Anyone using MJ _and_ an ATA connected by a phone cord?

mmagic · Post by **mmagic** » Fri Oct 17, 2008 5:56 pm

Hi

I see a lot of people asking about setting up an ATA with MJ's SIP account info, then not using a PC at all. The so-called "BYOD" solution. Sounds great, and if it becomes legal, I'll definitely be interested.

In the meantime, I thought this might work and still be within the Terms of Service:

1. Plug the MJ into a USB port on a Windows computer as usual.
2. Connect the MJ's RJ-11 (FXS) port to an ATA's FXO port using a phone cable.
3. (Optionally) have the ATA register with Asterisk to proxy calls from other SIP and/or analog devices.

I tried it with a Grandstream Handytone HT-503 ATA. It works...except that the voice quality is so broken up that you can't hold a conversation, and DTMF tones are not transferred correctly. I tried a little fiddling with the HT-503's voice codecs but that didn't help.

Has anyone gotten this to work? If not with Grandstream, perhaps with a Linksys SPA3102?

Mark

JohnnyFreightTRAIN · Post by **JohnnyFreightTRAIN** » Tue Oct 21, 2008 11:12 pm

Alright, so the whole purpose of using an ATA is not having your computer on all the time...

So in order to do what you are trying to say, you need to plug your magicjack into a computer and run a telephone cord from your magicjack to to the ATA?
Wouldn't that require me to have my computer on?

I've never used an ATA or anything like that so im not too sure if i understand this exactly.
Can anyone explain this to me in layman terms?

mmagic · Post by **mmagic** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 5:16 pm

I have two or three computers on all the time anyway, so that's not my issue.

I want to physically connect Magicjack to an ATA so I can use Magicjack with Asterisk and still abide by the Magicjack terms of service (only connecting through the physical device).

Mark

mberlant · Post by **mberlant** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 8:30 am

mmagic, what you suggest is both reasonable and viable. You probably are experiencing a limitation in the Grandstream ATA. It is possible (I don't have a Grandstream with FXO to check) that the Grandstream expects a -48VDC battery from the MJ, which it does not deliver. The MJ delivers a -24VDC battery.

If you can, change the Line-in-Use sensitivity setting from 22V to 9V. This is what is necessary on a Sipura/Linksys ATA to realign its sensitivities. While you are at it, make sure that the Grandstream's FXO is set to North American standard.

I use this scheme with a Sipura SPA-3000's FXO port connected to my Philips Bluetooth gateway to integrate my cell phone into my Asterisk.

mmagic · Post by **mmagic** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 1:38 pm

mberlant, thanks for your reply. I actually switched from Grandstream to Linksys 3102 for my Asterisk setup. I do see the "Line-In-Use Voltage" setting at the bottom of the PSTN Line tab. It is apparently set to 30 by default.

For now I've just been using the MJ softphone when talking on MJ. MJ quality used to be great, but has declined in the last few months (lots of echo, especially when receiving calls). Even Asterisk calls through regular land lines are sometimes poor quality. I don't know if that is due to configuration issues with my 3102s, or my phone, or what, but at some point I had to stop investing dozens of hours in phone setup and get back to business!

If I have time to revisit this someday, I'll come back to this post with your recommendations on voltage.

mberlant · Post by **mberlant** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 1:57 am

I forgot to mention that on the SPA, near the top of the "PSTN Line" area of the Voice/Info page is a readout of the battery voltage sensed on the line. A real phone line will show -44 to -48VDC when the line is idle and will show about -13 to -18VDC when the line is in use. If you see readings of 1/2 that, you now know what's going on, and that you need to reduce the sensor voltage.

Good luck.

mmagic · Post by **mmagic** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 4:44 am

mberlant wrote:I forgot to mention that on the SPA, near the top of the "PSTN Line" area of the Voice/Info page is a readout of the battery voltage sensed on the line. A real phone line will show -44 to -48VDC when the line is idle and will show about -13 to -18VDC when the line is in use. If you see readings of 1/2 that, you now know what's going on, and that you need to reduce the sensor voltage.

Good luck.

Cool, thanks for the tip. Interesting, one of mine shows -50V on-hook and -7V in use. My other line, with a separate 3102, shows +50V on-hook and +7 in use. Have I got the polarity reversed on that line? Is that bad?

mberlant · Post by **mberlant** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 11:28 am

It is not bad, it is just indicative that that particular jack is wired backward. If you were to plug an original WE2500 telephone into that jack its dialing buttons wouldn't generate tones.