I have been reading some articles about cognition and hearing. The hearing world has apparently just discovered the connection. I could refer to some 1980’s papers on clinical models that suggest this isn’t a recent discovery. Anyone who doubts should read some of the work of Stephens and Goldstein. So why the recent resurgence in interest? Listening depends on a mixture of hearing (incoming sound that must be processed) and “top down” cognitive skills utilizing the information. Most hearing aids used compression that can be slow or fast acting, or compress the frequency range, or both, and it turns out that knowing more about cognitive processes helps us have better insights into which of the various types of compression might work best. Or you could just not use it at all.

One of my all time favourite books is:
Reading, How to: A People’s Guide to Alternatives to Learning and Testing, Bantam Books, 1978, by the extraordinary educator and writer Herbert Kohl.
In this text, Kohl describes that what is important is finding the right practical solution, not the right battery of tests, and that answers may sometimes be simple. Kohl was undoubtedly a gifted educator, and a less gifted educator may need more processes and props. I think this is the same with clinicians in audiology. A really good clinical audiologist will have excellent powers of observation, be a very good listener, and understand the technology they are offering you.

But you may just want to get technology that doesn’t compress sound in the first place, and hasn’t been set up based on listening to beeps in a padded room. Check out hearing aids that are a bit different at Blamey Saunders hears and set them yourself up so that they sound like you want.