Partner system simple enough to install myself? 1

[ejoech]

My small business needs a PBX solution. I have received two proposals from local electricians. One recommends a Panasonic KX-TA824 phone system while the other recommends an Avaya Partner ACS Rel 7.0 system. I also require a paging system. I will only need at most 5 phones. I am getting Verizon to install 4 lines next week.

Based on what I've read online, I have come to the conclusion that the Avaya is the superior system. I have read the manual and it seems pretty simple to install. I have excellent PC knowledge and am pretty handy with electrical equipment so I've thought of possibly installing the system myself.

Am I better off letting a professional do it or is it simple enough that I can do it myself and save money?

Any advice going into this is greatly appreciated...and if I'm stupid for even thinking of installing it myself with no prior experience..feel free to tell me

 

[gknight1]

i would definately let a business patner do the initial install of the system. i would ask if you can watch when it comes to the programming time of the install. having installed dozens of Partners, i dont mind if the customer watched or even asked some questions. but i definately dont like the guys who sit there and ask me 100 questions before i can get done.

 

[fondog2]

ejoech,

It is always best to let a professional do the install. But if you feel comfortable installing the system then do it. I have installed a lot of different systems and by far the Partner is one of the best. I have never been a fan of the Panasonic line. But that is just my opinion. So you say you are a computer guy. Do you know how to correctly terminate computer and telephone cables? Do you know how to use an RJ 11 crimper and also know the correct pin out? Do you know how to test for dialtone? Are you going to install lightning protection? What are you going to ground the system to? These are important questions you have to ask yourself before you go jumping into something you don't know all that much about.
And please don't think I am beating you up. I just want you to know, yes we make some of this look easy. But it comes from training and experience. You will need to think ahead on how you will connect the stations to the system also.

Have fun

 

[gknight1]

i second fondog. also sometimes with paging, it can get a little more complicated.

 

[Dexman]

I would go with the Partner ACS......BUT.....I would avoid the R7.

The R7 has been a problem release for Avaya. it has required multiple patches to correct software glitches. The R6 is still in production and has proven itself to be a worthy system.

 

[skip555]

first off why are you asking electricians ?

your phone book will have a listing for telephone installation and repair , thats who you need to talk to

can you do it yourself ?

probably

should you ?

probably not .

evaluating your business and suggesting the system that best suits your needs and then configuring it to work effeicnatly is what we do

no amount of reading on line forums is going to give the real life experience that comes with the day to day installation , and configuring seeing what features work and which don't .

the system is only as good as the skill level of the person who installed and programmed it

a little money spent on hiring a "pro " will pay off long term

(call a NEC dealer and take a look at the DSX40 or a comdial dealer and look at the dx120 I would recoomend either over the ACS )

 

[dagwoodsystems]

Once again, a HUGE thank you to skip555. The guy keeps beating me to the punch: DO NOT RELY ON ELECTRICIANS for this kind of work!

Nor should you have a "phone guy" wire the electrical outlets in your home and replace your subpanel and power meter! These talents have different classes of licenses, and different skillsets. End of story.

And don't let them lead you down the "How hard can one-pair dialtone be?" road. High voltage is just hot, return and ground. So there's nothing to it, right?

Is a Partner ACS easy to install? Sure...it's as easy as solving a Rubik's cube; you simply must know what you're doing and have a fair amount of practice at it.

Like skip says, "go pro" to get an eval followed by a proper install.

 

[ejoech]

Wow, what a great forum. Thanks for all the quick responses! I think it would be a good idea if I watched them do the programming..and I'm not too annoying so I don't think I would bother them

Fondog - I appreciate your post..this is exactly what I was looking for..I take no offense at all! I do CAT5 wiring & patch panel work so crimping RJ-11 plugs would not be a problem. To test for dialtone, I thought you just plugged a plain old phone into it, pick up, and see if there's a tone? As for lightning protection..you mean wiring it through a surge protector? Grounding it? I think I read in the manual that there is a grounding screw...but I could be wrong. (Please don't this the wrong way as I'm not trying to ask you to explain everything to me..you don't have to correct me/respond)

