How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices?
<b>Background:</b> This study examined the relationship between hearing device price and sound quality. <b>Method:</b> A novel consumer-centric metric of sound quality (“SoundScore”) was used to assess hearing devices’ audio performance. Each hearing device is tested with two...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Audiology Research |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2039-4349/15/3/51 |
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| author | Vinaya Manchaiah Steve Taddei Abram Bailey De Wet Swanepoel Hansapani Rodrigo Andrew Sabin |
| author_facet | Vinaya Manchaiah Steve Taddei Abram Bailey De Wet Swanepoel Hansapani Rodrigo Andrew Sabin |
| author_sort | Vinaya Manchaiah |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <b>Background:</b> This study examined the relationship between hearing device price and sound quality. <b>Method:</b> A novel consumer-centric metric of sound quality (“SoundScore”) was used to assess hearing devices’ audio performance. Each hearing device is tested with two fittings. The “Initial Fit” is designed to approximate the most likely fitting for an individual with a mild-to-moderate sloping sensorineural hearing loss. The “Tuned Fit” includes adjusting parameters optimized to hit prescriptive fitting targets (NAL NL2) on an acoustic manikin. Each fitting is evaluated across five dimensions. Both fittings are combined using a weighted average to create a single number from 0 to 5 representative of a device’s overall audio performance. Seventy-one hearing devices were tested. <b>Results:</b> A strong positive correlation was found between hearing device price and SoundScore. The average SoundScore increased dramatically as the price approached USD 1000, with marginal improvements beyond this point. SoundScore was consistently poor for devices under USD 500, highly variable between USD 500–1000, and consistently good over USD 1000. <b>Conclusions:</b> There is a strong but nonlinear relationship between hearing device price and sound quality. This information can aid consumers in making informed decisions while also assisting hearing healthcare professionals in providing comprehensive guidance to their patients. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d71176c6effe4a67b0dfa945377fa57d |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2039-4349 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Audiology Research |
| spelling | doaj-art-d71176c6effe4a67b0dfa945377fa57d2025-08-20T03:26:21ZengMDPI AGAudiology Research2039-43492025-05-011535110.3390/audiolres15030051How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices?Vinaya Manchaiah0Steve Taddei1Abram Bailey2De Wet Swanepoel3Hansapani Rodrigo4Andrew Sabin5Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USAHear Advisor LLC, Rockford, IL 61102, USAHear Advisor LLC, Rockford, IL 61102, USADepartment of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USASchool of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, TX 78539, USAHear Advisor LLC, Rockford, IL 61102, USA<b>Background:</b> This study examined the relationship between hearing device price and sound quality. <b>Method:</b> A novel consumer-centric metric of sound quality (“SoundScore”) was used to assess hearing devices’ audio performance. Each hearing device is tested with two fittings. The “Initial Fit” is designed to approximate the most likely fitting for an individual with a mild-to-moderate sloping sensorineural hearing loss. The “Tuned Fit” includes adjusting parameters optimized to hit prescriptive fitting targets (NAL NL2) on an acoustic manikin. Each fitting is evaluated across five dimensions. Both fittings are combined using a weighted average to create a single number from 0 to 5 representative of a device’s overall audio performance. Seventy-one hearing devices were tested. <b>Results:</b> A strong positive correlation was found between hearing device price and SoundScore. The average SoundScore increased dramatically as the price approached USD 1000, with marginal improvements beyond this point. SoundScore was consistently poor for devices under USD 500, highly variable between USD 500–1000, and consistently good over USD 1000. <b>Conclusions:</b> There is a strong but nonlinear relationship between hearing device price and sound quality. This information can aid consumers in making informed decisions while also assisting hearing healthcare professionals in providing comprehensive guidance to their patients.https://www.mdpi.com/2039-4349/15/3/51hearing aidssound qualityhearing aid pricedirect-to-consumer hearing aidsover-the-counter hearing aidsconsumer metric |
| spellingShingle | Vinaya Manchaiah Steve Taddei Abram Bailey De Wet Swanepoel Hansapani Rodrigo Andrew Sabin How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices? Audiology Research hearing aids sound quality hearing aid price direct-to-consumer hearing aids over-the-counter hearing aids consumer metric |
| title | How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices? |
| title_full | How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices? |
| title_fullStr | How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices? |
| title_full_unstemmed | How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices? |
| title_short | How Much Should Consumers with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss Spend on Hearing Devices? |
| title_sort | how much should consumers with mild to moderate hearing loss spend on hearing devices |
| topic | hearing aids sound quality hearing aid price direct-to-consumer hearing aids over-the-counter hearing aids consumer metric |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2039-4349/15/3/51 |
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