So THAT'S what it sounds like.

I finally found the time to go back to the website where "Jeff", a CI recipient, has posted sound files to try to duplicate his experience of hearing with a CI.

First, a key note: Jeff got an implant by a company called Med-El. My implant is an Advanced Bionics Clarion Hi-Resolution implant. In other words, different manufacturers. How much this affects our different results, I can't say.

I'm also unsure how deaf Jeff was or for how long, which undoubtedly affects things. I do know he was hard of hearing and not profoundly deaf, and for some time before the surgery.

I felt that my own perception of sound was not previously accurate enough to try to decipher the .wav files and see how closely they matched my own experience. Now, my comprehension is so strong that I listened to the website .wav files "through the air", through my laptop speakers, not through the "direct connect" cord, to see how it sounded.

It was really interesting. His experience at hookup is completely foreign to me. I never had the "electronic beeps and boops only" phase.

Although now I understand why so many people said and emailed to me, "Don't get discouraged at the first results! It gets better!"

From hookup, my hearing was very much like his experience at three days.

And bottom line - when I listen to his "normal" file - it sounds "normal". Whatever THAT means.

ronnie