[Paul555]

I want to ditch my standard phone line (which is only really used by TiVO to make its call) and switch to a voip provider such as Sipgate. I will use a Voip adaptor such as the Linksys Pap2.

Will the daily call work over Voip? If you have got it to work can to tell me how and which provider you are using (it would need to allow 0800 numbers I presume?)

Thanks for any advice.

 

[roydonaldson]

I'd not look at doing this. VoIP is great for voice, but to do fax, or modem (which Tivo is), any jitter or packet loss will drop the connection. You really need fax or modem relay working to get this to work across VoIP successfully.

I'd suggest keeping it either pluged into a phone line, or get the ethernet card and do an internet based daily call.

Roy.

I want to ditch my standard phone line (which is only really used by TiVO to make its call) and switch to a voip provider such as Sipgate. I will use a Voip adaptor such as the Linksys Pap2.

Will the daily call work over Voip? If you have got it to work can to tell me how and which provider you are using (it would need to allow 0800 numbers I presume?)

Thanks for any advice.

 

[Paul555]

Thanks Roy. Getting an ethernet card just for the daily call would be an expensive way to go though. I'm interested in whether anyone has successfully done this and if so what percentage of calls are successful (and which provider).

TiVO is old technology now as we all know so I don't want to spend money on it when it is likely on it's way out in a year or two for HD.

 

[Pete77]

Thanks Roy. Getting an ethernet card just for the daily call would be an expensive way to go though. I'm interested in whether anyone has successfully done this and if so what percentage of calls are successful (and which provider).

TiVO is old technology now as we all know so I don't want to spend money on it when it is likely on it's way out in a year or two for HD.

But Tivo is so much infinitely better with a Cachecard and 512MB of RAM and a larger hard drive and you can do all that for about £120 now with a 250Gb drive.

All the other supposedly more modern boxes are still inferior in functionality.

 

[mikerr]

You can do the daily call over the tivo serial cable to your PC for near-zero cost if you are brave:
tivo serial setup

 

[Paul555]

You can do the daily call over the tivo serial cable to your PC for near-zero cost if you are brave:
tivo serial setup

Sounds complicated but I would have a go. However my PC is upstairs and the tivo downstairs. Laptop does not have a serial slot.

 

[Pete77]

Sounds complicated but I would have a go. However my PC is upstairs and the tivo downstairs. Laptop does not have a serial slot.

I would suggest that a Cachecard connected to your broadband router is much simpler and more reliable and also allows you to access your Tivo remotely using Tivoweb etc.

Do you have a Sky subscription? If so how much a year do you pay for that compared to a one off £120 or so to upgrade your Tivo? After all £120 is only about the same as the cost of an annual tv license.

See www.steveconrad.co.uk/tivo for more info on what is involved.

 

[TCM2007]

Don't you have to keep the phone line to have the broadband connection?

 

[Prat77]

Don't you have to keep the phone line to have the broadband connection?

That's the USP of Virgin Media...

I'd give it a go over VOIP - it may be a little slow, but could work. Purchasing a cachecard and the rest is a little overkill if you're looking to keep costs down - may as well try a PSTN/VOIP adaptor (which you'll need anyway to continue to use a half-decent phone) first.

 

[BrianHughes]

That's the USP of Virgin Media...

I'd give it a go over VOIP - it may be a little slow, but could work. Purchasing a cachecard and the rest is a little overkill if you're looking to keep costs down - may as well try a PSTN/VOIP adaptor (which you'll need anyway to continue to use a half-decent phone) first.

I doubt it'll work at all nevermind slowly. There just isn't the bandwidth over voip.

 

[Paul555]

Don't you have to keep the phone line to have the broadband connection?

Telewest now Virgin (that I have) removed the requirement for a compulsary phone line with Broadband some time ago.

I managed to get the Linksys Pap2 cheap from Ebay so I will try it while keeping my existing phone line. I will report back with the results.

