Have I been switched to Fibre Phone?

[sayling]

A few weeks back, our landline stopped working. We don't use it very much, being fairly anti-social really, but we do get calls from other family members.

As we were due to go away for a bit, I thought I'd get it looked at when we returned. However, while we were away and our adult kids stayed home, there were issues with the broadband and we logged a call for a technician to attend. They duly came and faffed around a bit  - basically chopped a bit off the cable into the back of the Hub 3.0, remade the connection and then announced the broadband issue was resolved.

However, the solution for the landline was to advise that the socket wasn't used anymore, to plug in an adaptor to the back of the hub and say 'you need to use this now'. They didn't try plugging in the existing phone, however, and I can confess I have yet to do so myself (the advantage of not being plagued by random callers - including Virgin Media people who ask for personally identifiable details to prove I am their customer, when it's them calling me! - is quite appealing). The fact that our handset is currently located diagonally opposite the Hub in a through lounge, a not inconsiderate distance, is another factor.

Back now from our holiday, I've been looking through these forums and noticed that there has indeed been a change over. But the details on https://www.virginmedia.com/help/home-phone/virginphone/switchover suggest we should have received a letter to announce we would be switched over. Which we haven't.

So... can anyone advise if we have been switched over to this new fibre network thingummy, or were we fobbed off by a tech that couldn't be bothered to sort out our landline?

Thanks in advance

NB: Not sure if it's relevant, but think I should mention that we use the Hub in modem only mode... edited to clarify

[Alex_RM]

Hi sayling,

Thanks for posting and sorry to hear you've had some issues with the line.

So I can advise this I've popped you over a private message to get a few more details from you (purple envelope, top right hand corner)

Alex_Rm

[sayling]

@Alex_RM

As arranged during our PMs, the Virgin Tech came out this morning. He fiddled with some cable in the front garden, sort of tidying it up and remaking some connections, then came in and advised he had checked signals and SNR and improved things for us. Checked the signal at the back of the Tivo, too.

I then used a 10 metre trailing gang power strip, stretched across the middle of our livingroom, to plug in and power our cordless phone - not a short, mid or long term solution - to enable the Tech to test the phone when plugged into the adaptor to the rear of the hub. After a few teething issues, he managed to get it so that incoming and outgoing calls can be made.

When we first had the Virgin services installed, we were asked where we wanted the phone socket to be and things were laid out very nicely. Is this still offered to new customers when they receive DOCSIS set ups?

I ask because the Tech didn't have any extension cables or otherwise, so we now face the situation where the existing socket is dead and the adaptor to teh rear of the Hub will not reach where the phone socket needs to be...

[Corey_C]

Thanks for your reply and update, sayling,

The technician would have made that determination at the time of the visit whether a relocation is feasible or not.

Cheers,

Corey C

[sayling]

He didn't say anything about a relocation, just that he didn't have any extension cables...

[Corey_C]

Ah OK apologies, sayling,

What would the extension be for then as the phone is to be plugged in directly to the hub?

Cheers,

Corey C

[goslow]

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@sayling wrote:

<snip>

I ask because the Tech didn't have any extension cables or otherwise, so we now face the situation where the existing socket is dead and the adaptor to teh rear of the Hub will not reach where the phone socket needs to be...

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Notwithstanding VM's inconsistent procedures in doing these phone switchovers, why do you not plug the main base station for your cordless phone into the phone adapter on the VM hub and try one of the following options?

You could then either get an additional handset/charging base for your cordless phone system to go where the main base station was located or you could see if you can find a simple charging cradle for your phone model (from eBay etc.) and use the handset from the main base station in the location where the main base station used to be.

Most cordless phones will allow 4 or 5 handsets to be linked to the main base station. An additional handset, which is an exact match to your phone model, would give you full functions on the phone system. If that is not possible then, if your cordless system is GAP-compatible, another GAP-compatible handset from the same manufacturer should allow you to do the basics of make/receive calls but not all phone functions would be guaranteed to work. If you have several handsets, you could maybe do some moving around and put any least-functional GAP-compatible phone in the least used location.

[Zoie_P]

Hi Sayling,

 Thank you for your reply, and sorry that this has not been explained, all landlines are being transferred over to being plugged into the hub. I am sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused. Did the tech advise if any other works would be booked in? 

Zoie

[sayling]

@goslow Good options, but I have no spare power outlets where the Hub is...

[sayling]

@Zoie_P

They did not, no. What I need, really, is a way of extending from the adaptor to where the now-dead phone socket is. Sadly, as I have laminated flooring, I fear this would need to be cabling running from the Hub, along (down, or possibly up) the wall behind it, then around the perimeter of the room along either the skirting or picture rail. Is this something the installation team could arrange - along with re-clipping the incoming cable to the wall that the previous tech left hanging on the floor/front garden?