asterisk users - Jan 2005 - Mediatrix voip gateway 1124 and 1204 in UKsetting

Many thanks for that info!

> Peter
> 
> One thing to consider if you only have 3 PSTN lines is the Sipura 
> SPA-3000 (you would need 3 of them, one for each line)
> 
> We have 2 PSTN lines at our scout campsite, and they work very well, as 
> well as providing a simple power outage solution.
> 
> They retail about ?80 + the VAT
> 
> I can supply more information once you have looked at the devices.
> 
> Regards
> David
> On 24 Jan 2005, at 11:20, Peter Hoppe wrote:
> 
>> Hello!
>>
>> We are located in the UK, and we are planning to replace our old pbx 
>> with an asterisk based pbx. For outgoing calls our present pbx is 
>> connected to three PSTN lines which all have the same number. 
>> Internally, the pbx caters for quite a few extensions, and each 
>> extension can make outbound phone calls. Only very rarely does our 
>> call volume exceed three simultaneous connections (inside to inside 
>> plus inside to outside).
>>
>> We have looked into the issue of connecting the phones and the outside 
>> lines to the system.
>>
>> For the fxo connectivity we want to stick with the three PSTN lines, 
>> because they worked for us and we don't see a need to upgrade to
ISDN.
>> The asterisk system will be also connected to the internet anyway so 
>> we can perform VOIP calls.
>>
>> For the fxs connectivity we want to re-use the old telephone wiring 
>> and provide standard two-wire telephones. Putting in IP phones would 
>> mean a massive installation effort, as we would have to put an entire 
>> new computer network in place - plus many IP phones constantly 
>> connected to mains, plus admin headaches, plus security issues and so 
>> on. The two wire solution seems the best solution for our setting.
>>
>> We have looked into using a channel bank for the analog conectivity, 
>> and we are currently in contact with Carrier Access to purchase a new 
>> Adit 600 unit with space for 48 extensions. We cannot provide fxo 
>> connectivity via the channel bank because the fxo card from CA seems 
>> not to be EU approved. One downside of the channel bank is that we 
>> need a special T1 card for it to operate with the asterisk pbx. Also, 
>> channel banks seems to be a particular US concept, so we would have 
>> difficulties to get replacement parts, if something breaks.
>>
>> Recently I heard of the alternative solution of a voip gateway, and 
>> the particular units I have seen are the Mediatrix 1124 for fxs 
>> connection and the Mediatrix 1204 for the fxo connection. Both units 
>> support the SIP protocol, so it should be possible to connect them to 
>> the asterisk PC via standard network connection. Mediatrix seems to 
>> have resellers in Europe as well, so it might be possible that their 
>> devices are Europe approved as well.
>>
>> Question:
>>
>> * Does anyone have any experience with these units in a UK setting?
>>
>> * For the 1124: Does it work with standard UK two wire phones? Are 
>> there impedance problems
>>         (especially concerning echo problems)?
>>         Is the audio quality sufficient? Are they transparent to the 
>> asterisk system, i.e.
>>         does each fxs port look like a separate IP phone to the 
>> asterisk system?
>>
>>
>> * For the 1204: Would it be approved for connection into the UK PSTN 
>> (The prospectus from Mediatrix
>>         didn't say anything about regulatory approvals)? Can they 
>> initiate outside calls / receive
>>         incoming calls or are there problems (signalling compatible 
>> with UK PSTN)? Are they
>>         transparent to the asterisk system, i.e.does each fxo port 
>> look like a separate IP phone
>>         to the asterisk system?
>>
>>
>> I do realize that these questions are quite broad, but do appreciate 
>> any info. Thank you very much for your consideration.