Hotwired?

[Jack Aman]

Is this what they mean when they speak of a 202 being "hotwired?  Will it work?

[Phonesrfun]

Hotwired is a term that has come up to indicate that the phone base has been wired directly to the phone line without being connected to a network of some sort.

The phone was originally designed to be connected through a network in a subset which properly matched the impedances of the receiver and tranmitter to that of the phone line, provided DC isolation to the receiver element, and provided for the eliminations of loud objectionable pops in the receiver.  The subset also provided a ringer.  Because back in the day the components that went into a subset were large, the subset was mounted on the wall.

The use of a subset is original, but there are other ways of getting the phone to work.

Hotwiring is one way to do so, but can potentially demagnetize the permanent magnet in  the recever and there will be loud pops in the receiver when going on and off hook and when the dial goes off normal or comes to rest.  Because the impedance is mismatched and biased by the DC voltage, the volume in the receiver will not be optimal.

Now, how long will it really take to damage a receiver unit?  I don't know.  I have never seen the results of one that has been demagnetized from this so I can't say.  Does it really matter whether you use a subset or not?  It's entirely up to you.  My preference is to use a subset.  This has been the topic of a pretty lively discussion recently both pro and con.

You can also fit an AE mini network in a D-1 (202) base or you can make a simple network out of inexpensive components such as one resistor and one capacitor.  You can make a subset out of a 302 phone, so there are any number of alternatives to the subset. 

The only two disadvantages to a subset are that they are large and add more cost.  They are, however original to the phone.  Hotwiring is the easiest and cheapest, and many are happy with the results.