martyi@webtv.net

I know nothing of the Magnatone TruVoice so I can't respond to that.
But I know what it is like to be priced out of the market, so to speak.
The cost of hearing aids keeps going up and up and nothing will change
that. If we want the best technology available we will have to pay for
it.

The problem is that digital technology advances in other areas such as
speakers, A/V receivers and other home theater equipment, etc., keeps
getting cheaper. I bought a tuner late last year with all the bells and
whistles, 5:1 surround sound, digital decoding, etc. at a price that was
half of what I paid for just a plain stereo about 10 years ago.

I realize there are audiologists involved and they need to make a living
of course but the cost of the equipment alone is probably not as great
as we might think. We are paying mostly for the audi's expertise.
Accordingly, it makes sense to me that we must shop around for the best
professional we can find and let them guide us to the proper equipment
for our needs.
I too was confronted with the financial dilemma you have but rather than
investing money in the device, I invested my time instead in searching
out the best audiologist I could find. It was time well spent.
Although I suppose I could have found a way to pay out for the upper end
models, I had frank discussions with my audi about getting the best bang
for the buck.

He was a great guy and I chose him because he was not only highly
trained and educated but people I know and trust recommended him as
well. His reputation was excellent, he was the owner of the company and
had been in business in the same location for many, many years. In my
discussions with him as we went over all my test charts, he explained
the problems I had and why I had them. It was his opinion that upper
end digitals would serve me no better than lower cost ****ogs that were
programmable. He felt confident in the product he suggested that I try
and said he had a great deal of experience with it (Siemans Infinity).
They were much less than even some price point digitals. If they did
not work out he would let me try other models and brands that he felt
comfortable with. He tweaked them a couple times and I'm very happy
with the end result.

The point of all this is to explain that investing time to find an
honest and professional audiologist is where your main concern should be
- not in any particular brand of hearing aid (at least not at this
point). You may have to interview several but place your trust in the
person you finally select and go with his/her recommendations. If you
can't afford what they suggest tell them so. If they are any good at
all, they will find something in your price range that will help. Good
luck.

MARTY

mr.noway

I fully agree with all your comments. My old audiologist retired and
closed up shop, which fact I belatedly discovered last week when I tried
to contact him after I lost my HA Soooo, that's why I had to shop for a
new audiologist, and at the same time I was facing this need for a
reasonably quick decision on a replacement aid.

Your ****ogy of technology advances in the manufacturing of consumer
electronics has a bit of truth in HA industry as well I'm sure. However I
think from what I've read, that the cost to manufacture the HA itself is
only a very small percentage of the total costs we see.

As you note, the audi's time for evaluation, fitting, followup, as well as
their fixed costs to operate, and a reasonable profit return, makes up a
far greater portion of the total cost to the consumer than the hardware
component itself. And of course the potential for returns before the trial
period is over also has to account for some built-in overhead allowance.

Nevertheless, one does find that there are differences in pricing, there
are manufacturer sponsored "sales events", and there are a few emerging
service models that differ in approach, with a fixed cost for the
audiology professional and a separate pricing for the device.

Looks like I will be doing a trial of the Magnatone, hopefully it will
work for me. Time was kinda short for making a decision, and worst case is
that before the 30 days are up, if it can't be made to work well with my
particular loss, then I can move to some other HA.

If it doesn't work, it's gonna be tough though, because the price for
other choices is at best several 100's higher, and at worst waaaaay beyond
those numbers, moving into that territory which I can't possibly buy into.
That is why I was hoping for some reasoned discussion of the Magnatone,
the Lori, and some of the other sub-2000 CICs.

Thanks for your participation in this

--
mr.noway