HearAdvisor's independent lab tested the EarCentric EX2 using standardized acoustic measurements and manikin-based recordings. This review presents our measured performance data for this budget-priced prescription behind-the-ear hearing aid.
Dr. Steve Taddei, Au.D. — Lab Director & Reviewer
Dr. Abram Bailey, Au.D. — Fact Checker / Editor
The EarCentric EX2 is a budget-priced prescription hearing aid with excellent feedback handling but significant weaknesses in speech clarity and streaming.
Top 83% of Prescription Hearing AidThe card below displays the EX2's measured results for speech in quiet, speech in noise, own-voice comfort, feedback control, and music streaming. The purple SoundScore graph is the overall result, and the five graphs after it break it into individual measurements for the selected fit. Each curve shows how scores are spread across all tested hearing aids, and the dot and number mark the score for EarCentric EX2.
Every hearing aid is lab-tested in two states — as it sounds out of the box, and after professional tuning. Switch fits to update the five metric graphs below.
How clearly speech comes through in calm, one-on-one surroundings.
Speech understanding against loud background noise — the toughest everyday test.
How natural your own voice sounds while wearing the aids, without a boomy, plugged-up quality.
Sound quality of music streamed to the hearing aids over Bluetooth.
Resistance to the whistling and squealing caused by acoustic feedback.
Lab Assessment
Amplification Analysis
The graph below plots measured insertion gain against prescriptive targets across the frequency range. This visualization shows how closely the EX2's amplification aligns with established fitting standards.
Audio Samples
These audio samples were captured through an acoustic manikin under controlled laboratory conditions. Compare them to our unaided reference recording to hear what the EX2 delivers to the ear.
How this hearing aid sounds in our lab scenes. Compare it out of the box and after professional tuning.
Scene type: Conversation
These lab recordings demonstrate relative processing in our lab and cannot predict an individual fitting outcome.
Test Documentation
Below you'll find our fit observations from both Initial and Tuned conditions, along with the documented test configuration. These notes record what our audiologists observed during the measurement process.
In initial fit testing with a power dome with slits coupling, the EarCentric EX2 achieved a normalized Initial Score of 2.7/5. Speech performance was low, with both speech in quiet and speech in noise scoring 1.0/5—well below category averages. Feedback handling performed well at 4.7/5, providing stable operation. Own-voice comfort was mixed at 2.3/5. Music streaming was not functional in our testing protocol, scoring 0.0/5.
Tuned fit testing retained the same power dome with slits coupling, and the normalized Tuned Score remained at 2.7/5—showing no improvement over initial fit. All individual metrics were identical between conditions: speech in quiet and noise at 1.0/5, feedback handling at 4.7/5, own-voice comfort at 2.3/5, and music streaming at 0.0/5. This suggests the device offers limited adjustment capability or that initial settings were already optimized for our test conditions.
Initial Fitting | Tuned Fitting | |
|---|---|---|
| Ear Coupling | Power Dome with Slits | Power Dome with Slits |
