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OT - I'm confused about ISDN

B

Baldy18

Diamond Member
Ok I'm going to be getting ISDN soon because 56k is the only other thing availible and I'm sick of waiting for DSL or Cable. So I'm looking for a terminal adaptor and I found the U.S. Robotics® ISDN TA (model #3CP3468) which I like but then they also have a Pro version (model #3CP3468A). However, I am unable to locate a document that tells what the difference between the two is.

Also any comments or complaints about ISDN service would be appriciated as my decision isn't final yet and I am still a little wary about the whole deal. I am also planning on using this as my primary and only phone line to my house is this a good idea? Figure it should work fine but I don't know all the issues involved and if it doesn't work fine I can't aford to also have an analog phone line.

[EDIT] Almost forgot that any suggestions for a terminal adaptor would be appreciated and also what is an I-modem (spent a lot of time at US Robotics website so this may all be their terminology😱)?
 
ISDN would definitely be better than dial up, but know that it is a technology that is probably past-its-time. Last I heard it was pretty expensive to get the ISDN controller installed into your house/apt/whatever, and I guess it doesn't really reap the benefits that they thought it would, when it was a very good idea. Not much help, I'm sorry, but all that I have heard points to the demise of ISDN.

We should research this more for you! I don't want you to make a presumptive call to a supposedly soon-to-be-dead technology, which is my understanding from some time ago. Might be better to wait on other options, but TEAM! What's the latest on ISDN? I'll be looking around myself...heck for all I know nowadays, ISDN is poised for a major comeback DOH! :Q (but I doubt it!)

TNOguy
 
It depends on how you will use you're ISDN connection.
If you will only use one channel, you can hardly see the advantage..
But if you will use both lines, then a difference can really be seen!
I'm also using ISDN because nothing else is available. And we use
severall phones and a fax in our house.
If you plan on using one line for internet, then I should stick with 56K
because it's a lot cheaper! The costs for ISDN on a 2 monthly base is almost
double the price of an analoge phone line (at least here in The Netherlands)
I don't know about terminal adapters, sorry.. I'm using one of the oldest
available, and using it now for over 2 years..

Good luck!
 
I've been wondering about IDSN myself, since there is no DSL/Cable/Wireless/etc. available in my area, but I had a few quesitons about it. Most of these can be found out myself with a little more reading, but one I have yet to be able to get an answer to: is it possible to call a person who has a regular phone from an ISDN phone, and vice versa? My ISP offers ISDN dialup services, but I'm not sure how the long distance stuff works with ISDN, and how much it costs in this area (can anybody in the USA give me an approximate idea of their ISDN costs?).
 
Well in my area here would be my situation for cost.

Current cost of multilink 56k (what I pay now):
$40/month for the service
$50/month for 2 phone lines
============
$90/month total with benefits being that I connect up to 85Kbps but still don't download any faster than 9KBps

Costs of ISDN
Startup costs:
$132 to get the line hooked to the house (more if you let them come inside but I'll handle that part)
$50 startup fee for service (same ISP I have now I wish they would wave startup for existing customer:|)
$XX for terminal adaptor (looks like I can get one for about $50 on ebay)

Per month chages:
$50/month for service from ISP
$50/month for the line

So I will have just over $200 in startup fees and equipment and then only pay $10 more per month but with added performance.

Anyone have any ideas about terminal adaptors or does it not matter which one all that much?
Also they (phone company) reccommend that you not use this line as you primary phone line. This a real concern or are they just trying to get my to keep an analog line so they can get more cash from me?
 
Baldy,

Have you considered satellite, like DirecPC? The upload speed isn't great but you'll get much better d/l speed than ISDN. I haven't looked into it lately, but I believe the equipment and monthly pricing is finally reasonable.

Here's a link to check out: http://www.direcpc.com/index2.html
 
Baldy18-

Prior to getting cable at my home, I had a brief stint with ISDN service. Also, until a month ago (T1 installed), I also had an ISDN line here at the office for 2+ years.

Basically at home, I replaced my analog lines with one ISDN against the advice of the telco. Their largest argument against removing analog dialtone completely from the home was in the situation of a power failure. As you know, POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) lines supply a small amount of power to your telephone equipment. Normally this power is still available when full power from your electric utility is lost and you can still make phone calls in an emergency situation. ISDN lines require that you supply power through the CPE (Customer Premise Equipment) and could leave you without telephone service during an outage. I had at least 2 cellular phones at the time and decided that it wasn't a good enough reason to shell out an addition $20 per month.

Most likely, you will be able to transfer your number to the ISDN line but also remember that the telco will surely charge you the $40+ to reinstall a POTS line after you get rid of the ISDN when broadband becomes available.

