New Fibre, Home Phone Not Working

Hey,

Hoping someone can offer some advice with this issue. I have recently upgraded to Vodafone Fibre 500. All went smoothly and the internet was working before the guys left. Speed tests show around 520 Mbps consitently so very happy with that. However the home phone didn't work. After a few days of calling and still not working they told me the router wasn't correctly provisioned. This has now been fixed and the Phone light showing on the router.

However I am unable to get calls to work properly. I have 2 phones, a BT Freedom Cordless handset and an inexpensive wired handset. The BT cordless doesn't seem to work at all. when I press the call button there is no dial tone and it doesn't ring when called. The cheap Corded handset does give a dial tone and does ring but during a call I can hear the caller but they can't hear me. Both these phones worked on the SF2 I had before.

I have tried swapping the RJ11 to BT cable the phone came with to the RJ11 to RJ11 cables that came with the router and also bought a BT - RJ11 adapter but neither make a difference. The cables are plugged into the TEL socket on the back of the router.

I called VF again yesterday and, after resetting everyting, it still the same.

Are these "older" phones not compatible? I would have expected the Router to provide a BT compatible signal so they would work.

Any advice or opinions?

Thanks

Out of curiosity …. does the phone work in the old landline socket ?

The old phone socket is gone, they took the old line away. So I only have the router now.

The two very centre contacts (pins 3,4) are used on a standard FXS analogue port in routers. Note that pins are numbered left to right from positions 1 to 6 when holding the plug contacts facing up with cable from you. Typically there are only 4 contacts in place in an RJ11, the outer positions are empty - the inner ones, 2,3,4 and 5 have contacts usually.

Older BT handsets may be wired with contacts 2 and 5 on their port in play to match the BT plug using contacts 2 and 5. Hence a possible mismatch.

That doesn't explain calls working in one direction but not the other though; one pair carries the audio in both directions.

True enough. Apologies I didn’t red the OP properly. One way audio etc looks like to sort of misconfiguration issue.

Well I managed to borrow a friends newer Cordless phone and it seems to work fine. Baffled by this as I would have thought they would be the same.

Is there some kind of adapter I can get to fix this? I'm reluctant to throw away 2 perfectly good cordelss handsets.

My guess is that the Vodafone router isn't giving enough line voltage to drive the phones properly - whereas the newer cordless phone is powered entirely from its own DC adapter.

A device to boost the line voltage is almost certainly going to be far more expensive than buying a couple of new phones. I suggest that's what you do - and donate or freecycle the old phones.

If your cordless handsets are DECT standard then in principle they should work with a new DECT base station, at least for basic calling - you may lose access to more advanced features such as stored numbers.

You could move your phone number to a completely independent VOIP provider, and then you could use your own equipment (e.g. a standalone ATA or a SIP DECT base station) to drive your phones. Unfortunately, that will also cease your Vodafone service - and presumably you're right at the beginning of a new contract, so there will be a huge cancellation penalty.

If you make mostly outbound calls, then you could use a standalone ATA for this (with a new phone number from a VOIP provider, e.g. Sipgate). Maybe Vodafone can divert your incoming calls to this new number, although there will almost certainly be charges for this.

In reply to a post by ayrshiredude:

The old phone socket is gone, they took the old line away. So I only have the router now.

my in-laws still have the wiring, they can make calls on the BT Digital Voice but only receive on the copper, in fact you can call the copper from the Digital Voice phone and even use 17070 via Digital to get a line test which rings the copper. They are in a 3 week "parallel running" state according to the order tracker.

A friend of mine just got changed to BT's "Digital Voice" and was also talked into new handsets.

These don't have a base station, just a charger like the extension phones where a DECT base station is in use. They are run only on wifi from the router.

I had a look earlier on the BT website and don't see them. All the ones there have look like they have raised dialling buttons. These have flush ones, though with raised control ones.

If I remember when I'm round there tomorrow, (l'll be quite busy doing other things), I'll check out the exact model numbers. I don't see any reason they shouldn't work, as long as there is a voicemail service at Vodafone, as most of us want some sort of voicemail on landlines as well as our mobiles.

Edited by pluralist (Thu 30-Dec-21 19:58:03)

Yo Phil !

Enormously long time no hear …. How are you these days ?

I'm good thanks, back from a year abroad. Yourself ?

In reply to a post by pluralist:

A friend of mine just got changed to BT's "Digital Voice" and was also talked into new handsets.

These don't have a base station, just a charger like the extension phones where a DECT base station is in use. They are run only on wifi from the router.

I had a look earlier on the BT website and don't see them. All the ones there have look like they have raised dialling buttons. These have flush ones, though with raised control ones.

If I remember when I'm round there tomorrow, (l'll be quite busy doing other things), I'll check out the exact model numbers. I don't see any reason they shouldn't work, as long as there is a voicemail service at Vodafone, as most of us want some sort of voicemail on landlines as well as our mobiles.

It's probably the "Advanced" handset, available from http://bt.com/dvequipment

https://kenstechtips.com/index.php/bt-digital-voice#... suggests the BT handsets are DECT from the hub, the BT site agrees https://www.bt.com/content/dam/bt/help/digital-voice...

Still plodding on Phil. If anyone can plod, it’s me.

Zarjaz

Better to be a plodder that does RFT than a speedster that needs 4/5 attempts to get to a quality standard!

Tru dat Kitcat

Yes they are. I said so in the post . Second paragraph.

The point is her base stations have always had a recording facility, but these don't and can't. Unless it is in the BT Hub 2 (I think) and controlled entirely from the handsets and I haven't realised. Those do have the the usual facility for accessing voicemail via a button that lights up green when there are some. A piccy of reel-to-reel tape on it ROFL.

I was there today but occupied with installing blocks under the settee, frame with high seat on the loo and several other things. So forgot all about the phone system.

The reference to Vodafone near the end of that post is in relation to the OP who has a problem with finding new handsets.

In reply to a post by ayrshiredude:

Is there some kind of adapter I can get to fix this? I'm reluctant to throw away 2 perfectly good cordelss handsets.

It a nutshell, it not really worth the bother imo.

Apologies once again but now that I’ve actually re-read your OP properly (rather than a scan under the influence of rum. It was a nice drop btw) there is no way in hell that’s a mis-pinout / cabling issue between socket and handset.

I think candlerb is pretty much spot and it’s simply the older handsets drawing power from the line voltage during a call (clearly a smidge too much for the VoIP adapter port in the router).

Really the best way forward as said, is to replace the handsets. The old ones can go on Olio rather then landfill.

you said " They are run only on wifi from the router" - they aren't, they are DECT, which isn't wifi. So we agree

I can't argue with that . I'll have to believe you. I said what I did because the only setup instruction was to press the WPS button on the hub when told to do so by the phone on setup .

Your BT link by the way was just the Certificate of Conformity. In your kenstips one scrolling down to the side-by-side comparison of phones, they are the Essential Digital on the right with the red "Block number" button in the near centre. With normal protruding keys, not flush square ones. (Leaving me with the problem of where have I recently had to handle such !).

She ordered a third as well. I hope it's another the same! Not got round to asking where it is yet, as she went into hospital for a full hip replacement on Wednesday and came home yesterday evening. A friend of hers from next-door-but-one to her and myself have been very busy starting on New Year's Eve getting all sorts of aids into the flat.

Plus several hours in sort of shift-working to keeping her company and not letting her have accidents . I have to go back later!

Edited by pluralist (Mon 03-Jan-22 20:18:29)

DECT is a wireless technology.

Bluetooth is a wireless technology.