Sure Signal - Call Audio Quality Issues

[Retired-George]

This issue has the following symptoms:

• Poor audio quality on both outbound and inbound calls
• Particularly affects customers using a Virgin Media cable connection

If you’re only experiencing poor audio quality one-way (for example, the call sounds fine to you, but the person you are calling reports poor quality), then this is most likely due to insufficient bandwidth on your broadband connection and is not an issue with your Sure Signal.

Troubleshooting:

If the person you are calling can’t hear you, this is usually caused by low upload speeds.

If you can't hear the person you've called, this is due to low download speeds.

Check if your broadband connection meets the minimum requirements.

Please run the broadband speed checker.

If your connection fails any part of the test, this indicates an issue with your Internet Service Provider and you’ll need to contact them to discuss this further.

Your connection speed will vary throughout the day, so we recommend running it at various times to get an accurate reading.

Check for planned maintenance.
Planned maintenance can cause periods of downtime, so check the forum for any planned maintenance. If there is, this will be announced at the top of the Sure Signal forum.

Reset your Sure Signal:

Sure Signal version 1

• Connect device to internet and power supply

• Press and hold down the reset button (located near the internet port) until end of the process which will be indicated

• Remove the power cable at back of the unit and wait for five seconds

• Reconnect the power cable back to device

• Wait for the LED sequence to flash from top to bottom and back to top

• Wait for five seconds

• Release the reset button

• Within 10 minutes, all the 4 LEDs will start to flash in sequence – 1^st & 3^rd then 2^nd & 4^th then 1^st & 3^rd – with the sequence repeated. This sequence indicates the start of the factory reset procedure.

Sure Signal version 2

• • Connect device to internet and power supply
  • Press and hold down reset button – located near the internet port
  • Wait for all the LED (power + 2 white LED) to light up for few seconds (power LED will always remain lit)
  • Wait for five seconds
  • Release the reset button
    
    
  • Within 10 minutes, 2 white LEDs will start flashing continuously – power LED will always remain constant in addition (unless there is an issue with local connectivity)

Sure Signal version 3

• • Connect device to internet and power supply
  • Press and hold down reset button – located near the internet port
  • Wait for 20 seconds
  • Release the reset button
    
    
  • All the LEDs will temporarily switch off for about 10 seconds. The power LED will then light up and remain constant whilst white internet LED flashes continuously.

The Sure Signal will be back online in around 1 hour.

Move Your Sure Signal Away from the Router
Sometimes the Wi-Fi signal from the router can interfere with the 3G signal from the Sure Signal and this could result in poor audio quality.

In order to prevent this from happening, please ensure that your Sure Signal is moved away from the router as far as the cable will allow.

If you’re still experiencing poor audio quality, post in this thread and we can look into it further.

Thanks,

Jenny

[Retired-James]

Hi rpm007,

I can see that you r currently running the old firmware which is causing your issue.

I’ve asked for the update to be sent out to you which will take up to 24 hours.

Please leave your Sure Signal switched on and connected whilst this happens.

James

[rpm007]

Thanks for taking a look for me! 

[oracle1]

Hi Ben,

Just a quick update to the forum, that the SureSignal call quality issues that I have been experiencing over the last three years or so are finally eliminated. I still do have problems with SureSignal going offline occasionally, when another provider's SureSignal equivalent does not, on the same line, but at least I do not have the call quality issues now. This is on one of my TalkTalk lines where I have 12Mbps ADSL. I have not retried the other two yet. Previously I had the call quality issues on all three lines, all the time, but only after the first few minutes of a call (calls were fine to start with).

So what changed? Well I renewed my contract with TalkTalk and changed to a more basic package. After that, everything works fine in terms of call quality. I'm guessing that the package change resulted in a profile update. I will check at some point. Previously I had Digital Line Management disabled on my profile, to get better speed, and also had fastpath enabled instead of interleaved, which was the default. Interleaved resulted in poor VPN performance. Everything else that I use was fine with those changes, but maybe SureSignal didn't like it, and that was the cause of the poor audio quality.

Anyway, my feedback would be, to anyone with the same problems, try getting your ISP to reset your profile to the default with DLM, if you have previously asked for your profile to be changed to boost speed. You may find this makes the difference (obviously not in all cases).

I now have fibre enabled on a second line, but I'm leaving the Suresignal where it is for now, on 12Mb ADSL, now that for the first time in three years it is working consistently for me 🙂 ... apart from the occasional episode of going offline and requiring a power off / on.

