“When they play those pseudoscientific clips about music and speech with a cochlear implant, I’ve complained to them, “It’s going to discourage people from getting a cochlear implant.” – Two cochlear implant recipients discussing how inaccurate representations can discourage candidates. So you go and you listen to ‘what speech sounds like with a cochlear implant’ and ‘this is what music sounds like with a cochlear implant’. Why? It’s those cochlear implants simulations that are available online. “I was hesitant to pursue a cochlear implant for myself. The problem is that these inaccurate representations of cochlear implants can really discourage candidates from moving forward and experiencing all the benefits of cochlear implants. No, no, no.No!” – A cochlear implant user with single-sided deafness comparing vocoder simulations in their natural hearing ear with their implanted ear. Cochlear implant recipients who have single-sided deafness can directly compare the sounds of their cochlear implant to the same sound played to their natural hearing ear. Thankfully, there has been extensive research on this topic. No, it doesn’t sound like a noise vocoder or a sine vocoder, thankfully. It would be painful if you had to listen to something like a vocoder all your life. I’m pleased to say that a cochlear implant does not sound like a vocoder. If you Google ‘cochlear implant simulation’, you’ll find noise-band vocoders.
These simulations sound harsh, robotic, and uncomfortable to listen to, and do not at all match real user experience.
It is very important to understand that a vocoder “cochlear implant simulation” is not at all an accurate representation of what a cochlear implant sounds like. These popular videos or sound samples are often simulations made using a vocoder, which is an audio tool that can be used to artificially synthesize voices. You might have come across cochlear implant sound simulations online. These are all perfectly natural questions-after all, your patients are choosing a cochlear implant to hear. As a clinician, you probably have heard these questions many times: What does a cochlear implant sound like? Is it robotic? Will I recognize voices? Will I be able to listen to music? How long does it take to get used to?
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