HomePod for the hard of hearing

[nelson1457]

tldr: HomePod is a great solution for those who are hard of hearing and don’t want to use subtitles

My requirement for the HomePod is a bit different from the norm. I’m hard of hearing, wear earphones, and up until now, I’ve had to use subtitles when watching TV. However, I do just fine in a movie theatre. I have a sound system, a Sony something or other, cost me around $250 several years ago, but it doesn’t hack it for my needs. So, I was hoping the HomePod would be the solution for me.

And it is. Got it home, plugged it in (as easy as they say it is,) then watched several movies and TV shows from Netflix and Amazon without the subtitles using my ATV 4th gen. I’m happy to say that I can hear the voices clearly and can easily make out the words. If you’ve got one of <those> parents or grandparents, this might be the thing for them.

 

[Juicy Box]

Thanks for the review, I never really thought about using it like this. So, can you play on both the HomePod and the TV/receiver speakers at the same time?

I always watch with subtitles, no matter what it is. My hearing loss is from jet engines, and it seems to only affect the frequencies that voices are in. I can hear music and sound effects fine, but once someone starts talking, it is like I have hear plugs in.

Maybe I might look into the HomePod for this reason.

If you’ve got one of <those> parents or grandparents, this might be the thing for them.

I might be one of those, my daughter called me middle-aged yesterday.

 

[Shockwave78]

tldr: HomePod is a great solution for those who are hard of hearing and don’t want to use subtitles

My requirement for the HomePod is a bit different from the norm. I’m hard of hearing, wear earphones, and up until now, I’ve had to use subtitles when watching TV. However, I do just fine in a movie theatre. I have a sound system, a Sony something or other, cost me around $250 several years ago, but it doesn’t hack it for my needs. So, I was hoping the HomePod would be the solution for me.

And it is. Got it home, plugged it in (as easy as they say it is,) then watched several movies and TV shows from Netflix and Amazon without the subtitles using my ATV 4th gen. I’m happy to say that I can hear the voices clearly and can easily make out the words. If you’ve got one of <those> parents or grandparents, this might be the thing for them.

Same opinion here. Its much better than my previous soundboard with dedicated sub. Voices are very clear and bass is much tighter.

 

[nelson1457]

Vertical Smile, no, I don't think you can stream from ATV to multiple sources. But I don't think I need them. Watched Ken Burn's Prohibition tonight without subtitles, didn't miss a word.

I got my hearing loss from four years on an aircraft carrier . . . your situation seems a lot like mine. I'm cool with music, but put me in a situation where people are talking, particularly in a crowded noisy restaurant, I might as well be trying to use sign language.

 

[Clix Pix]

I am sort of "one of those" although not a parent or grandparent -- i.e., yes, I am hearing-impaired, but not due to advancing age (although in that category anyway), but rather due to a congenital condition. I have worn hearing aids since the age of six. When first reading about the new HomePod, I didn't really pay much attention since i do not have Apple TV nor do I have Apple Music and figure that when I want to listen to music around my small apartment, I can just kick up the volume in my computer, slip on the BT headphones with increased volume and do my thing. and let iTunes deliver the tunes from my iTunes library on my computer.....

Most of the time when I'm listening to music or watching a video on my computer I do use BT headphones, and it hadn't really occurred to me that the new HomePod might be very useful in this regard as far as playing a movie via Airplay on my iPad or iPhone going right to the TV (via Apple TV) and getting the benefits of good sound clarity without having to use the headphones and thus being able to actually view the film on a larger screen than my computer!

Huh....Maybe another Apple TV is in my future, along with the HomePod...... I had the second-gen Apple TV and found that I just was not using the thing so gave it to a friend and that was that.

As far as giving commands to Siri, that is something which I have not found very successful with my iPads or iPhone so probably would not even bother with that. I was in the Apple store today to pick up something and while there took a look at the HomePod and was surprised that it is much smaller than I'd thought it would be. I also noticed that, yes, it has controls that can be managed with touch, so Siri is not an absolute requirement for using this thing. Very interesting......

 

[bozzykid]

There are better soundbars for this purpose if it is just for TV watching. Several provide features to make voices more clear (I know zvox has one that does this along with the major soundbar manufacturers).

 

[Clix Pix]

I've thought about getting a soundbar but the reality is that I actually watch very little television so that it would be an expense that maybe in the end doesn't need to be incurred.....

 

[Macalicious2011]

Dialogue clarity is one of the biggest areas of weakness in many affordable audio drive. Sometimes it's a hardware issue, other times it's EQ related - or a combination of both.

The best devices are those that require few adjustments for the end user. I am happy the home pod is a great solution for you.

I bought a soundboard two years ago and dialogue clarity was a huge priority. I snagged a 7.1 Yamaha YSP 2500 and eventhough the subwoofer delivers big punch, dialogues are always well projected and never muddled by explosions, music or other sounds.

Music playback is brilliant on the soundbar but not world class but that's because it's biased towards movie playback. I can even increase the volume of the center channel to boost dialogues even more.

 

[vidsmart]

tldr: HomePod is a great solution for those who are hard of hearing and don’t want to use subtitles

My requirement for the HomePod is a bit different from the norm. I’m hard of hearing, wear earphones, and up until now, I’ve had to use subtitles when watching TV. However, I do just fine in a movie theatre. I have a sound system, a Sony something or other, cost me around $250 several years ago, but it doesn’t hack it for my needs. So, I was hoping the HomePod would be the solution for me.

And it is. Got it home, plugged it in (as easy as they say it is,) then watched several movies and TV shows from Netflix and Amazon without the subtitles using my ATV 4th gen. I’m happy to say that I can hear the voices clearly and can easily make out the words. If you’ve got one of <those> parents or grandparents, this might be the thing for them.

Great perspective. I think we will see a number of similar reflections from music lovers with one-sided deafness...