Old telephone systems.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

Terrell Plaza shopping center has been bought by Target stores and will soon be torn down and replaced by a super Target so I was invited to come along.
I hit the telephone closets.
In one was an entire AT&T partner plus along with some VoIP ATA units as well as the usual 1a2 and executone stuff.
A pair of bogen intercom amplifiers and talephone paging interface also came home.
In the other telephone closet was the neat stuff, an entire digium asterisk cage, fully populated and with power supply, no computer.
Another pair of paging amps and an SCA receiver.
I now have well over a dozen ATAs but do not know yet if they are locked to any one carrier or not, my guess is yes.
And there are a few more phone closets to go!
Keep a lookout for this type of thing, this may all turn out to be junk but at least it is worth a try.

[n2ize]

Sounds like a goldmine of stuff, esp if you're into phones.

When it comes to phones I'm into the old stuff. I want an old candlestick phone. I also like 1940's - 50's style black rotary phones and those vacuum tube telephone amps that were hidden in crevices in basements, closets, behind furnishings, etc.

[NQ6U]

You must have a lot more storage room at your QTH than I have at mine, Rudy.

[w2amr]

You must have a lot more storage room at your QTH than I have at mine, Rudy.Always room for plenty of air.

[KC2UGV]

The Partner Plus systems are older, and firmware updates have stopped (Avaya has stopped with the Partner systems support), however, they will last a good long time.

The Bogen equipment is really good stuff. Again, should last a good long time, and can most likely be refurbed/cleaned/sold to a customer.

Asterix cage is probably useless, as Digium isn't going that route anymore, and parts are like hen's teeth. The ATA's can be put to use for a home PBX.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

Tend to agree but this is old stuff
Got the partner plus to power up and connected 2 stations, it works to the level that I understand.
The bogen equipment does not work, or at least I have yet to have success.
And, yes, the Asterisk cage is most likely useless.
The VoIP adaptors, it depends on if they are locked to a carrier or not.

[KC2UGV]

Hello.

Tend to agree but this is old stuff
Got the partner plus to power up and connected 2 stations, it works to the level that I understand.

What modules do you have?



The bogen equipment does not work, or at least I have yet to have success.

It's a grounded system, so you need shielded wire to get it to work (Three terminals: Signal, Ground, Shield). And, it's 70V. Enough to knock a person off a ladder (I know from experience).



And, yes, the Asterisk cage is most likely useless.
The VoIP adaptors, it depends on if they are locked to a carrier or not.

Most likely, they aren't. If they are, possible they can be unlocked.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

This has 3 of the 206 modules, one processor module and one something else.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

The 2 bogen amps are tubeless, as in no tubes in the sockets.
The other pair are transistor and the transistors in the output section are missing.
I looked at the schematic, plopped in a pair of 2n3055 and set bias, good.
I am going to put in a pair of 2n3771s in the other one, and replace all the caps in both.
The pair of tube amplifiers may not be worth the effort.
Got the Partner Plus programmed and working to 100%, not bad for an analog system.
The SCA units? SCA is obsolete around here so it is just an FM tuner under crystal control.
There is all sorts of 1a2 equipment here, everything but the sets themselves.

[KC9ECI]

Sounds like a goldmine of stuff, esp if you're into phones.

When it comes to phones I'm into the old stuff. I want an old candlestick phone. I also like 1940's - 50's style black rotary phones and those vacuum tube telephone amps that were hidden in crevices in basements, closets, behind furnishings, etc.

http://www.phonecoinc.com/

Just a few blocks away from me. I've told the family that if the place ever catches fire, drop everything and get about 30 miles upwind. 4 levels packed from front to back, side to side, floor to ceiling with phone crap from the beginning of time. If they don't have it, it wasn't made.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

The old telephone amplifiers were neat but serve no purpose now.
The old scheme had a multi-party line, one pair that ran to all the houses.
To provide more than one path and to improve voice quality the phone company provided amplifiers.
The things could provide a second or 3rd circuit by providing a carrier channel much like DSL works now.
And they evolved, it was not all that uncommon to see one built in the late 30s with a solid state circuit board under the chassis and the 3 tubes changed to solid state plug in units.
As time went on features were added all the while leaving the basic design intact.
Sometimes the phone company would do a major upgrade and simply leave the old box unplugged.
Since most people have not a clue they are left there.
But what you will be looking for is the older farmhouse that was in the country at one time.

[KC2UGV]

Hello.

This has 3 of the 206 modules, one processor module and one something else.

So, you got 6 trunks and 18 extensions. Is there a model number on the "something else"? It could be the VM module, or extra storage is the VM is onboard the processor module.

