VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[jrkaiser]

I'm finally making some calls to get ISDN installed.

1. Are you served by Verizon? What are you paying and where are you located? My area is served by Verizon for phone so I'm assuming that's who I need to call. Is there a better contact or company that offers discount ISDN service? Do I need to go with Verizon if they are the only company servicing my location?

2. Who are you using for long distance for ISDN and what are you paying?

Thanks for the help!

Justin

[BenWils]

Embarq for my ISDN lines. MCI for long distance on the lines. You do need a long distance carrier on the lines whether you intend to dial out or not. MCI is rumored to be one of the only companies that can guarantee connection for 64k per line needed for most ISDN sessions.

I asked MCI for their rock bottom lowest plan since I didn't plan on dialing out ever and they advised it was going to be like $10 or $12 per month. It bills to my credit card at like $3.87 per month. I am not complaining at all.
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Ben


"To be really good at voiceover, you need to improve your footwork and hip snap."

[Frank F]

I use Qwest (still have not tried to see if the service works) now and the rates is: $ 0.10/minute.

When I first received my ISDN lines they were placed into service with a company who's name shall not be revealed but who's initials are A.T.&T. Their prices were unbelievable. Suggestion: Do Not Use AT&T

(Disclaimer: this is my opinion only. Anyone reading this has the right to do as they please and get charged outrageous rates by a greedy company).

Good luck with your choices.

Toodles

F2

P.S.: I mention AT&T for several reasons:

One: Customer Dis-Service
Two: Extremely outrageous minimum rates and fees.
Three: I promised I would do as much to discredit them as I possibly could.
Four: I am a man of my word.

FF
_________________
Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[COURVO]

Justin,

'Answered you on TOF. I'm glad Ben got through on MCI. I tried for hours, and they could never find the right department. I mean, literally, they lost my business, 'cause they could not direct me to "Business ISDN". They didn't understand.

All these months later, I'm still working on having an LD company assigned to my ISDN lines for outgoing calls. I hope to get Sprint.

Actually, I'm on the line as I write this -- on hold with Embarq -- and I'm now on my third re-direct to the "right" dept. The first one sent me to "business customers", the second to "DSL", and now I'm waiting for supposedly a "specialty customers" dept. This is the game. As far as I'm concerned all the major Telcos have abhorent service.

CourVO
_________________
Dave Courvoisier - Las Vegas, NV
http://www.CourVO.com
CourVO@CourVO.com
Courvo's "Voice Acting in Vegas" Blog: http://www.CourVO.biz
on your phone at courvo.mobi
702.610.6288
"I'm not a news anchor, but I play one on TV."

[BenWils]

Wow....that sounds weird to me, Dave. I just called Embarq (My ISDN and regular phone line provider) and let them know I needed to change the PIC carrier to MCI for the long distance and they did. I then called MCI and spoke with them about the ISDN lines. They really don't need to know it is ISDN I don't think. It may only confuse the situation. The long distance plans are the same for ISDN as they are for regular phone lines. At least those are my findings.

Hope that helps.
_________________
Ben


"To be really good at voiceover, you need to improve your footwork and hip snap."

[Frank F]

Yes and no. ISDN has to long distance; point-to-point.

But, thankfully Qwest was informed (internally) and made the switch quickly. My rate $0.10/minute now after more than $1.42/minute with AT&T - and a $100.00 or more/month minimum usage fee..

Toodles

F2
_________________
Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[BenWils]

Rats!! F2 always "one ups" me. Got work on my skills. Girls like guys with a lot of skills en stuff.
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Ben


"To be really good at voiceover, you need to improve your footwork and hip snap."

[Bruce]

Justin, just to make sure you know, you get your line service from your local phone provider's business office, and you have to get your long distance service from a separate company (rarely the same as your local phone company).

Frank, it may be a fluke that Qwest works for you. They are not supposed to be among the services that guarantees 64K per line. I tried Qwest and it just didn't work for that reason.

The services that have 64K are AT&T, MCI and Sprint. I've been told repeatedly by those who should be in the know that they're the only players for LD on ISDN.

Also, someone please correct me if I'm wrong, Embarq is not a traditional phone company? They are a re-seller of local and other services, yes? So you could be in a Qwest city, but Embarq would handle all your needs (for a built-in fee) if you signed up with them?

B
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VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

[jrkaiser]

Thanks for the guidance... I've got the specs from the Digifon site already. I finally tracked down Verizon Residential ISDN and they are going to do a site survey. It will take 30-60 days to see if I qualify for ISDN service in Rural IL.

Here were the costs I was given.
$401 Installation Charge

$58.80 for the main line. I asked if that was for 2 lines and she said that all ISDN had 2 lines. I should have asked for 2 numbers.

$0.25 cents a minute connect charge plus whatever long distance I end up using.

Looks like AudioTX is $850.00 US.

Plus the PCI or USB adaptor... Not sure of the costs there.

Thanks for all of the help...

Justin

[bobsouer]

Justin,

When they hook you up, you'll get 2 phone numbers ... 1 for each line. You don't need to ask for 2 it comes that way. And regarding the connection charges, I think as long as you are receiving the calls the connections should be free. It would only be outbound calls where a connection charge would apply; but you might want to read the fine print carefully just to be sure.
_________________
Be well,
Bob Souer (just think of lemons)
The second nicest guy in voiceover.
+1-724-613-2749
Source Connect, phone patch, pony express

[jrkaiser]

Thanks Bob, good to know. I've only used it... never ordered it.

[Frank F]

Justing,

Stop everything!

You need business ISDN, not residential. The difference is residential is designed for internet usage. Business class ISDN is quicker to install, has a few refinements, and is specifically configured to provide the class of service desire for your ISDN codec.

Glad to see you have "made" it.

F2
_________________
Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[jrkaiser]

Thanks Frank. I'll do some more calling. Either way it looks like 30-60 days to determine availability.

[Frank F]

How far are you from the telco switch? If you are less than one mile from a switch you are "in like flint".

I am surprised the telco's website does not have an online configurator thingy. Check with your telco contact to see if this is available. Six weeks is a long, long, long time for them to see if your address is within parameters.

Good luck

Toodles

F2
_________________
Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[todd ellis]