nels Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 (edited) I’ve done a lot of experimentation with noise cancelling and the best I’ve come up with is sponge type ear plugs with a good noise cancelling headset. This seems to be a good balance which cancels a lot of low frequency and allows enough high frequency through that I can hear the human voice pretty good. At this point I’m fine but wondering if wearing a hearing aid might somehow work better. There probably aren’t too many guys worried about it but I’m sure there are some and maybe a few that are well advanced in the hearing loss department that may be able to answer the question. Edited March 11, 2020 by nels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chriscalandro Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 (edited) 9 minutes ago, nels said: I’ve done a lot of experimentation with noise cancelling and the best I’ve come up with is sponge type ear plugs with a good noise cancelling headset. This seems to be a good balance which cancels a lot of low frequency and allows enough high frequency through that I can hear the human voice pretty good. At this point I’m fine but wondering if wearing a hearing aid might somehow work better. There probably aren’t too many guys worried about it but I’m sure there are some and maybe a few that are well advanced in the hearing loss department that may be able to answer the question. My background is in engineering and acoustics. my entire career depends on having good ears. my a20s are perfectly acceptable to me with noise cancelling active. My ASAs are acceptable for passive isolation. I wouldn’t want anything in my ears that has an impact on frequency range inside the headset or outside. If something seems odd you can turn off cancelling and listen for a minute or two to help troubleshoot. Unless you don’t have an exhaust, the sound level inside your airplane should not be enough to cause damage at normal operating time intervals. noise levels with any modern headset, passive or active, should be fine. Edited March 11, 2020 by chriscalandro 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry 5TJ Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 I have a life-long hearing loss and a SODA for 3rd and 2nd class FAA medical stating that I must use “hearing amplification” devices. I use ANR headsets but remove my hearing aids. The headset is the amplification device. The Zulu headset app permits me to boost high frequency response of the headset to conform to my hearing loss. So, no, I don’t wear my hearing aids under the headset. I use the ANR headset as a hearing aid plus noise suppression system. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonMuncy Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 I wear hearing aids, although I can hear fairly well without them. The first time I flew with them, I did not like the sound at all. I just took them out and fly without them. I use DCs with Headsets, Inc. modules installed. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReconMax Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 I wear the Starkey MUSE I2400 CIC under my ANR Zulu headset. I can't say I've never missed something said over the radio but it doesn't seem excessive or anything. I've tried taking them out but eventually decided to just leave them in. My hearing aids know exactly what frequencies I'm deficient with and compensate for that. So, it seems reasonable to let my hearing aids do their job and my headset do it's job. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carusoam Posted March 12, 2020 Report Share Posted March 12, 2020 Nels, There are plenty of us worried about it as the sun is continuously setting on our flying careers.... some of us may have a few decades to go still... The halo headset uses a technology similar to hearing aids... and sound monitors for musicians... It does a great job of delivering clear adjustable sound to your ears and does a good job of blocking out the noise passively... There is a website for that if interested... The owner is an MSer... Best regards, -a- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carusoam Posted March 12, 2020 Report Share Posted March 12, 2020 Great (non-commercial) response, Phil! Allow me...? http://www.quiettechnologies.com Best regards, -a- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob_Belville Posted March 12, 2020 Report Share Posted March 12, 2020 I got hearing aids a couple of years ago at age 75. I usually leave them on under the David Clark ANRs. (ONE-X and PRO-X.) (FWIW, my hearing loss is mostly the higher pitch range and I pass a class III w/o the aids) But understanding ATC is fine with the DCs whether of not I have the hearing aids in. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlunseth Posted March 12, 2020 Report Share Posted March 12, 2020 I tried hearing aids for awhile, very expensive high tech ones at the time. I have high frequency hearing loss, not general loss. All they did was to boost the volume of all the high frequency sounds, which made for a terrible mish mash of sound. I got rid of them a long time ago. I have Bose A20's. The noise cancelling is excellent and I miss virtually nothing in the cockpit. The times I miss something is when there is a lot of radio traffic, maybe I am listening to two radios at once, which happens to all of us. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whiskytango Posted March 13, 2020 Report Share Posted March 13, 2020 I recently got hearing aids and have been using them in flight with my Bose A-20 headset. I probably would not wear them in flight except that I use a timer attached to the control wheel as a reminder to switch fuel tanks every 30 minutes. The timer gives a high pitched tone when it goes off, and frequently I couldn't hear it. I can hear it very well with the hearing aids, so for that reason alone I will wear them with the A-20 headset. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nels Posted March 13, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2020 Thanks for all the excellent input. I now feel reassured that my present method is pretty good and I feel more comfortable as to why. At this time I’m wearing a noise cancelling headset with soft foam earplugs in my ear. I have to turn the volume up to hear well but it seems to work. I guess the low frequency is cancelled but the high frequency isn’t and is high enough to discern voice pretty well. If that makes any sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlunseth Posted March 14, 2020 Report Share Posted March 14, 2020 I am not a fan of taking supplements to fix things, like echinacea for a cold (just an excuse to dig up and kill off endangered prairie plants)However, some years ago I read that the Marine Corp. was testing N-acetyl cysteine, which is a potent anti-oxidant, for protection against loss of hearing, for example, during live fire. I have taken it at a moderate dose for quite a few years. It has no side effects that I am aware of. My hearing has improved despite advancing age. Now, a major contributor to my hearing loss was sodium naproxen (Alleve) in heavy prescription doses. It is ototoxic, particularly in high frequency ranges. So is any NSAID such as ibuprofen. I was able to stop the naproxen years ago. So whether it was removing the naproxen or taking the NAC I can’t say, I just know my hearing is somewhat better. It is like any supplement that actually works (most just don’t), you have to take it regularly over a period of time for their to be an effect, and if nothing is happening for you then stop. Here is the Marine Corp study: https://leader.pubs.asha.org/doi/10.1044/leader.FTR2.10082005.5 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nels Posted March 15, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2020 3 hours ago, jlunseth said: I am not a fan of taking supplements to fix things, like echinacea for a cold (just an excuse to dig up and kill off endangered prairie plants)However, some years ago I read that the Marine Corp. was testing N-acetyl cysteine, which is a potent anti-oxidant, for protection against loss of hearing, for example, during live fire. I have taken it at a moderate dose for quite a few years. It has no side effects that I am aware of. My hearing has improved despite advancing age. Now, a major contributor to my hearing loss was sodium naproxen (Alleve) in heavy prescription doses. It is ototoxic, particularly in high frequency ranges. So is any NSAID such as ibuprofen. I was able to stop the naproxen years ago. So whether it was removing the naproxen or taking the NAC I can’t say, I just know my hearing is somewhat better. It is like any supplement that actually works (most just don’t), you have to take it regularly over a period of time for their to be an effect, and if nothing is happening for you then stop. Here is the Marine Corp study: https://leader.pubs.asha.org/doi/10.1044/leader.FTR2.10082005.5 Next to sight, hearing is one sense I’d like to retain at any cost, even if I have to give up flying. I’ve lost too much hearing already. I just ordered a bottle so I’ll try it for awhile and see what happens. Thanks for the tip! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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