Tips on Buying Second-Hand Hearing Aids

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Zeeza

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Hello,
I'm new here.
Someone suggested that I could consider buying used hearing aids from another country. (Although I know shipping hearing aids to Egypt might not be a smart idea because of all the red tape applied)
First of all, how to make sure the hearing aid is working and to avoid fraud.

Would it be easy to have them programmed in a company in my country? Or in the worst scenarios, if I need to have them fixed at some point?

What should I look out for? What should I not compromise about?

Do you have any recommendations regarding my hearing loss? (Hearing assessment attached)

How can I educate myself on software with my old hearing aids?
*Siemens CIC Lotus Pro (R) & Signia Nitro CT (L)
 

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Hi @Zeeza Welcome.
That's a lot to unpack;
  • how to make sure the hearing aid is working.
  • how to avoid fraud.
  • Would it be easy to have them programmed in a company in my country?
  • Would it be easy to have them fixed/repaired?
  • What should I look out for?
  • What should I not compromise about?
  • Do you have any recommendations regarding my hearing loss?
  • How can I educate myself on software with my old hearing aids?
Please start here → DIY School Hearing Aids (v2.2). It has a library of PDF Files in cloud storage for you to read.

Here's a clip below from a DIY School Hearing Aids PDF File named (Choose Hardware-Programming Device for Signia); The Legacy hearing aids you are currently wearing, are too very old;
These Legacy hearing aids (MOTION, LIFE, PURE, AQUARIS, ECLIPSE, iMINI, EXPLORER, NITRO, INTUIS, PHOENIX G3, LOTUS) are too old to provide tedious detail. You can use the procedures above for Signia Older/Legacy to find your specific hearing aid and then use the Cable overview for how to connect your hearing aids to the fitting software.

Short answer to a couple of questions from your question dump;
  • It will be very difficult to have HAs programmed by a company in your country
  • factory repair is very difficult and very expensive
  • you can get the Legacy software for your Legacy hearing aids but don't expect much help with legacy
  • your hearing loss is not the typical age related ski-slope hearing loss
 
Last edited:
pvc said:
Hi @Zeeza Welcome.
That's a lot to unpack;
  • how to make sure the hearing aid is working.
  • how to avoid fraud.
  • Would it be easy to have them programmed in a company in my country?
  • Would it be easy to have them fixed/repaired?
  • What should I look out for?
  • What should I not compromise about?
  • Do you have any recommendations regarding my hearing loss?
  • How can I educate myself on software with my old hearing aids?
Please start here → DIY School Hearing Aids (v2.2). It has a library of PDF Files in cloud storage for you to read.

Here's a clip below from a DIY School Hearing Aids PDF File named (Choose Hardware-Programming Device for Signia); The Legacy hearing aids you are currently wearing, are too very old;
These Legacy hearing aids (MOTION, LIFE, PURE, AQUARIS, ECLIPSE, iMINI, EXPLORER, NITRO, INTUIS, PHOENIX G3, LOTUS) are too old to provide tedious detail. You can use the procedures above for Signia Older/Legacy to find your specific hearing aid and then use the Cable overview for how to connect your hearing aids to the fitting software.

Short answer to a couple of questions from your question dump;
  • It will be very difficult to have HAs programmed by a company in your country
  • factory repair is very difficult and very expensive
  • you can get the Legacy software for your Legacy hearing aids but don't expect much help with legacy
  • your hearing loss is not the typical age related ski-slope hearing loss
Click to expand...
Hey,

Thank you so much for your reply!

This sounds quite complicated given how different the situation is in my country.
I think I will go with buying new hearing aids here. In the meanwhile, I will educate myself more on my hearing loss and hearing aids.
 
Audiologists prefer selling you new hearing aids to make a profit and (in return) include their professional services as a package deal/price. When you walk into their office/practice with your own set of used hearing aids from EBay they usually frown :( because there is no profit.
 
Pvc answerd perfect
But in egypt there are many brands of hearing aids
Maybe you can buy new hearing aids from arabe country jordan for example but really egypt is good prices than jordan or other country.
Maybe you need to try many brands before you buying hearing aids
You can see which brands is better for you.
 
pvc said:
Audiologists prefer selling you new hearing aids to make a profit and (in return) include their professional services as a package deal/price. When you walk into their office/practice with your own set of used hearing aids from EBay they usually frown :( because there is no profit.
Click to expand...
I totally understand that. However, I'm afraid I will not be able to figure out the hearing aids on my own and that I might need an audiologist or a professional help at some point. For example, to get earmolds, definitely I need to go to a company to make the impressions.
 
