Good cost-effective equipment 2

[rpaverd]

For various reaons we are linking two sites together with a T1. The initial plan was to share the T1 between voice and data, however we would like to consider VOIP in the near future, so it will initially be data only.

What equipment would anyone reccomend that we purchase for both sides of the line, bearing in mind that this is not a large environment and costs are important (total of five lines at the smaller location). It is also important that we integrate those lines with the HQ system in the near future.

Simplicity and ease of setup would be very useful.

All suggestions welcome

Thanks

 

[computerhighguy]

You are asking a complex question without providing much information.

1) How do you plan to hand off the VoIP call? (Example: POTS lines to a PBX, T-1 to a PBX, plugging in a few regular phones).
2) How many concurrent calls do you forsee doing at any one time?
3) What are your expectations for growth?
4) What type of hardware will you be using to terminate the T's on both side?

Not having enought information, I will give you my suggestion.

I am going to assume that you have a PBX at both locations and that you have a spare T-1 (or better yet PRI) card in each PBX. I would suggest, based on a cost perspective and reliability, that you purchase 2 used MC3810s with Dual T-1 cards off of ebay. You can probably get them for less that 300 dollars each and they can terminate the data T-1 and have a connection to your PBX using the other T-1 interface. If you don't want to have it terminate th data T-1, then you can put it behind whatever you are using to terminate the T-1 and have it terminate the voice. They candle 24 calls very inexpensively and someone like me coul setup the voice part in a short time. You PBX vendor could integrate the MC3810 into the PBX pretty quickly (quicker if using a PRI). You will get a lot of call control and functionality for a cheap price.

I am certain there are cheaper alterantives (but not by much), but I would stay with a proven leader in VoIP. CISCO!!


It is what it is!!
__________________________________
A+, Net+, I-Net+, Certified Web Master, MCP, MCSA, MCSE, CCNA, CCDA, and few others (I got bored one day)

 

[richards99]

Thanks for the feedback - much appreciated.

As you can tell, we don't have much experience with this..!

Ideally, we would like to go VOIP, but initially, I think we are looking for our T1 to be split between voice and data (6 channels voice, 18 data) if feasible. Currently we have 6 POTs lines coming into a PBX at the smaller location. If we could have those 6 lines connected into our main PBX across the T1, that would be great. No growth is anticipated at the smaller site.

Our voice and PBX provider has quoted a phenomenal amount to link the two sites across the T1, so I am investigating alternatives at present.

If we were to go for the above approach, should we still use the MC3810s? I presume from what you said, they just plug into the Verizon Smartjack and we can then configure the channels (18 on one T1, 6 on the other...)??

I notice they are no longer current equipment from Cisco. What would be their replacement? (I presume horendously expensive, but we would need to look at it from a strategic perspective)


I really appreciate your input.

Thanks very much

Rich

 

[computerhighguy]

The MC3810 is a kind old platform. I use i mainly for backup voice and lab equipment. The IOS is a bit slow, by that I mean when you save and do a show config. It has plenty of processing for everything most company's need.

To split a T-1 the way you want to, it is not that simple. You would have to get a CSU/DSU unit that could actually split the T-1 into seperate segments. The only one I know of is the Adtran TSU120. I am sure there are others, but this is the one I am familiar with. I also recall it being VERY expensive new in the box. This unit goes in front of the routers and actually splits (multiplexs) the t-1 into two segments (6 channels on 1, 18 channels on another). You would then need a channel bank to split those into pots lines or feed it into a T-1 card (assuming your PBX can handle a 6 channel T-1). I did this once and believe me, I will never do it again. You loose too much control doing it that way and you are limited to using just the 6 lines for voice.

What repalced the MC3810? A lot. When the MC3810 was first introduced it was the voip platform. It was considered a very dense platform with both T-1, FXS and FXO capability. It was also very expensive. The 1700, 2600 and 3600 series kind of repalced it. I would say that the AS5350 series is actually a better replacement unit. It is also very expensive for a basic setup. That is why I like the MC3810. It almost has the same functionality, but at a much cheaper price.

What should you do? You are kind of in a pickle. If I worked for your company I would probably have it up and running in a few days assuming no major problems. What kind of PBX do you have? Perhaps I can give you some pointers. If you have the budget, I would purchase a couple of 1750s with a FXS VIC in each. If you know Cisco fairly well, you could have it up and running a few hours. Test it out and if it works, go with the MC3810 as your solution. You will probably get a good lesson in phone systems and how to set them up, as vendors typically are a pain in the rear about helping you out. I had to learn most of the hard way. It really is up to you on which way you go. Personally, the splitting of the T-1 is much harder than just learning VoIP and way more expensive.



It is what it is!!
__________________________________
A+, Net+, I-Net+, Certified Web Master, MCP, MCSA, MCSE, CCNA, CCDA, and few others (I got bored one day)

 

[lopes1211]

The adtran TSU 600 will act as a CSU/DSu like the TSU120 but it also combines FXS/FXO capability. This 1 box (1 for each end) will serve as the csu/dsu and a channel bank. Pricewise including 2 Quad FXS/FXO cards in each would be about $1600 per box.

-CL