What is an FM System? How Does It Work?

Off and on I talk about my FM system, a Phonak Zoomlink. It has the microphone and settings (surround sound or omni-sound, partial focus, and very focused (directly aimed at the speaker’s voice or object I want to listen to). This new receiver is custom-made for the Cochlear Freedom. It really puts the sound of the speaker, who may be thirty feet away, directly in my ear, as though as if I am standing right next to him/her. It is an assistive listening device (ALD).

Because I use an FM system, I know how it works and forget that some people don’t have a clue to what I am talking about, even those who have hearing loss and never used it.

Let’s get “clueful,” shall we?

(Source:http://www.phonak.com/consumer/products/fm/applications/whatisfmsystem.htm )

An FM system is a wireless system that transmits sound directly from source to ear. It consists of an FM microphone and one or two FM receivers. (This just means some people just use one receiver for one or two-one for each hearing aid/cochlear implant processor.)

The FM microphone is actually a microphone connected to, or inside, a radio transmitter. The microphone picks up the desired signal, which is often the voice of a person that you want to listen to. The transmitter then sends it via radio waves directly to the FM receiver. The FM receiver, in turn, is connected to the hearing instrument. The sound is delivered to the hearing instrument, the hearing instrument applies the right amplification and the voice can be heard as if the talker was speaking from a very short distance.

There are also Phonak FM receivers for cochlear implants and bone-anchored hearing aids. However, the basic principle remains the same.

In a previous post (Squeezed In), I talked about how I now have a new receiver for my FM transmitter(Phonak Zoomlink) because I only had one receiver for the hearind aid ear; I didn't have one for the new processor for the cochlear implant.

Here are some older posts I made about the receiver for my hearing aids:

My, What Big Ears You Have

The Boot

I hope this post gives you a much clearer understanding of how FM systems work.

Squeezed In

I finally got a new Mircolink receiver for the cochlear implant (CI). I mentioned to the vocational rehab counselor that I would need to have a new receiver because the old one with the HA (hearing aid) would not be made to fit the CI. Every receiver is made for a certain HA or CI. This receiver will be used for my wireless Phonak Zoomlink (pictured below). This is my FM system.

At the last appointment I had (the 3-month mapping) the audi said that the receiver still had to be cleared through the system. In other words, paperwork was slow and some compliance guidelines had to be followed.

She emailed me lastweek and said that the receiver was ready and that I could wait till the 6-month mapping (in February) or I could come in earlier. I said that I wouldn’t mind waiting for the February appointment.

Then she emailed back. DVR had budget cuts and rules about purchasing devices and having them (the devices, such as HAs, FM systems, and any other item that would help a DVR client in the workplace or at home) be sent to the client. In my case, I had to come in and have the receiver be fitted to my CI by the end of the year. I might miss my chance of having the receiver or wait until I am approved for one all over again. So, I was given a list of appointment times that were open for the month of December.

I was able to select the time and day of the appointment without any problem, hence the title for this blog post, Squeezed In.

Since I had a problem with the music program when using the personal audio cable (for use with MP3 players, CD players, etc), I thought I would get that looked at, too.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I had no problem with the TV/HIFI cable. I was getting sound through the cable. It had a built-in volume switch on the cable. I was able to get sound at volume 3. It had volume control switch numbered from 1-5. I wondered if I had a bad cable for the MP3 player and had that replaced. Still nothing. The audi thought maybe the volume wasn’t loud enough on the music program. She adjusted it significantly and I still wasn’t getting any sound. Then she pressed the button on my CI to the “EA” (external assessory). Whaddaya know? That worked. Hubby was playing around with the volume on the MP3 player which was still connected to my CI. Whoa!! It was loud!! I jerked up in surprise. LOL. Good. Now it works.

Then the FM receiver. I saw that it can only be connected to the disposable battery cage. I can only use disposable batteries with the FM. I cannot use the rechargeables. Funny thing: That was my biggest deciding factor to getting the Cochlear Freedom vs. Advanced Bionics or MedEl. (I am not knocking AB or MedEl; I know there are very many happy AB and MedEl customers.) Why is that “funny”? Because once I came home with the CI after activation and once I had the rechargeable batteries recharged, I didn’t use the disposable batteries again. I liked using the rechargeables. But the dischargeable batteries will come in handy as a back-up (for short trips and stuff so I wouldn’t have to bring along the recharger).

Anyway, once the receiver was set, the audi wanted to test it. She told me to turn off my HA in the other ear. She was going to step into the hallway and ask me two questions.

I heard her very clearly. “What color is the shirt you are wearing?” and “What did you eat for breakfast?”

When she walked in, I was already digging through my jacket and zipper-front sweatshirt to see what color my shirt was (LOL, I forgot what I was wearing!!) and told her it was white and that I had two pieces of toast.

She was impressed and glad that the FM system was working so well for me. Heck, even I was surprised. LOL. It was a lot better than with just one working ear with the hearing aid. I guess it was the degree of hearing loss I had, too. Instead of working with just half an ear, I am working with one and a half ears.

I still think of myself as deaf, though. I don't think I'll ever really have "normal" hearing. It's as close to "normal" as I can get. I'm happy with that.

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CI moments? Hmmm.