You will need earmold for the left ear for sure with that kind of heavy loss. For the right ear, you can probably get buy with a generic dome and an 85 dB receiver. On the left year, you'll need at least a 100 dB receiver, preferably a 105 dB receiver with custom molds. If you can't get access to get custom earmolds, you can probably try a generic power dome, but that depends on how luck you are if the power dome can fit well and snugly into your left ear canal without leaking sound out. But it's better to get custom ear mold to ensure the best fit.

If you're technical enough, you might be able to figure out what all the parameters in the programming of your hearing aids are. There are online help and resources here to help you get started, but if you're not technically inclined and self-help inclined, or don't want to spend the time learning, then the DIY option may not be right for you. But if you have the money to invest in a NoahLink Wireless (less than $200 US) and the will to learn, you can start out slow and read up on things here and look at online help for the programming software and ask questions when you have it.
 
I
Volusiano said:
You will need earmold for the left ear for sure with that kind of heavy loss. For the right ear, you can probably get buy with a generic dome and an 85 dB receiver. On the left year, you'll need at least a 100 dB receiver, preferably a 105 dB receiver with custom molds. If you can't get access to get custom earmolds, you can probably try a generic power dome, but that depends on how luck you are if the power dome can fit well and snugly into your left ear canal without leaking sound out. But it's better to get custom ear mold to ensure the best fit.

If you're technical enough, you might be able to figure out what all the parameters in the programming of your hearing aids are. There are online help and resources here to help you get started, but if you're not technically inclined and self-help inclined, or don't want to spend the time learning, then the DIY option may not be right for you. But if you have the money to invest in a NoahLink Wireless (less than $200 US) and the will to learn, you can start out slow and read up on things here and look at online help for the programming software and ask questions when you have it.
Click to expand...
I asked Phonak in Egypt, I can get the ear molds with them but I can't have the hearing aids programmed unless I have the warranty or bought them from their company.

I would have liked to give it a try and do it myself but I'm not confident enough in my skills! :( I'm afraid I will mess it up especially, I can't afford buying another pair if something goes wrong with the ones I buy from abroad. :(
 
Volusiano said:
You will need earmold for the left ear for sure with that kind of heavy loss. For the right ear, you can probably get buy with a generic dome and an 85 dB receiver. On the left year, you'll need at least a 100 dB receiver, preferably a 105 dB receiver with custom molds. If you can't get access to get custom earmolds, you can probably try a generic power dome, but that depends on how luck you are if the power dome can fit well and snugly into your left ear canal without leaking sound out. But it's better to get custom ear mold to ensure the best fit.

If you're technical enough, you might be able to figure out what all the parameters in the programming of your hearing aids are. There are online help and resources here to help you get started, but if you're not technically inclined and self-help inclined, or don't want to spend the time learning, then the DIY option may not be right for you. But if you have the money to invest in a NoahLink Wireless (less than $200 US) and the will to learn, you can start out slow and read up on things here and look at online help for the programming software and ask questions when you have it.
Click to expand...
Ok, now I'm going with the DIY option. Do you know where I can find Noahlink at a reasonable price? I looked at eBay but the prices are quite higher.
 
Zeeza said:
a reasonable price?
Click to expand...
seems to be $140 to $150 USD. Search "Noahlink Wireless" on EBay and then click "Sold Items" in the left pane.
c4.jpg
  • That will show you the price-and-date history of Noahlink Wireless hearing aid programming devices that were sold on EBay.
  • Or you could visit Aliexpress from China and look at similar prices from China.
  • Or you could wait until we find another deal like This Deal → Woah!! Noahlink Wireless for $44, MAYBE SOLD OUT!! - (free shipping) though your chances for another (Airlink 2) deal are slim.
Tip> NOAHlink is an old/almost obsolete programming device, not to be confused with Noahlink Wireless;

c5.jpg
 
Zeeza said:
Wouldn't it do the same job
Click to expand...
Well Maybe? Are you aware that NOAHlink is not a wireless connection to the hearing aids?
  • It uses cables and adapters to connect to your hearing aids (see page 13) of → NOAHlink User Manual.
  • NOAHlink is powered by battery – rechargeable or alkaline (Page 19)
  • Requires an external wall plug charger (Page 20)
  • Requires NiMH battery maintenance - 15 to 17 hour discharge/charge cycle (Page 21)
  • You have to hang it around your neck (Page 22)
And, if that is not ridiculous enough for you, then you can plug in another obsolete device, namely nEARCOM into the top of NOAHlink to make a wireless connection to your hearing aids. See the → nEARCOM Manual (Page 3).

If E-Waste was more efficient that would be a good use for these devices. But it's not, so garbage (land fill) is the logical destination. Sorry.
 
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