Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!utstat!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!netsys!vector!telecom-gateway From: decvax!decwrl!apple!zygot!john@ucbvax.berkeley.edu (John Higdon) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Number of devices on 1 line? Message-ID: Date: 8 Jun 89 06:52:45 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Organization: ATI Wares Team Lines: 24 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 191, message 3 of 9 In article , nobody@cs.buffalo.edu writes: > How many devices can a single residential line support? At the moment I have > 4 telephones, 1 answering machine, and 1 modem on the line. I am about to > add a second modem and another phone. Is this "safe", and will it work? The limiting factor involved when adding devices to a telephone line is simply the number of ringers (or more precisely, ringer equivalence) on the line. When a device is "on hook", it presents no load to the line other than its ringer. If the device has no ringer (or its ringer equivalence is "0.0") it is totally invisible unless you take it off hook. If memory serves, I believe the maximum REN (Ringer Equivalence Number) allowed on a 1/1A ESS is 8. Higher than this, the CO will withhold ring current and you will never know anyone is calling you. This has actually happened to me and it was very embarassing when I turned in the trouble call. They told me I had too much stuff on the line. Add up all the RENs on your devices on any one line and if it's less than 8, you are probably OK. -- John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395 john@zygot.uucp | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !