Loop Systems

An induction loop system helps deaf people who use a hearing aid or a loop listener hear sounds more clearly because it reduces or cuts out unneccesary background noise.

The Hearing Loop System is a special type of sound system for use by people with hearing aids. It is important to know how loop systems tie in with sound systems in general, since they are frequently used together. 

With a loop system, the sound source is usually a TV, video, DVD or microphone which goes through the loop amplifier and then the sound is fed into an induction loop. This loop is usually placed round the edge of a room - alternatively it could be smaller loop around an area such as a chair, or worn around the user's neck.

A hearing aid microphone amplifies all the sound sources around the user which makes it very difficult for a hearing aid wearer to concentrate on one particular sound. Sometimes the only answer is to increase the volume on, say, the TV to such a point that it becomes very uncomfortable for anyone else. The induction loop allows a hearing aid user to listen to a single sound source with all background noise eliminated. 

If you have a hearing aid with a ‘T’ setting, simply switch it to ‘T’. If you do not have a suitable hearing aid you can still use a loop, but you will also need a ‘loop listener’. Some loop listeners are small boxes with headphones – others are worn as an earpiece. 

More than one person can benefit from a loop installed in a room as long as they each have their hearing aids set to ‘T’ or they are using loop listeners. You are not wired to any other equipment so you are free to move around and listen from anywhere within the loop.