Old phones and the new BT internet-only phonelines

[Riccardo Grillo]

It all sounds like it's going to be a lot of hassle to be quite frank. For one, I have a number of telephones, all GPO706s, and while the one I have fitted with a Rototone does indeed work well, there is something annoying about having to make sure you are quick at releasing the dial, and having to listen to tut tut [...] tut BEEP after every digit dialled.

Being of the generations that owned a mobile before owning a landline, I can say 2G mobiles have their uses, like when you break down in north Norfolk, but are fiddly and annoying, reception is not always great, they are not something I want to have on my person all the time, and something I often lose [EDIT misplace]. Unless I leave it by the phone, in which case I know where it is.

I've ended up with a smartphone too. That is even worse. It works badly on internet, it works moderately well as a phone, and is a reasonable camera. The sound quality is not good on a call. It is quite an irritation having to find the phone app on the phone before you can phone anyone.

Having lived in a place where the landline was usually the last service to fail (even the battery backups on mobile phone masts can go flat eventually), I'm not terribly excited about having to spend a lot of money converting my phones to tone dial to then have to faff about converting my internal wiring to connect to a new system. But hey, who cares if it's any good, as long as it's new, right?

On the plus side, I suppose it does sound as if we'll be catered for, sort of. Starting to see the logic in having an amateur radio (that I've never bothered to buy) set on hand, though.

only have cordless phones which die anyway in a power cut

A few moons ago I had a cordless 'phone that had in its base station space for four AA cells, the manual stated they should be installed if this was the only 'phone in the house.

[giraffenigel]

Originally Posted by Riccardo Grillo

I'm not terribly excited about having to spend a lot of money converting my phones to tone dial to then have to faff about converting my internal wiring to connect to a new system.

If the internal wiring is plugged into the Dialgizmo and that is then plugged into the router telephone socket then all the ockets will be capable of pulse dialling. I know you've still got to fork out 40 quid for the Dialgizmo but it is a lot less fiddly and more reliable than fitting a Rototone to each phone.

[Oldcodger]

Originally Posted by merlinmaxwell

A few moons ago I had a cordless 'phone that had in its base station space for four AA cells, the manual stated they should be installed if this was the only 'phone in the house.

mm- possibly a DANCAL . I had a DECT model, which would register to a Diverse 1010 base. From memory the NiCad cells were ( possibly) AAAA in the phone. I still have the phone & base ( somewhere), and the plastic case for the battery.
But looking at the problem, I'd suggest that any cordless could be made independent of mains power.

[Dave Moll]

But doesn't the lack of a 'phone signal from the router defeat the mains-independent 'phone?

[Oldcodger]

And lack of power to the router prevent any use ( or lack of ) service. To me locally, if Iwas served by fibre, I'd expect the router to fail, and given the proximity to local Phone masts, I'd expect my mobile signal to fail. That's why I do as dad did ( and he lived in deepest highlands of scotland) and keep a gas stove handy to brew /cook up, and a supply of rags and oil ( for communications purposes).

[Riccardo Grillo]

Originally Posted by giraffenigel

If the internal wiring is plugged into the Dialgizmo and that is then plugged into the router telephone socket then all the ockets will be capable of pulse dialling. I know you've still got to fork out 40 quid for the Dialgizmo but it is a lot less fiddly and more reliable than fitting a Rototone to each phone.

Interesting idea indeed and if I could indeed use 1 Dialgizmo to convert all my internal phones in one shot, I'd be tempted to do that anyway. At £40 for however many phones I may wish to connect, that's affordable. I wonder whether this would work on my system though.

As per a previous thread, I have a slightly weird telephone system internal to my house. All my extension sockets have been wired in ethernet cable and the phones themselves are connected via the BT plug in a 4-wire way instead of the standard 3-wire way such that the ring current runs on one twisted pair and the conversation on a separate pair. The theory is that this will prevent eddy currents affecting the unfiltered twisted pair supplying the ADSL modem/router device.

Having looked at the Dialgizmo website, I'm fairly sure the device is intended for use with one phone only. It also claims to have a 'ringing pass-through' of 2 REN, which would be a concern seeing as I already get hesitant ringing for 4 phones from a 4 REN ringing capacitor. As it connects via a 2-wire connector, it presumably contains its own ringing capacitor which will also presumably result in induce bell tinkle when dialling out if other Dialgizmo phones are also used on the same internal wiring, same as we find when we try to connect two vintage phones via separate ADSL filters?

I am assuming there may be a way around this, such as developing a Dialgizmo with a larger ring capacitor? I will contact the firm and see what they come back to me with.

[Dave Moll]

Dialgizmo doesn't have its own ringing capacitor. It is necessary to provide one at the output. Both the input and output of the DG are via "RJ11" sockets, so it is necessary to supply cables to connect to your output and input devices. If the output of the DG is wired to a master-type socket, you should have the REN you need. If you use an NTE5 socket (e.g. ask to retain your existing master once it has been disconnected from the PSTN) your internal wiring should remain unchanged.

