Hearing aid gain was determined using the National Acoustics Laboratory-Revised (NAL-R) prescriptive targets and verified using real-ear (Fonix 6500) measurements. Hearing aid frequency-gain parameters were adjusted so that the measured real ear aided response matched the target response as closely as possible for octave frequencies from 500 to 4000 Hz for both omnidirectional and directional modes. The matches to target are reported in the results. The processing strategy of the experimental hearing aids was set as output compression to match each subject's previous hearing aids. Targets were matched for a 65 dB SPL composite noise input. A real ear saturation response was obtained with a 90 dB SPL broadband input to ensure that high-level stimuli did not exceed listener discomfort levels, and the hearing aid output was adjusted accordingly. In order to maintain a double-blind experiment, the hearing aid programming, fitting, and real ear measurements were performed by one investigator who recorded how the hearing aid was set (omnidirectional or directional) for each visit. This investigator kept these data until the subject completed all aspects of the study. Furthermore, the investigator who programmed and fit the hearing aids was not involved in further data collection with that subject.