I am thinking of setting up my daughter's house with an Obi 200 using Google Voice but I am not sure of its capability to handle Faxes. Can anyone tell me if GV handles Faxes (in and out) and if there are any special settings I need to use?
Thanks
I've had no problems with faxes and GV for a long time, but recently I had 2 outbound faxes fail.
I think the biggest factor is the quality of your ISP.
You can check your internet connection here:
http://myspeed.visualware.com/index.php
Click on the USA
Click on a green state.
Select VOIP from the popup
Select Set Test Type
Select a location
Select G711 codec
Click "Click to Start Test"
See this:
http://www.obitalk.com/forum/index.php?topic=6625.msg41922#msg41922
You would dial the number like:
*0118005551212
18005551212 is the fax number
Some people reduce the speed on the fax machine. My fax doesn't have that option.
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
I have a Brother MFC-9440CN multi-function printer and have no problems sending or receiving faxes with GV, although I only send or receive a few faxes a year. This machine is several years old, so I don't know if it's still available. I think any fax machine should work unless it's broken. I said in the above post I started having problems. I traced the problem to a bad ethernet cable. I had no problem making/receiving voice calls with the cable, so any little thing can cause fax problems. Even a bad phone cord can cause problems.
Did you run the quality test using the link above?
I would think inbound faxes should work better than outbound. Download speeds are usually 2-3 times faster than upload.
Do a speed test here: http://www.speedtest.net/index.php?nojs=1
I used a DSL filter before I switched using GV. The DSL filter greatly reduced the number of failures on my non-GV DID. I have a cable provider, so you don't need DSL to use the filter.
I used a filter like this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2Wire-DSL-FILTER-for-2-Line-phones-Free-Shipping-/181605216611?pt=US_DSL_Phone_Cables_RJ_11_&hash=item2a4883b163
You said in another topic:
QuoteI am able to send ok but can't seem to receive getting the message "no answer" or just "failed".
Does the inbound call ring the OBi phone port?
Does the Fax answer the call?
As Robert pointed out, fax over VoIP is just really sensitive to any sort of call quality issue.
If you're willing to pay for a new fax machine, a much better option is to not use a fax machine at all. Get with the 21st century, and use an inbound fax mailbox.
For example, you can get a free or paid inbound phone number (a "DID") from Callcentric, and route inbound calls to their fax server. It will then store the fax and optionally, email it to you. This is far more reliable than using a fax machine, which suffers from the long chain of analog<-->digital<-->analog<-->digital conversions.
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
Seems like Brother machines work well with Obi and GV faxing. If you don't want to get another machine and since you can fax out, consider signing up for a free CallCentric account with NY number and make it your fax number. CallCentric receives e-faxes really well. If you put the CallCentric number on your fax ID, you can fax out with that showing and just have people fax back to the CallCentric number.
However, if this is for a business and you want to use your local number, you might want to try buying a Brother fax machine to see if it works well for you--keep the receipt to return it if it doesn't.
Thank you all for the replies, you guys are great! With the Visualware tests my download speed was 4.48 and my upload was 754 kbps. The line quality assessment showed Packets Norder 3 (which I have no idea about) and Bytes Lost 175692, which can't be good. On the VOIP test Jitter was 20.8, which was labeled as relatively unpredictable, Packet Loss was 0 and MOS score was 3.7 (which I also don't really understand). I am going to try a new Ethernet cable as well as a new phone line cord since both have been in use for years to see if this helps. I'm having second thoughts about buying a new Fax machine because I don't send all that many faxes and I do have a limited use (9.99 per yr) RingCentral account that I've used when I need to send or receive one. I do like the Callcentric idea for incoming faxes especially since I do seem to be able to send faxes out using GV. Oh, and for a few bucks I think I'll also buy the filter to see if that helps...and to answer Roberts question, I'm pretty sure the incoming fax rings the Obi port and it's the fax machine that doesn't answer the call.
Quote from: thogan on December 13, 2014, 03:46:04 PM
(to answer Roberts question, I'm pretty sure the incoming fax rings the Obi port and it's the fax machine that doesn't answer the call.
If the OBi200 is ringing the Fax should answer the call. The fax should answer any call including voice calls. If the phone port is ringing the phone port LED (the right LED) will flash. Is it flashing when you call the GV number?
