Hearing aid feedback — that high-pitched whistle or squeal — happens when amplified sound escapes from your ear canal and gets picked up by the hearing aid microphone, creating a loop that re-amplifies itself. The cause is almost always one of five things: poor fit, earwax buildup, a worn wax guard, an external object near the mic, or a programming … Read More

A standard hearing test (pure-tone audiogram) measures the softest sounds you can detect — it tells your audiologist how loud things need to be for you to hear them. A speech-in-noise test like the QuickSIN measures something entirely different: how well you understand speech when background noise is present — the single most common real-world hearing complaint, and one the … Read More

At California Hearing Center, we’ve been watching Auracast develop for several years — and the pace of real-world adoption is now moving fast enough that it’s become a meaningful part of our fitting conversations. If you’ve never heard the term, you’re not alone. Auracast is the biggest shift in how hearing aids connect to the world since Bluetooth was introduced … Read More

A word recognition score (WRS) measures the percentage of single-syllable words you can correctly repeat when speech is made clearly audible — separate from how loud sounds need to be. A score of 90–100% is considered normal; scores below 50% indicate severe difficulty understanding speech even with amplification. 🔑 Key Takeaway Your WRS is arguably the most important number on … Read More

At California Hearing Center, patients ask us regularly whether their phone will work with their hearing aids — and the honest answer has always been “it depends.” That’s changing. In October 2024, the FCC adopted new rules requiring every smartphone sold in the United States to be hearing aid compatible, ending years of fragmented, manufacturer-specific standards. Here’s what “hearing aid … Read More

At California Hearing Center, we believe every patient should walk into a hearing aid purchase knowing exactly what their rights are — not find out after the fact. California has some of the strongest hearing aid consumer protections in the country, and most people who buy hearing aids never read the fine print that describes them. This guide translates the … Read More

At California Hearing Center, Real Ear Measurement is one of the first things we talk about with every new hearing aid patient — and one of the most misunderstood. If you’ve ever wondered why two people with the same hearing test results can have completely different experiences with the same hearing aid model, Real Ear Measurement is a big part … Read More

At California Hearing Center, one of the most candid conversations we have with patients involves a straightforward question: is it worth fixing your current hearing aids, or is it time to move on? There’s no universal answer — the right call depends on the age of your devices, how often they’ve needed repair, whether your hearing has changed, and what … Read More

At California Hearing Center, we see it regularly: hearing aids that sounded great at the fitting but have quietly degraded over months of daily wear — not because anything broke, but because they were never cleaned. Earwax, moisture, and debris are the leading causes of preventable hearing aid repairs and early device failure. A simple, consistent maintenance routine — paired … Read More

At California Hearing Center, one of the most common questions we hear from new patients is: “How long before this feels normal?” It’s a fair question. Getting fitted with hearing aids is a significant step — and it’s completely natural to wonder how much patience the journey requires. The short answer is that most people feel meaningfully comfortable within a … Read More