Phone line out, DSL line in.

I have DSL, which of course uses standard copper phone lines. (All 4 wires, or just the red and green?)

Phone line out, DSL line in. Phone is always busy to callers from outside. No dial tone for me, just silence.

How can this be?

Because some of my phone jacks weren't working, about 10 years ago, I disconnected the line from the NIC to the basement, and ran a line up the front of the house to the second floor, though the spare b'room and to the DSL modem in the office. This also meant, even when I had dial-up, that the computer got the freshest phone signal in the house.

The problem is probably where the round white solid 4-conductor phone wire goes between the window and the window frame.

But my question is, how can the phone line be shorted while the DSL works fine???. Aren't they both using the same 2 wires? (even though there are 4 wires.)

BTW, I used to use thinner wire, but I've been using this stuff for the last two years. I'm already planning to buy some shielded wire, to replace the current round phone wire, so I can close the window better.

Reply to
micky
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phone lines hung busy are most often caused by a malfunctioning cordless phone, unplug all phones and try again.

if it still is busy take a old non cordless phone, unplug home at NID, and plug in phone.

if its still busy at the nid call your phone company, they likely have a bad cable or a central office issue.....

yeah i have done lots of phone repairs and upgrades over the years

Reply to
bob haller

They hook your phone wires through a dsl unit in the switch room. That means, that even with the input wires broken or disconnected, the outgoing wires from the dsl unit still carry the dsl signal. So, yes ,your scenario is quite possible.

Reply to
Sjouke Burry

I just went thru this. No dial tone, but DSL worked. I disconnected the line. Had -50V on one wire and zero on the other. Looks good to me... but it wasn't zero because it was the ground return. It was zero because squirrels had chewed thru it half a mile away and that line was open. The DSL managed to get thru the hot wire and the earth ground at the junction box. The phone needed a good return line. Sounds like yours might be shorted somewhere keeping the line off-hook.

Reply to
mike

In article , micky writes

One of the 2 wires is broken somewhere. That would kill phone service but DSL still works because it's near radio frequencies and the single wire still connected acts as an antenna.

Yes

Reply to
Mike Tomlinson

Here the DSL is sent over the POTS twisted pair from a box on the next block, thus negating the "maximum" distance problem with using a 3KHz distribution system for 10Mhz or more signals.

If you don't have one, get a DSL splitter (outside)and use new wiring to your DSL Modem. Even if it's a modular cable from Rat Shack or Beast Buy, it's probably better than whatever's in your walls. Here we can't get DSL without voice.

Reply to
dave

Yours was open fialed the low frequency stuff, of course, but the high frequency could still get through.

OP might have a 'short'which caused the switch house to 'think' he's always OFF HOOK, probably went through that sequence of loud recording followed by no more POT line power, thus he hears dead silence, no calls come through and callers get BUSY tones.

So, disconnect your line from the houw wiring, measure the impedance between lines at your box, if it's not you call the phone company. If it's you, start tracing down the problem.

Reply to
RobertMacy

correct..

if the red and green are shorted together accidentally along a POTS wire, the POTS will not work anywhere in the house. Since the DSL works at high frequencies, the "short" is not a good short for the DSL signals and so it can still work...

so look for a short

Mark

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Reply to
makolber

As to the question, everyone who attributed the DSL working to high frequencies was probably right. The Verizon woman on the phone also said the phone and dsl used different frequencies. Thanks everyone.

As to the problem, I was going to measure voltages, but first I went outside to check things. Verizon will now check one's line and she said they could tell if the problem was at their end or mine. She said she got a green meaning the phone company's situation was good. One can also do the same test online, and then it follows with more instructions on testing (which I assumed would be helpful but later realized it was no more than what I already knew (disconnect each wired to see if the dial tone comes back) , and arranged in an order that wasn't best for me.)

So I did get a dialtone outside the house, and then I tugged on the ends and pushed in on the ends of the 12 inch modular wire I was using to connect to the round wire. Then I went in and for a few reasons forgot to test for 5 more hours, at which time everything worked.

So it either fixed itself after 32 hours or more, or my fiddling with the wire restored a connection. Thanks everyone for the help.

I'm going to replace the chain of modular wire - round wire - modular wire with

Reply to
micky

The real reason for those RTs (Remote Terminals, a Central Office in a box) is the lack of useable copper pair capacity from the old big building COs. Not only has there been a lot of growth in population density, but much of that old copper infrastructure is in bad shape and many pairs in it are unusable.

One big problem with those RTs is the lack of backup power. They have batteries which will hold them for eight hours or so when new, and a lot less in a few years of baking in the sun and freezing in the winter. Unlike big building COs they do not have permanently installed backup generators.

The Telco has towable generators to theoretically back up the RTs, however the ration of RTs to generators is large and a big storm can both exhaust the generator supply and also make towing them to some RT locations difficult with flooding, downed trees, etc. Cell service is now more reliable than land lines, since the cell sites do have generators and fuel supplies to last at least a few days.

As for DSL working and voice getting a busy signal, remember that it does not take a short to take a line "off hook", rather it takes a certain amount of current flow which means that a corroded damaged cable could provide a partial short enough to take the line "off hook", but not prevent the DSL from working to at least some extent.

Reply to
Pete C.

bob haller posted for all of us...

And I know how to SNIP

+1
Reply to
Tekkie®

And I know how to SNIP

so how do you snip

Reply to
bob haller

This wasn't the problem this time, but I'll keep it in mind for next time.

It's hard for me to believe I fixed the problem by massaging that one piece of modular phone cord, so I have a feeling the problem just went away.

Reply to
micky

Give it a month, and you can look for it again. ;)

Reply to
RobertMacy

bob haller posted for all of us...

And I know how to SNIP

If I tell you will you do it?

Reply to
Tekkie®

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