Called party can not hear me

Share your tips, tricks and best practise ideas for Fongo services in here!

Called party can not hear me

Postby godot2012 » 08/22/2012

I have the FONGO home phone service for quite a few days now. I had no problems with the service until today.

I made a call (my neighbour!) and while I could hear him answering the call nice and clear, the called party could not hear me at all. Not even faintly. When I called my cell or (still existing) Bell number the problem was easily reproduced. It was also the same bug when I called my FONGO home number from either my Bell number or from my cell.

After powering down my entire setup (DSL modem; router and the ATA) and restarting it, the problem was fixed. This is quite concerning. Particularly with my two-way ALARMFORCE system which otherwise checked out OK.

Has anyone experienced this phenomena? Is this a common problem?
godot2012
Active Poster
 
Posts: 77
Joined: 07/28/2012
SIP Device Name: GrandStream ATA
Firmware Version: Fongo shipped
ISP Name: 295.ca
Computer OS: WIN 7
Router: NETGEAR DB WNDR4000
Smartphone Model: Nexus4
Android Version: 4.3

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby dibsmft » 08/22/2012

This is a common problem and is usually due to the router/ATA not being properly configured. What kind of ATA are you using?
dibsmft
*Go-To Guy*
 
Posts: 651
Joined: 05/11/2011
Location: St. John's NL
SIP Device Name: Yealink T22 (SPA3102 GS286)
Firmware Version: 7.60.0.110
ISP Name: Bell-Aliant DSL
Computer OS: Linux Mint
Router: Speedstream 6520
Smartphone Model: Google Nexus 5
Android Version: 3.2.1

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby godot2012 » 08/23/2012

I have the Fongo provided ATA.

I still have a problem. The system worked fine for days. It is not likely that the configuration changed. It was left untouched! Also as I said powering the system down and restarting it solved the problem. Come to think of it we had a power outage one evening. The power was out for quite awhile. Still when it came back the system should have reset itself.
godot2012
Active Poster
 
Posts: 77
Joined: 07/28/2012
SIP Device Name: GrandStream ATA
Firmware Version: Fongo shipped
ISP Name: 295.ca
Computer OS: WIN 7
Router: NETGEAR DB WNDR4000
Smartphone Model: Nexus4
Android Version: 4.3

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby Red89GT » 08/23/2012

Make sure you have the correct ports forwarded to the ata. Giving the ata a static up can help aswell.
Red89GT
Active Poster
 
Posts: 79
Joined: 03/28/2010
SIP Device Name: PAP2T-NA
Firmware Version: DD-WRT v24-sp2
ISP Name: Shaw Cable
Computer OS: Win 7
Router: Asus RT-N16

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby dibsmft » 08/23/2012

godot2012 wrote:I have the Fongo provided ATA.

I still have a problem. The system worked fine for days. It is not likely that the configuration changed. It was left untouched! Also as I said powering the system down and restarting it solved the problem. Come to think of it we had a power outage one evening. The power was out for quite awhile. Still when it came back the system should have reset itself.

Which model of ATA do you have?

The ATA may then be correctly configured but possibly not for your circumstances and might need some tweeking. Unless you have set a fixed IP on the ATA from the router and forwarded ports the ATA might work (if you are lucky) but mat cease to work after a while.

For now, power down the router and ATA, wait 10 minutes and then power up the router and as soon as it is working power up the ATA. The ATA should work but do then configure the router etc if you have not done so.
dibsmft
*Go-To Guy*
 
Posts: 651
Joined: 05/11/2011
Location: St. John's NL
SIP Device Name: Yealink T22 (SPA3102 GS286)
Firmware Version: 7.60.0.110
ISP Name: Bell-Aliant DSL
Computer OS: Linux Mint
Router: Speedstream 6520
Smartphone Model: Google Nexus 5
Android Version: 3.2.1

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby godot2012 » 08/23/2012

Red89GT wrote:Make sure you have the correct ports forwarded to the ata. Giving the ata a static up can help aswell.


