Strange Receiver Behavior?

[Lewes2]

If my wife picks up one of our ringing rotary phones and subsequently, when I pick up a different rotary phone handset, I have no receiver volume, whether my wife hangs up or not.  If the person calling calls back a second time, and I pick up with my phone, the receiver volume is fine, loud and clear. 

What might be causing this drop off in receiver volume when the second phone is answered?  Are the little hearing electrons late in arriving at the second phone? 

Thanks,

Chuck

[G-Man]

 Please provide us with the make and model numbers of the instruments. Also, do you receive your telephone service over traditional copper (pots) or via VoIP?  If by copper, about how far are you from the C.O.?
I suspect that an inexpensive electronics set is involved and is being starved of current causing it to not operate when the other telephone is off-hook.

[Lewes2]

G-Man

In this case, both phones are WE 302s but both are using WE LB1 receivers and T1s transmitters in the handsets. Everything else is stock 302.

Comcast Internet access with Vonage VOIP router. 

No cheapie electronics. Other than this mysterious volume drop off, everything is working fine.

Chuck

[G-Man]

G-Man

In this case, both phones are WE 302s but both are using WE LB1 receivers and T1s transmitters in the handsets. Everything else is stock 302.

Comcast Internet access with Vonage VOIP router. 

No cheapie electronics. Other than this mysterious volume drop off, everything is working fine.

Chuck

It's not unusual for an electronic set to be starved for current when another instrument was off-hook and they were connected to a long pots line, or if the VoIP modem is not supplying adequate current.
However, I would not suspect that a conventional instrument would totally lose volume in the earpiece, though it may be significantly lower than normal. Perhaps others have a better insight. Is dialtone supplied out of just one jack on the modem or are the lines to each telephone plugged into two different jacks located directly on the modem? Or, in some cases, when the telephone is connected to certain answering or fax machines, credit card terminals, the second jack is cut-off when the machine has seized the line.

[Phonesrfun]

I don't currently have Vonage, but I had it for years.  During that time I had two different ATA's.  One was a Motorola and the other was not labeled with a brand name other than Vonage.  Both worked very well with legacy phones and I did not experience any volume issues when two phones were on the call at the same time.

It seems weird that it would happen in the first place, let alone that the volume isn't restored when one phone is hung up.  Have you tried it with a different pair of phones?  Seems kind of baffling.

[G-Man]

 Bill is correct that this is baffling!
Is a specific telephone affected or do the both exhibit this behavior when they are the last to be picked-up? Have you tried switching telephones to see if the problem follows only one particular telephone or if both are affected?

[andre_janew]

It sounds like a breaker tripping and resetting itself.  However, I've never heard of such a thing where phone lines are concerned.

[HarrySmith]

I would recommend following G-man's suggestion by switching phones to determine if it is the phone or the line.

[Lewes2]

Sorry for the delay.  Happened again this evening.  One of the phones was one that exhibited the volume loss only this time it was a bit different.

Phones rang and picked up on the office 302 (the silver and gold one). Call was for my wife who picked up (red 302) 30 seconds later.  I lost almost all volume.  I hung up and she proceeded with the call. 

The last time the culprits were the red phone and the black phone. Thus far it appears the red 302 might be the cause.

We need to conduct actual tests.

Chuck