CORE 500™ Digital Stethoscope — 40x Amplification, Active Noise Cancellation, 3-Lead ECG, FDA-Cleared AI with Eko+, Full-Color Display, Reimbursement Eligible — Matte Black, COR501-BLK/BLK

This stethescope has a built in ECG lead giving you leads I, II, and III. It also has presets to optimize whatever you are examining--for example cardiac, lung, or general exam. It is easy to toggle between exams. I work in a very noisy emergency department and had basically stopped using a stethescope at all due to the ambient noise interferance and a little hearing loss over the years. Using this stethescope in the ED is fantastic. The sound is crystal clear and the presets greatly augment the clarity. It sounds way better than even the most expensive stethescopes I've had in the past. The ear pieces are pretty comfortable. The stethescope comes with an app that lets you display the ECG tracing and sound waves morphology from the exam. This is useful for learners to see the timing of the heart sounds and also for detecting the rhyhtm abnormality in irregular heartbeats. The app can be upgraded, which I tried. This will let you have additional features like detection of atrial fibrillation automatically or tracking your patient's exams with ECG tracings and recordings over time to monitor progress or deterioration. Downsides: Not really much to complain ablout. The chest piece is slightly larger and heavier than most stethescopes but its not really too bad and the chestpiece can easily be detached and placed in your pocket. Bottom line is I think this is by far the best stethescope I have every owned.

This review is the Eko 500 Core. It's an exceptional tool for medical professionals, offering advanced functionality and superior sound quality. Here’s a breakdown:Pros:Outstanding Sound Quality:Lungs: Clear, detailed sounds, allowing pinpoint precision.Heart: Deep, rich audio with med-to-low bass for valve and contraction clarity.Wideband Mode: Balanced sound similar to traditional stethoscopes.Professional Enhancement:Allows users to hear intricate details, creating an immersive experience (e.g., "inside the lungs" or "inside the heart").Ideal for professionals who want to refine their diagnostic capabilities.Build and Features:Durable and high-quality build that feels substantial.Intuitive screen for ease of use.Bluetooth functionality for connecting to earbuds, which is especially helpful in noisy environments like for flight medics.Capability to use without earpieces, enhancing versatility.Recording and Playback:Ability to record sounds for later review or teaching purposes.Playback allows for comparisons or consultations, adding value for diagnostic accuracy.Cons:Price: The higher price point might deter some buyers, though the review clearly shows it's justified.Overall Impression:The Eko 500 Core is not just a stethoscope but a professional-grade investment. Its cutting-edge technology, exceptional sound quality, and versatile features make it a standout choice for those serious about elevating their practice. Despite the cost, the value it provides in enhancing diagnostic precision and convenience appears well worth it.If you're in the healthcare field or looking for a gift for a dedicated professional, this seems like an extraordinary option.

Perhaps one of the best, if not the best, digital Stethoscopes you can get. The built in EKG leads makes for convenient spot checking and the clarity of auscultated sounds makes assessing way easier and more accurate. Build quality looks modern and sleek. The added functionality of being able to connect to your phone via EKO's app and being able to share sounds and show others EKG readings adds additional educational and clinical value.

I am a medical student with graduate-level experience in signal processing. An early academic project of mine involved work on a portable ECG device, so I have a general understanding of the core ideas and challenges that come with designing such a device. I own a KardiaMobile portable 6L EKG device and a Littmann stethoscope with a tunable diaphragm which provide great points of comparison.My overall experience with this stethoscope is quite positive. I can see it being an useful learning tool as well, saving example EKG AND PCG recordings (simultaneously!!) of heart conditions as I observe them in the clinic. The EKG feature is easy to use, and finds a signal quite quickly (even faster than my KardiaMobile device). While it finds a signal super quick, it'd be nice to have some translation of the 3 plotted leads to the standard EKG leads found on a regular hospital system-- right now it requires some user interpretation.As far as the acoustics on this stethoscope go, it's handy to have the amplification, and I could see how it might help some clinicians with mild hearing loss. The noise-cancelling feature is also handy, reducing some of the artifactual noise you pick up with stethoscopes like the standard Littmann. HOWEVER, I find that turning the noise-cancelling can sometimes help pick up some of the higher-frequency sounds (the pulmonary setting also helps with this).Also, (nitpicking here) I've noticed the diaphragm paired with the Eko signal processing seems to be a bit different than I'm used to with the Littmann, especially on the cardio setting. Higher pressure on the Littmann emphasizes the higher frequency sounds, but on the Eko, it oddly seems to emphasize the lower frequency sounds. Also, sometimes the pressure optimal for clean EKG is not optimal for listening (in some cases). So it might require a little playing around and getting used to. Also, when using the stethoscope head paired with Bluetooth instead of the wired earpiece, there's a slight delay in the connection which is noticeable but at the end of the day is probably not a big deal, and could just be my earbuds. It is still pretty cool to be able to keep the head in my bag or pocket without the earpiece in case I see something interesting I want to record (and its fairly easy to tell on the app whether the acoustic/electric signal quality is good, even without listening).Overall, it's been both super educational and fun working with this stethoscope, and I look forward to using it more!