7406 Sets on Merlin II

[GARYGOYKE]

I have found out that the Merlin II will support 7406 sets with a 008D Digital Card, have already procured a Merlin II processor backplane and power supply for free, as well as gotten 8 7406 sets. Plan on combining existing Merlin sets that I have onto another card 408

Is there someone out there that wants to tell me to stop now before I go and spend the money on the 008D digital card at 195 dollars or can I depend on this to be a reliable system for the home. Presently have a Merlin 1030 with 21 phones and would like to migrate to the 7406 sets. Any advice would be appreciated. Just wondering if I am headed down the wrong road here or not

 

[AndrePa]

Gary,

Yes, You are correct, 7406 Phones will work on merlin II, with FM 2 & 3, and a 008D Module. It might also work with FM1 in procesor, but I'm not sure. The 008D Module is very rare! It has 4 ports on the top, and 4 ports on the bottom.
I came across one about 5/6 years ago. It did work with 7406 phones, I also tryed 7410 Phone, 8403 Phone, on it, ( I was curious ) they all worked, but the processor recognised them as 7406 phones.

The other problem with the 008D Module is that it will NOT work on Merlin legend, or Merlin magix processor! So if You upgrade in the future, You will be stuck with it! 7400 Series phones will not work with 008MLX modules.
But if You have Your heart set on a 008D Module, shop around, I believe I saw a vendor in Mart magazine selling them for $99.00.

The Merlin 1030 is not a bad setup, I used to have one, the power supply is much more reliable than the 206,410,820 which the power supply was the weak link.

good Luck, Hope this Helps

Andre

 

[GARYGOYKE]

I started out with a Horizon system, and loved it, and am thinking about reviving the one in the basement. had it in my old house for 11 years and NEVER had a problem, a complete and total TANK, indestructible.... liked the fact that you picked up and dial an extension or dialed 9 to get an outside line. Not real fond of the intercom voice/intercom ring/ pool/dial 9 setup at all....mainly went to the Merlin because of the voice announce and the fact that I had 3 1030's in the basement and the guys at work calling me a dinosaur. I think the Merlin II is the closest I'm going to get to a Definity for now. Thanks for the guidance, 99 bucks will work.

 

[A2Xprt]

Before upgrading my Merlin II to a Legend, I ran an 008D with great results. According to an old AT&T Sourcebook, the Merlin II could run a 7406/7406D, 7410, and a 7444D.
I had connected a couple of 7444s and a 8410B. My only disappointment was that on the 7444, the display worked fine, but would not clear itself...meaning it kept the dialed numbers on it until you unplugged the phone.

Anyhoo, I liked it and it should serve you well. Let me know if you have any questions about this setup. Best of luck to you.

 

[GARYGOYKE]

I know from past experience that there were dip switches on the bottom of the 7444 that had to be set in order for the display to work correctly. I didn't know that this would support the 7444 also, that is GREAT news. I will work on getting some of those now too. I found the 7406's on Ebay for a 1.00 each plus shipping. Did you know about the DIP switch issue with the 7444's? I know it caused us great grief where I was onsite until we finally read the manual.

Thanks for the input, you don't still have the 008D card laying around do ya? Cause I have all the cards for a Legend, but can't afford the phones.

 

[A2Xprt]

Yes, I did know about the DIP switches under the 7444. I played with every setting and same thing. I'm curious if I got 2 bummed 7444s. Anyways, I do still have that 0x8D card, but do not want to part with it....sorry, I'm sure you can understand. It is a bit of an endangered species.

But on the 008D, I believe it will support any of the Definity voice terminals in the 74xx or 84xx range since it's based on the DCP protocol. FWIW, I did try and hookup a 302C Attendant Console to my 008D, but got lights only, no working set.

Keep me posted. It's good to see others use this type of phone system in their homes as well. Let me know if you need anything else.

Keith