I have an ongoing problem with my new Rexton Bicore R Li hearing aids bought at Costco. When there is a sudden sound, the volume of mid-to-high frequencies drop and then slowly return over a second or so. This can be caused by a spoon clinking on a dish, the chopping of an onion, placing a cereal box on the counter, my own voice when I raise it to speak to someone across the room. Essentially, almost anything with a sudden sound - not necessarily loud. It is particularly noticeable when music is playing in the background - the volume of mid-to-high frequencies will go up and down with other sounds I make while preparing dinner, say. It does not depend on the settings through the app on my phone (i.e. it happens for automatic, three different music settings, a noise setting etc.).
I have gone back to have the hearing aids refitted several times over several months, I have had the pair replaced with a pair of new ones with different serial numbers and slightly updated firmware (20.19.818.2 to 20.19.852.2). The same problem occurs. I can’t imagine that this is normal. I have worn Trax 42’s for over 8 years.
Some history to help diagnose the problem, which I believe must be a software issue.
My Costco hearing instrument specialist (HIS) is one I’ve worked with for over 8 years, and she seems keen to do whatever she can to improve the fit.
in the summer, I had a new hearing test and updated the fitting on my Trax 42’s.
in the fall I decided to switch out my Trax 42’s as one was opening, and a new outer shell could not be found
I originally got the BiCore R312’s and went through some adjustments - different domes and settings - over 3 or so visits and was fairly happy with the fit and very happy with the bluetooth. There was no sudden sound artifact like the one I described above.
I decided to exchange the R 312’s for the R Li’s as the use of bluetooth made the battery changing of the R 312’s very irregular.
The R Li’s were fit on Dec 29 and immediately I noticed the drop in volume with the sudden sound artifact.
I went back on Jan 2 to get an adjustment and my Costco HIS decided to just put the settings image from the last fitting of my R 312’s onto my R Li’s. This sounded very different from my R 312s when I last had them. The R Li’s with apparently the same settings as the R 312’s seemed much more muted. In any event, the sudden sound artifact was still present.
on Jan 11 the HIS checked what I was hearing with the R 312 settings and said that it did not look right. She said it was possibly some issue with a configuration difference on the R Li’s with what was on the R 312’s. She decided to do another fitting with a more linear compression algorithm to see if that did anything to the artifact. It did not. The fit was not good either - echoey.
on Feb 5 the audiologist tried another fitting but the sudden sound problem remained
on Feb 8 the audiologist talked with a Rep on my visit, and they decided that a good test would be to put the image from my trax 42 fitting on the BiCore R Li’s to help eliminate any settings issue causing the sudden sound problem. The sudden sound artifact remained.
On a Feb 11 visit, my HIS decided that it must be a hardware problem and put in for a swap for a new pair. She said once they arrived she would put the Trax 42 image on them for me and I could just pick them up to test.
on Feb 27 I picked the new BiCore R Li’s and there was still the same sudden sound problem as I mentioned at the beginning.
I really like the R Li hearing aids. Aside from the very irritating sudden sound problem, they are a big improvement over the Trax 42’s. To me, it must now be a firmware issue or a settings issue. I have the latest firmware, and it is different on this new set, so I am thinking that it must be a settings issue of some sort. It is not clear to me that just putting a settings image from a previous fitting wipes out all the settings. For example, with apparently the same settings, the R Li’s sounded much more muted than the R 312’s, which were quite harsh. Perhaps there are hardware differences between the Li’s and 312’s?
If anyone has any ideas or suggestions as to what I could get my HIS to try at my next visit, I would be very grateful.
I have no idea what the cause of your problem is or how to fix it, but I do have some information which may be helpful to you.
Rexton Bi-Core has been replaced with a new generation called the Rexton Reach. Hopefully the sudden noise problem has been eliminated in the new generation. It was introduced in Europe last month. When I corresponded with WSA, Rexton’s parent company a few weeks ago, I was told that the new Reach is expected in the United States “in mid March”. Since Costco is the only outlet selling Rextons in the US with a few exceptions, I expect that the Reach will be in Costco some time later this month.
My suggestion is that you meet with your HIS at Costco and discuss a return of your Bi-Cores for a replacement with a pair of the Reach. When I talk to the staff at Costco, they always tell me that they don’t know about new products until a day or two before they’re in the store. So, your HIS will probably not know anything about this if you talk to them today.
You can find information about the reach on Rexton’s global website:
I have them for like 3 or 4 months and I love it, They are way better than the previous ones, I hope the problem will be solved with HIS resetting them
Thanks very much for the heads-up on the updated version. I am in Canada and so may not get it quite as quickly as in the US. I have until late June till I can return the BiCores. If nothing can be done, I will just return them and muddle along with my Trax 42s until the Reach is available then give them a try.
Thanks @Danuta. I assume you have the BiCore R Li’s. Just curious, if you turn on the faucet in your kitchen and just drop a spoon on the counter, do you notice an immediate drop in volume that recovers in about a second or so? I find it noticeable in all modes, but very noticeable in automatic with direction changed to 360 degrees in the app on my phone. What is the firmware on your HAs?
It’s a programming issue, the most likely one being the “SoundSmoothing” as Signia call it (Rexton call it plan old noise reduction) have them turn it off to confirm, although even with it turned off, it’s still working in a very limited way in the background, you shouldn’t notice it at all tho.
Thanks very much @tenkan! I assume that the software used by Costco to do the fitting will have the same options in your images?
Yes, I will carefully consider the upgrade to the Reach before my 6 months expires. I have an appointment on Mar 21 and will report back afterwards. I talked with my HIS over the phone yesterday, and she is eager to work with me to understand if it is something that she is causing by the usual settings she uses.
yes , and I love it, I usually use first program , and it seamlessly lovers the noises. Reacts pretty fast
I am in Canada too , it is bi-core, I keep buying rexton for few years already , every 36 months, So far they seem the best . I used once the second on but the sound (speech) was tiny, I did not like it
I have a moderate hearing loss but can not go anywhere without them,
My audiologist in Costco is pretty good, She fitted for me already 4th pair
Thanks @Danuta. I find the automatic setting to also provide very seamless lowering of background noise. However, what I have identified is something very different, I think. If you have had 4 pairs of HAs you have enough experience to identify the sort of problem I have identified. It sounds like you do not have the problem I have.
Could you tell me the firmware version of your hearing aids? Just go to the Rexton app on your phone, under the menu select “settings” then select “Versions”. It will be beside “Firmware version”.
As I mentioned in the description, I had the BiCore R 312’s a couple of months ago and these did not have this problem. I didn’t think about looking at the firmware number before exchanging them for the rechargeable R Li versions. My HIS suggested that, while she could not select an old firmware to see if this solved the problem, she might be able to send them back and request a downgrade to an earlier firmware. If you are not having the issue, then I might request your firmware version. Thanks
Sorry can not help with that, My audio set it up, I found the way to set it up to my liking, Just tear a paper if is very sharp she knows what to do, I do not use my phone with the HA,
