Background Noise

Posted: Mon Nov 29, 2004 4:38 pm Post subject: Background Noise

Those of us around long enough can remember the old days of background noise on long distance phone calls-- and how revolutionary it was when Sprint started heavily promoting their fiber optic network that was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

On our Vonage line, no matter if we are calling local or long distance, there is background noise-- a wooshing sound like rushing air, much like the long distance calls of 20 years ago. It's not so loud as to interfere with the conversation, but after two decades of nearly perfectly silent PSTN service, the background noise is just loud enough to be annoying.

Elsewhere on this forum I've read posts saying the service is extremely quiet with virtually no background noise.

Do any of you experience the background noise I'm talking about, or is there perhaps something wrong with our adapter?

Guest

I'm getting this same background noise. At first I thought it was my PC fan but it occurs on my wireless phone in a quiet room too. Would be nice to know we could filter this out.

Guest

I too notice shwoosing sounds no matter who or when I am calling which is constant - almost sounding like a very distant digital modem on the line - very annoying!

Posted: Fri Dec 24, 2004 10:22 am Post subject:

I just hooked up my Vonage system and have the same problem. I called tech support and after trying to fix it from their side the determined the router was defective and are sending me a new one. I hope that fixes problem, although I'm not optimistic. I’ve seen numerous other complaints about this. I've also seen review of people who use router from a different manufacturer other than linksys and had the sound go away.

Posts: 15 · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 10:18 am Post subject:

I just got off the phone with Linksys and they told me it was a hardware problem. They know its there and some are having it while others aren’t. I was told to go back to where I bought it and to exchange it. Know don’t get me wrong, but if it is a hardware problem aren’t the other ones made with the same hardware? I also got the Linksys rep to tell me there is a firmware update coming out to help in this problem too. The 1.26.01 firmware that everyone has been looking for is a beta firmware and will not help in the sound problem.

Posts: 3198 · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 11:28 am Post subject:

if you read around this forum, you'll see that some apparently don't have the problem as bad as others. you'll also see one user who said Vonage is getting fixed units from linksys soon. I would find the post but I'm on a cell phone right now.

Posts: 89 · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 12:09 pm Post subject:

I have read many posts on this same issue. I have the linksys router also with very little if any background noise. I have read that if you plug a phone into the 2nd phone line on the router and leave it off the hook it will be better. Give it a try. Maybe a temp. fix until they resolve the issue.

Just my 2 cents

Posts: 448 · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 1:24 pm Post subject:

reebok wrote:

if you read around this forum, you'll see that some apparently don't have the problem as bad as others. you'll also see one user who said Vonage is getting fixed units from linksys soon. I would find the post but I'm on a cell phone right now.

Less than 24 hours ago UPS drove up with adapter #3 and it's by-far the worst of the 3 (we have 2 other lines already). Given the history of noise complaints, I was under the apparently mistaken impression Vonage would only ship the new/improved units from now on. Obviously they are still shipping the old junk units. Either that, or the allegedly improved units really aren't any better.

Either way, I'm very disappointed. It'll be another week before a replacement for this piece of crap arrives, and I'm not holding my breath it will be any better. Meanwhile, I'll have to use the other lines for calls, since the background noise on this line is over the tolerable level.

Posts: 70 · Full Forum Member Joined: Jan 11, 2005 Posts: 70

So if it takes a while to get this new units from Linksys is Vonage going to replace current customers adapters even beyond the trial period??

Posts: 448 · Posted: Wed Jan 12, 2005 2:26 pm Post subject:

Kash76 wrote:

So if it takes a while to get this new units from Linksys is Vonage going to replace current customers adapters even beyond the trial period??

Good question, but I'm guessing probably yes. We got our first line in October. After living with noise on that line for nearly 3 months I called and complained to support last week. They didn't give me any hassles about sending a replacement, which is on a UPS truck as I type this. They're also sending a replacement for the unit which arrived yesterday (for line #3) and is the noisiest of all.

The unit we got for line #2 has background noise also, but it's far quieter than the other two. If we replace it we could end up with one that's worse, so we've decided to keep it until Linksys and Vonage get the issue resolved once and for all.

Hopefully the more pressure users put on Vonage for replacements, the more pressure they'll put on Linksys to solve the problem. Given the quantity of adapters Vonage must be purchasing these days, I'm sure they have some leverage with Linksys.