Open Forum

Hey folks,

We have some portable speakers for our Docents to wear around their neck with a headset microphone. Some have reported that the speakers make their hearing aids squeak or react with their hearing aids in some other way, so now I'm looking into new speakers. What does your museum use? Do you know of a "hearing aid-compatible" speaker?

Thanks!​

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Sean Mobley
Docent Services Specialist
Museum of Flight
Seattle WA
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------Original Message------

Hey folks,

We have some portable speakers for our Docents to wear around their neck with a headset microphone. Some have reported that the speakers make their hearing aids squeak or react with their hearing aids in some other way, so now I'm looking into new speakers. What does your museum use? Do you know of a "hearing aid-compatible" speaker?

Thanks!​

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Sean Mobley
Docent Services Specialist
Museum of Flight
Seattle WA
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Do other hearing aid users who are not wearing the speaker also complain of this issue, or does it only affect the person wearing the speaker?  Perhaps the problem might be the proximity of the speaker to the hearing aids rather than the speaker itself?  Placing the speaker lower on the body and further from the ears (wearing it like a Pignose guitar amplifier) might be worth trying. 

      MH

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Michael Holland
Principal/Owner
Michael Holland Productions

Redmond, WA USA
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​If I understand this right, the feedback is to the docent's hearing aids?  Not the visitors?  We've had good luck with the ChatterVox system, which has the speaker belted around the waist rather than hung around the neck.  We use it most for large groups and outdoor hikes with school groups, and our interpreters with hearing aids have never expressed any problem with feedback. So, maybe proximity is at least part of problem as noted in a previous comment.

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Andrea deTarnowsky, Historic Site Manager
T.C. Steele State Historic Site
Indiana State Museum & Historic Sites system
Nashville IN
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Hello 

The issue is due to the proximity of the speakers in the hearing aides and the external speaking you are using for sound enhancement causing the feedback sound.  Having worked with audio tours for nearly 20 years I am well aware of that high pitched noise.  I have usually seen it with external headphones used with mobile audio tour or group tour systems.  For them the solution is fairly easy and the user just takes out their hearing aide and increases the volume of the headphone to assist with their hearing loss.  Unfortunately I don't this this will work for your issue, but it may be worth a try.  I would also try lowering the speaker volume.

Newer speakers that are in things that you hold to your ear like phones may have hearing aide compatibility built in  but I personally haven't seen something for a larger group type speaker because the distance is not normally an issue.  My company ListenUp Audio has a GroupTour/Audio tour hybrid solution called Omniguide https://www.listenupaudio.com/services/technology/omniguide/  that does have the HAC (hearing aide compatible) speakers built in and I am happy to discuss this with you if you feel it is a good solution to your tour program.

Happy to help in anyway I can.

Best,

Jared

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Jared Crellin
Account Director
ListenUp Audio
Atlanta GA
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