May be some time though as this is coming from Hong Kong. Lets hope it turns up!

In the meantime I am still interested in all your opinions and whether anyone has got this to work.

Searching around the net there was some suggestion that fax machines might work so this could to?

 

[mikerr]

I'd also keep an eye on ebay for a networked tivo... its a buyers market at the moment, with networked & lifetime machines going dirt cheap (£150 for a lifetime+cachcard?)

Prices will most likely go back to normal after this month (holiday season..),
then you can sell your unupgraded machine back on ebay at £100

 

[Pete77]

I'd also keep an eye on ebay for a networked tivo... its a buyers market at the moment, with networked & lifetime machines going dirt cheap (£150 for a lifetime+cachcard?)

Cheapest I have seen is the £215 I paid and another that sold soon after that for the spec you mention. And that is plus £15 to £20 p&p

I have seen Lifetime Sub machines with only a Turbonet card and a smaller hard drive around say 80Gb go for the kind of price you mention. Also there was one with a hooky Status 11 evaluation sub with a Turbonet card and the original hard drive that went for arond £135 a couple of months ago.

 

[mikerr]

I don't keep track of them all, but here's a few out of my watch list (missed em!)

TiVo + 120GB drive + 512Mb CacheCard - £50 - 270143132853 (ouch!)
TiVo + 200GB drive + 512Mb CacheCard - £86 -230148058132
TiVo + lifetime + 512Mb CacheCard - £181 - 190115078655

 

[Pete77]

tivo + lifetime + 512Mb cachecard - £181 - 190115078655

It only had the original 40Gb hard drive though, which makes me feel the extra £34 + £5 postage I paid was worth it for a 250Gb drive with Tivoweb properly installed and working and the drive properly formatted. Also a proper ethernet socket on the case too.

Obviously a 40Gb drive is damn all use with a Cachecard and 512Mb of RAM and it looks like someone has taken the original large hard drive out, which would make me concerned as to whether this install even ran reliably. Either way you would have to get hold of a new hard drive and go through the upgrade process which to most people is a lot more than £39 extra of their valuable time..........

However cheap the other machines appear you obviously have to allow for the fact that a Lifetime Sub is £199 more.

 

[steveroe]

I'm interested in whether anyone has successfully done this and if so what percentage of calls are successful (and which provider).

:down: I did try this for about a week, but after no connection succeeded I went back to using the normal phone line. Sorry.

 

[Paul555]

:down: I did try this for about a week, but after no connection succeeded I went back to using the normal phone line. Sorry.

Damn. Which provider was that please?

 

[mccg]

I never got my VoIP connection (with Draytel) to work on my Sky box.
I mentioned this over at Digitalspy, and most people who had tried it had the same results.
I think 1 person managed to get it working, but it was not reliable.
I'd expect the same from TiVo

I dropped my phone line a year ago, as I don't use it. Only had it because it was part of ntl TV, so when I went to Sky, I just kept ntl BB.
Sky was installed before I dropped ntl, so still had the phone line connected for the required callback. I know I'm breaking Sky regs by not having a phone line connected... but it works OK.

 

[Pete77]

Damn. Which provider was that please?

My impression is that modem tone does not seem to be supported on any voip connection. I suspect the way it compresses all the quiet bits in the call etc may be the problem.

Getting a Cachecard and 512MB of RAM plus a big 250Gb or more hard drive would be a far more sensible way to go.

Consider yourself lucky that you can have broadband without paying for a phone line at all. Out here in the countryside I have to pay for a BT wholesale provided phone line (whoever I pay the phone bill to) to support my broadband connection, even if I make all my calls by Voip.

Good old Ofcom supporting its business friends in the entrenched monopoly operator once again...............

 

[Pete77]

I know I'm breaking Sky regs by not having a phone line connected... but it works OK.

You aren't breaking them so long as you have completed the first year's contract.