Hearing Technology Innovations : The Hearing Journal – LWW Journals

With ongoing innovation and technological advances, there is no shortage of new devices and resources at audiologists’ disposal. These tools have the potential to not only benefit patients, but also help the audiology community continue to grow and optimize the hearing care they provide. Below we discuss the features of just a few of the many new hearing technology innovations now available, all of which were named honorees in the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Innovation…….

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OTICON MYMUSIC PROGRAM

Typically, hearing aids have utilized the same sound processing for both speech and music. As a result, some of the nuances of music can be lost. Compared to speech, music has a larger dynamic and frequency range. There is also a difference across instrument types, ensemble, and compositional styles.

To address this challenge, MyMusic was developed, a music-oriented signal processing program that aims to capture and preserve music’s natural dynamics. “MyMusic uses a new strategy for amplification based on research on reference curves for music listening and research on how the music experience can be improved for hearing aid users,” explained Virginia Ramachandran, AuD, PhD, head of audiology at Oticon, Inc. “Adaptive processing allows the details to be preserved, while also ensuring comfort.

“There is more amplification in the highest and lowest frequencies, delivering better balance across frequencies. This ensures that differences between softer and louder components in music are preserved and natural dynamics are maintained,” she continued. “The music-oriented signal processing program captures the complex dynamics of music much better than attempting to apply ordinary speech processing strategies to music.”

This new technology was created to help individuals with hearing loss rediscover their love of music by overcoming a significant challenge with hearing aids—delivering excellent music sound quality, whether it’s live music or streamed directly from a device, according to Ramachandran.

“Using music-oriented signal processing strategies, such as an optimized compression scheme, and a new balancing of the notes, it captures the complex dynamics of music,” she told The Hearing Journal. “With Oticon MyMusic, people with hearing loss can once again enjoy their favorite music in all its nuances.”

Hearing care professionals can add MyMusic to Oticon More hearing aids in Oticon Genie 2. While the program adapts to the user’s hearing loss, it can also be fine-tuned separately for specific preferences. Hearing care professionals can add the MyMusic program for current Oticon More users by upgrading to the latest firmware.