Is the fax setup to answer automatically? It should be set to answer on 1, 2, 3 or 4 rings.
Do you have another option that would prevent the fax from answering like Distinctive Ring?
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
If having inbound problems, why not get a free Callcentric number (configure it for faxes).
Your outbound faxes could show the Callcentric inbound number as the ID.
Just make sure to call that Callcentric number at least once a month to keep it active.
I seem to be having more success now receiving faxes. I set the machine to answer after 4 rings (I also tried 1, 2 and 3 ring settings) and have successfully received 3 faxes in a row now...a 4th fax came in on the 3rd of 3 tries. I did replace the ethernet and phone cables so I'm not sure if that has helped or if it is the ring setting that did the trick. I'll keep testing but thanks for all the advice and help. Oh, and I looked into Callcentric but don't want to pay monthly fees for 911 service when I can keep the limited Ringcentral for $9.99 a year.
Quote from: Lavarock7 on December 14, 2014, 12:06:35 PM
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
If having inbound problems, why not get a free Callcentric number (configure it for faxes).
Your outbound faxes could show the Callcentric inbound number as the ID.
Just make sure to call that Callcentric number at least once a month to keep it active.
"Four out of five doctors recommend", or in this case, three out of four posters recommend, get a friggin' Callcentric DID and use their fax server. :-p
Quote from: thogan on December 14, 2014, 05:34:35 PM
I seem to be having more success now receiving faxes. I set the machine to answer after 4 rings (I also tried 1, 2 and 3 ring settings) and have successfully received 3 faxes in a row now...a 4th fax came in on the 3rd of 3 tries. I did replace the ethernet and phone cables so I'm not sure if that has helped or if it is the ring setting that did the trick. I'll keep testing but thanks for all the advice and help. Oh, and I looked into Callcentric but don't want to pay monthly fees for 911 service when I can keep the limited Ringcentral for $9.99 a year.
For those who wish to receive faxes and but already have the ability to send, I recommend Faxaway. I have been using them for years. I believe, since 1999. Possibly earlier. All incoming faxes are free and go to your email. It's been very reliable. Outgoing are a low rate, and take some practice and lots of reading of instructions. However most of you seem to be able to send using a google voice number That is much easier to use for sending. Faxaway provides a new number for you faxes and it is all free, with one exception. You must provide a ten dollar deposit to cover possible out going use. The money just sits there in escrow until you send a fax.
A new player in the field (new with faxes that is)...
http://faxx.us
Quote from: Lavarock7 on January 16, 2015, 02:39:34 PM
A new player in the field (new with faxes that is)...
http://faxx.us
"Our free plan allows you to send up to 25 pages of fax per month, entirely free of charge.
We add an extra page with an advertisement to each fax sent."
That's pretty bearable as long as the info in the pdf isn't sensitive this seems interesting.
Quote from: zorlac on January 16, 2015, 07:10:25 PM
Quote from: Lavarock7 on January 16, 2015, 02:39:34 PM
A new player in the field (new with faxes that is)...
http://faxx.us
"Our free plan allows you to send up to 25 pages of fax per month, entirely free of charge. We add an extra page with an advertisement to each fax sent."
That's pretty bearable as long as the info in the pdf isn't sensitive this seems interesting.
For those who have not been to the site, they also have paid service without the ads.
The company was started by one of the principals of UKDDS who supply the free UL phone numbers.
azrobert, many thanks for your post as the *01 solved everything for me. I tried two faxmodems including the USRobotics Courier Dual Standard vEverything and it always disconnects after the first page, it did successfully send at 2400 but with *01, it sent successfully at 14.4k on a Obi202 just like how I used GV from my landline!
OK so I am able to fax using a brother fax machine. BUT I have a Muratec multifunction machine and it does not seem to be able to work I just get a communication error message, bummer
Having the Obi for 5 yrs like most frequent posters here, I found receiving faxes were possible but not sending so used FaxZero, FreeFax and all those other services for those occasional faxing needs.
Recently due to Obi FW fiascos, I opted to install RasPBX on an old Pi2 after upgrading to a Pi3. Must say, I've got to thank Obi FW issues and GV for shutting down SSL for TLS. As a result, I migrated my NAS, printserver and GV authentication to the PI2.
Just yesterday I discovered Hylafax and with the Asterisk on FreePBX have the ability to run a faxserver and fax in and out through the GV number error free. No longer have the need for Callcentric, Fax Zero and such.