Sorry to be dumb here, but what do you mean by 'have the correct ports forwarded to the ATA'? And how do you do that? I have no info on the ATA. No access go its configuration files. It supposed to be plug-and-play, which it was originally. Also, I assume that 'giving the ATA static IP address' would require access to the configuration of the ATA. I guess I could configure my router to assign the same IP address to the MAC of the ATA, but to pair it properly the ATA would need to be set also. And why would you need to do this?

If this is the best VoIP can be well, I could make it work, but I would not recommend it to grandpa. Hence it is far from being a viable alternative to the simplicity of POTS.
godot2012
Active Poster
 
Posts: 77
Joined: 07/28/2012
SIP Device Name: GrandStream ATA
Firmware Version: Fongo shipped
ISP Name: 295.ca
Computer OS: WIN 7
Router: NETGEAR DB WNDR4000
Smartphone Model: Nexus4
Android Version: 4.3

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby dibsmft » 08/23/2012

That is the problem really. POTS is not particularly simple but is very standardised across a country (even most of the world) and for a very long time even the phones were standardised. With SIP voip the protocol is standard but the sytems that it can be run on are extraordinary diverse....... thousands of different routers and ATA boxes and smartphones that can be configured in different ways. It is not clear to me exactly what Fongo is doing with its home phone but I assume that they porovided you with some guide as to how to set it up. In your case it is probably the router causing the problem. The TP LINK TL-WR642G offers SIP ALG that does not always work well and you may have to turn it off and forward the ports that Fongo specifies.
I certainly would not recommend voip to my grand parents but they got along fine without a phone or the internet anyway!.
dibsmft
*Go-To Guy*
 
Posts: 651
Joined: 05/11/2011
Location: St. John's NL
SIP Device Name: Yealink T22 (SPA3102 GS286)
Firmware Version: 7.60.0.110
ISP Name: Bell-Aliant DSL
Computer OS: Linux Mint
Router: Speedstream 6520
Smartphone Model: Google Nexus 5
Android Version: 3.2.1

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby Bloodsong » 08/26/2012

godot2012 wrote:
Red89GT wrote:Make sure you have the correct ports forwarded to the ata. Giving the ata a static up can help aswell.


Sorry to be dumb here, but what do you mean by 'have the correct ports forwarded to the ATA'? And how do you do that? I have no info on the ATA. No access go its configuration files. It supposed to be plug-and-play, which it was originally. Also, I assume that 'giving the ATA static IP address' would require access to the configuration of the ATA. I guess I could configure my router to assign the same IP address to the MAC of the ATA, but to pair it properly the ATA would need to be set also. And why would you need to do this?

If this is the best VoIP can be well, I could make it work, but I would not recommend it to grandpa. Hence it is far from being a viable alternative to the simplicity of POTS.


I would not call FPL the "best VoIP can be" but it does a fair job of giving the best possible FREE service.
If you want help with the set-up feel free to PM/E-Mail me from my profile and I can use a remote-access software (preferably TeamViewer) to attempt some set-up configuration with you.

Since more ISPs have moved toward integrated routers the VoIP landscape has become more complicated as it used to be a company could just ship a VoIP ATA/Router combo and have you plug that directly to the modem. This avoided most of the nastiness of Port Forwarding, ICE/STUN/TURN, Nat-Traversal, and IP assignments.

VoIP's ideal environment would be to have the ATA as the first stop on your network, and when that is the set-up, it certainly is simple and reliable even for grandma/grandpa.

If you're curious, read through some of my past posts, I go into considerable detail on both computer networking and VoIP systems in some posts to explain the VoIP landscape and current IP-phone ecosystems.

P.S.

