One simple way,,,turn the vacuum on, and hold the hose up to and touching your face, near your ear, and go up and down the entire length of the hose.
You will not only feel any air leaks, you will hear them too.
Funny you should mention this, I am sitting here wondering how I'm going to repair the hose for my first GE Swivel-Top. I know there are repair threads, latex treatments, I'm just wondering how <em>I'm going to handle it.