CHANGING THE SOUND PARADIGM

An assessment by an audioprosthetist is required to determine which hearing aid suits the patient’s needs.

Over the years, hearing aids and their technology have advanced at a breathtaking pace. However, many wearers have difficulty adjusting to hearing aids. One of the reasons for this adjustment is that hearing aids require a delay to capture, analyze, and process sound which can cause distortion, known as the comb filter effect.

Currently, the processing time for most hearing aids is between four and eight milliseconds. However, any delay above 0.5 milliseconds can be perceived by the wearer and impact sound quality.

Improving Sound by Reducing Processing Delay

A hearing aid manufacturer has developed a new technology that pushes the limits and changes the sound paradigm, allowing them to offer hearing aids able to process sound with a delay less than 0.5 milliseconds. This eliminates sound distortion and provides a natural listening experience without compromising speech intelligibility in various the listening situations.

Evaluating Sound Quality

Two recent studies confirm the efficacy of this new technology.

The first study was on sound quality1. Participants were exposed to 20 real-life listening situations, varying in intensity from quiet to very loud. They were then asked to evaluate the hearing aids with standard and fast processing delays. The results revealed that 100% of participants with normal hearing, and 85% of participants with hearing loss preferred the sound resulting from a processing delay less than 0.5 milliseconds, demonstrating the significant influence of the processing delay on sound quality.

A second study2 compared the technology which offers a processing delay of less than 0.5 milliseconds to hearing aids with longer processing delays. The results showed that when it came to sound quality and perception of one’s own voice, participants preferred the technology yielding minimal processing delays. It was also noted that this technology did not compromise speech intelligibility.

The longer hearing aids take to process sound, the more distorted the sound experience can be. With long processing delays, the quality of the signal received by the brain deteriorates. As a result, listening requires more effort. Reducing the processing dalay improves the sound quality of the hearing aids and makes communication easier. In fact, a processing delay of less than 0.5 milliseconds preserves the natural sound envelope, which is essential for of speech understanding, in both quiet and noisy environments. This innovation provides natural and effortless hearing thus promoting the acceptance of hearing aids. Talk to an audioprosthetist to learn more about this new technology.

Janic Lauriault

Audiologist Technical Support

References:

1. Kuk, F., Ruperto, N., Slugocki, C., & Korhonen, P. (2020). Efficacy of Directional Microphones in Open Fittings

Under Realistic Signal-to-Noise Ratios Using Widex MOMENT Hearing Aids. Hearing Review, 27(6), 20–23. 2. Slugocki, C., Kuk, F., Korhonen, P. & Ruperto, N. (2020). Neural Encoding of the Stimulus Envelope Facilitated by

Widex ZeroDelay Technology. Hearing Review, 27(8), 28–31. - Winther Balling, L., Townend, O., Stiefenhofer, G., & Switalski, W. (2020). Reducing Hearing Aid Delay for Optimal

Sound Quality: A New Paradigm in Processing. Hearing Review, 27(4), 20–26.