# General > Technical Support >  router & phone problem

## Tugmistress

Hi folks,
I have a bt voyager 240 router and every time we answer the phone or make a call it is as crackly as you like and a lot of the time the phone call will disconnect the broadband and it takes 3 or 4 attempts for it to connect again.
we have tried replacing the inline filter with no difference, the only thing that gets rid of the crackling on the line is to turn the router off which is a pain in the butt, any ideas?

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## Bobinovich

Hi Tuggs

Are you sure you've got your filters set up correctly?  I had a similar problem with a customer just last week and all it required was a quick re-routing of the filters and everything worked fine.

A lot of people don't realise that you can get problems if you have 2 filters both filtering the same line.  So if you have a filter on your master socket and then have an extension of it and then another filter at the end of the extension then it could cause you problems.

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## jimbews

> Hi folks,
> I have a bt voyager 240 router and every time we answer the phone or make a call it is as crackly as you like and a lot of the time the phone call will disconnect the broadband and it takes 3 or 4 attempts for it to connect again.
> we have tried replacing the inline filter with no difference, the only thing that gets rid of the crackling on the line is to turn the router off which is a pain in the butt, any ideas?


Is the router plugged into a filter in the master socket?
Bad internal extensions may cause problems.
Also remember that EVERY phone should have a filter.

I have no experience with the Voyager 240, but (if its like other routers I have used) I would hope it has a diagnostic page that gives figures for the signal and noise levels.

The only case I have experienced of this was actually caused by a faulty BT line OR the connection to the ADSL kit in the exchange.

Jim

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## Billy Boy

> Hi Tuggs
> 
> Are you sure you've got your filters set up correctly? I had a similar problem with a customer just last week and all it required was a quick re-routing of the filters and everything worked fine.
> 
> A lot of people don't realise that you can get problems if you have 2 filters both filtering the same line. So if you have a filter on your master socket and then have an extension of it and then another filter at the end of the extension then it could cause you problems.


 
hi bobinovich,i have the same problem as tuggs and have 2 filters on my line,what is the best way to cure this problem?any help would be most welcome thanxs

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## blueivy

> hi bobinovich,i have the same problem as tuggs and have 2 filters on my line,what is the best way to cure this problem?any help would be most welcome thanxs


Hi Mr & Mrs Billy Boy,

What is your phone setup in the house? Do you have a wall socket for each phone with hard wired extensions (ie. the extension is hard wired into the master socket) or do your extensions come out of the master socket (ie. they are plugged in like a phone)?

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## Billy Boy

> Hi Mr & Mrs Billy Boy,
> 
> What is your phone setup in the house? Do you have a wall socket for each phone with hard wired extensions (ie. the extension is hard wired into the master socket) or do your extensions come out of the master socket (ie. they are plugged in like a phone)?


hi blueivy,our extension comes out of the master socket,

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## blueivy

> hi blueivy,our extension comes out of the master socket,


Does the broadband run off this same the extension as the phones or from the master socket?

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## Billy Boy

> Does the broadband run off this same the extension as the phones or from the master socket?


 
yes the broadband comes of the extension

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## blueivy

> yes the broadband comes of the extension


Okay, so you have an extension that comes out of the master socket and has a socket or box on the end for the phone and the broadband? 

Are there any phones coming out of the master socket or just this extension?

Do you have more than one phone plugged into the extension? If not, plug one microfilter into the socket/box at the end of the extension (not the master socket). Plug your phone into the socket marked phone and the broadband into the socket marked ADSL. 

That should be it. 

You did mention you had two microfilters. What is the second one plugged into?