I half disagree with CyGoR when he suggests that single channel ISDN access is not worth the upgrade. In an ideal setting 56K and 64K would be similar preformance, however in reality my POTS line would only deliver 20-24 max. I basically doubled my speed and at that time I was thrilled with the boost. Not to mention the call setup time under ISDN is seconds compared to nearly a minute with analog. Similar to your situation, I was able to replace POTS and ISP analog service for single channel ISDN ISP and use the other line for just about the same cost.

With residential service, cost/call should not be an issue, but make sure of the pricing model. Normally you would get a block of calls under that $50/month rate. On the other hand, at the office here we got charged per call per channel setup which under regular circumstances was fine. I "nailed up" the connection to our isp anyhow so our call volume was minimal. But when they had server issues and connection/authentication was a problem, our call cost shot through the roof! It was a crap shoot in that regard.

As far as equipment goes, I am a big fan of external modems/TA's. If there is ever a need to reset the ISDN T/A or to reinitialize the ISDN line, you don't have to reboot your machine. Also, if you are going to replace your analog line with the ISDN, you are not dependent upon your computer system's health to continue to make phone calls.

I have:

[*]2 Netgear XM 128 T/A's
[*]1 Eicon Diva T/A
[*]1 Netgear RT338 ISDN Router

Seeing that I no longer utilize ISDN at home or at the office, I will part with them cheap (read as: really cheap if you are interested). I will part with the T/A's for the cost of shipping and the router for 50$ plus shipping. All devices have 2 POTS ports for hooking up analog equipment (this may answer jliechty's question regarding analog/ISDN call compatibility), each has a serial port for management, and the router also can be configured via telnet.

Hope I shed some light, feel free to post more questions or point out the ones I may have missed. I am reachable via PM and through the email in my profile as well. 😉

Good Luck!

Osmo.
 
I had ISDN a few years ago. I no longer remember all the details, but it was something like:

$79 or $150 Installation/Activation fee (took nearly three months to get it installed!).
$68 Monthly Unlimited ISDN (USWest)
$35 Monthly (ISP)

I originally had a Motorola BitSurfer EZ (sold to a friend), then a Bitsurfer PRO, and final got an Ascend Pipeline 75U. Had ISDN for at least 1 1/2 years, never a hiccup. Pings were in the 65-75ms area to my ISP. Before getting ISDN, I had two phone lines, which I rolled into the ISDN line. Cost wise, it went up all of $20, but I got lower pings and 128kbps bonded service.

Like osmo offer, I think I still have the BitSurfer (one of the POTS may be bad) packed away. I'd give it to you for the cost of shipping. I might even have the 16650 UART serial card to go with it.

Brad..
 


<< All devices have 2 POTS ports for hooking up analog equipment (this may answer jliechty's question regarding analog/ISDN call compatibility >>


Yea, it kind of answers the question, but what I was wondering was if you could call someone with a regular phone form your ISDN line, or vice versa. Judging from comments of people who got rid of their POTS line and replaced it with an ISDN line, I would guess that this is possible. Btw, I'm planning to contact the local phone company soon to see if it would be possible to get ISDN service (I think it's possible but I'm not 100% sure), and you might be getting a PM from me about one of those T/As if ISDN is available here. 🙂
 
Baldy18,

Listen carefully to what osmo had to say about lifeline services. Unless you are going to place some serious UPS power in the house to keep your service up you may have problems. Last year in Oklahoma a large percentage of the state was without power for over two weeks (ice storm). You can't charge your cell phone with the power out, people also call you more during an outage to see if your alright. For some people cellular may be a sufficient backup, but for many it isn't.

Ask your Bell if they are going to offer G.shdsl, a line powered DSL. Repeaters are coming out for it so mileage won't be to big of an issue. Or if your far enough out in the country you can go with direcpc two-way like I did. Not the best but it sure beats analog lines. Make sure they ground it properly (most just ground the mast a complete waste of time) or it will be very flakey. They have to insert a grounding/lightening block inline with the cable for it to be grounded properly.
 


<< Ok I'm going to be getting ISDN soon because 56k is the only other thing availible and I'm sick of waiting for DSL or Cable. So I'm looking for a terminal adaptor and I found the U.S. Robotics® ISDN TA (model #3CP3468) which I like but then they also have a Pro version (model #3CP3468A). However, I am unable to locate a document that tells what the difference between the two is.
 >>



There is little to no difference between those two models. Outside they look identical right? The only difference I think is that the PRo comes with a USB cable or something. I bought my ISDN TA off ebay from "nudes" who was EXTREMELY knowledgable about it and helped a ton. Check it out...
 
WOW! First of all thanks for all the help guys you are amazing.

Indyjaws- Satelite is not an option as on-line gaming is too important to my brother.

Osmo- You are my hero.🙂 Like you said several members of my family also have cellular phones so power going out is not an issue. As far as what cakin said, yes, I can charge my cell when the power is out because I can do it in my car.🙂 The offer on the Netgear T/A's is one I mught just have to take you up on. What is the advantage of having the isdn router? I need to connect 6 pc's to this and I am assuming the router has 4 ports so would I be able to hook this to my existing hub or switch to share the connection with more pc's? Does it cost more per pc connected to the router like with dsl?

