Hear.com Horizon Go IX

Horizon Go IX is a receiver-in-canal (RIC) rechargeable hearing aid with advanced speech-in-noise technology and Bluetooth streaming, including hands-free calling, for compatible iOS and Android devices. It also offers parallel sound processing for sounds coming from the front and back of the user, which hear.com claims improves speech understanding in environments with competing noise, such as restaurants.

Who is hear.com?

hear.com is the U.S. equivalent of audibene, a provider of hearing care products and services in Europe. audibene was founded in Germany in 2012, and has since expanded into 8 countries under the hear.com and audibene brands. In the USA, hear.com sells hearing aids through a nationwide network of hearing care professionals, both in person and via telehealth. The company is owned by WS Audiology (WSA), one of the world's largest hearing aid manufacturers and the maker of brands like Signia, Widex, and Rexton.

Who makes Horizon Go IX?

All Horizon hearing aids are manufactured by WSA. They are almost identical to the Signia hearing aids produced by WSA, both in terms of appearance and functionality. The Horizon Go IX are comparable to the Signia's Charge&Go IX.

Unique Horizon IX features

Horizon adds a few unique features on top of Signia's IX platform, which are available through the Horizon smartphone app. These include (descriptions via hear.com):

• Speech Focus: With the Speech Focus feature on the Horizon app, users can enjoy an enhanced level of speech clarity. At the touch of a button, all speech frequencies are accentuated while background noise is filtered out, making it easy to hear the person speaking, regardless of the environment.
• Panorama Effect: Wearers can effortlessly switch their hearing aid settings from focused speech comprehension to a 360° auditory experience, capturing the full soundscape of their surroundings.
• My Modes: A collection of proprietary programs—such as music mode, active mode, and relax mode—that allow wearers to personalize their hearing aids and adapt to any situation.

Horizon Go IX sound performance

Horizon Go IX earned an overall HearingTracker score of 4.6, placing it in the top 15% of all hearing aids we’ve reviewed (see scores below). With its A-rated SoundGrade from the independent HearAdvisor lab, this hearing aid outperforms most hearing aids for hearing speech in quiet and noise (3.4 and 2.4 out of 5, respectively), although it performed nominally lower than average (3.4, just 0.1 points below average) for music streaming, primarily due to its open-ear RIC form factor.

Durability and connectivity

From a design and durability perspective, the Horizon Go IX is robust. It features an IP68 rating, the highest Ingress Protection rating possible for hearing aid resistance to dust and water, making it a practical option for more active users. The hearing aid can deliver up to 28 hours of use per charge, and the quick charge feature provides 6 hours of extra use with just 30 minutes of charging, which is handy but not unique to this product.

The Horizon Go IX excels in connectivity. These hearing aids enable audio streaming and hands-free calling for compatible iOS and many Android devices. The Horizon app also deserves mention, as its user-friendly interface includes features like a tonal balance slider, focus control, and preset listening modes for different environments. The app is one of the stronger offerings on the market and helps customize the listening experience, though it's worth noting that similar apps exist from other major brands.