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New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
#11
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
Hi All,

First time posting here.
I got the Z1 Auto last week and I have to tell you I am VERY disappointed and most frustrated!
I had high hopes for a small machine that I can pack in my carry on when I go to Vegas next month.

After spending $1250 on the Z1 Auto and PowerShell, if I don't figure out how to make it better I am out all that money. Because in my opinion, right now it is unusable.

When plugged in and using the battery, there is a high pitched revving noise that fluctuates with my breathing. It is distracting and I am unable to settle down and go to sleep. In addition, the excess air that escapes my mask is so much louder! It is also distracting! For the last three nights I have ended up going back to my ResMed S8.

I am a 38 year old Mom who has had a tonsillectomy, my deviated septum repaired, and that $3000 procedure to tighten the back of my throat to stop the vibration. Anyhow, all I wanted was a small quiet devise that I can easily pack with me so I can go to camp with my cub scout, and work conventions, all without disrupting others who are sleeping in the same room.

Thanks for letting me vent. I am trying to contact HDM but they aren't answering the phone. Or maybe they are getting a lot of complaints?

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#12
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
(02-09-2015, 04:34 PM)onthegomom Wrote: Hi All,

First time posting here.
I got the Z1 Auto last week and I have to tell you I am VERY disappointed and most frustrated!

I am curious as I hope to soon try out the Z-1. I am trying to understand what others have encountered to figure out if they are significant for me when I evaluate the unit. Is the objection only the sound (my S-9 got to where sounded just like what you describe-it is soon to be replaced with a Respironics 560 auto). Was there the problem with the pressure relief Al Gore Rhythm?

Are you running the firmware version update from last June (2.0.0.11? May be the first firmware for the Auto? Does the auto use the same firmware as the CPAP?)

Oh, My!

OMM

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#13
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
Soft foam ear plugs!
Admin Note:
JustMongo passed away in August 2017
Click HERE to read his Memorial Thread

~ Rest in Peace ~
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#14
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
If you can wait there is a noise fix coming, if not you should return it.
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#15
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
(02-09-2015, 11:27 PM)bill-e Wrote: If you can wait there is a noise fix coming,

I will be interested in seeing what they come up with. Can it be a software solution to a hardware problem?

I don't see what they could do for noise with firmware if the blower has to turn a given rpm to make a given pressure. Maybe they could somewhat fix the varying pitch by eliminating the pressure relief settings and just have a constant pressure to breathe against (I would be perfectly fine with that. Matter of fact, I would really prefer that to EPR relief). I can live with some blower noise if it is smooth - I kind of like the white noise effect. Continuous, abrupt change in pitch is another matter though.

Other than that it would seem to require a physical change required somewhere in the system. New blower fan installed? Ships, subs and planes can change their sonic signature with a propeller change. Retrofit would be muy expensive and logistically challenging. Change the geometry of the tube adapter and replace the old ones? Maybe. Install a muffler inline or introduce a heavier tube with a noise deadening lining? A different design tube that would cause less (or more) disturbance to the air moving through it? A proprietary mask just for the Z-1s? (oh the problems to follow with that one)

OMM
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#16
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
Hi to anyone interested in seeing a recent video I posted about the noise level on the Z1 Auto machine because a lot of folks seem to wonder about the small sized fans under higher pressures. As far as the battery, what we found is people do not recharge the z1 battery for the appropriate time because it takes a full 8 hours to recharge, and it is a very slow charge time. The battery might seem full...but it needs 8 hours of recharge time, and 8 hours of recharge gets you 1 full night of power even at higher pressure levels. That's why HDM says it will only give you one full night.
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#17
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
(03-26-2015, 09:46 AM)ChrisVasta Wrote: Hi to anyone interested in seeing a recent video I posted about the noise level on the Z1 Auto machine because a lot of folks seem to wonder about the small sized fans under higher pressures.

Thanks for sharing, but this video doesn't actually show what a user would experience.

I have a Z-1 and have tried to use it to judge its pros and cons.

The video is not representative or illustrative of the noise problem that a user of the HDM units would experience. Number one, this was shown at the LOWEST pressure setting likely to be used - 8cm (slowest turbine speed). A pressure at the higher end of the range (12 cm) would have been a more useful test. Number two, it does not address the radical change in pitch the unit makes as the EPR function kicks in and out with each breath.

It should be noted that the noise most folks complain about is not the actual motor noise (which is very quiet), but it is turbine blower noise that is transmitted through the inside of the tube, directly into the nasal cavity and sinuses, which, btw, are connected directly to the inner ear.

If you wanted to see how loud this machine actually sounds to a user, you would need to put a microphone, padded to screen out wind noise, INSIDE of the tubing. What you would hear would be much, much more disturbing to the listener.

I understand that HDM is soon to introduce an in-line muffler that will attach to the tubing (yes, the problem is serious enough that the manufacturer is having to bring out add-on hardware to address the complaints about this issue.) However, by the time you add on hardware, you are adding complexity (another component to carry around) and bulk which may further reduce the utility of this tiny machine.

This may be a fine machine in a travel/portability niche, but the video shown here is by no means representative of what a user would hear (at least without the supposedly soon-to-be released muffler).

OMM
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#18
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
First, HDM claims only a full night sleep for some pressures. I have extensively tested two batteries with both the Z1 and Z1A and cansay with certainty that at a pressure of 14 you will only get between 5 and 5.5 hours of power. At a pressure of 8 you will get a full night's of power with some left over. The battery is definately not sized for a full night of sleep for all pressures that the Z1 can produce.

I haven't double checked it for this post but I believe HDM stats the battery range for the Z1A of like 4.5 hours to something higher depending on the pressure.

As for noise, once the release date of the fix is announced, I'll post some sound recordings that I madw which are pretty accurate to what the user and their partner will experience.
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#19
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
(03-26-2015, 11:01 AM)bill-e Wrote: As for noise, once the release date of the fix is announced, I'll post some sound recordings that I madw which are pretty accurate to what the user and their partner will experience.


Cool. I'll be interested. I didn't think the youtube clip was remotely realistic of what a user hears.

OMM
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#20
RE: New HDM Z1 Auto...anyone have one yet?
Believe me or not, mine is about as quiet as my PR System One
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