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Ooma whole house connection
09-30-2014, 06:35 PM
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#1
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 968
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Ooma whole house connection
I'm looking for some feedback from Ooma owners.
We moved into our downsized home, and I am trying to get Ooma set up on all the phones (works great on the one).
Looking at these directions, it appears I need a router AND a modem to get all the lines connected- correct? Connecting your phone jacks | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma
I do not have nor have I had a phone line installed, so I know I am good on that front. Any kind of land line phones will work once I get this going?
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09-30-2014, 06:47 PM
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#2
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,358
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What we do is use a cordless phone with 5 handsets. So the progression is DSL line to DSL modem to Ooma to cordless system. We also have a wireless router for our internet that also plugs into the Ooma. So it is similar to the picture below except the Ooma plugs into our cordless phone system rather than to our house telephone wiring.
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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09-30-2014, 06:49 PM
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#3
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Independence
Posts: 7,297
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If you have in-home phone wiring you can run a jumper from the Ooma to the house wiring and then plug in phones wherever you like. We did that, but now just have our primary wireless phone plugged into the wall and little charger units all over for satellite wireless phones. We have a modem down south that has several ports, so one goes to my wired connection computer, one goes to the Ooma (with a phone line going out to the wireless phone base unit, and we use the modem wireless for everything else. Ooma is pretty forgiving - we've had it before and after a router and it has worked ok.
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09-30-2014, 07:14 PM
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#4
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: West of the Mississippi
Posts: 17,254
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I have an Ooma also.
What pb4uski said.
__________________
Comparison is the thief of joy
The worst decisions are usually made in times of anger and impatience.
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09-30-2014, 11:05 PM
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#5
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 881
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Also have an Ooma. Once you get it to work, pretty good. Voice excellent.
Customer service for me was terrible. Waste of time. Ended up, finding
help on the internet.
Using Ooma, with wireless adapter a pain for me. Took many tries, finally got it to work. Then when I had to buy a new Router, the Ooma wireless
adapter did not work.
Ended up, just running wire (Ethernet) directly from the Router to the Ooma unit.
From their, I did as other have mentioned. Plugged in a wireless phone,
with 4 separate wireless units. Just plugged in the other units around the
house.
Only cost $3 or $4 a month.....got a panosonic from Costco...works fine
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10-01-2014, 04:21 AM
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#6
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 402
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We are same as pb4uski, though cable rather than dsl. Great sound quality, with exceptions: sometimes calls between ooma and cell phones produce significant lag, causing us to talk over one another unintentionally, and with a very few specific callers we can hear clear echo, which I think is caused by those callers using speakerphone mode by default.
__________________
"The future's uncertain, and the end is always near. Let it roll, baby, roll." - The Doors
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10-01-2014, 04:48 AM
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#7
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Full time employment: Posting here.
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 534
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I too purchased a single phone with multiple wireless extensions rather that try to get the Ooma working on in-house wiring.
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10-01-2014, 04:51 AM
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#8
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Dryer sheet aficionado
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: OBX, NC
Posts: 27
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On my second month with Ooma over cable and wireless to the router. We have 5 Panasonic cordless phones, great system. So far, only very minor voice quality issues as pointed out by Tree-dweller.
Loved the blacklisting capability so much I sprung for the premier service when they offered a special deal on an annual subscription. The voicemail to email feature is also nice.
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10-01-2014, 05:19 AM
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#9
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,358
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We have had troubles with delays, particularly when answering the phone. I'll answer and say hello but the other side doesn't hear me say hello so I have to say it again. Occasional, but infrequent echoing. Plus we sometimes get random touchtone sounds during conversations, particularly with female callers.
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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10-01-2014, 02:24 PM
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#10
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Texas
Posts: 3,024
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We use an Obi100 VoIP adaptor. Exact same thing as Ooma, only a lot cheaper upfront, no monthly fee when used with Google Voice, and it's a generic device that will work with any VoIP provider I might want to use in the future.
We had no problem hooking up to in-home wiring... just one Cat-5 cable to the router, and a phone cable to the nearest phone outlet on the wall. All existing landline phones work. We use a combination of cordless and wired handsets.
I would not recommend using a wireless adaptor for the network connection. That just introduces another weak link. Always Cat-5 to the router.
__________________
Retired at 52 in July 2013. On to better things...
