atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums TDM Business Telephone Systems Vodavi Telephones & Systems Vodavi XTS-IP Upgrade, Opinion and Recommendation Help?

Hello everyone. I just need some advise. Here is some details:

We currently have a Vodavi IN9000 (DVX+4) with a 8 port Talk Path auto attendant Voicemail system. The CO lines are analog.

I got a quote for an upgrade to a Vodavi XTS-IP digital. At first it was quoted for a 12 port Pathfinder but now I requested a 16 port Pathfinder instead.

Well the quote for the 12 port to the 16 port, the price went up xxxx. Which is odd seeing that they quoted me just the 12 port at xxxx and a 16 port at xxxx. I don't see where xxxx difference is. I would imagine it costing xxxx more. At any rate, what do you guys think about that? is it really that much harder to wire in a 12 port to a 16 port voicemail system.

Labor also went up 700 dollars to install it. Please advise. Thank you.

Most likely the vendor had quoted you the 12-Port Pathfinder In-Skin card. Since you wanted 16-ports, they had to quote you a stand-alone pathfinder which also required more digital station ports and may have required an upgraded processor and/or another cabinet.

Are you sure you need 16 ports? A 12-port voice-mail will handle a great deal of traffic.

not 100 sure if we need it as we only have roughly 50 headset/user. We are an an insurance company so we get a lot of phone calls. The 8 port that we had before, it would cause people to be place on hold and what not. What do you think?

I think the 12-port Pathfinder would be plenty big for 100+ users. My recommendation would be the Pathfinder IS, which is most likely what your vendor quoted you.

BTW, I edited your post. We really don't like prices posted. Hope you understand.

I don't think that having more than eight ports would prevent callers from being placed on hold. It is true, the voice mail cannot hold more concurrent calls than it is equipped to handle (eight in your current case) but:

If calls are really being answered and placed in queue, then your eight-port unit is doing it's job just fine. The condition you have reported is indicative of not having enough personnel to field the calls that are parked/held.

Do you have enough analog lines to support the traffic? If you only have eight analog lines and the Talkpath is configured for supervised transfer, you will only be able to receive eight simultaneous incoming calls. This is the case with any voice mail system. You can put a 500 port voice mail system in, but only eight calls will ever get through. With analog lines, it is a 1:1 ratio, as in one line = one call, whether talking or on hold. This is not a system hardware limitation, it is a telco line limitation with analog lines that cannot be changed.

A properly-configured voice mail/auto attendant system should be able to answer the call and then process it accordingly. Any call holding functions should then be passed over to the telephone system via ACD or UCD functions for the actual holding of the call. You might want to look into ACD instead of a new voice mail. If my suspicions are correct, buying a larger voice mail system is comparable to buying a larger pack of gum to fix the leaks in the dam.

If callers are reaching a ring-no answer condition and you have more lines than VM ports, then you are correct in assuming that it isn't able to handle the call traffic. You may very well need to explore the expansion you have mentioned. Personally, I think that you need to do more traffic study research. Eight ports on a properly-configured system can handle a whole lot of call volume.

Far more often than not, customers tend to expect the phone/voice mail system to magically replace a shortage of personnel. They also expect these systems to automatically detect when these shortages exist. ACD/UCD can trim this problem by routing traffic based upon employee log-ins. At least with a log-in, the system knows who is available to receive calls. A stand-alone VM/AA will never be able to know how many people showed up for work today, but then again, that's not the voice mail's job. ACD/UCD handles incoming call management for employees and that's a function of the phone system. While it's true that these systems can STALL this condition by creating an artificial sense of call completion, they can't solve personnel shortages. That's where you end up with angry customers. Anyone who has called their cable TV provider can attest to this.

I am in agreement with NFC about port capacity. Eight ports to support fifty users is already plenty if the system is configured properly.

The 9000-00 (infinite DVX+4 or Triad 3) has the capability of being expanded to include a PRI circuit for your lines, plus ACD functionality. It also has UCD capabilities built-in. You can also purchase a stand-alone Pathfinder voice mail system and attach it to your current system. True, you will need to pay for additional cards/cabinets to provide the necessary digital station ports. Doing so may save you some money now, but in the long run, upgrading to the XTS-IP is probably your best bet.

Upgrading to the XTX-IP will immediately afford the support of wireless IP phones at the local Starbucks or hotel room. Check back if you want more information on that subject.

I'm not looking to throw your current vendor under the bus here, but it wouldn't hurt for you to ask the proper questions. Did you approach them with the question "I think we need a price for a bigger voice mail"? If so, you got a quote for what you requested. I'd be willing to bet that if you discussed the traffic issues that you are having, they would be able to come up with a much more realistic plan of attack.

Thank you NFC and ev607797 for your response.

We do have rougly 16 analog lines so that should be plenty of analog lines to support the traffic. We do use the ACD function in the talkpath. CSR logs into their respective ACD pool and receive calls accordingly.

We like the ideal of upgrading when the company is offering us credit for trade-in. Anyways, here is the system that is recommended to us, if you can take a look at it and let me know. Thank you

XTS-IP Digital"

24 central office lines
56 digital stations
16 auto attendant voicemail ports

including

1 xts-ip cabinet with power supply
1 master program module
1 miscellaneous service module
1 modem
1 surge protector
1 xts-ip central office line card (8 port)
1 xts-ip primary rate interface pri trunk card 23 port

3 xts ip digital station cards (24 port)
6 DTMF receivers
1 ring generator
1 16 port pathfinder auto attendant voicemail system

I see a major cost saving going from an analog line to a PRI/T1 line.

Have you guys heard of AT&T IP Flexible Reach. At any rate, let me know what you guys think. thank you very much.

The proposed configuration looks right, although I do have a question: What are the DTMF receivers and ring generator needed for? It appears that they may have proposed a Pathfinder with analog integration. Not that this is bad, but the digital Pathfinder seems to process calls a lot faster. You might want to ask about this. There may be a good reason that they have proposed analog.

Going with a PRI is a very good move. You will be very happy with this service and the reduced monthly cost. I am not familiar with at&t's package, but it sounds comparable to those of most other carriers. If it's what I think it is, this service allows any unused bandwidth to be handed over for data traffic when call volume is lower. That's just a guess though.

If the trade-in credit works for you, then by all means do take advantage of it. Not only does this save you some money, but it shows you that you have a fair and honest dealer who wants to offer what you need, not just to sell you a bill of goods. Those kinds of dealers are sometimes hard to find. It sounds like you are in agreement on that part and are just seeking a second opinion. You definitely are doing the right thing.

Looks good to be as well, but I would go with the Pathfinder IS. 12-ports would be more than enough for this application.

I have over 100 users on a 12 port central inskin voicemail. It handles the traffic with no problem.

hello everyone. I am going with the Vodavi XTS upgrade however the sale guy is coming back now and telling me that ACD is optional and that it would cost more? just want a comfirmation.

Thank you.