Greysquirrel
join:2005-04-05
Hendersonville, NC
| [Phone] Confused
I was under the impression that Mediacom phone system was VOIP but I just got a call from Mediacom telemarketing trying to sell me on their phone system, when I said I had equipment that had to phone in to a server every couple of days and it did not work good with VOIP systems I was told Mediacom phone is not VOIP in is over cable and not the internet, I did not want to argue with the caller so just told her I did no wish to change and thanked her for calling and hung up. From what I have been told from those who have the phone system it is not too stable in this area, lots of noise on the line and dropped calls.
Now I would like to know if she is right and Mediacom phone is not VOIP or has she her head up he butt? |
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openbox9
join:2004-01-26
Navarre, FL
 ·Mediacom
| Mediacom's phone service is VoIP, just not in the normal sense that you're thinking. It's a separate channel with QoS that doesn't compete with other Internet traffic as much as traditional Indie VoIP providers' services such as Vonage. Depending on what your equipment is (pacemaker?), it may or may not work with Mediacom's service. There have been conflicting reports. If there are any doubts, you're probably better off not "testing" it. FYI, I'm relatively happy with my Mediacom voice service and haven't had any major problems in the couple of years that I've now had service. |
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drslash
Goya Asma
Premium
join:2002-02-18
Marion, IA
| I don't think that is an accurate description either. From what I understand the call from the home goes over Mediacom's network to the head end and is then connected to the service provider (Sprint?). The call does not hit the open internet anywhere on the path and is not considered VOIP.
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Save water...drink beer! |
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openbox9
join:2004-01-26
Navarre, FL
·Mediacom
| I may not have described it totally. Yes it ultimately ties into the PSTN via Sprint (?). Does Mediacom peer with Sprint in each market or is voice traffic tunneled over Mediacom's backbone which is leased from AT&T? Regardless of whether the voice data hits the Internet or not, if Mediacom is using IP to transfer voice, then the service is VoIP. Either way, Mediacom's voice service isn't POTS in the traditional sense. |
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Anonymous
Premium
join:2004-06-01
IA | Best description would be hybrid VoIP I guess. Either way it's not compatible with some equipment. |
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cfossy
join:2007-04-05
Ottumwa, IA
·Mediacom
 ·Qwest.net
| But trust me there is a HUGE difference when comparing Mediacom and true VoIP like Vonage. True VoIP does not work well with data services like faxing. It also doesent do well when transfering large files, from what i have been told Mediacom phone has dedicated bandwith? |
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Anonymous
Premium
join:2004-06-01
IA | Yes. In fact when I had Vonage every time I would max out my connection I would lose dial tone.
With Mediacom Phone this never happens. This alone is worth $5 extra I pay each month. |
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cfossy
join:2007-04-05
Ottumwa, IA | That was my opinion also, but the other thing is when you bring this up to your provider the only suggestion they have is to switch isp's (not an option), or upgrade your speed. |
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drslash
Goya Asma
Premium
join:2002-02-18
Marion, IA
| reply to Anonymous
I pay $10 extra per month for my POTS line with unlimited long distance and calling features not offered by Mediacom, no 911 issues, up time better than 5 nines (99.999). I have never seen the appeal of Mediacom phone service that is only $10 less per month that what I currently pay for my traditional land line.
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Save water...drink beer! |
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Anonymous
Premium
join:2004-06-01
IA
| What telco? Sounds like a good deal. The last time I had Qwest it was basic unlimited local service with no added features and it was around $21/mo. They increased it to about $24 around the time I canceled.
So in my case, Qwest offers far less value compared to Mediacom.
My phone uptime is pretty close to 99.999%. In other words I don't remember the last time I had an issue or a dropped all. |
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cfossy
join:2007-04-05
Ottumwa, IA
·Mediacom
·Qwest.net
| reply to Greysquirrel
Directly fromt the Mediacom website...
How is Mediacom phone different than
Internet phone service?
There are a few fundamental differences between the two types
of service, but the most important is quality of service and privacy.
Mediacom phone does not connect your calls via the public
Internet. Unlike VoIP (i.e., Vonage) service, Mediacom phone
service uses a combination of Mediacom’s broadband network,
Sprint’s state-of-the-art digital network and the Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN.) This guarantees the quality of the
network that carries your voice signal and provides a crisp, clear
digital voice service. |
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drslash
Goya Asma
Premium
join:2002-02-18
Marion, IA | reply to Anonymous
Qwest
16.60 phone line
9.95 features
6.99 unlimited LD
8.19 taxes and fees
41.73 total
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Save water...drink beer! |
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Greysquirrel
join:2005-04-05
Hendersonville, NC
| reply to Greysquirrel
Confused
Thanks for all the replies, it seems the lady was right about it not being the same as VOIP as we know it, I still think I will pass for now, as I said this area is still having problems, even the local techs will advise to stay away from it for now, of course that is of the record. |
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danawhitaker
Space...The Final Frontier
Premium
join:2002-03-02
Urbandale, IA
·MSN
·Mediacom
| I was skeptical of the phone service when my neighbors first got it, but I'm very happy now and am glad I decided to try it. Couldn't be happier in fact. Of course, if there are issues in your area you'll want to avoid it - although the tech who came to install our phone service told me I'd regret it, and that was a few months ago and we've only had one outage - which was in the middle of the night. So I don't know how...accurate...the techs always are about that sort of thing. I'd rely more on the accounts of other customers in your area over the techs. They're most likely to experience the problems from your perspective than the technician. Although if you have equipment that may not be compatible, it's definitely not for you.
