ALMOST A FREE LUNCH: FEEDBACK CONTROL AND HIGH QUALITY SOUND

Nesgaard J, Mecklenburger J, Hernvig L, Stender T.

GN ReSound A/S, Lautrupbjerg 9 PO Box 130, DK-2750 Ballerup, Denmark.

With ever-increasing popularity, hearing aids that promise to dramatically reduce or eliminate feedback are hitting the market. These hearing aids have new feedback-control algorithms that can attack and cancel out feedback spikes almost instantaneously, even in challenging situations such as when the hand or another object is located near the ear. However, this superior feedback control may sometimes come at the cost of sound quality. Artifacts may be created if the feedback control system is too aggressive, or with attempts to cancel out input sounds that are not actually feedback. For this reason, a new feedback-control algorithm was developed that would attempt to provide this benefit while minimizing the cost in terms of decreased sound quality and artifacts.

 

Email: jnesgaard@gnresound.dk