Re: Cox ARRIS Touchstone

["Jim" <alarminex@xxxxxxx>]

Crash Gordon wrote:
> Here's what we found;
> Its a black box, powered by nearest ac outlet and plugged into nearest telco
> jack and nearest coax outlet. They cut the feed from the old SNI so only
> dial tone is coming from their interior feed. In doing so they cut us out
> since we are feeding from the old SNI.
>
> The box is called Arris Touchstone "Telephony Modem" and has two RJ11 telco
> jacks on it, one USB (the small side of USB like what would be on a camera)
> a RJ45 that is labeled Ethernet (but is not used) and it has a small battery
> backup inside. The whole unit looks like an overgrown cable modem.
>
> When we backfed their signal back out to the SNI and fed everything that way
> through our alarm, we got our seizure back and the alarm transmits without
> any problems. BOTH jobs we did today were like this.
>
> PITFA though. My clients will collect from Cox especially since Cox said
> they did NOTHING to effect the alarm system when they did by cutting the
> wires at the SNI.
>
Hi Crash.

Just to let you know, we had the same experience here when Cablevision
started installing their version of VoIP. Of course they, at least,
where calling it that.
But they were just cutting the lines and then when they got a rash of
complaints that the alarms were being disconnected, the alarm
association and reps from the Cable company got together and some
training courses were set up. A whole new procedure was instituted
where the cable company first asks if the subscriber has an alarm
system when they inquire about the service. This way, the cable company
knows which technicians to send to do the installation. They know about
line seizure and will ask the end user to test their alarm system
before and after the install. I'm not so sure all the systems are line
seized, but at least they're working until the next time we get out for
a service call.

I've been sending notices out to all my clients, for about two years
now, regarding the downside to VoIP, Vonage, etc. and about getting
filters on DSL lines. I had forgotten all about DSL, until I went to
one client for a service call on another matter,  and just as a routine
tried to send a signal to central and it didn't go through. I asked the
client if she'd tested the system lately and she said yes, but they
were slow in responding. I put the butt set on the line and heard the
DSL carrier and asked if she had DSL installed since the last time I
was here and got a yes. She had no idea that she should have called me
to get some filters. From that time on, I've continuously sent out
notices in all my billings about DSL and VoIP.

Compared to other alarm companies I've spoken to, I have relatively few
VoIP conversions. But, then again, I can only presume that there are
those clients out there that would need a rabid mongoose to jump out of
the billing envelope with a " READ ENCLOSED NOTE" sign around it's
neck, before they'd read a newsletter or warning notice.