[Elecraft] Hearing aids and K3

[mcduffie at ag0n.net]

On Wed, 7 Aug 2013 22:45:41 -0700 (PDT), Mark Petiford wrote:

> OK, just gotta tell my hearing aids story again.

I know this thread is a bit off-topic for the group, but I think it contains
some very important information for all of us aging adults, and I've been
following it with interest.

I can identify VERY closely with your story involving the XYL.  My problem is
similar, but she just doesn't speak up and enunciate well.

Something I want to get across to all of you, is that if you have a hearing loss
and it stems from a period when you were in the military, whether it is service
related or not, you ARE eligible for help from the VA.  However, there must be
documentation verifying the loss and when it happened.  The VA covers losses and
injuries that occur while you are on active duty, even if it happened at home
and had nothing to do with your military job or duty.  In my case, the loss was
off-duty, at home, and my ex-wife was able to provide a letter stating when it
happened and how, even though it was more than 40 years ago.  Talk to your local
VA representative.

As far as the hearing aids go, I also have a Phonak pair, with iCom TVLink
blue-tooth unit for the cell phone and linkable to an outside source like TV,
stereo, and yes, ham radio.  It works very well, but I would hesitate to
recommend it for CW.  If you work "high speed" CW, the amount of digital delay
of the audio getting through the link and the aids will cause your sending to be
poor if you are listening to the sidetone.  For instance, you start sending a
letter B.  Your hand releases during the third dit, but that actually occurred
before you heard it, so you send a 6 instead.  Or, if you're going faster yet,
there are larger errors.

As for EQ, I have excellent low end hearing, but roll off very fast.  With the
hearing aids, which I rarely wear when using the radio*, I prefer a fairly flat
response.  Unlike many of the comments here, I find the lows to be very usable
and easier to copy when they're present.  All of the research says it's a waste,
but I really prefer and copy better when the area of 100Hz is present  If I roll
the lows off, it is very tiring to listen to.  My voice is very heavy in the
100Hz area, and I roll it down dozens of db to overcome my GM4's abundant
response there.

*I use the bluetooth to monitor the radio when I'm doing things outside the
shack and want to keep up on what is going on.

Just a few personal observations re the audio response and hearing aids on ham
radio.  Sorry if this has just irritated some because it is off-topic for the
list.

Gary