anyone to judge just how well a given person will be able to hear with a cochlear implant. If you'd like to speak with your MED-EL rep. as well, I'll send you a private message with some more information about who you can talk with. And if you have any other questions just leave us a note and I'll get back with you. Ivana Marinac 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.