Re: Telephone headset?

On Sun, 31 Jul 2005 18:07:08 GMT, Repeating Rifle
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>My $5 swap meet telephone using a headset and a small keypad, just broke
>(headset). This unit gets all its power from the telephone line. I cannot
>believe how much trouble I am having getting a suitable replacement. All the
>headsets I have been able to find use the 2.5mm plugs to connect to a
>telephone. None seem to have the standard modular connectors that are, even
>now, used to connect handsets to telephones and telephones to wall jacks. So
>what is an old fuddy-duddy like me to do?
>
>Bill
>

http://www.plantronics.com/

Also try eBay "Telephone Handsets"

Beachcomber

On Sun, 31 Jul 2005 22:07:58 GMT, Repeating Rifle
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>On 7/31/05 11:25 AM, in article (E-Mail Removed),
>"Beachcomber" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>> Also try eBay "Telephone Handsets"
>
>I did look around ebay before. Sometimes it is difficult to find things
>there even if they are there. "Telephone Handsets" found useless items. I
>then tried "modular telephone headsets." That found one vendor with many of
>the same kind to sell. There by be others, but I don't know how to find
>them.
>
>That gets me to another question. The modular telephone connectors seem to
>be very reliable and widely used. Why have most manufacturers migrated from
>that to audio plugs and jacks?
>
>Bill
>
It allows the manufactuers to sell custom items as a system and ask
for higher prices (i.e. you buy their headset, you must buy their
amplifier, etc.).

I used to work in the broadcast industry where 20 years ago all of
this stuff was standardized. The headsets were made by Western
Electric and used the dual 1/4 male mono phone jacks and plugged into
the back of specially made telephones. These are still in demand
today because they were made to never break, although you need to go
hunting for them at a ham fest or maybe ebay.

Two years ago, I did buy a more or less generic handset amplifier at
Radio Shack. It did come with a loop connection to the standard
handset modular connectors and I used it with a Plantronics headset.
I'm sure you know that the handset modular connector is different than
the standard telephone line modular connectors on the back of your
phone. It was kind of awkward to have all these cables on my desk,
however. Plus, it needed its own wallwart power supply.

Beachcomber