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## Billy Boy

> Okay, so you have an extension that comes out of the master socket and has a socket or box on the end for the phone and the broadband?
> 
> Do you have more than one phone plugged into the extension? If not, plug one microfilter into the socket/box at the end of the extension (not the master socket). Plug your phone into the socket marked phone and the broadband into the socket marked ADSL. 
> 
> That should be it. 
> 
> You did mention you had two microfilters. What is the second one plugged into?


out of the extension we have a box which has a filter and the broadband into that,and nothing else,so we just have a phone out of the master socket that also has a filter,i'am sure that it said to put a filter in each socket even a extension,

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## blueivy

> out of the extension we have a box which has a filter and the broadband into that,and nothing else,so we just have a phone out of the master socket that also has a filter,i'am sure that it said to put a filter in each socket even a extension,


Hi,

Okay, I understand how it's setup now.

Put a microfilter on the master socket. Plug the phone into the socket marked Phone on this and plug the extension into the socket marked ADSL. That should be it.

Plugging the extension into the ADSL port effectively cut's off it being used for a phone. Therefore if you want to do this in future drop me an email or put a post in here and I can tell you what filters to move.

You really only need to plug a microfilter into every socket if it's hard wired. Where you have a plug in extension you can change things a little.

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## Billy Boy

> Hi,
> 
> Okay, I understand how it's setup now.
> 
> Put a microfilter on the master socket. Plug the phone into the socket marked Phone on this and plug the extension into the socket marked ADSL. That should be it.
> 
> Plugging the extension into the ADSL port effectively cut's off it being used for a phone. Therefore if you want to do this in future drop me an email or put a post in here and I can tell you what filters to move.
> 
> You really only need to plug a microfilter into every socket if it's hard wired. Where you have a plug in extension you can change things a little.


sorry i've not explend myself very well,the extension is wired into the master socket not plugged into it,i have a filter in the master socket and the phone into that nothing else,the extension has a box which i have a filter in then the broadband into the filter

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## blueivy

> sorry i've not explend myself very well,the extension is wired into the master socket not plugged into it,i have a filter in the master socket and the phone into that nothing else,the extension has a box which i have a filter in then the broadband into the filter


Right. I misunderstood when you said the extension was plugged intot he master socket. Hard wired extensions need a filter at every box.

The way you have it setup is correct.

 If you're getting crackling or disconnection of the broadband when you pick the phone up it could be down to a faulty filter or a bad line.

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## Billy Boy

thank's for your help anyway blueivy,i've put 2 new filter's on with no joy,been on to bt, which a line test say's eveything is ok, :Confused:

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## newlabeluk

yeah BT have been tell my sister that for 2weeks now and she's about to drown in replacement filters. JOG exchange is not so hot, methinks

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## blueivy

> thank's for your help anyway blueivy,i've put 2 new filter's on with no joy,been on to bt, which a line test say's eveything is ok,


Hi,

What *exactly* is the problem you're getting (is it identical to Tugmistress)?

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## Billy Boy

i can connect, and the connection can stay on for 5 minutes and cut off, the next time i connect i can stay on for a few hours before the connection drops out, sometime's it wont connect atall, i have replaced the microfilters / router / and even the phone.
BT has done a line check and says everything is ok. ::

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## blueivy

> i can connect, and the connection can stay on for 5 minutes and cut off, the next time i connect i can stay on for a few hours before the connection drops out, sometime's it wont connect atall, i have replaced the microfilters / router / and even the phone.
> BT has done a line check and says everything is ok.


You need to take everything out of hte picture (or at least as much as you can) and try it.

Disconnect your phone and all the microfilters. Plug your router into the master socket, if you can, if not leave it where it is and see if it stays connected. 

If it doesn't then you need to somehow plug your router into the master socket and see if it stays connected. 
If it does you know it's something in the house that's causing it. You can then try one thing at a time to establish what it is.If it doesn't it's either your router or 'behind' the master socket that is causing the problem - the socket and behind is BT's responsibility. You can check if it's the router by trying a different one in your house or trying yours in another house.It's not going to be straightforward to track down a weird problem such as this. It's very time consuming!

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## Ricco

In addition to the advice that BlueIvy is giving try ringing BT and asking them to increase the gain of your signal because you are using it as a data line. This means that the signal coming through will be strengthened.

