HELLO & WELCOME

[RichTee]

Hi. I am new to Voip and as a first step plan to open a Sipgate Basic account here in the UK.
A free local number will be assigned and I will set up and test against this prior to requesting a port of my current home landline number.
I would like to retain my existing telephone analogue equipment and this would mean utilising an Analogue Terminal Adapter.
The Grandstream HT802 has been around a while and seems to have a good reputation.

I have looked on the Sipgate site and they have a generic configuration guide for Grandstream HT Adapters.
However I am getting a bit confused as I have found other documentation links elsewhere refering to UK regional settings and configuration guides from other vendors seem to have different configuration parameters.
I would be grateful if anyone with an active HT802 on Sipgate Basic could confirm that the Sipgate generic settings for Grandstream Adapters are up to date and correct.
Thanks.

[WelshPaul]

Grandstream are reliable and probably one of the cheapest available (branded) VoIP ATA devices out there.

Out of the box, VoIP ATA's are configured for use within North America. As such, it will play back US style tones, sounds and some UK phone features may not work correctly unless you make some configuration changes via the devices web based GUI.

You can find the correct UK configuration settings for Grandstream ATA's here:
WelshPaul @ UK Regional Settings for Grandstream telephone adapters (ATA's).

[RichTee]

Many thanks for the quick reply.
I was tempted to go for a Vonage Talk UK Plan which costs £10.25 per month (free land line calls) with a free configured ATA but can't really justify the ongoing monthly cost as our outgoing calls are mainly via our mobiles. So, I am going to try the Sipgate Basic with a Grandstream HT 802 and hopefully the generic configuration supplied by Sipgate together with the UK centric changes from your link (thank you) will prove to be correct.
Any suggestions for a reputable supplier of the Grandstream HT 802?

[WelshPaul]

Vonage is US based. Ideally you want a VoIP provider as close to home as possible for best results.

Anyway, I buy all my hardware from NetXL:
https://www.netxl.com/voip-phone-adapters/

That isn't a referral link, I gain nothing for recommending them to you.

[RichTee]

Thanks for the information.
Sipgate Basic - now registered and number assigned but need to wait 2 days for a letter in the post to activate the account.
I note your comment concerning proximity so maybe a bit of a gamble with Sipgate as I believe their servers are in Germany.
Grandstream HT802 - ordered
regards

[WelshPaul]

Sipgate provide a decent service, I have been using them on and off for years.
I uses Andrews & Arnold for my home VoIP line and I can't fault them for reliability, service and price.

Basically, when it comes to VoIP or any Digital Voice service for that matter there are many factors than can cause problems for the end user.
e.g. A bad or poorly configured internet connection on your end - be that hardware or ISP related. Other things such as rouge or reseller VoIP providers, routing and distance can also have a negative effect on a VoIP service.

So take your time setting it up and don't rush things and you should have years of cheap VoIP based calls ahead of you!

[RichTee]

Oh dear. First problem before I even get started. I have the feeling it's a standard gotcha for us newbies.
I purchased a cheap Binatone Spirit 111 telephone for my test and I fully expected it to simply plug into one of the FXS ports on the HT802.
Unfortunately, the telephone cable ends with what I guess is the standard sort of BT connector whereas the HT802 FXS ports are RJ11.
Is this a case of simply getting a converter: BT plug (RJ45?) to RJ11?
Strangly, the port on the telephone itself is the same size as RJ11.
Are there any power issues?

[WelshPaul]

Some phones will work when plugged directly into the RJ11 port, others won't. It depends on how the phone is wired up!
You won't cause any damage to the HT802 or telephone trying...

Ideally you want one of these:
https://amzn.to/2OYU9uo

Be warned though, Don't be tempted to cheap out! Many of the cheaper ones found on eBay don't contain a ring capacitor and/or are wired differently and won't work. Do a search on here, many topics on the subject.

[RichTee]

UPDATE: Before receiving your last helpfuI comments, I had ordered the BT adapter with ring capacitor from SOHO66 at a cost of £3.00. I felt reasonably confident as they look to be a reputable supplier and specifically mentioned attaching to the Grandstream.
Anyway, have connected everything and updated the HT802 settings as per the Sipgate guide .
After a reboot of the HT802, the telephone works meaning I have run the Sipgate tests and made my own incoming and outgoing calls without problem.
Everything seems to be working and sounding ok on the basic telephone handset so I haven't updated the specific UK Configuration settings at this stage. I may need to later when I port over my home phone number and more advanced handset.

[WelshPaul]

SOHO66 are a reputable VoIP company and I would recommend them to anyone looking for a VoIP provider...

Anyway, I was aware they sold the required "RJ11 (US) TO BT (BTS) TELEPHONE ADAPTER" at a cheaper price but every-time I have checked stock availability in the past, they have been out of stock. For anyone interested in purchasing one, you can order yours here.

[RichTee]

Hi. I have hit a problem in that if I connect my CPR Call Blocker between the phone and the Grandstream HT802, incoming calls are not answered. It doesn't ring on the phone just a click then disconnect.
Outgoing calls from the phone are working fine.

I read somewhere that the CPR Call blocker worked fine so it's a bit of a surprise.

Now in setting up the Grandstream HT802 I simply followed the parameters suggested by Sipgate meaning I haven't updated any of the UK specific parameters previously suggested as they seemed more to do with the sound than anything else.
So my question is which if any any of the UK specific parameters are likely to be affecting the incoming call monitoring of the CPR Call Blocker?

[WelshPaul]

Do you have one of these connected to the Grandstream HT802 or have you plugged the CPR Call Blocker device directly into the HT802 RJ11 port? If so, are you using the original cable supplied with the CPR Call Blocker to connect to it the PSTN line to connect it to the Grandstream HT802 phone port?

You should configure your Grandstream HT802 with correct UK configuration parameters as it's not just "sound" related.
(SLIC, Caller ID, Hook Flash and Ring Frequency)

Back to the CRP Call Blocker, it is mentioned in this post and so it must work with a VoIP line although I haven't ever tested one personally.

[RichTee]

Thanks for the quick reply.
I will enter the UK parameters as per your email dated Wed 19th April 2017.
However I am a bit confused over the connection issue.
The wiring sequence I have is Router > Grandstream HT802 > BT adapter > Call Blocker > Phone

[WelshPaul]

The wiring sequence I have is Router > Grandstream HT802 > BT adapter > Call Blocker > Phone

Yea, that is the correct order...

You did say that outbound calls are working (I missed that part!).
Try applying the changes to the SLIC, Caller ID, Hook Flash and Ring Frequency options as shown in the UK configuration guide and see if that resolves the issue.

[RichTee]

Success - I have updated the UK specific changes you highlighted and incoming calls are now passed through the Call Blocker to the phone which rings.
Thanks