My VoIP experience on LTE

[Azimuth]

Report back - Day 249

I've picked up a totally new issue that is ruining the service completely. Outgoing calls are barely audible and sound like one is in a tunnel.

According to Switch Telecoms, there seems to be a peering issue between MTN and IS (Internet Solutions) who is Switch Telecom's provider. This is resulting in packet loss and in turn bad quality and break ups on phones.

"Your Internet Service Provider is using MTN's network and this is why you are experiencing issues."

Switchtel ticket: SWT #32283
Afrihost ticket: NBU-354-29880

 

[Dirk44]

I had the same problems when I was with Afrihost/MTN, didnt know why
but experiment proved TM to be better.
Speeds a little slower but VOIP is critical for us.

 

[Azimuth]

The issue was resolved yesterday afternoon. Both Switch and Afrihost let me know.

Telkom Mobile isn't even a consideration. The lag spikes > 1000ms and packet loss due to UDP traffic protocols on the TM network make it a poor experience.

 

[gmza]

Try change from sip.switchtel.co.za to sip2.switchtel.co.za until the MTN issue gets fixed. It will be better

 

[tRoN]

Try change from sip.switchtel.co.za to sip2.switchtel.co.za until the MTN issue gets fixed. It will be better

Greg.
I have been using Adsl with switchtel with no real issues except intermittently as well as this latest MTn/IS issue.

Now what can I use as a failover when Adsl goes ****ty?

 

[tRoN]

Didn't get a reply from @gmza

 

[gmza]

Sorry, wasn't on here the last week. The MTN/IS issue has been resolved, however, for the long term we are looking to multi-home our JHB nodes directly with a few major tier-1 backbones (CPT node is already multi-homed). This will be over an above the existing peering (we peer with many others like M-Web, EOH, etc. via NAPs). We are looking at this from the perspective of where the bulk of our customers are connecting from; SAIX and MTN(because of Afrihost) are critical and, simply put, if IS don't maintain their peering to a quality level that we demand (and have come to expect of them in the past), then we will simply install other additional Internet connectivity via other backbones to secure the best experience for our clients.

With regard to an alternative to DSL, the HSPA+ or LTE are the most readily available and, with an external antenna, are pretty stable. With bigger sites, fibre is becoming increasingly readily available (e.g. Neobroadband Fibre, MetroFibre Networks, etc.). But there is no one-size-fits-all solution; it depends on your budget and who offers coverage at your address. I would love to be able to post "contact xxx" but, realistically, if you want a viable recommendation, you need to be more specific about your exact physical address, budget and requirements. Given that that is confidential information, it is better to email directly to our help desk rather than posting on this forum.