| TROUBLESHOOTING |
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| I don’t hear a dial tone and either PHONE1 or PHONE2 LED is not lit. What should I do?
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If you get dead air when you pick up the phone instead of a dial tone, you might want to go through the following checklist:
- Make sure you have plugged your telephone into the appropriate port, either Phone1 or Phone2, on your phone adapter. You should only use the Phone 2 port if you have more than one Internet telephone service account
- Make sure you have Internet connection by ensuring that the Ethernet LED on the front panel of the phone adapter is lit and your network cable is plugged to the phone adapter’s Ethernet port
- Make sure you have Internet connection by unplugging and re-plugging the telephone cable between the router/modem and the telephone handset
- Make sure your router is functioning properly
- Make sure your Internet Service Provider (ISP) is not down
If you still hear dead air, then your phone adapter needs to be rebooted. Follow the instructions included with your Times Telecom Start-Up Kit or refer to the next question “How do I reboot my phone adapter?” to learn how to quickly reboot the device.
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| How do I reboot my phone adapter? |
If you are having problems accessing your Times Telecom service, most cases your phone adapter, cable or DSL modem, and router needs to be rebooted. Simply, follow these instructions:
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Turn off your cable or DSL modem by unplugging its power adapter
- Turn off the router by unplugging its power adapter
- Turn off the phone adapter by unplugging its power adapter
- Wait 2 minutes, and then turn on your cable or DSL modem by plugging its power adapter into an electrical outlet
- Wait 2 minutes, and then power on the router by plugging its power adapter into an electrical outlet
- Wait 5 minutes, and then power on the phone adapter by plugging its power adapter into an electrical outlet
- Reboot one of your networked computers, and check to see if you have an active Internet connection
- Pick up the telephone. You should now have a dial tone
If you still have problems accessing your Times Telecom service after you have rebooted all the applicable devices, then contact customer service.
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| My phone does not ring, and my calls automatically go to voicemail. |
If your phone adapter can’t register with our proxy server, then Times Telecom will be unable to route your calls to the device. Your calls will instead go to your voicemail. Here are some reasons why your phone adapter is unable to register with our proxies:
- You have plugged your telephone into the inappropriate port, either Phone1 or Phone2, on your phone adapter. You should only use the Phone 2 port if you have more than one Internet telephone service account
- Your ringer volume is not set to an audible level
- Power outage
- Temporary ISP technical problems
- Your telephone is not plugged into your phone adapter
- Your router or firewall security options are blocking Times Telecom traffic
If you are experiencing one of the above problems, then your phone adapter needs to be rebooted. Follow the instructions included with your Times Telecom Start-Up Kit or refer to the next question “How do I reboot my phone adapter?” to learn how to quickly reboot the device.
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| My calls sound choppy. How can I improve this matter? |
Choppy calls typically occur when your Internet Service Provider’s (ISP) network experiences high latency or packet loss. In essence, the performance of your Internet connection could temporarily decrease, affecting the speed at which your voice data travels across a network and thus resulting in lost information. There are several reasons why your calls make choppy sounds:
- Heavy bandwidth usage, e.g. online gaming, videoconferencing, or file sharing
- Oversaturated network links causing Internet congestion
- Corrupt packets that are rejected in-transit
- Defective networking hardware
- Temporary ISP technical problems
You can improve this matter by:
- Go on the Internet and verify whether some websites you regularly visit are performing slower than usual. If it is performing slower, than your ISP is most probably experiencing problems.
- If you are using more bandwidth than normal, i.e. you are uploading/downloading files via the Internet, try pausing this activity and see whether the choppy sound stops.
- Try activating the Bandwidth Saver feature by logging into your account portal and reducing the bandwidth requirements for your service.
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| I hear an echo when I’m on the phone. How can I improve this matter? |
Echo typically occurs when there is high latency or packet loss, causing delayed repeat of your voice. This problem also happens frequently with traditional phone lines, but since the latency is so slight the echo usually goes unnoticed. There are two reasons why you get echo:
- You or the other party’s telephone handset or phone cables are of inferior quality
- Poor feedback between the phone’s speaker and microphone
You can improve this matter by:
- Call back the other party’s phone number and see whether the echo persists
- Ask the other party to change telephone handset or replace their telephone cables
- Ask the other party to lower the phone’s volume to reduce audio feedback
- Go on the Internet and verify whether some websites you regularly visit are performing slower than usual. If it is performing slower, than your ISP is most probably experiencing problems.
- If you are using more bandwidth than normal, i.e. you are uploading/downloading files via the Internet, try pausing this activity and see whether the echo stops.
The quality of your telephone handset actually plays an important role in reducing echo. Echo-cancellation relies on the handset’s internal technology, and the signals are transmitted and received.
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| When I’m on the phone, my call will suddenly end. How can I improve this matter?
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Commonly referred to as a “dropped” call, this problem usually occurs when your Internet Service Provider’s (ISP) network experiences severe latency or packet loss. In essence, the performance of your Internet connection could temporarily decrease, affecting the speed at which your voice data travels across a network and thus resulting in lost information. There are several reasons why your calls will suddenly drop:
- Heavy bandwidth usage, e.g. online gaming, videoconferencing, or file sharing
- Oversaturated network links causing Internet congestion
- Corrupt packets that are rejected in-transit
- Defective networking hardware
- Temporary ISP technical problems
You can improve this matter by:
- Go on the Internet and verify whether some websites you regularly visit are performing slower than usual. If it is performing slower, than your ISP is most probably experiencing problems.
- If you are using more bandwidth than normal, i.e. you are uploading/downloading files via the Internet, try pausing this activity and see whether you cancel any dropped calls.
- If you are using a wireless router, your static may be caused by interference with other electronic device(s). Try moving them away from each other.
- Try activating the Bandwidth Saver feature by logging into your account portal and reducing the bandwidth requirements for your service.
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| There’s static or buzzing on the line. How can I improve this matter?
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Your phone handset and cable are usually the culprits for the static or buzzing on your line, because only analog equipment can produce those noises in your phone system. Your phone adapter, on the other hand, digitizes the voice signal and eliminates any static from developing. Try changing telephone handset or replacing telephone cables.
If you are using a cordless telephone, your static may be caused by a weak signal-connection between the base of the telephone and the handset. Your handset may have low batteries or may be located outside of the recommended range from the base station.
If you are using a wireless router, your static may be caused by interference with other electronic device(s). Try moving them away from each other.
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| The Power LED does not light up or lights up red. What does that mean?
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If the Power LED on the front panel of the phone adapter is not lit or is red, you might want to go through the following checklist:
- Unplug the power adapter from the phone adapter. Wait 5 minutes, then re-plug the power adapter into the phone adapter again.
- You may be using the wrong power adapter. Make sure the power adapter you are using is the one included with your phone adapter.
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| The Ethernet LED does not light up. What does that mean?
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If the Ethernet LED on the front panel of the phone adapter is not lit, you might want to go through the following checklist:
- Make sure you have Internet connection by ensuring that the Ethernet LED on the front panel of the phone adapter is lit and your network cable is plugged to the phone adapter’s Ethernet port
- Make sure you have Internet connection by unplugging and re-plugging the telephone cable between the router/modem and the telephone handset
If the Ethernet LED is still not lit, then your phone adapter needs to be rebooted. Follow the instructions included with your Times Telecom Start-Up Kit or refer to the next question “How do I reboot my phone adapter?” to learn how to quickly reboot the device.
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| How will Times Telecom notify me of any technical problems concerning my Times Telecom service? |
| Times Telecom will regularly post any issues concerning your Times Telecom service in the Notice Board section, located in the far left of your account portal. |
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