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Hearing Aids in Edinburgh Fall Into Two Categories

The most important part of any hearing instrument is the technology inside. The more sophisticated the technology the more precise and realistic the listening experience.

Until now, the majority of hearing instruments that were available used either analogue or digital technology to process sound. Nano technology has led to the very latest advances in hearing instrument technology with the introduction of state-of-the-art hearing instruments with nanotechnology.

Everyone’s hearing difficulties are individual and different. The choice of hearing instruments available in particular through private hearing care professionals, is comprehensive enough the hearing healthcare needs of everyone. Hearing aids work on the principle of amplifying external sounds and delivering them to the ear so they can be transferred to the brain. However, not all hearing aids are the same and they differ enormously in their technology and features.

The two basic categories of hearing instruments are analogue and digital. A simple way to understand the qualities of these different technologies is to compare them with personal music players. Analogue hearing instruments are from the same era  as cassette tape players and old radios.

Digital instruments are from today’s generation of CDs and MP3 players. Digital technology allows hearing aids to be delivered with refined individual adjustments and programming that can be customised to individual hearing losses. Because they are in essence a computer dedicated to sound they can also automatically respond to changing sound conditions. 

Analogue Hearing Instruments

This is the oldest, simplest and least expensive hearing instrument technology available. Analogue hearing instruments amplify sounds, both speech and noise. Quiet sounds are amplified until they are loud enough to be heard, but loud sounds that are already loud are given less amplification, so you’re protected against uncomfortably loud sound levels.

Many of the advanced features which are offered in digital instruments are not available in analogue instruments. Most analogue hearing aid technology has been phased out and they are exceedingly hard to acquire. However, some manufacturers still provide them on back order. 

Digital Hearing Instruments

With the advent of digital sound quality, people with hearing loss were able to experience significantly better sound quality. Digital hearing aids are in essence mini computers. They allow sound to be amplified at the specific frequencies where the hearing loss has occurred. This enables us to customise the hearing instrument to your unique needs, resulting in a more realistic and natural hearing experience.

Modern digital hearing instruments are also available with wireless technology. These instruments are capable of steaming sound from your TV, radio, MP3 player, computer and even your mobile phone directly to your hearing instrument. Most are also self learning and they gradually and automatically learn your volume control preferences. 

Nanotechnology

With the advent of nanotechnology hearing aids have become smaller and more powerful. Manufacturers are able to pack more processing power and sound output into increasingly smaller hearing aids. These advances aligned with advances in computer chip power and battery power are allowing us to deliver a more natural and normal sense of hearing to people with hearing loss for the first time. You can take a look at the top hearing aid manufacturers in the world here.

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