[VoIP] Acquiring a switch

[Steph Kerman]

Actually, small packaged PAXs of less than 50 line or even 25 line 
capacity, can be quite easy to transport and set up.  That's one reason 
why they fetch good money when they show up on eBay.  PAXs having all 
the features of large exchanges: private conversation, dial, busy and 
ringback tones, periodic ringing, and compatibility wiht standard 2-wire 
phones, were made with as few 1 link and 10 station lines.  A British 
GEC 25 line 4 link PAX I salvaged about 9 years ago weighs 90 lbs.  I 
lifted it into the trunk of my car without assistance. 

The PAXs made by TeleNorm (TeleNova in Canada) and L.M Ericsson almost 
as a rule have tie-trunk and dial pulse transmission capability.  The 
small TN PAXs generally use SXS technology with single motion switches.  
The LME PAXs sold in the US are mostly crossbar systems.   The smallest 
of these was a 16-line 2-link ARD624.  These stand about 34" tall x 10" 
wide x 8" deep and weigh about 90 lbs. 

Many small PAXs made by other manufacturers such as British GEC and 
Automatic Electric, have no provision for trunking to other exchanges 
and therefore no ability to transmit dial pulses to an *.  However there 
are ways to modify these PAXs without extensive modification.

If you are interested in the ultimate minimalist PAX, a friend has one 
of the TN 10x1 PAXs for sale.

Steph

John Novack wrote:
> As to less labor intensive, NOTHING in switching fits that description.
>
> John Novack
>
> Donald Froula wrote:
>
>>>> I have a nice Asterisk setup in my basement. I'm interested in 
>>>> acquiring an electromechanical switch to connect to it (plenty of 
>>>> basement room left), but have no idea how one would acquire such a 
>>>> switch. A small step or crossbar PBX would be great. What are the 
>>>> sources for this gear? Any less labor-intensive alternatives?
>>>>  Thanks,
>>>>
>>>> Don