Seems I'm not sure if we are getting it now as my brother seems convinced that dsl is coming ot our area soon but they said the same thing 1.5 years ago and we are still waiting. Don't even get me started on the cable company and their procrastination with getting cable services in our area.:|

jliechty- What part of Indiana are you in? My ISP might actually provide ISDN in your area.
 
Osmo- I just noticed that you are in GR. I only live about an hour and a half form there and will be going up to see Networkman on the 30th, so if I decide to take you up on the T/A I could swing by and save you the shipping cost.🙂
 


<< jliechty- What part of Indiana are you in? My ISP might actually provide ISDN in your area. >>


I live near the Linton area (between mid and southern IN). The ISP I currently get POTS dialup from also has ISDN dialup, but I'm not sure if they have these capabilities at an office which would be a local call for me. I guess I need to contact Ameritech/SBC/whatever-they're-called-today first and find out if I can even get ISDN service locally (I'd think so, but then again it might not be available).
 
Ok my ISP doesn't go that far south. Thought it might reach you as I am on the Michigan/Indiana border myself.

Osmo- I just talked to the powers that be (parents) and they say that we are going to go through with the ISDN (they don't care about paying ot hook the analog line back up when cable or dsl come to the area). So if its cool I can drop by your place (or neutral establishment) and get one of those T/A's and maybe the router from you. How many analog devices can you hook to those? I've seen ones that you can hook up to 6 analog devices to. Maybe we should call NWM and have diner or something. Nevermind girlfriend will be with and won't dig all the geek talk.:disgust:
 
Baldy18,
Go buy her a bunch of romance books from Wallymart to read while you spend some time with the guys. Surely she can understand the importance of geeky male bonding. Just don't go to a strip club and come home and expect to bother her!
 
I wish it was that easy. She has this thing about computer talk. Sort of sucks since my goal is to repair computers for a living.
<-----------Please give this guy a job!
 
Baldy18-

You have it right on the money. Think of the T/A's as modems, you will need to rely on some sort of software-based proxy server software to share your Internet connection with these (e.g. ICS in Windows). The router on the other hand uses NAT to share the connection. The specs for the RT338 can be found here. This router does not have a built in switch or hub, only one LAN port that you would link to your existing equipment. It has DHCP and some firewall functionality as well, though the firewall setup is tricky (I'm sure you can figure it out 😉). The router has only 2 physical RJ-11 ports for analog equipment, but you can hook it up to your current telephone wiring and support the equipment that you have. I had 4 analog devices running off of one port at my house. Bottom line advantage to having the router over the T/A is the independence of the ISDN LAN functionality from any one computer. If your main system is down, the other computers on your network will not be without Internet.

As far as picking something up while you are in town, that would be fine by me. However, seeing that I work full-time and run a computer consulting business on the side (<-- shameless plug), the 30th honestly is too far out for me to know what I'm doing that day. At minimum, I could arrange to drop it off at Networkman's place so that you can get it when you see him (I have been there despite what he says regarding frequency😉).

Just let me know which one you want, if any, and we will arrange it. Also, if you have any further questions, feel free to ask. 🙂

Osmo.
 
So with the router I still also need the T/A right (stupid question I think but just to make sure)?

Sounds like a great deal can't pass it up the way I see it.
 
Hi... I am late to this discussion but I figure I can help put your mind at ease.
Before I had DSL I had ISDN in two places. In both instaces I did ONLY have ISDN and no Analog line.
I had a small UPS in case of power failure and NO cell. I figured I can always ask the neibors for help 🙂
Never had any trouble though.

I also couldn't understand what CyGoR said. I saw a definite improvement in speed compared to a 56k Modem.
I would never connect faster the 48k which is fast... ut ISDN is digital all the way so you always have a 64k pipe with one channel.
Also my pings where awesome with ISDN which helped a lot since I played CS like mad during thouse days. 🙂

As far as equipment... I would HIGHLY recommend 3coms Office connect ISDN Modem. It is like a linksys router for DSL. I does DHCP and lets you hook up 64 computers if I remember correct. I still have mine... and will NOT offer it for sale. I figure I might always have to move to an area where I can or HAVE to use it again.
It handles also your Analog lines... the way it works... or I and a friend had it set up was.

ISDN
3COM Router
SPLIT UP to Phone----- Split up to Network
Phone plug back into jack to activate the rest of all the plugs in the house.

If that doesn't make sense msg me. I'd be happy to help with any question you have.

This is the 3com Modem I have. I found this on ebay so I could show you.
Here is another for 40$

Good luck and don't be afraid... not that hard!
 
Baldy18-

You would only need a T/A or a router. Basically, the router is a T/A with the extra added features for sharing the connection on your LAN (DHCP, Firewall, NAT, etc).

Osmo.
 
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