Thank you GV and OBi for pushing me to find a solution that has worked out great!
I just signed up for a free eFax account only for incoming faxes and they offer 10 pages per month free. https://www.efax.com/efax-free (goes to your email as pdf attachment).
Quote from: thogan on December 14, 2014, 05:34:35 PM
I seem to be having more success now receiving faxes. I set the machine to answer after 4 rings (I also tried 1, 2 and 3 ring settings) and have successfully received 3 faxes in a row now...a 4th fax came in on the 3rd of 3 tries. I did replace the ethernet and phone cables so I'm not sure if that has helped or if it is the ring setting that did the trick. I'll keep testing but thanks for all the advice and help. Oh, and I looked into Callcentric but don't want to pay monthly fees for 911 service when I can keep the limited Ringcentral for $9.99 a year.
When I signed up for a free inbound NYC number, I said I was using it out of the country; thus no 911 fee. No 911 service here can accurately determine how to get to my house, so I lied. Also if I am using the account for inbound only, no nee to be able to call 911.
As I understand it, once you tell the system you are using the number in the US, you will get charged the 911 fee.
I have a Canon MF4880 multi-function and would like to try the suggestion of setting a star code suggested in an earlier post:
*01, Modem Call, set($Noji1,200),set($Noec1,1),set($Cdm1,3)
Assuming what's shown above is correct, when I click on Star Code Profile A, I can see 36 codes defined but am blocked from entering a new one. Is that intentional?
Am I expected to use Backup Config to export an XML file, then edit the XML to add a new code, and then use Import Config to read it back in? Thanks.
Quote from: rrgg on May 25, 2017, 09:13:37 PMwhen I click on Star Code Profile A, I can see 36 codes defined but am blocked from entering a new one.
Clear the tick from the box(es) at the right hand end of the line where you want to enter a new star code or change an existing one.
Thank you!!!
I should mention that without doing anything, I've been able to send short faxes but not longer ones, so I guess it's the same quality issue others described.
I'm a little surprised that this code is not already a preset on the device for users with fax problems since there are lots of other codes.
*01, Modem Call, set($Noji1,200),set($Noec1,1),set($Cdm1,3)
From the manual, http://www.obihai.com/docs/OBiDeviceAdminGuide.pdf (http://www.obihai.com/docs/OBiDeviceAdminGuide.pdf)
$NOEC1 = Disable echo canceller once in the next call on this phone port (phone-port specific; admissible value: 1)
$NOJI1 = Disable jitter buffer adjustment once in the next call on this phone port (phone-port specific; admissible value: 1)
$CDM1 = Codecs to enable in the next call on this phone port (temporarily overriding any codec preferences in device
configuration) (phone-port specific; admissible value: An 8-bit unsigned number where each bit of its value represents one
audio codec:
- Bit0 (LSB) = G711u
- Bit1 = G711a
- Bit2 = G726r16
- Bit3 = G726r24
- Bit4 = G726r32
- Bit5 = G726r40
- Bit6 = G729
)
Did something change in the firmwares of the last few months or so relating to faxing with Google Voice as before, using *01 would cause faxes to work when they would fail without the *01 but now, it seems like the *01 would cause faxes to fail in sending and not using *01 would cause faxes to send successfully.
I have a Brother fax machine with an Obihai 200 using Google Voice, and after some experimenting sending faxes, I determined the following:
- set($Noji1,200) was not sufficient, but boosting it to 500 seemed better.
- set($Noec1,1) seemed to make sending faxes very slow, or cause it to fail.
- set($Cdm1,3) did not seem to be necessary as G711u was always used for all my test calls.
I'm able to send faxes, including more than one page, without any problems or any configuration efforts, using OBI200, GV, Agere WinModem on the computer, and Windows Fax and Scan, a standard feature of Windows 10.
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
me too I have the same issure I can send a fax but when receiving it says Fax received but instead of printing it out it goes to GV voicemail. Hope someone has a fix for this?
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 22, 2018, 01:22:06 PM
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
me too I have the same issure I can send a fax but when receiving it says Fax received but instead of printing it out it goes to GV voicemail. Hope someone has a fix for this?
Decrease the ring period (the number of rings the fax machine "hears" before it answers the call), to less than 25 seconds.
