Audio Skips - Even when Dialing

[Jeffrey Halsyon]

Greetings,
Using MJ (Brand new.. old one died) on a Toshiba Satellite with XP and a Gig of RAM.

We'd had some problems with the previous MJ; the audio skipping and sounding like an intermittent connection. Got a new MJ and set up. Still skipping.

I've run the TCP optimizer from a post about skipping/wobbly audio, I've also set the My Computer Processor Settings to Background. I have also gone to town shutting down processes.. but in all honesty, my Task Manager shows the CPU and Commit Charge aren't really getting all that bad. It ALWAYS sounds skippy on my system (even when checking a message left on MJ voicemail). Usually the call recipients also have difficulty hearing us, but I left a voicemail to my landline and it's actually very clear.

This morning I noticed something that I hadn't put my finger on before: the skipping even happens when I'm DIALING. I've not yet connected to anything and it sounds like skipping.

So, I'm beginning to wonder something - is it possible that the MagicJack is drawing more current than our USB port can provide? We've tried it on all four, to no avail, and I've only just read about USB port current limitations.

Any ideas on the 'skipping' that happens even when I'm simply dialing?
Any info on how much current a MagicJack is supposed to draw?

Has anyone tried using a powered USB switch/router? It would kinna suck if one had to purchase something like that to make MagicJack work.. but at least we'd have a solution, eh?


Thanks,
JH

[Jeffrey Halsyon]

Extra info - We got to test some more.. and it looks like the headphone gives much more skips than plugging a phone in.... on an old fashioned phone (A 'princess' phone from way back when Bell said "Come Here, Watson, I need you") it works fine. Hmm... I wonder.... we've tried different sensitivity settings for the microphone and speakers (both in MagicJack and Windows Control Panel).

I wonder: Is it possible that the problem stems, at least in part, from the close-in wiring of a LapTop??????

JH

[booyah5]

Try using the same MJ on another computer in your network. If it works great, you'd know you have a problem with your current rig.

I had real bad skips until I did a redo on my OS.

[Jeffrey Halsyon]

Booyah5,
Thanks for the info. One of our weaknesses is that we have just the one computer, but we'll see if we can get another onto the network.

Redo the OS, huh? Hmm.. worth consideration.....


JH

[booyah5]

I do a redo at least once a year. Long ago I've learned to either partition the hard drive, or add another hard drive, and everything I want to keep for good in my D:\ drive. That way, all I have to do is move my profile over to D:\ when I do a redo.

It was about time for a redo anyways. And it worked. I had way to much crap running.

[JohnnyFreightTRAIN]

Same here.
I got a virus right before I got my magicjack, so I had to wipe my system.
Magicjack was one of the first things I installed, and it's been working great!