No dial tone

[lemmy999]

I have just installed a new mobo (PC Chips Syntax SV266a). The board is supposed to have a modem onboard but its not being detected in device manager. I have installed a PCI modem card (having disabled the onbaord modem in the BIOS) but i keep getting the error message that no dial tone has been detected. The phone socket is fine, the cable is ok .

any suggestions as to what i try next?

Thanx
Chris

[BipolarBill]

There are two jacks on the modem. Which are you plugged into?

Is there an answering service on the line? When upi pick up the phone, do you hear a steady tone or a staccato one? If you hear a staccato tone (boop-boop-boop), go into the modem properties and tell it to not wait for a dial-tone.

[lemmy999]

Bill

i'm plugged into the line socket. The socket is good- i,m getting a steady dial tone. I know the line is good as this problem is on a system i've just built for someone else. I'm using the same socket for this reply so it must be alright.

Chris

[BipolarBill]

I'm talking about the modem jack. Do you mean different PCs with the same modem? How could it work and then not work?

Anyway, I would suspect that the drivers are bad or the modem itself is.

[lemmy999]

The modem is brand new! ( i know that doesnt mean that it must work) I will try and download some new drivers i think

chris

[rmanet]

I'll bet it's a cheapy PCTel chipset onboard modem - they're notorious for the "no dial tone" syndrome, and what's the brand for the other?? Return it and get another, but you should be able to get the mobo modem to work.....

Use AIDA32 or look through your specs to see what type of modem it is - then you CAN make it work, but you really have to make sure you find and install the right driver - and as you're fiddling around and uninstalling or removing it in device manager, go to the windows/inf folder and get rid of the related .inf driver file or it keeps reinstalling it when the OS boots

Although I have sometimes simply given up on a PCTel pci modem and simply thrown 'em away -

Yyou can always try to uncheck the "check for dial tone before dialing" - sometimes that works too :t

[herosrest]

There will be a bios setting to enable\dis able the onboard modem - also audio.
Are the mobo drivers and mini ports installed.
Are serial ports enabled\installed.

If either modem is pctel - very choosy about drivers and their setup.

[Eric Legge]

Just because you can use the phone doesn't mean that the phone line is OK.

I had the same problem once with a Conexant PCI modem. Got a dial tone for the phone and could use it but not one for the modem.

Turned out that one of the connection wires in the phone box on the wall had come out of its slot and was touching another wire.

Eric,
http://www.legge40.freeserve.co.uk/BuyerBeware.htm

[lemmy999]

Yes the PCI modem is a cheapie. It is the Intel 536 chipset. I have downloaded the relevant drivers from www.modem-drivers.com. The website shows the file to be an exe file. When it downloads however its a zipped file. Unzipping the file doesnt produce the expected .inf file.

I am assuming that the best thing to do is to remove the modem card, remove the modem in control panel and then re-install the card and wait for the computer to detect new hardware and then load the driver file i have downloaded.

Any thoughts about this course of action??

Chris

[BipolarBill]

Try here:

http://downloadfinder.intel.com/scripts-df-external/Product_Filter.aspx?ProductID=977

[lemmy999]

Bill

thats the site i got the download from. When i unzip the file i get the following files

a sys file, a dll file, a security file and a text file!

Chris

[BipolarBill]

You haven't mentioned your Windows version at all in this thread. no matter - use the Add Modem wizard in Control Panel with those files.

[lemmy999]

Bill

Sorry, i forgot to mention that i'm using XP Pro. I have tested the modem using Modem Doctor which says that the drivers are installed. But still no dial tone. I've checked all the setings in the BIOS to make sure that i havent disabled anything in there.

Maybe the only option is to get another modem to try!

Chris

[Mez1974]

Got a similar problem im interested to find out what your outcome was ?

Just built Pc for a m8. Intel 536 Modem ,asus A7V8X mobo.. XP PRO too.

No dial tone , cant dial anything !!

[omendata]

No one has mentioned the simplest of checks first

The cable from the modem to the wall socket?

Can you run a modem test - it sends commands to the modem
It will also give you an indication of capabilities and errors!

Remember to select tone or pulse dial - usually tone these days!

[Mez1974]

Ok presume telephone cable is fine.

Query modem shows no errors.

[omendata]

Never presume anything!

Have a look at the diagnostic log - does it give a carrier tone detect or any errors from the last time you tried to connect - not query modem but the option next to it -> view log - making sure append to log is selected?

[lemmy999]

i have resolved the problem. I think that the phone socket was to blame. Problem is, its obscured by a large heavy desk which is a bugger to move. Took the computer downstairs, connected up and Bingo!!! it worked. Still havent worked out why the socket works with a ASDL modem but not on the dialup?

chris

[omendata]

Yep like I said always check the simplest things first!