AA: 85/15 WR: 2.7% SI: 2 pensions, SS later
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10-03-2014, 10:31 PM
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#11
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Spending the Kids Inheritance and living in Chicago
Posts: 17,087
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I have been tempted by Ooma, so hearing what peoples experiences have been is great. I have used skype, and even on a linux computer it works very well for me.
I did go into my router and set it to give priority to voip , and that did improve it as large downloads could not hog bandwidth when I'm using skype.
One question about Ooma, can I take it with me when I travel and plug it into a network and receive phone calls like I am at home ?
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10-04-2014, 06:40 AM
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#12
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,358
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While I have not done it, I believe you can since it is internet based. Better yet, you can use multi-ring to have it ring a cell phone number and just take the cellphone with you. I have also found the website helpful to check messages while traveling though now I just have any messages left sent to my email at the same time the message is left.
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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10-04-2014, 07:27 AM
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#13
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Independence
Posts: 7,297
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pb4uski
While I have not done it, I believe you can since it is internet based. Better yet, you can use multi-ring to have it ring a cell phone number and just take the cellphone with you. I have also found the website helpful to check messages while traveling though now I just have any messages left sent to my email at the same time the message is left.
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Sunset - Just as pb4uski says. We have Ooma set to ring my gal's cell so we get any calls even if we aren't home. When we do the snowbird thing we stay in perfect contact with our Oregon number while en route to SoCal, plug into the internet down there, and people calling us hear no difference - calls to our Oregon number ring down south.
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10-04-2014, 07:30 AM
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#14
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: North Oregon Coast
Posts: 16,483
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wolf
Customer service for me was terrible. ...
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Only cost $3 or $4 a month.....
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At that price, yeah, I doubt I'd be expecting first-rate customer service. You don't get Nordstrom service with Walmart prices...
__________________
"Hey, for every ten dollars, that's another hour that I have to be in the work place. That's an hour of my life. And my life is a very finite thing. I have only 'x' number of hours left before I'm dead. So how do I want to use these hours of my life? Do I want to use them just spending it on more crap and more stuff, or do I want to start getting a handle on it and using my life more intelligently?" -- Joe Dominguez (1938 - 1997)
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10-04-2014, 08:53 AM
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#15
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: West of the Mississippi
Posts: 17,254
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pb4uski
While I have not done it, I believe you can since it is internet based. Better yet, you can use multi-ring to have it ring a cell phone number and just take the cellphone with you.
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Is that a part of the 'free' service, or is it part of the paid service - Ooma premier?
__________________
Comparison is the thief of joy
The worst decisions are usually made in times of anger and impatience.
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10-04-2014, 12:43 PM
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#16
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Sarasota, FL & Vermont
Posts: 36,358
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Chuckanut
Is that a part of the 'free' service, or is it part of the paid service - Ooma premier?
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We have premier and I suspect it is part of the premier service as I recall the free service as being quite skimpy. Still, for $14/month on average for premier, I think it is a good bang for the buck.
__________________
If something cannot endure laughter.... it cannot endure.
Patience is the art of concealing your impatience.
Slow and steady wins the race.
Retired Jan 2012 at age 56
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Need help to set up Ooma at home
10-04-2014, 12:59 PM
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#17
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,433
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Need help to set up Ooma at home
I bought an Ooma unit a while back but left on a long trip before I had time to set it up. I'm now back for a couple of weeks and am trying to figure out how to do this.
Several items of concern that I have:
I'm puzzled about what I need to do re: the existing AT&T line. My neighborhood has buried cables, so I'm unsure where the AT&T cable enters the house and how it is connected to the interior phone wiring. (I assume there's some type of "connector" on the basement ceiling somewhere.) To use Ooma on my existing phones that are plugged into the wall phone jacks, it sounds as though l need to disconnect the AT&T incoming cable from the interior house phone wiring Connecting your phone jacks | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma
Does anyone know what this "connector" looks like? And do I simply unscrew the incoming cable? Or, would it suffice to ask AT&T to shut off my service instead?
I want to have the base station Ooma Telo in my first floor kitchen (for quick access to check for messages and to verify that the Ooma service is operational) and my router is in a second-floor bedroom "home office". I purchased Ooma's wireless+bluetooth adapter unit, so hopefully that will take care of this issue.