Thanks for the tip on electricians. This was my own fault in referring to them as electricians. I guess I just always thought of them as electricians, but I can see where that would be a huge insult on a PBX forum! haha, Sorry about that. One proposal is from an alarm company(who recommended the Panasonic, and I will definitely not be going with them), while the other is from a "Communications" company. They installed the Avaya phone system next door, that's how I got the recommendation.($5,550 for partner acs R7, 2 port voice mail, 5 slot cabinet, 6 18 button phones, 1 3910 phone, 100wat bogen paging amp, 6 70 volt speakers, and 2 70 volt 8" round ceiling speakers if anyone is interested)

Thanks for all the responses. I will probably be going with a professional, but I'm not going to lie - a part of me really wants to take this project on and learn how to do it myself..I think it would be interesting to learn. If I do it myself it will be for that reason only, not to save money.

 

[HarrisD1200]

Add alarm companies to the list of specialties. People who can install alarms may or may not be able to install phone systems. Different skill set as mentioned above.

 

[ejoech]

Understood. That's one of the main reasons why I will not be going with them. Thanks though!

 

[dagwoodsystems]

Thank you. You're right about alarm guys (although many are very clean about pulling low-voltage cable). Anyway, I'm sorry for losing my head in that fever pitched rant about electricians. They're needed too; just not for installing phone systems.

 

[TouchToneTommy]

Just to let you know, if my company were installing your system, we would be meeting with you before the installation, to gather information on how to design the programming, then stage and program the equipment in the office, print custom desi's, record the auto attendant (if you wanted us to), all before we came to install and train. We would certainly show you how programming is done, but there's not a whole lot to see.

 

[fondog2]

dagwoodsystems,
Careful about the electrician part. There is a lot more than you think. Not only have I been a technician since 1993. But I am also a licensed electrician. We should not be slamming any other trade out there. Remember some could take offense.

Later

 

[1043]

When you say you read the manual was it the quick reference manual or the CD?

I once saw on "This Old House" how they talked about installing a Partner phone system (not sure of release) in a house and said that if you read the manual and followed the wiring diagram you should have no problem. When they showed the finished install, it looked like a monkey installed it.



Also on a side thought,(not to offend any one).But has anyone ever gone into an installation where someone comes up to you and says "I used to be a phone installer",
or "any idiot can pull cable"? And that same person is pushing a broom or emtying the garbage.

 

[fondog2]

1043

Yes I have. That is why they are pushing the broom. You just have to smile and tell them thank you. Because they are the reason we have business. ;o)

Later

 

[hbiss]

We should not be slamming any other trade out there. Remember some could take offense.

Let them take offense. I have always been a "phone man" but I am also an electrician. My experience is that very few electricians can do telecom work and that goes for alarm guys too. Most who claim they do it are only in it because they see telecom as a way to make a few extra bucks and that's about all they are interested in. Certainly not about providing a knowledgeable solution to the customer's needs or even installing everything properly.

I call it as I see it and if that's slamming too bad. Consumers need to know the truth behind these guys who plaster "telephone, data and CATV" on their trucks under their sparkie logo. Don't believe it.

-Hal

 

[skip555]

the electrical supply houses hold a three hour seminar and they graduate a new class of "phone men"

recent job for a long time cutomer sparky insisted the cabling was part of his quote

I asked him if it would be home run

off course he says

guess what it was all daisy chain

he probably didn't know what home run means , missed that 5 min of the lecture

 

[dagwoodsystems]

 

[hbiss]

... missed that 5 min of the lecture

That's when he was his cell phone talking to Mrs. Smith about changing her ceiling fan.

-Hal

 

[telecomtekperson]

I was/am a licensed electrician. Pulling 500mcm in the middle of January in Wisconsin didn't seem like to much fun. So I learned wiring and then phone systems.

I have been underbid by more than a few electricians, and had to go back to install the correct cable or install it the right way. To hell with offending them. They offend me when they can not do it correctly.

Pay the money and have a pro do it. If you want to learn, tell them up front, maybe they will terach you....