Difference between Cochlear contour and Freedom implants

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Vivie

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If there are any differences..

the only thing that I know is that Freedom implant is newer...
 
Both made by a crooked company that give kickbacks to the CI surgeons and centers.

Check out the new Opus2 at MedEl with the nifty remote..

smile
 
SouthFella - You go!

With all the chatter (elsewhere) about the reliability of AB, no one is talking about how unethical Cochlear America has been. One can learn more by checking wikipedia website.

On a serious note: the newer model gives better speech comprehension. Check out the studies.
 
I'm happy with Cochlear... My doctor isn't a crook. I couldn't pay for my CI surgery or my post op care and visits. He gave me the surgery anyway while my parents gave him the money bit by bit.
Not all doctors are crooks.
 
Implanted with Cochlear end of... My surgeon isn't crook, he goes ahead with what implant I want. Had very sucessful operation 2 days ago.
 
I asked only what was the difference between the two implants , not to badmouth Cochlear , although I tend to agree sometimes , but that was completely off topic..

Here in Greece I chose this brand ( I had the choice between med el and cochlear) , b/c my doctor was more experienced with cochlear, and also most of my friends are pleased with Cochlear..and insurance covers more easily Cochlear..
 
I hear that the Freedom improves your "CI" hearing 15% more than the Contour. I have not tried it myself yet.
 
I have a Cochlear Freedom and my surgeon definitely isn't crooked either. In fact everything I have was paid for by Cochlear as I was part of the clinical trials. I have no complaints.
 
Everytime SouthFella talks about CI, he always has to plug in about Mel El and the niffy remote. Personally I don't care. What I care is that I can hear better. So you can. So they can, so everyone (ALMOST everyone) can, regardless of what brand of CI they have.

This is not a brand war between the three companies.

Yes - the Freedom implant has some sort of extra "thing" that bring the comprehension of speech slightly better. I don't know anyone who has the Contour in one ear and the Freedom in the other. I can't tell the difference as I have Freedom implants in both ears.
 
As someone who has the Nucleus Contour Advance in my left ear and the Freedom in my right ear, I feel as though I can make some comments regarding the differences between the two.

Since my second CI activation, my left CI (Nucleus Contour Advance) has always sounded "bassier" than my right (Freedom) CI.

However, I recently went for a mapping and told my audi about this and she increased the high frequencies in my left CI. Now when comparing the sound of each, they sound very similar. I've also noticed that I don't struggle to understand speech with my left CI the way I used to. Understanding speech in background noise has also become much much easier since receiving this new map.

I used to think that the difference in technology was what accounted for my lower speech discrimination scores with my left CI as opposed to my right, but I now know that it was the result of a different map that offered a decrease in the high frequencies.
 
Well keep in mind some surgeons get kickbacks from the company they insert into the patient . And it is good you all have a choice . Just make a wide choice and be aware of the pros and cons of all of the choices. I did my homework and research and praying when I choose what went in my head.

LadySekhmet yep I will keep plugging along, Will be getting the Opus2 and the nifty remote within the next few weeks. I will keep you posted .

Smile
 
LOL Southfella! Wait til you have kids and your nifty remote will disappear behind the sofa with the beheaded Barbie doll or get taken apart. Or if you are someone like me, you'll lose it on day 5 . I have enough trouble keeping track of my car keys :giggle:
My last lot of hearing aids before CI came with a remote option. I said "no thanks" because I did not want other bits and pieces to worry about. I can see how it might work if you are organised and male, though.

I'm fine with all the plugging away and find it interesting learning about other CIs. It's the bashing of other brands that I don't like. It's immature and it gives the impression to me that you might have an external need to feel better about your choice.
 
I've worked with several CI specialists recently. They all say that the cord on the Freedom comes off very easily, which is a pain when using it with small children. However, the reception of the Freedom is really good and reaches from all over the environment. The Freedom is supposed to be exceptionally good with speech reception, according to the specialists I've met. I wonder if any of you agree with these statements.
 
Are you talking about the bodyworn version of the Freedom, Deafbajagal? I wasn't sure what you meant by the "cord".
 
R2D2 said:
Are you talking about the bodyworn version of the Freedom, Deafbajagal? I wasn't sure what you meant by the "cord".
Click to expand...

Yep. My students are preschoolers so the bodyworn style is what they're using now. So they usually are using the longer cords because their ears are not stablized just yet...(which was interesting to learn that the size of the cords make a difference)...once the ears stablizes, then they can have the "short cords." Isn't that just interesting?

But the cord on the Freedom - it is attached kind of the other other way around...facing outward, not inward...so it makes it easy for it to detach from the unit with minimal movement. It's been a pain trying to keep it attached. It is really hard to explain, lol.
 
Wow, I have absolutely no idea about ear stabilisation and the length of cords. Why does the ear have to be stabilised? Post surgery or learning to hear? I went straight to the BTE, although I did have the bodyworn as part of my package but have just never used it. I always thought that kids mostly wear bodyworns as the BTE is too big and heavy for their ears.

Maybe Cloggy can offer some comments. His daughter has two bodyworns I believe and Lotte has a pouch worn on the back facing way from her.
 
LOL my poor ear look destabilzed with the heavy Cochlear and Advanced Bionics BTE models. My wifey tried not to laugh when I told the audie I felt like Dumbo with his big floppy ears. I think it was Cochlear that had the pins that break off easily too. One friend that wear Cochlear said they didnt like the sound of the Freedom so they went back to the Contour with the programing modified by the company.
 
SouthFella said:
LOL my poor ear look destabilzed with the heavy Cochlear and Advanced Bionics BTE models. My wifey tried not to laugh when I told the audie I felt like Dumbo with his big floppy ears. I think it was Cochlear that had the pins that break off easily too. One friend that wear Cochlear said they didnt like the sound of the Freedom so they went back to the Contour with the programing modified by the company.
Click to expand...

What pins?
 
SouthFella said:
LOL my poor ear look destabilzed with the heavy Cochlear and Advanced Bionics BTE models. My wifey tried not to laugh when I told the audie I felt like Dumbo with his big floppy ears. I think it was Cochlear that had the pins that break off easily too. One friend that wear Cochlear said they didnt like the sound of the Freedom so they went back to the Contour with the programing modified by the company.[/QUOTE

You can't go back to "Contour" unless if he got reimplanted with an older model. Did you mean 3G the external BTE?

Some people prefer the 3G, but I'll be surprised though...Freedom is much better from many sources.
Click to expand...
 
LadySekhmet said:
SouthFella said:
LOL my poor ear look destabilzed with the heavy Cochlear and Advanced Bionics BTE models. My wifey tried not to laugh when I told the audie I felt like Dumbo with his big floppy ears. I think it was Cochlear that had the pins that break off easily too. One friend that wear Cochlear said they didnt like the sound of the Freedom so they went back to the Contour with the programing modified by the company.
Click to expand...

You can't go back to "Contour" unless if he got reimplanted with an older model. Did you mean 3G the external BTE?

Some people prefer the 3G, but I'll be surprised though...Freedom is much better from many sources.
Click to expand...

I've heard of a few people preferring the 3G Espirit on some of my Cochlear groups. But usually, this wasn't because it was a "better" sound quality but because they found it very difficult to cope with the extra sensitivity of the Freedom to sounds. I guess when you are used to a certain level of hearing, having a lot of extra detail can be overwhelming and tiring.

However, the majority of former 3G users who have transitioned to the Freedom really like it. :)
 
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