Why won’t my new phone work? I plugged it in…

I recevied an intersting phone call from a gentleman today.

He stated that he has always had “Spirit Phones” around his house.  They were old and grungy so he went to office max and purchased a new telephone (not a spirit phone) and tried to plug it in.  He was amazed it didn’t work!

I get this phone call a lot.  A lot people simply do not understand that if you have a proprietary phone system, the only phone that will function are the phones made for that system.

I explained to him that all of the phone jacks in his house were not directly connected to the actual phone lines from his service provider.  When a phone system is installed in a business or a house, the jacks all around the house are disconnected from the phone lines and a phone system is placed in the middle.  The phone lines do thier talking to the phone system and then the phone system relays that traffic to whichever phone is in use.

So in order for him to use his store bought AT&T home phone he is going to have to have a phone tech or someone that knows what he’s doing to disconnect all the jacks in the house from the phone system and retie them back into the phone lines.  And that needs to be done the proper way.

So if you have plugged in a phone in your house or office and it doenst work but all your other phones do, you should check to see if all of your other phones are the same phone.  If they are, chances are you have a phone system tucked away somewhere.

Jay Harper

281-894-6606

http://www.teletechnology.net

Avaya Releases Partner ACS 8.0 Processor

The New Avaya Partner ACS R8.0 processors are now shipping. You can read more about this brand new release at http://www.ttechnologyinc.com/phonesystems/att_lucent/acs/r8.asp

Also, Release 7 processors CAN BE UPGRADED to release 8.

Jay Harper

281-894-6606

SIP Trunks, In General.

Session Initiation Protocol

Everybody is banking on this.  I certainly understand why!

Called SIP for short.  I’m going to get too much into what SIP really is and means in this write up, maybe another, but when it comes to delivering voice services to your office and business via SIP, we call that a SIP TRUNK (opposed to a copper trunk, which what you are used to)

In a nutshell, it’s a way for voice and data vendors to deliver your voice traffic to your office using an Internet protocol.  This Internet protocol travels to your office over the vast computer networks setup from the providers equipment to each AT&T hub, then to a T-1 copper trunk and straight into your office.

Now, most people do not have a phone system that can decode a SIP signal.  They just simply don’t exist (well a little, and more are on the way).  To that end, providers (such as Logix) have been forced to purchase, install and provide to you a device, usually Cisco, called an IAD.  IAD stands for Integrated Access Device.  They cost the PROVIDER generally upwards of $800 (they don’t like that, so they love this SIP trunking directly to your phone system idea, anyhow..)

This IAD will take their raw SIP “trunk” and the decode it.  On the other side of the IAD will pop network Internet access (just like from the DSL modem) along with “emulated” analog phone lines.  This box will provide a signal that is simply put, exactly like an analog, copper phone line.

Your legacy phone system knows no different.  As far as it is concerned, it’s getting a normal phone line tied up to it and that makes it very happy.

Well, with the advent of VoiP Hybrid phone systems, such as the BCM50 from Nortel Networks or the Office IP 500 from Avaya, connecting two phone systems together over the Internet or a WAN has  been a reality … using a …. you guessed it, a SIP TRUNK.

Let’s understand that the word SIP TRUNK is a general term, like the word CAR.  A car is generally used for driving.  Some people drive them to work, some people drive them backwards in smash em derbies.  Either way, they push the pedal and car goes vrmm.

A SIP TRUNK is similar.  It’s using the Internet to carry your voice from one spot to another.  Several scenarios exist.

1) System to system, handy unified communications!!

2) System to remote phones

3) ahhh, you guessed it..  voice provider to customers system… hmmm what a great idea.  believe it or not, it’s barely even possible!!

So to that end, SIP trunking is not just a replacement for traditional voice services.  It didn’t even start that way.  It will end up there though.

SIP Trunking requires very very efficient bandwidth at the customer premise. To effectively employ SIP trunking having an efficient MPLS helps too.

Now, as to a phone system that will accept a direct SIP trunk directly.  Only a few premise based, customer owned IP PBX’s exist that will do it.  Drum roll please.