You can tell if it's onboard by looking for a card slot on the processor. If there's a slot, VM is on the processor, and it's likely the "something else" is a VM expansion module. It give VM more features, an advanced IVR, and more storage. If I recall correctly. Been about 4 years since I played with the Partner stuff.

[KA5PIU]

So, you got 6 trunks and 18 extensions. Is there a model number on the "something else"? It could be the VM module, or extra storage is the VM is onboard the processor module.

You can tell if it's onboard by looking for a card slot on the processor. If there's a slot, VM is on the processor, and it's likely the "something else" is a VM expansion module. It give VM more features, an advanced IVR, and more storage. If I recall correctly. Been about 4 years since I played with the Partner stuff.

Hello.

Yes, the VM is on the processor board.
Turns out that the something else is a board that adds memory and does something to route long distance as well as interface to a Call Cost Accounting Module, the other box.
There are also 2 serial and one parallel interfaces on the module.
This is in the 400 series.
I was able to set up the IVR and get that going and have the download for the computer, but it is intended for DOS.
The VoIP ATAs are for the AT&T CallVantage service and are locked.

[KC2UGV]

Hello.

Yes, the VM is on the processor board.
Turns out that the something else is a board that adds memory and does something to route long distance as well as interface to a Call Cost Accounting Module, the other box.
There are also 2 serial and one parallel interfaces on the module.
This is in the 400 series.
I was able to set up the IVR and get that going and have the download for the computer, but it is intended for DOS.
The VoIP ATAs are for the AT&T CallVantage service and are locked.

As an aside, that "parallel" port is most likely not a parallel port, but rather the telco interface port. It gets broken out to the 66 block :)

[W7XF]

I can't believe I am the first one to:WART

[NQ6U]

I can't believe I am the first one to:WART

I normally only claim WART credits when the thread is of the archetypal Hajji Rudi Wacki type. This one sort of made sense.

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

When it comes to technical issues like setting up a telephone system or putting a radio on the air, I do really well.
When it comes to females and politics is where I get into trouble.
1, this tiny bit of meat can require an entire case of toilet paper as well as the type the US treasury prints, that is just the way it is.
2, no matter what you do, no matter who you vote for, they are all the same and run by corporate masters.
3. you may be judged by your friends and peers, enemies and competitors, but what really matters is how you play the game.
4, it is not so much what you know, but who you know.
And that last one is perhaps the most valid of all of them. ;)

[NQ6U]

That's about right, Rudy, except for #4. That should read "It is not so much what you know, but who you blow."

[KA5PIU]

That's about right, Rudy, except for #4. That should read "It is not so much what you know, but who you blow."

Hello.

I was going for that family friendly "G" rating, ;)

[w6tmi]

That's about right, Rudy, except for #4. That should read "It is not so much what you know, but who you blow."


Well... You DO have to know them to blow them methinks.

[NQ6U]

Well... You DO have to know them to blow them methinks.

True enough, but it doesn't matter if you know the right people unless you blow them.

[NA4BH]

True enough, but it doesn't matter if you know the right people unless you blow them.

20 bucks

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

Got an idea out of this that works very well.
I am noted for taking a tube device that has a single ended output and adding a solid state other half, making it push pull output.
I normally try to use filament supply and a more common low voltage supply to provide power for this.
Now the idea is a bit more novel. use a sweep transistor and a 70 or 25 volt line matching transformer for the output and just run the thing on the high voltage supply.
I have been messing with the classic 5 tube AC/DC design changing how the radio derives voltages from the line.
The classic farm radio that operated on 32 volts gave me this idea, the first 3 tube filaments in series, 36 volts but work fine on the reduced voltage.
The output tube being directly across the line, a 35L6.
Running the radio at 32 volts nominal means around 35 volts while charging.
So, if we run the thing at 35 volts and use a transistor and transformer for 25 volts as the output and 8 ohms for the speaker we can overcome the low output, by a wide margin it would seem.
This is now loud radio.
35 volts DC is super easy to do, a pair of 16 volt transformers with the secondaries in series and a bridge rectifier and some caps and the deed is done on the cheap.
This goes inside the matching speaker and power supply/transmitter box.
In the case of an upright radio the unit can simply be a chassis in the bottom of the radio, but I dislike really large radios, no place to put it.
But, even if the plate voltage were the more normal 140 volts this thing would work.

[w2amr]

I normally only claim WART credits when the thread is of the archetypal Hajji Rudi Wacki type. This one sort of made sense.He just took care of that.

[NQ6U]

He just took care of that.

You're right:

http://i815.photobucket.com/albums/zz79/gyrogeerloose/WART-hog.png

[KA5PIU]

Hello.

Actually this is directly on track.
http://www.mcclellans.com/Philco32B.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_American_Five
http://www.smokstak.com/forum/showthread.php?t=31826
32 volts is still a common voltage for Marine equipment, along with 110VDC.