Noel's Muses

There are issues with leaving multiple active outlets in place on your original phone line when NBN connects your new service with their VDSL modem that's for certain, they can and do create issues that result in poor performance with your service, that's one of the few things NBN chief Bill Morrow and I actually agree on

There are typically two wiring layouts of a home with multiple outlets and ADSL, the first and most common is daisy chained, that sort of looks like this

(if any diagrams look incomplete, click on them for full size)


If you have such a setup, NBN may or may not (but should) disconnect the rest of the sockets from that first socket, also known as NBP (Network Boundary Point) in the chain, if they don't, you'll need to have a Registered Cabler do it for you (I heard recently that to stop many trivial NBN connection and speed complaints, that NBN techs are now doing this), and, if you want your other phone points to work again, you will need a Registered Cabler to come and make those changes anyway, in most cases, it's a matter of doing a little bit of wiring work at the first outlet, changing over the face plate and popping a couple more sockets in, much like figure 2 below



We see with the single gang outlet the first socket is the active NBN line and connects to your VDSL modem, the second and third sockets are linked together on a separate two gang plate adjacent to the single, you take your voice out from the VDSL modem and plug it in to a socket on the second plate to distribute your voice service through to all other analog phones, and you can plug in an analog phone into the third socket, so you have a phone right there with your modem.

We can not use a three gang outlet to keep things clean and visually appealing, sure it would look better, less holes in your wall and so on, but this is another one of the stupid NBN regulations, they cant just claim the socket, they want the whole damn plate, hole and all.


Another, less common wiring setup would be what's known as star wiring, this is where multiple cables are run from a central point, usually the Telstra (or now NBN) NTD (Network Termination Device), a big brownish looking box on side of your house next to your power box, as shown below



In this case, your costs will be a bit more because a Registered Cabling Provider will need to do a lot more work, like disconnecting all but the modem line, and altering your cabling similar to the previous example, or re-star wire your other sockets from a new central point close by your modems socket, there are various ways this can be done, in most cases they can still re-use some (if not all) of your existing phone cabling.

It's important to note that just because you have the big NTD box on your wall outside, doesn't mean you have star wiring, you may still have a daisy chained system.

Since early 2017 Telstra, and now NBN, will only install and cable your lead-in up to an NTD, rather than a wall box and first outlet, on all new installations. This means the builder, or home owner, will need a Registered Cabler to do the actual wiring of the home and connect that to the NTD.

These are not all the wiring configuration possibilities, but they are the most common, so obviously existing daisy chain setups are the quickest and cheapest to convert, star wiring, the longest and more expensive.

The above is pretty much also applicable if you want to use an independent VoIP provider, rather than the VDSL modems voice port - which is just an ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter) inbuilt to the modem, just like many ADSL modems with VoIP ports, that's all it is, nothing special.

To use a private VoIP service, such as MyNetfone for example, using your own ATA you'll be running its phone-out (FXS) port into that new second socket at the first 3 gang outlet, rather than the voice port of the NBN modem.

Most RSP's are not divulging the SIP logins they provide on those voice ports, they seem to think it's like some state secret. Now... I don't condone it, and I wont tell you how, but there are ways around it - Google or Bing are your friends

But personally, I'd be using a private VoIP service and not an RSPs over priced voice offering anyway, because, well, it's hard for them to let go of their 90's era business models, however you can take advantage of some, like AussieBroadband, who have a bundled NBN plan that includes a casual phone plan that costs nothing for DID and inbound calls if transferring your existing number over, you can read more about ABB/Aussie in our TPG to ABB article.

Trying to use your own VoIP account on their modems likely wont work either, because they control that part, with you unable to even access that section of some providers modems.

Whether using an over priced voice inclusive plan an RSP offers, or using your own private VoIP service, I hope you're now more informed on what happens to your house wiring, and what changes you might have to have made.

Recommended: our Telco and Data - Electrician or Registered Cabler? article.



WARNING: It is a criminal offence in Australia to tamper with, alter, or perform any phone or data work if it is, or even if it can be, used on or over a telecommunications or data network, rightly or wrongly this also includes cabling behind air-gaped WiFi devices - unless you are an ACMA accredited Registered Cabling Provider with appropriate endorsements.

Penalties such as on-the-spot fines of $2040 plus for minor breaches, or in more serious cases, court imposed fines exceeding $90,000 and a criminal conviction recorded is a real probability, as well as the likelihood of the removal of all illegal cabling, also at your cost.

Phone and Data Cabling can only be done by a Registered Cabler, not even an Electrician unless they also have a current Open Cablers Registration and applicable endorsements ("S" as a minimum), so if you use an Electrician, just like any person claiming to be authorised to conduct such work, you should ask to see their Cablers Registration Card, if they can not produce it for ANY reason, they must not be allowed to perform such work, an Electrician licence is not sufficient and does not authorise phone or data work.


If you're not yet on the NBN with Aussie Broadband but want to join, they run a referral system where you get 50 dollars off your first bill, if you're ready to jump on board, you can use our referrer code: 4451415 disclaimer: using this code saves you 50 bucks, but also sends some credit our way too, which will help us out greatly.