Can't hear through my Littman!!

maybe try to check your earpeices? i know you can change them out and i think replacement pieces are pretty cheap... maybe try that before you spend the extra money on a new one.

i have a littman classic II which is a pretty basic one and ive had it for almost 8 years and it still is clear as it was the day i got it.

Try different ear tips--- or try moving your head up or down with the tips in so you can figure out what angle it needs to be at to best facilitate hearing! Good luck.

Hi!

I am just finishing nursing school and thought I would trade up to a better stethoscope.(I have gotten through nursing school with a sprague type that I got at the campus bookstore for $14.00). I went out and bought the Littman Select. Am I doing something wrong here...I can't hear a thing through it!! Do I need a better Littman? My classmates have gone on and on about their lightweight Littman's and how great they can hear through them. I didnt care for the lightweight. The Select was the same price, so I thought it would be as good. Any advice is much appreciated! Thanks!

Is the end flipped around as if you were listening through the bell?

Is the end flipped around as if you were listening through the bell?

Ditto that. If you tap on the diaphragm/bell, does the sound travel to you? If not, try twisting it around once. It might be turned off.

Be sure you have the ear sections in your ears the right way. I know that sounds funny, but if you try to listen with them backwards you wont hear much.

I bought the one sided, pressure sensitive type of Littmann and I couldn't hear anything through it-- did you get this type or a 2 sided (bell AND diaphragm) type?

Be sure you have the ear sections in your ears the right way. I know that sounds funny, but if you try to listen with them backwards you wont hear much.

exactly. Littmans go in "backwards" to what they look like they should

Some people swear by Littmanns, but I can never hear a thing through them. Give me a cheap scope, anyday.

Hi!

I am just finishing nursing school and thought I would trade up to a better stethoscope.(I have gotten through nursing school with a sprague type that I got at the campus bookstore for $14.00). I went out and bought the Littman Select. Am I doing something wrong here...I can't hear a thing through it!! Do I need a better Littman? My classmates have gone on and on about their lightweight Littman's and how great they can hear through them. I didnt care for the lightweight. The Select was the same price, so I thought it would be as good. Any advice is much appreciated! Thanks!

Not all Littmans are created equal. I, too, had a Sprague for about $14, and heard quite well, but it was heavy and I wanted a 'better' one. So I bought a $50 Select Lightweight that was popular, and I couldn't hear a danged thing. No, I was NOT putting it on wrong, LOL, I just couldn't hear well with it. Very poor quality, IMO, and obviously not the popular one: lots of people like it fine. Me, I gave it to my kid for a Halloween costume.

So, now I have a Master Cardiology (to the tune of $160, I think) and I can hear so well that I bet if I tried, I could spy on my neighbors, LOL! Seriously, two Littmans and couldn't be more different. One I can hear heart murmurs, and on the other, I couldn't hear if they HAD a heart.

My cheapie Sprague worked very well, just was too heavy for me. My "better" Littman was useless. I had to shell out the bucks for a much better one, it seems. Lucky are those who can hear fine with the Selects!

well thank you all for your comments and suggestions. It wasnt turned "off", its a one sided pressure sensitive Littman. I decided since I'm graduating, and as a reward, that I would return it and try a better one in the store. I brought my daughter along and listened to her heart & lung sounds in the dressing room. For some reason I am just one of those people who couldnt hear a thing through the select or the lightweight. The S.E. worked better....but that Master Cardiology!! WHEW!! You are right it is like nothing I have ever heard through a stethoscope before! Incredible! It's the one I decided to get and keep! Thanks to everyone!