Zenith "Diplomat" Behind-the-Ear Hearing Aid The "Diplomat" was Zenith's first BTE hearing aid. It came
out in June of 1956.
Then in June, 1957 Zenith came out with a modification. Instead of a
hard-wired receiver cord, they made a plug-in cord so if the cord broke, it
could easily be replaced. The Zenith "Diplomat" [Mod] used four transistors and had an external receiver. The example shown to the right was probably manufactured in 1957. The case measures 2¾" by ¾" and was sometimes referred to as the "Banana" because of its large size. It used a No. 675 battery. |  | Click picture for larger view | | |
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| A view of the Zenith "Diplomat" showing the side that goes against your head. A hard plastic ear mold (see in picture below) snaps on to the red button receiver.
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| The Zenith "Diplomat" had a removable receiver cord shown unplugged from the aid at right. (The receiver cord also could be unplugged at the receiver end too. |  | Click picture for larger view | | | |
| The Zenith "Diplomat" in its original case. |  | Click picture for larger view | | | |
| Outside view of the case for the Zenith "Diplomat". |  | Click picture for larger view | | | |
| A comparison of the larger Zenith "Diplomat" of 1956 (left) and the smaller Zenith "Diplomat" of 1959 (right).
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