Cisco
Avaya (IP Office)
Nortel Networks (BCM)
Ingate
Diguim

As to service providers.  Here in Houston, the only one I know of is Broadvox, call me and I will hook you up with a rep, 281-894-6606

Soon to roll out the same service is Logix.  I’m sure others will follow.  Quality of service are some tough issues for a providers to work through.  Any customer at this point attempting to do a provider based SIP trunk to a premise based IP PBX is a Guinea pig, but that’s ok.

For the rest of the world, or business customers in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee, Nuvox has rolled out their SIP trunk service.  You might want check them out if you live in those states.

Jay Harper

As always, feel free to call me at 281-894-6606
or visit us online at

http://www.ttechnologyinc.com

http://www.telecompaging.com

http://www.2k911.com
http://www.teletechnology.net

Houston phone lines, SIP trunks and more.

Being a phone system equipment provider here in Houston Texas,  I run across plenty of customers who are in need of new voice and data services or an upgrade to their existing services.

I also have had the opportunity to work with most of the phone line providers here in town and they with us.

Out of all the providers here in Houston, I must admit that I personally endorse Logix more often than any other company.  Before we get into why, let me at least mention who the big service players in Houston are.

Logix ( for info email Jeffrey Scheldt @ Jeffrey.Scheldt@LogixCom DOT com, tell him Jay from Tele Technology sent you. )
Birch Telecom
Cbeyond
AT&T
Broadvox
Time Warner Telecom

These days, Birch Telecom and AT&T are generally the only companies that utilize normal, analog, copper trunks to your office any longer.  Just about all of the other companies will pull a single, zero mile T-1 from AT&T to your office and go Voip the rest of the way to their equipment here in Houston.  Through that T-1, they pump as many voice channels as you need through and then squeeze your Internet access beside the voice traffic on the same T-1.  Generally a Cisco box is installed in your office that converts the providers IP traffic back to standard analog telephone signaling for use with phone systems (boy won’t hey be excited when SIP trunks become the norm! more on that in a different blog)

Out of all these companies, I really do feel like Logix is the easiest to deal with and the most relaxed to work things out with.  So far in my experience, they do not oversell, they do not fib about what you are going to get and they don’t pressure you into a fast contract.

Now, I’m NOT going to say anything bad about any other providers. Mom as said, nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all.  Although Birch really does always seem to be a good company too.

Logix is ranked the third largest voice and data services company in Houston by the Houston Business Journal (behind AT&T and Comcast home service).  I personally feel that this helps them help you.  They know how to keep their costs down, their large customer base helps that.  They really do help pass that onto their customer base.

Logix offers a dynamic T-1 with 32 phone lines for somewhere in the neighborhood of $530 per month. They also now offer a dynamic PRI platform for those that need PRI service directly to their phone system.  On the market soon will be the long awaited SIP trunks (I’ll have a whole nother blog on THAT one!)  and yes I know nother is not really a word, but I’ve never been the orthodox type.

Logix services only Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Fort Worth, Oklahoma City and Tulsa.  And they concentrate heavily on these regions.  They are smart enough to know that to survive in the phone lines market in these areas, they better take care of their customers with some seriousness, and that’s exactly what they do.

Now, all of these providers mentioned will eventually, at the end point, provide analog phone line service, T-1 or PRI services to your phone system (well, they won’t touch your phone system, but we will 281-894-6606) Anyhow, everybody thinks that these companies are delivering IP service.  This is incorrect.  They might use an Internet protocol to get the services to your building, but it’s converted onsite.  And that’s nothing special, AT&T has been using IP from city to city for MANY years.

Broadvox, here in Houston, is so far that I know of.. the only company that provides an actual, no kidding SIP trunk, again, I’ll have to have a whole other writing on the SIP trunks and all the ins and outs, which I plan to do next, but just know that only a very small number of phone systems on the market today will even accept a SIP trunk directly.. like 3 or 4, however this is coming down the line to be far more main stream.  It’s great for the providers cause now they don’t have to put an $1100 cisco box in your office to do the conversion.  But you do.. when you buy that phone system that will accept a SIP trunk, get my point.

Jay Harper

As always, feel free to call me at 281-894-6606
or visit us online at

http://www.ttechnologyinc.com

http://www.telecompaging.com

http://www.2k911.com
http://www.teletechnology.net