cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
1,942 Views
Message 1 of 8

Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN

We have FTTP (a home) being connected up in a few days time, and BT have
prematurely wished "Digital Voice" upon us without consent.

For many years the arrangement is that our existing landline comes in
to the master socket in a convenient location and serves a number of
conventional telephone outlets around the building. Also, plugged into
a phone socket, is a Panasonic DECT base station that serves several
slaves.

For the present FTTC broadband there is a BT VDSL modem. But we do not
use a "BT Hub", have never done so, and never will. Rather, we have a
Ubiquiti router, several switches, a WAP unit and cat5e ethernet cable
everywhere.

When fttp comes alive, there will be an ONT near to the outside CSP,
and a new cat5e cable is at the ONT location, threaded to the router
location, ready to replace the nearly obsolete modem -> router link.

How will 'digital voice' interface with an ONT and one's own
router/LAN?  I cannot find anything anywhere about this commonplace
situation.

I sort of imagine an ONT with an analogue 'voice' output to simply
bridge across to the existing telephone wiring. Or is that just too
naive?

Can someone help me, please?

0 Ratings
Reply
7 REPLIES 7
1,932 Views
Message 2 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN


@chosulman wrote:

 

How will 'digital voice' interface with an ONT and one's own
router/LAN?  I cannot find anything anywhere about this commonplace
situation.

I sort of imagine an ONT with an analogue 'voice' output to simply
bridge across to the existing telephone wiring. Or is that just too
naive?

Can someone help me, please?


You clearly haven't looked. There are countless posts regarding this, including https://community.bt.com/t5/Home-phone-including-Digital/Digital-Voice-FAQs/td-p/2207485

0 Ratings
Reply
1,918 Views
Message 3 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN

Many thanks for that link which, having spent most of the day on this issue, I have seen  - but doesn't answer my question.

My LAN does NOT have a BT supplied Home-Hub router.switch/wifi.  The arrangement is as described in the post.

In summary: How does Digital voice integrate with a bespoke LAN, please?  TIA.

 

 

0 Ratings
Reply
1,914 Views
Message 4 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN

 


@chosulman wrote:

  - but doesn't answer my question.


Yes it does.

As stated in the FAQs, Digital Voice can ONLY be used with the SH2 as it acts as DECT base station. It cannot be 'integrated into your LAN'

1,902 Views
Message 5 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN

WHAT ????

When I placed my order for fttp today with BT, digital voice was not even mentioned!

-------

So what are my options?

(1) I do not want to use BT's Hub/Switch/Router.

(2) Culturally I cannot possibly afford to lose my phone line/number of nearly 50 years.

Is there really no device to connect an ONT to existing analogue phone wiring?  Ridiculous.  What kind of migration policy is this?

The big problem now is how to speak to someone at BT to ensure that our copper wire service is maintained for a while until this issue can be accommodated!  I accept the need for copper switch-off.  But this surely isn't the way to do it.

If I sound furious - I am!  But I thank you for your patience.  J.

0 Ratings
Reply
1,896 Views
Message 6 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN


@chosulman wrote:

 

(1) I do not want to use BT's Hub/Switch/Router.

Use a third party VOIP provider

(2) Culturally I cannot possibly afford to lose my phone line/number of nearly 50 years.

Investigate if the number can be ported to a third party VOIP provider. I don't know if that is possible I'm afraid. Alternatively divert the number but that will incur paying for incoming calls.

Is there really no device to connect an ONT to existing analogue phone wiring?  Ridiculous.  What kind of migration policy is this?

No, otherwise I would have said so in the FAQs

 


 

1,847 Views
Message 7 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN

Sounds like you have lots of technologies there which you've added to and shaped to suit your needs. A bit complicated for many people perhaps.

Moving to DV/FTTP will mean a few changes but you've managed perfectly fine in the past with your setup so it means a little bit of planning.

The Smart Hub 2 is very good and does its job well. You can plug analogue telephones into it directly (or extension cables) or use its inbuilt DECT system to add separate telephones.

I use LAN out of my SH2 to a switch and from there there's no change to any of my old setup (just a complicated as yours).

Pen and paper will help.

1,832 Views
Message 8 of 8

Re: Integrating Digital Voice with established LAN

BT FTTP ( without a voice service)  could be ordered in addition to the existing set up , obviously more expensive  than  everything delivered over one FTTP connection, but  telephony over the copper pair is closing, getting FTTP to replace your FTTC  ( rather than FTTP and FTTC together) affords BT the opportunity to move you off PSTN now…as a way of ensuring no loss of phone number or broadband you may need to keep  both FTTP and FTTC for a short period…or simply cancel the FTTP and hope your current setup remains, but in the knowledge that by 2025 traditional telephony will be history.

DV is BT’s optional proprietary  telephony service , it’s not compulsory , it requires you you use the equipment supplied , don’t want to use BT SH2 , that’s OK for broadband , but you cannot use DV, so no point in getting FTTP with DV, FTTP without telephony  is a little cheaper as well.

It may be a little late to do this now but porting the number to regular VoIP provider would allow it to be accessible without including the SH2 in your set up , but will still make the copper pair redundant, assuming you keep FTTP.

Interfacing your VoIP service ( either DV or a third party VoIP provider ) into your internal extension sockets is not your providers responsibility, it can be done , they even provide some equipment free to enable most consumers to do away with wired sockets , obviously some situations may not be as straightforward as replacing wired sockets with cordless DECT phones.

In the short term , if it’s essential that the SH2 isn’t incorporated into your network, you probably need to cancel your FTTP ( if it’s not too late ) and consider carefully the way to proceed, FWIW, it also appears that if you port your landline number to a VoIP provider , that will cease your  FTTC that would need to be reordered with a new number ( that you don’t use ) or get FTTP  without any phone service .

If you were starting from scratch, you order FTTP without telephony as a stand-alone service in addition to your FTTC , you migrate your non telephony onto this , you then port your number to a VoIP provider , this has the consequence of closing your FTTC service , you are then responsible for making the VoIP service accessible from your existing setup….don’t mind paying more than necessary, keep the FTTC as it is as well as the FTTP , but in the knowledge that at some point in the near future and by end of 2025 at the latest your phone will no longer plug into a copper master socket but a router of some sort.