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You're watching Sports Night on CSC so stick around... |
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burner50
Pinlifter
Premium,VIP
join:2002-06-05
On the lead
·Mediacom
·FrontierNet Intern..
| reply to Greysquirrel
Re: [Phone] Confused
If you wanted to get technical Mediacom is truly VoIP and things like vonage and skype are an Internet phone...
the traffic is in the same physical channel... just has QOS associated with it that gets separated at the headend from the regular internet traffic.
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I'm tired of killing stupid people just trying to do my job and go home! |
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glop233
join:2008-03-28
Des Moines, IA
| reply to Greysquirrel
Re: Confused
It's completely different from VoIP solutions like Vonage. Basically, it's PacketCable (»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PacketCable) from the cable modem to the CMTS. It's got dedicated bandwidth for both signalling and the call data itself. Once it gets to the CMTS, voice traffic gets split off on a separate IP network. There's no mix of Internet traffic with voice traffic, except on that very first hop from your cable modem to the CMTS.
Obviously, maintenance that affects your CMTS would potentially affect your voice service. This is no different than maintenance that affects your voice switch, if you stick with a landline provider like Qwest. I've had Mediacom voice service for about a year and a half, and the only problems I had were with a major power outage that outlived the battery in the MTA, and during an ice storm that knocked down cable lines in the neighborhood. |
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openbox9
join:2004-01-26
Navarre, FL
·Mediacom
| said by glop233  :It's completely different from VoIP solutions like Vonage ..... voice traffic gets split off on a separate IP network. Yes Mediacom's voice offering is different than that of Vonage and the like, but Greysquirrel's original question was if Mediacom's voice service is VoIP. Technically it is and the CSR he spoke to appears to be misinformed. She might not have "her head up her butt", but she didn't appear to provide accurate information either. |
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acoustix
join:2004-01-30
Fort Dodge, IA
| reply to drslash
Re: [Phone] Confused
said by drslash :I don't think that is an accurate description either. From what I understand the call from the home goes over Mediacom's network to the head end and is then connected to the service provider (Sprint?). The call does not hit the open internet anywhere on the path and is not considered VOIP. VoIP is not limited to a specific type of network or Internet as you put it. VoIP is not a specific protocol, but a rather a generalized description of "Voice over Internet Protocol". There are many protocols that can be used like SCCP and SIP. It can be over a LAN, WAN, Internet, or whatever, but VoIP does not have to hit the "open Internet". I know because I manage a Cisco CallManager system.
Your understanding of Mediacom's voice network is accurate and it is most definitely a VoIP system. |
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BAINCH
Premium,VIP
join:2003-04-02
Middletown, NY
edit:
May 2nd, @10:23AM
| said by acoustix :said by drslash :I don't think that is an accurate description either. From what I understand the call from the home goes over Mediacom's network to the head end and is then connected to the service provider (Sprint?). The call does not hit the open internet anywhere on the path and is not considered VOIP. VoIP is not limited to a specific type of network or Internet as you put it. VoIP is not a specific protocol, but a rather a generalized description of "Voice over Internet Protocol". There are many protocols that can be used like SCCP and SIP. It can be over a LAN, WAN, Internet, or whatever, but VoIP does not have to hit the "open Internet". I know because I manage a Cisco CallManager system. Your understanding of Mediacom's voice network is accurate and it is most definitely a VoIP system. I wouldn't advise anyone to claim Mediacom wasn't VoIP, but that term has taken on meanings by many users (and reporters) that have confused the issue. So for those who are interested:
Mediacom Phone uses an ITU protocol called MGCP, which is tranmitted in IP between the customer premise and the gateway controllers (part of the switch.) We support dynamic QOS to guarantee bandwidth during all calls to prevent other traffic (primarily HSD traffic from the same customer's home) from affecting call quality. The traffic is separated at the headend and travels a route-diverse fiber ring back to our partner Sprint. The voice traffic never traverses the Internet nor any "public" network of any kind. The voice traffic does travel with HSD traffic (logically separated) from the home to our headend. From there on it travels on physically-separated networks until it terminates at the PSTN. We also use our own circuits into every rate center and 911 center. We build 100% into LOCAL 911, never relying on regional or failover centers. We also provision full E911 in all areas where the local 911 center supports it. We use the universally-accepted G711 codec (another ITU spec) which supports virtually any voice, fax or data communication. We have tested with and are approved for use with many top security companies including ADT (we are what they reference on their website as a Qualified "Managed Facility Voice Network" or MFVN.) We also deploy all our eMTAs with 8hr battery backup.
In contrast, what many people "think of" as VOIP is the Vonage or Skype products. That is based on SIP, has no QOS or route diversity and always travels on public networks (most notably the Internet.) They also have a somewhat sketchy record for 911 support and are not recommended for many uses including security. |
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