Quote from: SteveInWA on June 22, 2018, 03:27:40 PM
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 22, 2018, 01:22:06 PM
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
me too I have the same issure I can send a fax but when receiving it says Fax received but instead of printing it out it goes to GV voicemail. Hope someone has a fix for this?
Decrease the ring period (the number of rings the fax machine "hears" before it answers the call), to less than 25 seconds.
do you mean the number of time the phone rings as in 1 2 3 4 rings or is this some other setting?
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 24, 2018, 09:03:03 AM
Quote from: SteveInWA on June 22, 2018, 03:27:40 PM
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 22, 2018, 01:22:06 PM
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
me too I have the same issure I can send a fax but when receiving it says Fax received but instead of printing it out it goes to GV voicemail. Hope someone has a fix for this?
Decrease the ring period (the number of rings the fax machine "hears" before it answers the call), to less than 25 seconds.
do you mean the number of time the phone rings as in 1 2 3 4 rings or is this some other setting?
The setting on the fax machine that determines how long it waits before answering a call.
Quote from: drgeoff on June 24, 2018, 10:10:14 AM
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 24, 2018, 09:03:03 AM
Quote from: SteveInWA on June 22, 2018, 03:27:40 PM
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 22, 2018, 01:22:06 PM
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
Ok thanks I have tried that and it still won't receive the fax I still get a GV message and when I play it I hear the fax dial tons coming in from the machine sending the fax
me too I have the same issure I can send a fax but when receiving it says Fax received but instead of printing it out it goes to GV voicemail. Hope someone has a fix for this?
Decrease the ring period (the number of rings the fax machine "hears" before it answers the call), to less than 25 seconds.
do you mean the number of time the phone rings as in 1 2 3 4 rings or is this some other setting?
The setting on the fax machine that determines how long it waits before answering a call.
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 24, 2018, 10:33:01 AM
Quote from: drgeoff on June 24, 2018, 10:10:14 AM
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 24, 2018, 09:03:03 AM
Quote from: SteveInWA on June 22, 2018, 03:27:40 PM
Quote from: biggpimpn2u on June 22, 2018, 01:22:06 PM
Quote from: thogan on December 12, 2014, 11:38:39 AM
I can send faxes with my Obi200 but can't receive faxes with it (I was successful in 1 of about 20 attempts). I'm wondering what kind of fax machine you are using as I would be willing to buy a new fax machine if that would solve this problem for me. Thanks,/Tom
Ok thanks I have tried that and it still won't receive the fax I still get a GV message and when I play it I hear the fax dial tons coming in from the machine sending the fax
me too I have the same issure I can send a fax but when receiving it says Fax received but instead of printing it out it goes to GV voicemail. Hope someone has a fix for this?
Decrease the ring period (the number of rings the fax machine "hears" before it answers the call), to less than 25 seconds.
do you mean the number of time the phone rings as in 1 2 3 4 rings or is this some other setting?
The setting on the fax machine that determines how long it waits before answering a call.
well that was easy I fixed it lol
So this is what I had to do so that my faxes would come through the fax machine and not get sent to Google voice mail.
First log in to my google voice account then I went to settings it's the three dots then click under the phone number Transfer to get to Phones tab it takes you to the old google voice setup. Then click the Calls tab and turn off call screening. After I did that my faxes come in perfect every time.
in addition to the previous post turned off "Filter spam " on GV settings page. Problem solved.
Quote from: SmallCube on September 27, 2017, 07:24:48 PMI have a Brother fax machine with an Obihai 200 using Google Voice, and after some experimenting sending faxes, I determined the following:
- set($Noji1,200) was not sufficient, but boosting it to 500 seemed better.
- set($Noec1,1) seemed to make sending faxes very slow, or cause it to fail.
- set($Cdm1,3) did not seem to be necessary as G711u was always used for all my test calls.
My question is how did you get you get the settings to stick as I tried on the Obi202:
*01, Modem Call, set($Noji1,500),set($Cdm1,3)
Saved settings, check the settings and it still shows the above but once I rebooted, it went back to:
*01, Modem Call, set($Noji1,200),set($Noec1,1),set($Cdm1,3)
I also tried:
*01, Modem Call, set($Noji1,500)
Saved settings, check the settings and it still shows the above but once I rebooted, it went back to:
*01, Modem Call, set($Noji1,200),set($Noec1,1),set($Cdm1,3)