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## Billy Boy

it's not the router that's the problem as i got given a brand new one from someone that went wireless and tried that and it's the same,so now bt is comeing out tomorrow to test from my end, hopefully know more then, they were more interested in telling me it would cost £64 plus vat if the problem was in the house but hopefully the problem is with the line

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## Tugmistress

sorry, just caught up on this.
the line comes into the house and at that first box there is an extension hardwired in which then goes into the living room. at the end of that is a small 'mobile' box (about 2" by 1" by .5") into which is plugged the filter into which is plugged the phone and the router cable.
have tried a different filter ... same result  :Frown: 
what do i try? 
idiot proof instructions please  :Smile:

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## Bobinovich

Hi Tuggs

It sounds like you've got everything set up correctly.  Do you have any other phones or extensions plugged in?  If so do these also have filters on?

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## blueivy

> it's not the router that's the problem as i got given a brand new one from someone that went wireless and tried that and it's the same,so now bt is comeing out tomorrow to test from my end, hopefully know more then, they were more interested in telling me it would cost £64 plus vat if the problem was in the house but hopefully the problem is with the line


Glad BT are coming out to have a look. You've definitely got everything setup correctly. If you're sockets are all hard wired then you need a microfilter on each one as you have. It's pretty straightforward.

With regards to BT. I had a similar problem with them coming out but they wanted £105 + VAT if it was my fault. They now think they can bill me  for this when the problem was at the master socket. Make sure when they come in that you get some sort of receipt as to what they've actually done. It may save you £64 + VAT.

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## blueivy

> sorry, just caught up on this.
> the line comes into the house and at that first box there is an extension hardwired in which then goes into the living room. at the end of that is a small 'mobile' box (about 2" by 1" by .5") into which is plugged the filter into which is plugged the phone and the router cable.
> have tried a different filter ... same result 
> what do i try? 
> idiot proof instructions please


As Bobinovich said, if you have a phone in the first box as it comes into the hosue then you'll need a microfilter on there too. 

As I said to Mr & Mrs Billy Boy if you have hard wired extensions then you need a microfilter at every box you have something plugged into.

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## Tugmistress

nope there is no phone in at the main entry box, just the hard wired extension ( i think lol) i will go and check it though  :Smile:

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## blueivy

> nope there is no phone in at the main entry box, just the hard wired extension ( i think lol) i will go and check it though


If there is nothing in the first box then only the 'mobile box' should have a microfilter with the router plugged into the ADSL socket and phone plugged into the phone socket.

If that's the way it's setup then I'd do what I suggested to Mr & Mrs Billy Boy - try swapping the microfilter (which I think you said you'd done); try plugging everything into the master socket (if possible) to see if it cures the problem as it could be faulty wiring in the extension. If all of that fails I'd try BT and see if they can do a line test as it may simply be faulty wiring at BT's end.

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## Tugmistress

ok, thanks to bobinovich our problem is solved  :Grin: 
it was the face plate of the main box!  ::

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## blueivy

> ok, thanks to bobinovich our problem is solved 
> it was the face plate of the main box!


Glad you got it sorted! 

However BT don't like you messing with the master socket as it's 'theirs'.

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## Tugmistress

BT can go take a running jump lol 
they are not going to charge me for changing that!  :Grin:  and in anycase it was *their* suggestion we take it off!

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## blueivy

> BT can go take a running jump lol 
> they are not going to charge me for changing that!  and in anycase it was *their* suggestion we take it off!


BT wouldn't charge you for changing that if it's faulty. As I said everything up to the master socket (and including the master socket) is theirs. I *believe* it's an offence (although I think that goes back to the good ole days when they were a state owned service). Somebody will hopefully correct me.

If BT told you to change it however then you'e got the golden nod! Hopefully Mr & Mrs Billy Boy will have the same end result.

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## Bobinovich

BlueIvy - while you are right that BT wouldn't charge you if that was the problem, the point of the exercise was to confirm where the problem lay.  Now that we have narrowed it down to the faceplate then the onus is back on BT to replace it.

Had BT been called out and the problem did turn out to be the router then Tuggs would almost certainly have incurred their usual charge.

