Forum Discussion

DocT's avatar
DocT
Freshman
7 years ago

Problems with voice dropping calls - had been working fine

We have a problem with our HughesNet phone service for the past 2-3 weeks.  After 8-10 minutes or so the call drops.  Sometimes we cannot reestablish the call without trying 5-6 times; then when we r...
  • DocT's avatar
    DocT
    7 years ago

    OK, it looks like we have a fix!  Happy dance!

    I had an online chat with customer service yesterday afternoon, posting the same description that I have above.  The rep I chatted with was Angela Gray, and she was methodical and patient.  (I have an IT background and I understand the need for tedious detailed steps.)  I will admit that I was skeptical of her solution, but I think she was absolutely correct.

    This is how I had things wired.  It was installed this way, and worked fine for 9 months.

     

    MODEM
    MODEM - - - - - - - - - - - ATA- - - - - - - - - - -ROUTER - - - - - - other stuff

    MODEM

    MODEM

     

    Angela said that the wiring should look like this:

     

    MODEM

    MODEM - - - - - - - - - - - ATA

    MODEM - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -ROUTER - - - - - -  other stuff

    MODEM

     

    That is, NOTHING should be plugged into the fourth (green) port on the ATA.  The internet comes in from the modem on the yellow port, the phone jack plugs in to Phone 1 (blue?) port.  That's it.

    The modem has four internet out ports on it, so plugging the router into one of those was simple, once Angela got it through my thick head that this was an option.

    We have not had a call drop since.  We talked to my daughter for over an hour last night.  I'm calling this a solution.

    I commend Angela's patience, clarity, and knowledge.

DocT's avatar
DocT
Freshman

I do this multiple times every day!  Often, when it drops a call, I start getting a ringback, as though the system were trying to reestablish the connection.  When I pick up, the line is dead.  As soon as I hang up, it rings again.  The only way to stop this is to cycle the ATA.  Sometimes, I cycle both, but getting everyone out of what they're doing and off the internet is a bit more hassle.

In any case, that has not helped yet.  Once it has started dropping calls, the chances of making another call of more than 2 minutes or so diminish dramatically.  Cycling the sysytem fully or partially does not seem to change that.

I hope I can get some response soon.  For obvious reasons, I can't *call* customer service on the VOIP.  We are in a rural area with no cell phone service.

(To be fair, the only wired phone provider in this region is Frontier, and their products, pricing, and service are terrible!)

HELP!  Please!

Liz's avatar
Liz
Moderator
7 years ago

Hi DocT,

 

Haven't heard back from the team yet, but I will follow up again Monday morning.

 

 

  • DocT's avatar
    DocT
    Freshman
    7 years ago

    OK, it looks like we have a fix!  Happy dance!

    I had an online chat with customer service yesterday afternoon, posting the same description that I have above.  The rep I chatted with was Angela Gray, and she was methodical and patient.  (I have an IT background and I understand the need for tedious detailed steps.)  I will admit that I was skeptical of her solution, but I think she was absolutely correct.

    This is how I had things wired.  It was installed this way, and worked fine for 9 months.

     

    MODEM
    MODEM - - - - - - - - - - - ATA- - - - - - - - - - -ROUTER - - - - - - other stuff

    MODEM

    MODEM

     

    Angela said that the wiring should look like this:

     

    MODEM

    MODEM - - - - - - - - - - - ATA

    MODEM - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -ROUTER - - - - - -  other stuff

    MODEM

     

    That is, NOTHING should be plugged into the fourth (green) port on the ATA.  The internet comes in from the modem on the yellow port, the phone jack plugs in to Phone 1 (blue?) port.  That's it.

    The modem has four internet out ports on it, so plugging the router into one of those was simple, once Angela got it through my thick head that this was an option.

    We have not had a call drop since.  We talked to my daughter for over an hour last night.  I'm calling this a solution.

    I commend Angela's patience, clarity, and knowledge.

    • DocT's avatar
      DocT
      Freshman
      7 years ago

      Epilogue.

      Angela (customer service rep from the chat conversation) called me this morning to ask if the problem had resolved.  I told her it had.

      So good job to HughesNet customer service for fixing the problem, and again for followup.

      I'm impressed.

      t

      • BirdDog's avatar
        BirdDog
        Assistant Professor
        7 years ago

        Liz, based on the fix it appears the ATA hookup instructions may need a review and possible revision.