Troubleshooting FAQ's:
I have a RED light on One button, all the others are off
If you are using a a Phone device (not an ATA) this generally indicates that there is a network connection issue. The indication generally means the cable is unplugged somewhere, or that it is defective.
Many times it is a matter of unplugging the cable from the back of the phone, and plugging it back in, and insuring that it has clicked into place. If this doesn’t fix things, then repeat the process on the other end of the cable. Occasionally there are other links on the connection, these should also be checked all the way back to wherever it is connected.
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How many Phones can I attach to my Adaptor Box?
Its a little more complicated than that, the simple answer is at least 3. But because today’s modern telephones have lower requirements for ringers than the ‘standard’ bells of days gone by, you can usually do more.
In order to understand just how many, we need to understand RENs (which are usually on a label on the phone). The following is a good guide to figuring out just what you can use.
Ringer equivalence number (REN)
While REN is probably not something that will come into your decision process I want to let you know how it affects your telephone performance. REN is a measurement of how much ringing power certain telephone equipment takes or generates (in this case the ATA generates the ring). From the ATA side REN determines how many telephones can connect to each ATA line and still get them ringing properly.
SPA-2100 Max Ringer load = 3REN
PAP2 Max Ringer load=5REN
In a case where you plan to connect the ATA to a line port on your key system or to a single phone the difference in REN values are meaningless. However, if you trying to drive 3 phones bridged to a single ATA port, REN value can be a factor. You can usually find the REN use value of your telephone on a label on the bottom of the phone.
Just add up all the RENs on the phones, and be sure that the value is less than (or equal to ) of the adaptor you have. So if you have a total REN for all your Phones of 3.5, you would be able to use a PAP2, but not an SPA2100.
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I get No Dialtone on my ATA (analog adaptor)
A couple things you can check quickly
The lights on the ATA device are on and solid, specifically the Power, Ethernet, and Line1 indicators.
If the Ethernet light is out, that means that there is likely a connection problem between the device and your internet connection. This includes intermediate devices like cables, Switches, routers and Internet modems.
Also be sure your phone is attached to the Line1 connector on the device.
Please check all of these, and that all the connections are correct.
The first thing that should be done is to power cycle your device, this can be done by simply unplugging the device, waiting about 10 seconds then plugging it back in.
If the device comes back on line,
Still No dialtone, the Power and Ethernet lights are on and solid. Now what ?
Verify that your Internet connection is working properly, by simply using your computer to browse to a website.
If all these fail call us for additional support
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Why do I get Phantom Rings
Pahntom rings are related to the system and voicemail to your line.
This is a feature on most Standard Phone Adaptor boxes (ATA’s), that may be desirable for some and a total annoyance for others.
When you have an un checked Voicemail waiting for you the Phone will give a short ring every 4-5 minutes, reminding you that you have a voicemail that needs to be checked.
To stop the reminder either:
- Log in to your voicemail on the phone and listen to all the new messages
- Log in to your Account on-line and access your voicemail folder. Then go into your Voicemail ‘INBOX” and listen to your message(s).
If there are messages in your Inbox the reminder will continue, so select the check box next to the message (or select the all at the top of the list) then either delete the message, or move it to another folder - Contact us to give you directions to disable the reminder ring on your VoIP device. This will eliminate the reminders forever (you will still get a stuttering dial tone when you first pick up your phone indicating messages waiting)
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Fluttering sounds and/or Dropped calls
Q: While Im on the phone the conversation seems to stutter or flutter, what is this and how do I fix it ?
A: This effect is most likely due to a degraded internet connection. This situation can also happen in reverse, where the conversation sounds fine to you, but the other party on the call hears these artifacts. This is situation is referred to as Jitter, and can happen in either direction, where only one side of the conversation hears the artifact. There are several remedies to correct this, and it is particular to your connection and network. Typically installing or configuring a router with QoS (Quality of Service) setup for VoIP protocol is a good solution. This insures that Voice traffic through your internet connection has Priority over all other traffic. This will help in most circumstances, but in no means is a panacea for every situation.
Please Note:
Netgear routers use both a problematic NAT and SPI.
You may need to place the ATA into a DMZ zone on a Netgear.
We do not recommend using Netgear Routers.
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