If your router supports a Static-IP assignment/DHCP Reservation/"Static-DHCP" (choose your preferred jargon.) Then it should not be necessary to make any "matching configuration" on the ATA. Just make the assignment on the router hit apply, and then unplug your ATA for a minute or two. When you plug it back in, it will ask the router for an address, and the router will provide the one you have reserved for it's MAC.
User avatar
Bloodsong
Tried and True
 
Posts: 362
Joined: 09/18/2009
Location: Simcoe County
SIP Device Name: Zoiper| Grandstream GXP2000
ISP Name: Tek Savvy Internet (DSL)
Computer OS: CentOS, Arch, Widows 7, AIX, AS/400
Router: Cisco ASA 5520
Smartphone Model: Samsung Galaxy Ace Q
Android Version: 2.3.6

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby dibsmft » 08/26/2012

The trouble with routers and fixing IP for devices they don't all use the same method. With mine, all that is needed is to fix a range for DHCP use and then for static IP you set the device as static and set an IP outside the DHCP range. I am not sure if it is still a problem wuth ISP "free routers" but when I was forced to use by my ISP (when TV over the internet came here) to replace my own good working router it came with "customised" firmware which seem to make Voip much more difficult. With a little "work" the new router was made to work properly and still does but I could have done without the irritation and I still have not subscribed to TV over the internet. Only one of the routers that I have has a Static-IP assignment/DHCP Reservation/"Static-DHCP" option.
dibsmft
*Go-To Guy*
 
Posts: 651
Joined: 05/11/2011
Location: St. John's NL
SIP Device Name: Yealink T22 (SPA3102 GS286)
Firmware Version: 7.60.0.110
ISP Name: Bell-Aliant DSL
Computer OS: Linux Mint
Router: Speedstream 6520
Smartphone Model: Google Nexus 5
Android Version: 3.2.1

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby godot2012 » 08/26/2012

Thanks again. I have ordered a UPS from Amazon. This makes a lot of sense to me for many reasons. And the more I think of it the half an hour or so power outage last week caused the problem. I suspect that when the power came back and the system re-established itself the configuration get screwed up. Let's see how it will work for awhile.

I kept all your responses and may invoke your suggestions and offers.
godot2012
Active Poster
 
Posts: 77
Joined: 07/28/2012
SIP Device Name: GrandStream ATA
Firmware Version: Fongo shipped
ISP Name: 295.ca
Computer OS: WIN 7
Router: NETGEAR DB WNDR4000
Smartphone Model: Nexus4
Android Version: 4.3

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby dibsmft » 08/26/2012

A back up power supply is pretty essential .... even your local PSTN phone Co. is supposed to have one. I did consider a UPS but instead went for 60 Watts of solar panels and a 12 volt battery because, here, power outages are rare but when the happen they can last quite a long time (one or 2 days when main power lines are affected. The battery is large and will run my modem/router and ATA for days especially if there is some sunshine. I can also use it for running my computer, charging my cell phone or even making tea (bit of a waste but it works). Normally, a power failure should not mess up your configuration as long as you start the modem/router first and then the ATA just to make sure every thing is OK (perhaps the ISP went off line so you will likely have a new or expired external IP if you are on DSL).
dibsmft
*Go-To Guy*
 
Posts: 651
Joined: 05/11/2011
Location: St. John's NL
SIP Device Name: Yealink T22 (SPA3102 GS286)
Firmware Version: 7.60.0.110
ISP Name: Bell-Aliant DSL
Computer OS: Linux Mint
Router: Speedstream 6520
Smartphone Model: Google Nexus 5
Android Version: 3.2.1

Re: Called party can not hear me

Postby Bloodsong » 08/26/2012

@dibsmft: Care to give us a run down of how the set-up works? I'm sure we have a few do-it-yourself-ers out here that might consider trying something similar.

I will mention one advantage of a UPS is that the vast majority of them are not simple "dumb" back-ups but also provide protection from power-spikes and dirty power/issues with line harmonics by cleaning the power before supplying it to the attached devices, potentially increasing the lifespan of your electronics.

What kind of 12V battery? Seems to me most back-up power supply/generation type set-up tend towards deep-cycle marine batteries.
User avatar
Bloodsong
Tried and True
 
Posts: 362
Joined: 09/18/2009
Location: Simcoe County
SIP Device Name: Zoiper| Grandstream GXP2000
ISP Name: Tek Savvy Internet (DSL)
Computer OS: CentOS, Arch, Widows 7, AIX, AS/400
Router: Cisco ASA 5520
Smartphone Model: Samsung Galaxy Ace Q
Android Version: 2.3.6


Return to Tips & Tricks From Seasoned Users

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 11 guests