Need Some Help With Equinox, And Bluetooth

[Jim in Idaho]

I've got a Viet Nam era veteran buddy that got Bluetooth hearing aids (very nice) from the VA. He was asking the other day about connecting his aids via Bluetooth to his "Nox 800. Is there a Bluetooth transmitter that plugs into a "normal" headphone output jack on the 'Nox?

 Jim

[Jeff McClendon]

The Equinox 600 and 800 have a Bluetooth transmitter inside the control box that pairs up with many current Bluetooth headphones and earbuds. How much audio lag there will be between your friends Bluetooth hearing aids and the APTX Low Latency Bluetooth 5.0 (?) chip in the control box if they pair is the question. If there is too much lag, an external transmitter that better matches the latency of his hearing aids can easily be plugged into the 3.5mm audio jack on the back of the control unit.

[dogodog]

Jim, I think that might be possible depending on what brand they are. I think the Miracle-ear have what they call a 5.0 Bluetooth aid that works with TV. Some of those are low latency. He should be able to get the specs from the mfg. If not Jeff's answer is the way to go.

[Jim in Idaho]

Thanks, guys. Apparently his 'Nox is not now communicating with his aids. I was not aware that the 'Nox used a Bluetooth system. I thought it was some sort of proprietary setup. So, I'm wondering why it doesn't work? His wireless 'Nox headphones work fine, though he doesn't like them.

Jim

[Knomad]

I believe that the Nox 800 is Bluetooth 4.2. They say Bluetooth 5.0 is backwards compatible, But I suspect this is not 100%.

I say this because the 800 has paired to everything I have tried, Except to a Ring Brand Mu6 Bluetooth next to ear headset that I love, that is 5.0. But the Ring Mu6 pairs with Bluetooth 4+ plug in Transmitter/Receivers.

Most often I find the 800 and headsets have to be started, then 800 powered down, then quickly restarted to pair to any Bluetooth, SO make sure you try that, most Bluetooth will pair doing that.

Conclusion, the nox 800 has a problem with its Bluetooth that makes pairing a little funky, but generally works.

[Chase Goldman]

12 hours ago, Jim in Idaho said:

Thanks, guys. Apparently his 'Nox is not now communicating with his aids. I was not aware that the 'Nox used a Bluetooth system. I thought it was some sort of proprietary setup. So, I'm wondering why it doesn't work? His wireless 'Nox headphones work fine, though he doesn't like them.

Jim

If you can give us some specs on the hearing aids' bluetooth parameters (i.e Bluetooth version (4.× or 5.x)), whether the aids are Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) only (which would not be compatible with the Nox 800 at all) and what audio codecs are supported by the hearing aids (e.g., SBC, AAC, APTX, LDAC, etc,) we can better assess compatibility with the 800.  If his aids don't support APTX-LL, the latency (audio delay while swinging the coil over the target) may be excessive and render them impractical for use.  Also, as Knomad said, it is a bit of a crapshoot even if the specs look compatible.  I have a set of BT APTX-LL phones that should pair with the 800 in low latency mode, but they won't even connect with the Nox even though they pair just fine with my phone.  Finally, if your friend doesn't like the Minelab wireless phones AND his hearing aids are found to not be compatible with the Nox 800, then there may be alternative third party BT APTX-LL (low latency) headphones or earbuds he may find better suit him than the Minelab Phones which are known to have a muddy sound quality (lack of high frequency definition). Another alternative is the fantastic Avantree Torus low latency (APTX-LL) compatible BT neckband speaker (that provides a near field sound scape that has more privacy and sound definition than the onboard detector speaker and which allows him to still use his hearing aids untethered to the detector).  The Torus also has built in earbuds that can be switched on (silencingcthe speaker) for additional privacy and sound fidelity.  I rack out a number of these Vanquish/Nox 600&800/Nokta Legend compatible 3rd party BT APTX-LL devices in the post below.

HTH