Ringer problems

[Jim_746]

I have a GPO 746 which has been converted and it works fine if another phone is connected to the wall as well but if it is the only one it runs into some problems. Some times it will ring once (bring not ting) and sometimes it will only click.

Another thing, when I had it working at a friends house the bell use to tinkle if the handset was picked up, put down or if one of the extentions were picked up, put down. This does not happen in my home.

Thanks in advance.

[Dave Moll]

Have you checked that the conversion has been done correctly? See here for instructions.

[Jim_746]

I converted it my self with those instructions and checked every thing was working when I got the phone.

[russell_w_b]

Check all screwed connections are tight, especially the wires leading to the bell-motor. If they are loose, they may account for your intermittent ring and could have been disturbed during the journey from your pal's house to yours.

An odd 'ting' when another telephone's handset is lifted or replaced is quite normal.

Does it work normally on its own at your friend's house?

[Jim_746]

I made sure all connections were tight when I made the conversion and then checked again when the problem first arose. As I said, it rings fine when another phone is on the line as well.

[Jim_746]

I havent been able to test if it works on its own at my friends as he needs the extention at all times.

[russell_w_b]

Originally Posted by model746

I havent been able to test if it works on its own at my friends as he needs the extention at all times.

Then you'll need to test it elsewhere, other than your own line, so that a reasonable diagnosis can be made. It would be good if you could try a known 'worker' 746 on your own line as well.

These two actions would save a bit of time!

[julie_m]

Also, what's the Internet situation at your home and your friend's?

Certain wiring errors can go undetected with certain phones, until you introduce ADSL filters into the mix.

[Jim_746]

At my house I have broadband and an ADSL filter connected to each plug whereas my friend does not have an internet connection.

[russell_w_b]

When you say your 746 'works if another telephone is connected to the wall', what sort of other telephone? And where is it connected? Another extension, or a plug-in multi adaptor?

A plug-in ADSL filter is effectively a little master LJU with its own bell capacitor and output to wire 3, but is not connected to the wire 3 that is supposed to run through all your telephone extension sockets contiguously. The effect, on a properly-wired 2-3-5 contiguous master-extension socket system, of using dial telephones through plug-in ADSL filters local to the sockets is that the bells on other extensions 'tinkle' when dialling.

This is because wire 3 is broken in the ADSL filter between the telephone doing the dialling and the remainder of the system. It is this third wire that not only feeds the bell of the telephone, but allows a bell-tinkle shunt-path between damping components in the telephone.

Simply, the 746 (or other dial telephone) doing the dialling will normally shunt all the other bells on the system as soon as the dial is turned, thus preventing 'bell-tinkle' on all other extensions via the third wire (3 on the socket). If this wire is broken, as is the case when a plug-in ADSL filter is used, then other bells will tinkle when dialling.

The get-around is to use a face-plate master NTE ADSL filter, so all your extensions will be filtered in one place, and your 2-3-5 wiring to all extensions will be contiguous, allowing 'tinkle-bell' to be shunted.

Try removing your ADSL filters and checking your wiring from master-LJU to ALL extensions, and ensure that socket connections 2-2-2-2... 3-3-3-3... 5-5-5-5... are all sound and NOT swapped over at any point. Absolute polarity isn't important, but relative polarity most certainly is!