[TriLUG] Options for replacing Panasonic PBX with Asterisk

[Cristobal Palmer]

Also, you only need a bunch of FXS cards if you're connecting a bunch
of POTS handsets directly to the PBX. You could switch to any number
of VoIP providers so that inbound calls are over a cable modem, so now
your home phone wiring is left for you to play with--it's just a bus
topology. And remember that with most of these VoIP providers, they
toss in the cable modem and/or a little linksys adapter with the plan.

-CMP

On 4/3/06, Cristobal Palmer <cristobalpalmer at gmail.com> wrote:
> You can get one analog interface card from digium that has four ports:
>
> http://www.digium.com/en/wheretobuy/digiumdirect/productview.php?category_id=17&product_code=RTDM11B
>
> The kit I link to above is $241 and includes the card, an FXS module
> and an FXO module (among other things). Additional FXO cards would run
> you $85 each. What were you referring to that runs $100 each?
>
> You could use the card in a PC you already have or build a low-end PC
> from spare parts or new parts for < $300.
>
> Why do you have to lose the intercom? What kind of wiring is that on?
>
> Good luck with your new system, whatever you go with.
>
> Peace,
> CMP
>
> On 4/3/06, Rick DeNatale <rick.denatale at gmail.com> wrote:
> > I woke up this morning to my wife telling me that our phone system
> > seems to be dead.
> >
> > We've got a Panasonic TA-624 system at the house.   It seems to have
> > reacted badly to last night's storm.  It did this once before, and I
> > had to reset it and reprogram it.  This time, it doesn't even seem to
> > want to power up.  It's strange because it's well protected both with
> > a whole house surge protector on the meter, and with a phone line
> > protector.  Nothing else in the house seems to have been affected,
> > including a wireless phone which is in parallel with the Panasonic
> > system behind the same phone line surge suppressor.  That seems like
> > it would make it hard to pursue as an insurance issue, either with the
> > homeowners policy, or with the insurance provided by Wake Electric
> > with the whole house protection.
> >
> > So I'm faced with fixing this system, or replacing it with an asterisk box.
> >
> > Of course my preference would be asterisk, new toy, more
> > programmability, configuration backup, etc. etc. The main concern is
> > cost.  Right now, the Panasonic system has capability for 4 (or it
> > might be 8) incoming PSTN lines, although I'm only using 1 at the
> > moment, and 16 internal lines, of which we are using 12 if I'm
> > counting correctly.  We've also got 8 proprietary Panasonic phones,
> > which would be useless in an Asterisk system. Of course basic phones
> > these days are pretty cheap.  We'd be losing some of the function
> > though like intercom and station buttons and indicators, which is
> > somewhat troublesome.
> >
> > But that seems to be adding up to quite a few FXS cards, and a lot of
> > money.  Some of these extensions might be paired to save the need for
> > quite so many ports, but...
> >
> > Unfortunately, the budget is going to be pretty slim for this.  Are
> > there reasonable alternatives?  I've also looked at things like the
> > Digium IAXy which would be nice from a wiring point of view (all of
> > our internal phone lines are Cat-5 running back to a pair of Home
> > Director structured wiring boxes).  But $100 a pop, is too painful to
> > consider.
> >
> > Any thoughts?
> >
> > --
> > Rick DeNatale
> >
> > Visit the Project Mercury Wiki Site
> > http://www.mercuryspacecraft.com/
> > --
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> >
>
>
> --
>
> Cristobal M. Palmer
> UNC-CH SILS Student
> cristobalpalmer at gmail.com
> cmpalmer at ils.unc.edu
> ils.unc.edu/~cmpalmer
> "Television-free since 2003"
>


--

Cristobal M. Palmer
UNC-CH SILS Student
cristobalpalmer at gmail.com
cmpalmer at ils.unc.edu
ils.unc.edu/~cmpalmer
"Television-free since 2003"