Welch Allyn5079-125 Harvey Elite Stethoscope, 28", Black

Before purchasing this particular stethoscope I did a price point comparison with other welch allyn models and the littman cardiology models. I also read many (MANY) different reviews from each brand and model of welch allyn and littman. I was a bit apprehensive about dropping good $230 on a stethoscope and thought is the price worth the value and quality of this raved stethoscope. I understand with a shorter stethoscope tube the vibrations of the sounds auscultated would only have to travel through a shorter distance to the ear pieces. My oh goodness my ears!! I am so impressed by the acoustics of this stethoscope and the discriminating differences in sounds regarding adventitious lung sounds and precordial sounds of the heart. I was using a Littman stethoscope since nursing school to even my first 8 months of a 1st year nurse and truly I am regretting awaiting this long in investing in a stethoscope with this exceptional quality. It's like day and night. I am able to do a better egophony and bronchophony exam on my COPD and CHF patients. With this stethoscope I can better discriminate between an S3 from an S4 especially if the patient is a bit tachycardiac. The heart murmurs are much louder and crisper. In addition, I don't have to press the diaphragm on to the landmarks of the skin with more intensity to pick up sounds than I had to with the old littman classic III. I hope this review finds your way to be very helpful. Thank you. Plus the shipment was very fast :). I must say you do have to tighten the ear pieces and the bell because I read that it can unscrew off easily, however that was the first thing I did when I got this stethoscope and I can report that this piece has been very sturdy through my 12-14 hour shifts on a PCU/Telemetry floor with no flying or falling ear or diaphragm or bell pieces trailing behind ;)

I was really excited to get this however the plastic diaphragm has a hard time staying on. Each time I go to use it I have to look for the piece or I am paranoid I lost it. I’m really disappointed in the quality and functionality of this product

I spent 4 years struggling with littmans. I was swayed by the sheer availability and color choices. I eventually switched from a basic littman veterinary to a littman cardio. I couldn't hear anything. Tried different ear pieces. Didn't matter if it was large animal or small I struggled. Finally after listening to a Rottweiler/lab cross with my cardio and hearing nothing abnormal, a clinician told me to listen again and use his welch allyn. It opened up an entirely new world to me. I heard a grade III systolic murmur, and more heart and lung sounds than I had ever before. I was so excited to get one and simultaneously angry that I'd wasted years not hearing ANYTHING I was supposed to. I get great clarity and loudness whether I'm auscultating an overweight 2 ton draft horse or an adolescent rat or an tiny budgie. I can actually count the heart rate of an excited mouse. I can not only pick up extra sounds but subtle lack of sounds in chests. I can hear great GI sounds. The quality and sound is phenomenal and I also splurged on the accessory kit that included the pediatric bell for my small exotic patients and tiny kittens and puppies. I'd spend twice this much to be able to go back and avoid all the money and time I wasted on a littman. They may work for some but not for me and I have great hearing. I am so excited and in love with this welch allyn and highly recommend it.

This is an excellent stethoscope in terms of sound and build quality but I'm at my wits end with the loose/easily lost parts. Unfortunately, Littman seems to have abandoned the dual-head design for their higher end stethoscopes and only offers the "dual function" single stethoscope heads nowadays. Being a firm believer in the utility of a dedicated bell, I opted to go for the Welch-Allyn Elite. After about 18 months of use, I'm generally satisfied with this stethoscope. Sounds come through crisply and clearly, and it amplifies the sound very well. Also isolates outside noises very well, too. Build quality is solid; it's heavy, but not especially so. Enough heft to it to make it feel like a solid, well-built instrument (which it is).With that said, I am selling my Elite and picking up a DLX because I am tired of the non-chill rim on the diaphragm coming loose. It is a rubber piece that doesn't fit quite as tightly as it should, and so I am constantly checking my stethoscope to ensure that it's in place. Despite this, I have lost the corrugated diaphragm (replacing it with an MDF flat diaphragm--noticeable loss in sound quality), and this past week I have lost the non-chill rim itself. Additionally, the earpieces come loose, and i have lost one of those as well. Replacement parts are prohibitively expensive.If you do get this stethoscope, you will be happy with it but once you find out which earpieces/diaphragm is best for you, use glue to keep them from falling off.

No flashy names, different versions, no electronics for unnecessary amplification . Just straight up clear, crisp, quality sounds in a simple and sturdy design. I've compared it many times with my colleagues' other stethoscopes and I just can't understand why there are so many versions of theirs with minimal change in sound quality. The Harvey just simply delivers without all the gimmicks.

I own the triple head DLX stethoscope wich is the best stethoscope I ever used. Then I puchased this stethoscope for a friend of mine as a gift. The lung sounds are astounding. But whenever we auscultate the heart the sound is very feint. Even a low tier stethoscope sounds better. We have yet to figure out the reason for the difference in sound quality.

Bought this to replace another one I bought 15 years ago. I've had Cardiology scopes from Littman, MDF, and ADC, and I like this one better. It's cheaper than the last time I bought one, too.