Northern Telecom 2500, won't break dial tone...

[twocvbloke]

So, as per my thread on the phone in the auction section, after playing with, I mean testing and diagnosing this phone, I've found that it generates tones quite happily, but, it won't break the dial tone, so I can't dial out...

I've been comparing the tones it generates to the tones my 286A linesman phone generates, and aside form them being quite deafening in the earpiece of the linesman, the 2500's tones do seem to have a slightly lower note than the linesman's, so, I'm wondering if it's a case of it not actually sending out the right frequencies, and I'll be darned if I know how that is fixed, or even if it can be fixed...

It's annoying being connected to such a picky exchange, I'm guessing it's all tight-tolerance digital stuff, and anything outside of it's tolerances, and it refuses to accept it, like a slightly slow rotary dial, and this 2500's slightly lower frequency tones....

Any advice would be great...

[twocvbloke]

Well, I tried line reversal, same thing, tones, but no dialling, so looking about on the forum on other threads, I read about tuning the coils somewhere, and by heck I think I found it!!!

One of the coils on the back of the dial is missing an adjustment screw, I got one side so the frequency was in sync with my Linesman phone's (I have weirdly sensitive hearing, I can pick up frequency variations pretty easily), but, the other side, I can't adjust as the screw ain't there, but if I carefully place my metal allen key in there, the tone adjusts to the right frequency (cancelling out the one from the linesman), but I remove it, and bam, it goes out of tune again....

So, the tones are half-right, but, half wrong now, and I can't adjust it any further due to a missing screw...

[Phonesrfun]

Sounds like you have a screw loose!

 

[twocvbloke]

Sounds like you have a screw loose!

 

Oh I've plenty of those!!! 

Well, I'm happy to announce, I have restored dialling function!!!!! 

I found a program on the web called "PhoneTone Decoder" (forgot the web page it's on now!! ) and after fiddling with the adjustment, it started recognising tones, and when I dialled my mobile number for it to decode, it got all the tones spot on, and I just tested it on the phoneline, and hot digetty dawg it's dialling!!! 

I wouldn't recommend people trying to tune their tones, like I say I have rather strange hearing and can pick up all kinds of frequencies other's can't, so I could hear the oscillations and frequency cancelling when comparing to the linesman phone's tones (speaking of he linesman phone, I think I've now drained it's electronics batteries, I changed the line current batteries not too long ago, s'pose I should have done both sets all at once!!), but either way, persistence and a genetic oddity have paid off...

[david@london]

......................holy oscillating eardrums !

[twocvbloke]

......................holy oscillating eardrums !

I'd hope my eardrums didn't have holes in 'em, I wouldn't be able to hear my phones ring!!!