I have a seldom-used FAX machine (located in the "home office" a few feet from the router), which would still be nice to have for the occasional time I need to FAX something. Faxing with Ooma | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma shows that it will require a phone splitter and cable. The wway the house is configured, it might be difficult to run a phone cable between the "home office" and kitchen.
Before I break something attempt to install Ooma, I'd appreciate any help/guidance from the knowledgeable posters here.
omni
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10-04-2014, 01:46 PM
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#18
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 3,602
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Quote:
Originally Posted by omni550
I bought an Ooma unit a while back but left on a long trip before I had time to set it up. I'm now back for a couple of weeks and am trying to figure out how to do this.
Several items of concern that I have:
I'm puzzled about what I need to do re: the existing AT&T line. My neighborhood has buried cables, so I'm unsure where the AT&T cable enters the house and how it is connected to the interior phone wiring. (I assume there's some type of "connector" on the basement ceiling somewhere.) To use Ooma on my existing phones that are plugged into the wall phone jacks, it sounds as though l need to disconnect the AT&T incoming cable from the interior house phone wiring Connecting your phone jacks | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma
Does anyone know what this "connector" looks like? And do I simply unscrew the incoming cable? Or, would it suffice to ask AT&T to shut off my service instead?
I want to have the base station Ooma Telo in my first floor kitchen (for quick access to check for messages and to verify that the Ooma service is operational) and my router is in a second-floor bedroom "home office". I purchased Ooma's wireless+bluetooth adapter unit, so hopefully that will take care of this issue.
I have a seldom-used FAX machine (located in the "home office" a few feet from the router), which would still be nice to have for the occasional time I need to FAX something. Faxing with Ooma | Free Internet Home Phone Service | Ooma shows that it will require a phone splitter and cable. The wway the house is configured, it might be difficult to run a phone cable between the "home office" and kitchen.
Before I break something attempt to install Ooma, I'd appreciate any help/guidance from the knowledgeable posters here.
omni
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On the outside of your house, there should be a box where the legacy phone wire comes in. If you open that box with a screwdriver you should be able to disconnect the house phone lines from the external phone line. If you still have active traditional phone service, then this should be simple to test that you have done it correctly.
Here is a picture and further details.
Once the house is disconnected from the external legacy phone line, then you could plug the Ooma box into any phone jack and it should back feed the phone jacks in the rest of the house.
When I set it up, I did 3 basic steps.
1- get the ooma running with just a single phone extension attached
2 - properly disconnect the house from the external phone line as
described above
3 - replace the single phone extension plugged into the ooma with a cord
that back feeds into a phone jack so that all the other phone jacks will
work.
For one who fixes their own appliances, this should definitely be within your skill set.
-gauss
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10-04-2014, 05:04 PM
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#19
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,433
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gauss
On the outside of your house, there should be a box where the legacy phone wire comes in. If you open that box with a screwdriver you should be able to disconnect the house phone lines from the external phone line. If you still have active traditional phone service, then this should be simple to test that you have done it correctly.
Here is a picture and further details.
Once the house is disconnected from the external legacy phone line, then you could plug the Ooma box into any phone jack and it should back feed the phone jacks in the rest of the house.
When I set it up, I did 3 basic steps.
1- get the ooma running with just a single phone extension attached
2 - properly disconnect the house from the external phone line as
described above
3 - replace the single phone extension plugged into the ooma with a cord
that back feeds into a phone jack so that all the other phone jacks will
work.
For one who fixes their own appliances, this should definitely be within your skill set.
-gauss
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Thanks, gauss.
I did a lap of my house's exterior. Lo and behold, I found this 3" x 3.5" box marked "Bell System" (which probably dates back to 1977 when the house was built) and a small 'rats nest' of wires inside.
As this configuration is a bit different from the one pictured in the link in your post, what are the "next steps" when I am ready to disconnect from the legacy AT&T service? [BTW, there are two smaller gray-clad cables that run from the house into the rear of this box. Do I disconnect the many colored wires associated with those 2 gray-clad cables or do I disconnect the larger 'buried' black cable (sort of visible entering from bottom center) or something else?]
omni
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10-04-2014, 07:47 PM
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#20
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: On a hill in the Pine Barrens
Posts: 9,719
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Gauss,
Do a thorough inspection inside the house. If that is the actual service box, you'd want to see where service wire bundle enters your home. Might be another box inside the home.
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