Hearing Tests in Hurstville & Miranda NSW

What Happens at Your Hearing Test — Step by Step

Our hearing assessments for adults and children aged 7 and over take approximately one hour from start to finish. All testing at our Hurstville and Miranda clinics is conducted inside an insulated, calibrated sound booth, and all equipment is recalibrated within every 12 months to meet federal standards.

Step 1: Hearing History & Case Notes

Before any testing begins, your clinician — a qualified audiologist or audiometrist — takes a full ear health and hearing history. We ask about your occupation, noise exposure, medications, and the specific situations where you notice difficulty hearing. This shapes the tests we select and ensures results are interpreted in context.

Step 2: Otoscopy — Visual Examination of the Ear Canal

Using a handheld otoscope, your clinician visually inspects each ear canal and eardrum. Otoscopy rules out blockages such as impacted ear wax, fluid behind the eardrum, infection, or physical abnormalities before acoustic testing begins. If wax is found to be obstructing the canal, we can arrange removal — either at the same visit or as a follow-up — to ensure your test results are accurate.

Step 3: Tympanometry — Middle Ear Function Test

A small, soft probe is placed at the entrance to your ear canal. It generates a gentle pressure change and a low tone to measure how well your eardrum moves. Tympanometry takes under a minute per ear and identifies issues such as fluid in the middle ear, Eustachian tube dysfunction, or a perforated eardrum. It produces a graph called a tympanogram, which your audiologist reviews alongside the other results.

Step 4: Pure-Tone Audiometry — Your Personal Hearing Map

Inside the sound booth, you wear headphones and listen for a series of pure tones played at different pitches (frequencies) and volumes. You press a button each time you hear a sound. Air conduction testing measures what you hear through the ear canal; bone conduction testing — using a small vibrator placed on the bone behind the ear — measures what your inner ear (cochlea) picks up directly. Together, these two measurements allow your audiologist to precisely identify the type (conductive, sensorineural, or mixed), degree, and shape of any hearing loss. Speech testing may also be included to assess how clearly you understand words at different volumes.

Step 5: Results Discussion

Your audiologist explains your audiogram — the graph that maps your hearing — in plain terms. If hearing loss is detected, you receive a written report and a clear recommendation for next steps, whether that is monitoring, a referral to an ENT specialist, or a hearing aid fitting. You leave the appointment with a full picture of your hearing health, not just a number.

Hearing Test Pricing in NSW

Who Can Have a Hearing Test at Telex?

We assess adults and children aged 7 and over. Home visits are available for senior patients who cannot travel to our Hurstville or Miranda clinics — limited to St George and Sutherland Shire locations, and bookings require approximately two weeks’ notice. If you are unsure whether a home visit applies to your situation, call the clinic nearest to you.

Our Two Clinics Serving Hurstville, Miranda & the Sutherland Shire

Telex Hearing Centre is a family-owned, independent practice founded by Graham Rathbone in 1969 — now run across two generations with his son Simon Rathbone (Clinical Audiologist, MACAud Reg. No. 390, Masters of Clinical Audiology, Macquarie University) and daughter Marnie (Audiometrist, former Audiological Support & Training specialist for a leading Australian hearing aid manufacturer).

Because we are independent and owner-operated, we are not tied to any single hearing aid brand. That means your audiologist recommends the device that suits your hearing profile and lifestyle, chosen from all leading brands including Phonak, ReSound GN, Unitron, and Sennheiser.

View full clinic addresses, hours and directions on our Contact page at /contact-us/.
Visiting clinics also operate monthly across regional NSW (Mudgee, Dubbo, Orange, Bathurst, Gilgandra, Wellington) and at St George and Sutherland Shire sites.