DIY Impressions or recommended London impressions taker? - Page 2

Ulti i used fedex(about £40)because i wanted to make sure they would actually get there! there was a slight hiccup at customs but cleared after a day. couriers normally take two days but i sent them just before xmas so total delivery time was 5 days. the last time i sent something to china from the uk by normal post it took nearly two mônths!

Hi all, I rang around various hearing centres and opticians (yes, opticians) in London, for a decent price for impressions, last week (Jan 2012) and the variation in prices and in attitude was quite dramatic.

The audiologist at Amplifon, in Kensington, wanted 60 quid but outright refused to do impressions unless I agreed to purchase a device through them. I guess that's Kensington for you; all about the money...

Leighton's Opticians, in Sutton (just "sahff O' the rivah", near Putney) were friendly and helpful, offering to do it for (if memory serves me correctly) 30 quid (Fridays only, at Sutton, as the audiologist moves from branch to branch depending on the day).

Specsavers, in Edgware Road (off Marble Arch), were able to see me on the Friday, too (I was only in London for one day). They messed me about a bit with not booking me in properly over the phone, but nonetheless squeezed me in when I turned up, in spite of this oversight. The audiologist, 'Mark', was friendly and charged me the princely sum of... 20 quid! 

..and if anyone reading this happens to need any impressions done in Cardiff, then I can recommend 'Paul' at Hidden Hearing, Cathedral Road.

Something I've learned from experience is that regardless of where you have your impressions done, it's worth being very precise in discussing your requirements prior to any silicone being mixed.

e.g. request that the audiologist ensures to:

* fill the canal up to the second directional bend

* fill the concha completely, including the second indent immediately above the aperture of the outer canal (helix).

Also, I find it best to take along a bite block (or equivalent), since not all audiologists keep these in stock. Although I have improvised by biting my hand, I don't recommend this, because one tends to tense the jaw muscles more when biting the hand than when biting a lightweight bite block. Tense jaw muscles may alter the shape of the ear canal a little. Not drastically, but less than ideal, and the whole point is to maximise the potential for a good seal, not unnecessarily scupper one's chances before the IEM has even been manufactured.

Lastly, I make it clear from the outset that I can't use impressions which contain any voids, and that consequently I'm happy to pay a little extra if they are generous with the silicone (though this last request may fall on deaf ears with some audiologists ;-) )

It seems that for silicone CIEMs, closed-jaw impressions seem to generally be preferred, whereas for hard acrylic CIEM shells, open-jaw impressions seem to be preferred. Obviously, though, one should always follow the explicit instructions of the IEM producer the CIEMs are being made by.

a useful related thread:

http://www.head-fi.org/t/578855/things-to-consider-before-getting-your-custom-iem-impressions-done-the-perfect-fit

LOL - having just posted the above, I noticed Ulti's post mentioning Edgware Road Specsavers, too!

Yeah, Mark, there, took good care of me for a very fair price. Hope your session went OK, too, Ulti!