[Retired-Ian_]

Hi guys,

Thanks very much for your feedback.

It's much appreciated.:smileytongue:

Ian

[ljames77]

Hi there,
i'm experiencing inconsistent problems with call quality using my Sure Signal. Most often I can hear the caller fine, but caller struggles to hear me. Sometime just cuts out too.

Sure Signal serial number.

21224512703

http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/3350088426

http://www.pingtest.net/result/94239880.png

Your external IP address from here.

31.185.227.158

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.3.9600]
(c) 2013 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\ljcon_000>tracert 212.183.133.177

Tracing route to cluster4.vap.vodafone.co.uk [212.183.133.177]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 3 ms 3 ms 2 ms 192.168.2.1
2 40 ms 40 ms 40 ms lo0-central10.pcl-ag07.plus.net [195.166.128.188
]
3 48 ms 48 ms 48 ms link-b-central10.pcl-gw02.plus.net [212.159.2.18
6]
4 48 ms 48 ms 52 ms xe-9-0-0.pcl-cr02.plus.net [212.159.0.218]
5 49 ms 49 ms 49 ms ae1.ptw-cr02.plus.net [195.166.129.2]
6 49 ms 52 ms 49 ms ae2.ptw-cr01.plus.net [195.166.129.4]
7 236 ms 220 ms 213 ms te-4-2.car5.London1.Level3.net [217.163.45.249]

8 49 ms 49 ms 49 ms ae-51-51.csw1.London1.Level3.net [4.69.139.88]
9 49 ms 48 ms 50 ms ae-117-3503.edge3.London1.Level3.net [4.69.166.1
38]
10 72 ms 50 ms 110 ms CABLE-WIREL.edge3.London1.Level3.net [195.50.124
.26]
11 70 ms 51 ms 49 ms 195.2.30.61
12 * * * Request timed out.
13 * * * Request timed out.
14 * * * Request timed out.
15 * * * Request timed out.
16 * * * Request timed out.
17 * * * Request timed out.
18 * * * Request timed out.
19 * * * Request timed out.
20 *

I have set MTU to 1500 (from default). Router is a Belkin N series. ISP is Plusnet.
As I now use this for my business and also use 1Net Express, this is turning into a complete pain in the ****
Any help much appreicated!
regards

Lloyd

[Ben_H]

Hi Lloyd,

Thanks for posting your results. 

Everything with your speedtest, IP and traceroute seem OK. You're also already on the latest software for your Sure Signal.

With you saying it's inconsistent, does the quality dip at certain points of the day? Does it happen when there are a lot of other devices using your internet bandwidth? If there's any pattern you can make out, let me know.

Can you also let me know if you've tried repositioning the Sure Signal away from the router and tested another Ethernet cable too? 

Cheers, Ben

[ljames77]

Hi Ben,
In terms of qualoity, its usually rubbish but gets worse, compared to connecting straight to 3G that is. I don't always work from my office, but I don't see a particular time of day when its better or worse. If its rubbish people say "crikey your line is bad" to the point where having 1Net is hardly worth it!

In terms of other devices, working from the office I have a laptop, with majority of software google based (save for the iphone), we use google apps and drive. I've assumed that the VSS wroks as a VPN, i've not spoken to Plusnet about whether I can do any configuring for prioritising that traffic, I don't know?

Have changed the cable before and moved the routeer and VSS, but they are only say 3ft apart rathern than next to each other.

cheers

Lloyd

[Gemma]

Hi Lloyd,

Thanks for getting back to us.

Your upload speed is right on the minimum requirement.

So if there are multiple phones connected to the Sure Signal and if the internet is being used within the building, this would have an impact with the quality of your calls.

Thanks,

Gemma

[bilgeon]

Hi Dave, sadly no progress. I de-registered and waited several hours and now re-registered the unit. It allowed me to add the wife's mobile number but wouldn't let me add mine. Perhaps it assumes that I am the prime user?

Either way neither of our iphones have any signal from the unit.

Getting desperate now.

Bill

[Retired-Kay]

Hi bilgeon, 

Which Sure Signal version do you have? Can you let me know what light sequence you can see since you re-registered? 

It's sounding more and more like it is faulty, especially since it doesn't work at an alternative location. If it's within 24 months old we can repair it for you.

Thanks,

Kay