When I was in the bathroom, I could hear Onyx whining through the closed door.

When Hubby comes in the house, I could hear the jingle of his keys as he plops them on the kitchen counter when I am in the living room, my back to the kitchen.

Someone brought up shopping carts. Last weekend, I had a sort of a marathon Christmas shopping spree. I was at Wal-Mart and I had a noisy cart. It felt like something was broken and I kept looking at the wheels. It was disturbing and not at all pleasant-sounding.

Last night, Angel needed to memorize her memory work. (For the last few weeks, it consisted of all the recitations and songs that she will say and sing with her group for the Christmas service.) She panicked when she saw how big the paragraph she had to memorize. She whined that she "can't do it" and I told her to just work on one sentence at a time (just like she had to do with all her other memory work.) We got through the whole paragraph in 15 minutes. By that time, even I memorized it so that I could correct her if she missed a phrase or something. Then I told her to sleep on it and this morning I recited the paragraph to myself and thought that she shouldn't have any problems, either. She recited it with a beaming smile because she remembered it. :)

And, how was YOUR week?

HUGS

Another FM System Update :)

We walked to church today for the Thursday evening services. The pastor was in early. (Sometimes I don't see him till the service starts, then it's too late.) I have been trying to get in church earlier so I could talk to him about my Zoomlink (FM system transmitter-it's the second one in the link provided). I talked to him about it last June. Finally. I always tried to just point the Zoomlink at the paster, but it didn't work so well. This time I was able to explain it to him. The church has a different FM system in place, and it didn't interfere with the frequency the Zoomlink was on. I was able to get more of what the pastor was saying than I ever had before. I would say I got about 25% more out of the sermon and managed to follow along with the hymns. I always got lost and had to wait for the "beginning" sound when a new hymn verse was started, only to get lost by the time I get to the third line. I don't understnad what each muscial note means so I don't know if a song is slower or not. I may read the song faster than I need to. It's been a long time since I was able to follow a song in the litergy ("O Lord, Our Lord"). I always got lost with that one. All in all, with the church being a quiet setting (the best listening environment), I was pretty satisfied with the Zoomlink's capabilities. :)

There were times when he turned around, his back to the audience, I would get a lot of static. I guess that is only because the frequency waves were cut off by his body-if he faced the crowd, there's nothing blocking the connection.

I am no longer scared of taking the boots (audio shoe) off the hearing aid (HA). Another friend who has a Phonak hearing aid (I have Oticon Sumo DM) said her boots always broke. It's not cheap to replace the boots. But the Phonak boots are different (longer and/or smaller) than the audio shoes I have for my HAs.

I can't always wear the HAs with the boots (my ears get sore-I mean the auricle, not from the noise.) and receiver (MicroMLxS) on- it adds more bulk from the additional weight. It really doen't weigh that much more than my HA, but it just gets sore. To compare different boots for different HAs, click here (if you are interested) for video demonstrations for how to put the boots on. Some do look like they may break easier if you aren't careful.

Okay, I have been yakking long enough. :) Night-night.

My, What Big Ears You Have

The better to hear you with, my dear....

Oticon Sumo DM

My ears got longer-about a good inch longer.

Sometimes I call my hearing aids “ears” because without them, my real ears are just there for “decoration.” Of course, the hearing aid itself could be called “decoration” but I digress.

I had an appointment with the audie (audiologist) about my new FM system-my newest toy(compliments of vocational rehabilitiation).

An FM system is an ALD (assistive listening device).

It's my new toy.

I had all kinds of questions about this new gadget.

Because the audie I was seeing will be on maternity leave soon, I was introduced to another audie, who had more experience with FM systems in the schools for children who are deaf/hard-of-hearing. I was also going to be working with her until the other audie comes back from maternity leave.

MicroMLxS (Receiver)

Why did my “ears” grow? Well, I got a boot (or shoe) placed on each end of the hearing aid and a receiver plugged into the end of that boot. The receiver is wireless (a bonus for me-I used an FM system from the campus and it had wires. It’s such a pain. It reminded me of my old hearing aids-see previous post.)

Zoomlink (Transmitter)

Then I had a transmitter (it shows the front and back of the Zoomlink) that I can either point it at the speaker or have the speaker wear it around the neck. It has three settings: omni (sounds in all directions), zoom (zeros in on what’s in front of it, and blocks out some background noise, and superzoom (blocks out a lot of background noise while focusing on what’s directly in front of it).

I can put it on the dinner table (and pray for no spills), point it at the TV or place it next to the speakers, point it at the pastor/teacher or have him wear the transmitter around his neck, or I could just have my husband wear it around the house, too.

I have to wear my hearing aid in the T-coil mode for this to work with the FM system. As long as the FM system is on, I can hear things, but if I had either of the zoom modes on, I won’t hear what’s around me, but I could switch my hearing aid to the microphone switch to listen/talk with an impatient child or something that needed my immediate attention and switch it off.

I couldn't find a link to show you the boots that go between the end of the hearing aid and the receiver. The boot slides down the back of my hearing aid's battery door. Then the receiver is tacked to the end of that.

Cool. I am off to do some more sound-testing.

Hope my hearing aid doesn’t up and start walking now that it’s got it’s boots…