With regard to taking the faceplate off, you are right again.  BT do not want you doing this, but it was a BT engineer who passed on the necessary information.  Since then I've had to do it loads of times in order to hardwire extension cables - much neater than plugging in at the front all the time.  However, as you correctly state this time was under the instruction of the BT representative.

Anyway, all's well that ends well.

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## blueivy

> BlueIvy - while you are right that BT wouldn't charge you if that was the problem, the point of the exercise was to confirm where the problem lay.  Now that we have narrowed it down to the faceplate then the onus is back on BT to replace it.
> 
> Had BT been called out and the problem did turn out to be the router then Tuggs would almost certainly have incurred their usual charge.
> 
> With regard to taking the faceplate off, you are right again.  BT do not want you doing this, but it was a BT engineer who passed on the necessary information.  Since then I've had to do it loads of times in order to hardwire extension cables - much neater than plugging in at the front all the time.  However, as you correctly state this time was under the instruction of the BT representative.
> 
> Anyway, all's well that ends well.


Bobinovich - please don't feel I was getting at you. I wasn't.

What I was trying to put across is that nobody is allowed to work on their master sockets. If somebody takes the faceplate off and breaks something, then they are liable for the damage and BT will charge them to fix it. If a BT Engineer tells you to take it off that's an entirely different matter (although if something did go wrong we all know BT would deny all knowledge and bill you anyway!).

I'd have tested the router elsewhere to make sure it wasn't that which was at fault, but then it could also be the hard wired extension etc. Working at the master socket and then working back is the best way of doing it under normal circumstances (BT's rules aside).

I've opened the master socket dozens of time and wired extensions, moved them, trimmed them down, fitted new boxes etc. etc. but only on my own and my family's. I know how to do it but that doesn't mean I am allowed to! I'd never do this at a customers property as if something went wrong, you're liable for it! I leave working with the master socket to BT, that way they stay responsible! Just my way of working.

As you said, all's well that ends well. As long as Tugmistress has the problem sorted that's all that really matters at the end of the day.

What exactly did Tugmistress see when taking the faceplate off that pointed to the problem?

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## Bobinovich

I actually paid Tugmistress a visit and heard the awful crackle on the line.  I asked to see the master socket to check if there was anything obvious there.

When Tuggs said that BT had recommended taking off the faceplate and plugging the phone directly into the internal test socket I figured that was as good a way to start as any.

We tried it and listened to the phone line - it was not perfect but was many times better than before.  Plugging the faceplate back in and inserting the phone reduced the line quality back to it's original state.  Hence we deduced that the faceplate was probably the main culprit.

Once a new faceplate has been attached they will not only get better phone line quality, they may very well have an improved internet connection too, due to the cleaner signal.

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## Billy Boy

> Glad BT are coming out to have a look. You've definitely got everything setup correctly. If you're sockets are all hard wired then you need a microfilter on each one as you have. It's pretty straightforward.
> 
> With regards to BT. I had a similar problem with them coming out but they wanted £105 + VAT if it was my fault. They now think they can bill me for this when the problem was at the master socket. Make sure when they come in that you get some sort of receipt as to what they've actually done. It may save you £64 + VAT.


just thought i would let you know that bt found the fault to be a loose wire in junction box at the end of my garden, :Smile:

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## blueivy

> just thought i would let you know that bt found the fault to be a loose wire in junction box at the end of my garden,


Excellent! Problem solved.

Now all you have to worry about is whether they bill you now - the problem was at their end, but that doesn't seem to worry them (I'm a little bias I'm afraid!).

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## Kirdon

Anyone with what bt class as an NTE5 socket (that is one with the split front and test socket inside) can open the faceplate and make use of the test socket thus disconnecting any "hardwired extns" and testing direct on bt's line. Asking bt to increase the gain on a broadband line is a waste of time as the gain only affects the speech and not the digital ADSL.

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## Bobinovich

Thanks for that Kirdon - it's useful to know for sure.

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