[giraffenigel]

Originally Posted by Dave Moll

Dialgizmo doesn't have its own ringing capacitor. It is necessary to provide one at the output. Both the input and output of the DG are via "RJ11" sockets, so it is necessary to supply cables to connect to your output and input devices.

I have an adapter on the input of the Dialgizmo with a ringing capacitor and changed the plug from RJ11 to a BT type plug on the output.

I've got a 150 with bellset 1,a 232 on a bellset 26, a 328 and a 706 along with a couple of modern telephones going through a BT REN booster and all the phones dial out fine and they all ring. I picked up the REN booster on Ebay a few years ago and it gives you an extra 8 REN.

Of course none of it works in a prolonged power outage!

[giraffenigel]

Having looked at the Dialgizmo website, I'm fairly sure the device is intended for use with one phone only. It also claims to have a 'ringing pass-through' of 2 REN, which would be a concern seeing as I already get hesitant ringing for 4 phones from a 4 REN ringing capacitor. As it connects via a 2-wire connector, it presumably contains its own ringing capacitor which will also presumably result in induce bell tinkle when dialling out if other Dialgizmo phones are also used on the same internal wiring, same as we find when we try to connect two vintage phones via separate ADSL filters?

I am assuming there may be a way around this, such as developing a Dialgizmo with a larger ring capacitor? I will contact the firm and see what they come back to me with.

It may have been intended for 1 phone but the whole point of my original post was to let people know that it works perfectly well on multiple vintage phones.

The "firm" is a chap called Justin and if you get a reply from him it'll be a first!

[Riccardo Grillo]

In fact, I haven't had a reply from Dialgizmo. Pity. Thanks to you lot for the information. It's been helpful and if Dialgizmo can be used to convert pulse to tone, all the better, though that other device someone mentioned that allows you to make one phone ring another also sounds very interesting (though I have to admit most of the instructions went over my head).

A pity REN boosters are obsolete, but from what people are saying it should be possible to wire an RJ11 plug onto the A and B terminals of a master socket (I'll supply my own i.e. a very old BT linebox one that was made in the days when they could be bothered to gold plate the contacts and Openreach can keep the one it supplied recently as it's rubbish anyway). And that will give a REN of 4, which is quite enough really.

[dagskarlsen]

I have made my own Ringer current booster, Should not be any problem to make it even easier for UK 3 wire system. http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/f...6899#msg246899

[Oldcodger]

Originally Posted by Dave Moll

I have no personal experience (still being purely on copper), but it would appear so from what has been said before.

As per poster, I'm still on copper (BB is FTTC) , but how many mobile companies still offer 2G. I could get a decent deal from Plusnet as I'm a BB customer, but my house is said to be of 1920/1930 vintage and all but one mobile signals only work outside and I can get better deals for a mobile on a Vodafone allied company , (along with solid mobile signal inside my home). it's simply finance. For £5 each, Swmbo & I can have mobiles with unlimited calls and unlimited texts and a low rate of data. For a similar sum, I could get a plan on my landline . I could ( at £1 per month more ) get a lot more data + unlimited calls and texts with Plusnet, but with (inside home) limited coverage.
I know ,as I've tried all of the networks and only Vodafone ( and it's subsidiaries = Talkmobile) provide this.

[trsomian]

Had FTTP installed last week by OpenReach, and BT supplied a cordless phone, but it is connected by WiFi only, the base station is for charging only.

Not sure I like it, but one less thing to work out how to power in a mains failure. I don't think the router has a phone connection socket, sadly, so I am still working out how to get a phone working in the bedroom

[Graham G3ZVT]

Originally Posted by trsomian

so I am still working out how to get a phone working in the bedroom

Is it this phone
https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.ph...and-users.html

It looks to me that they want £50 for a second one in the bedroom.

I genuinely don't know if you're tied to using BT supplied equipment or if the SIP credentials are given to you so you can use (say) a smartphone with a VoIP app, either native or downloaded.

[giraffenigel]

Originally Posted by trsomian

Had FTTP installed last week by OpenReach, and BT supplied a cordless phone, but it is connected by WiFi only, the base station is for charging only.

Not sure I like it, but one less thing to work out how to power in a mains failure. I don't think the router has a phone connection socket, sadly, so I am still working out how to get a phone working in the bedroom

You probably have the BT smart hub 2 if you have FTTP, in which case there is a normal telephone socket on the back of the router underneath a sticker.

[giraffenigel]

This is what the hub looks like under the sticker

[Tim]

TRSOMIAN. You’ll probably have to order “ voice service” from your service provider. Then they will supply you with a VOIP enabled hub.

[ms660]

Royal Mail delivered a BT Smart Hub 2 today, no BBU though, apparently my existing big button "landline" 'phone will work ok with it after switch over, but not if there's a power cut.

Lawrence.

[Dickie]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/co...able-call-999/