Help please - Nortel IP Conference Phone 2033

[erick (Eric)]

I needed a conference phone for work. We used to use the old Polycom conference phone when we were analog, but we went VOIP some years ago.

I've managed to buy a second-hand (thanks Ebay) Nortel 2033, for a good price. This one:

http://reviews.cnet.com/phones/norte...-32044537.html

Before it arrived, my IT guy was fairly confident we'd get it working. I will see him later today.

I've located an operations manual on line.

Now, it comes with the Nortel Power over Ethernet (PoE) Interface Module (NTEX11GAE6). This one:

http://www.metrolinedirect.com/norte...-triangle.html

I don't know yet whether our Ethernet is configured to will supply power.

Therefore I may have to be able to supply DC power to the PoE module. The power supply was not part of the deal.

If I could work out the voltage and VA required, I can organise power.

So that is the question - how do I find out voltage (important) and power consumption (less important).

I've checked out the circuit board in the PoE module but it gives me no clues.

Online I can see power supplies listed, but cannot find specs or read the labels in the images. These ones:

http://www.thetelecomspot.com/nortel...36-134397.html

http://www.metrolinedirect.com/nortel-ip-2033-psu.html

So if anyone can tell me the specs for the supplied DC power, I'd be grateful.

While I'm asking, does anyone know the wiring for the extension microphones. These are the ones commercially available:

http://www.metrolinedirect.com/norte...crophones.html

Too pricy for me. I reckon I can pull the mikes from the old analogue unit and use them, if I can work out the wiring to the plugs that go into the Nortel phone. They are your usual four-wire RJ10 connectors.

[erick (Eric)]

Update, I've found a specification that the phone dissipates 10.5W maximum. Still no voltage, however.

[acropolite (Phil)]

Eric, Looks like a rebadged Polycom to me. If you have no luck, send me a Pm and I'll see what I can find out from our support connections.

Most POE is 48 volts, most commonly supplied over the White blue and white brown pairs of the Cat5. (4&5 is positive 7&8 is negative) That said 24 volts is also used for some devices.

If you have the correct POE injector that's a start but you need to be able to determine the polarity, like most standards POE unfortunately isn't standard and the polarity of the plugpacks is variable. Most but not all POE adapters will have a blocking diode to prevent accidental reverse polarity connection. If you can dismantle the adapter that may give you some idea of any polarity requirements.

Some info here http://pinouts.ru/Net/poe_pinout.shtml.

I wouldn't worry too much about the extension mics, they make bugger all difference unless you have a very large conference room.

[whzzz28 (Nathan)]

Power supply:
Output: 19V 1Amp Up to 19Watts

Now you just need to find one... maybe ebay?

This place seems to sell one, but its American.
And yeah its defiantly a re branded Polycom.

http://www.powerpayless.com/19v-ac-p...nce-phone.html

[erick (Eric)]

Great Nathan, that answers the question. 19V 1Amp. I can find a way to generate that from all the various power supplies that I have. If all works fine then, I'll buy the correct power supply one day.

Phil, thanks for the info on the PoE connections. I just have to find out whether the Ethernet here has integrated power. And OK, I'll stop thinking of extension microphones - it is only a moderate size conference room. And also, Yes Phil, it is marked "Polycom Technology" in small print.

[acropolite (Phil)]

Eric, I wouldn't be trying to connect it via a POE switch, it may be that the unit will accept the 48V feed from the POE switch, it may also be that it is expecting just 18 volts if the POE adapter is passive and has the usual blocking diode. The one thing I've learned with POE installations is that there is a lot of variation and you can't make assumptions. If I get a chance tomorrow I'll ask some questions of our Polycom distributor.

[erick (Eric)]

Thanks Phil

Before I read this, we have plugged the phone into a switch that does deliver power and it lit up OK. However most of our switches don't supply power, so I am pulling a power supply out of the garage soon.

However I have now been told that we don't have VOIP to the place I want to use the phone. It was suggested to me that the phones there are analogue. But, says I, the phones there are plugged into network ports! So now I am being told there is something between analog and VOIP - "digital phones". Huh?

Watch this space while some work is done this afternoon.

[acropolite (Phil)]

Eric, analog/digital phones are often connected through network cabling, if the phones are VOIP handsets the network conection will be clearly labelled on the phone and will be an RJ45 (8 pin), if it's telephone the phone connection will be the slightly narrower RJ12 (6 pin) plus.

IP networked phones will be patched at the rack to a switch whereas any non IP telephony will usually be patched to another strip which has a tie cable back to the PABX.

Some additional information, the 2033 lists in it's specs "802.3af standards-compliant Power over Ethernet or local AC power option via Power over Ethernet Module1" which in effect means it will safely accept the usual 48 V feed from a POE switch.

I would be unusual for your conference room to be equipped without data capability, I've not encountered a conference room without data in my day to day travels, if you can find a network connection and that connection has access to your phone system then you're most of the way there. FWIW IP phones and the associated PABX programming can in some cases be simple, in others they can be an absolute pain.

[erick (Eric)]

Thanks again Phil

We are not a professional setup here by any means - low resources sees to that. However we do have data into the "conference room" which is the converted lounge room of a house - you get the idea!

The story so far - for those interested:

It turns out that when the analog phone system was replaced some years ago with an Avaya digital system, there wasn't a suitable conference phone available and it had been forgotten about for some years as meetings struggled on with a hands-free handset. Then I came along.

I did some searching amongst second-hand and nabbed this Nortel. I had checked out what Avaya have available now and the Nortel-badged phone was physically identical. Of course, the question today is whether the Nortel will work on the Avaya PABX. That is being looked into.

We have some switches on site that supply PoE. We have plugged it into a couple of them and it fires up and boots just fine. But, where we want to place the phone the switch does not have PoE. Not problem, says Eric, I'll organise 19V into the PoE unit. I organised a power supply (a rough knock-up of 12V battery and DC-DC convertor) plugged it into the PoE unit and....nothing? Looked more closely and it had blown a 10A fuse in the power supply!!

OK, stop and think. Pulled the PoE unit apart and no obvious damage. Rebuilt it, disconnected the phone, connected the DC supply through an amp-meter. It's pulling 18A!! Quickly disconnect and stop.

Since then I have reconnected the PoE with phone to a PoE enabled network port and it still works just fine.

Stop now and wait for the OK that the Nortel can be made to work on the Avaya PABX. If so, then I have to solve the power problem.

All the "fun of the fair" to save some money - but is is many hundreds of dollars saved in this case.

Did I mention that I would love to have this working for a major conference call on Saturday afternoon - yikes!

[acropolite (Phil)]

Eric, the problem with the power feed may be that you have the wrong polarity, plugpacks come either cente positive or centre negative, you need the correct polarity, suck it and see isn't really the best way to find out. Are you sure that 19v is the correct voltage for the plugpack?

The company I work for is an authorised Avaya dealer, not my favourite system, we rarely touch them. FYI Avaya is Nortel, same company, I may be able to get you the necessary info to get it working. Can you let me know the model of the phone system.

If your It guy doesn't have the Avaya system management tool and some experience with programming that system, then your chances of getting it going are probably nil.

[erick (Eric)]

I'm confident re the power supply, Phil. All metered OK before I attached it.

I'll PM with the phone details. Many thanks.