"We seem to be having trouble with that phone line"

Comhrá · 28-08-2019 10:57AM #1

It seems the number of radio interviews that are interrupted by bad phone lines has greatly increased in recent times.

I'd guess that close to 50% of phone interviews on RTE & Newstalk throughout the day, are plagued by drop-out, poor sound quality etc. with the interviewer/presenter apologising and the interview being temporarily abandoned and re-connected. Seems ridiculous in this day and age of telecommunication greatness.

Is it all just down to using only mobile phones by the interviewee? Maybe a land-line only rule for anyone doing a live radio interview or is that just plain old-fashioned and too inconvenient now?

NIMAN · 28-08-2019 10:58AM

Joe Duffy often says it over a perfectly good phoneline when the person is saying something he doesn't agree with.

rino87 · 28-08-2019 12:38PM

Agree with the above, I thinks its more used as an excuse to cut someone off, especially if they are in danger of saying something that could be seen as libel/slander...

Case in point, the chap that was on the hard shoulder last week that called the royal family nazis.... "suddenly" his line dropped.

Skype seems to be used more and more too tho. Off the ball seem to use it constantly and it causes them awful hassle

L1011 · 28-08-2019 01:36PM

People on the move on mobiles would be a major element in actual poor quality or dropped calls.

zoobizoo · 28-08-2019 01:44PM

Comhra wrote: »

Is it all just down to using only mobile phones by the interviewee? Maybe a land-line only rule for anyone doing a live radio interview or is that just plain old-fashioned and too inconvenient now?

That's exactly it.

I've organised phone interviews for the radio and the producer would ask that the person being interviewed use a land line.

Any time I've done a "phoner", I used a landline.

Clearer, no drop out and no background wind / passers by / cars etc

NIMAN · 28-08-2019 02:12PM

L1011 wrote: »

People on the move on mobiles would be a major element in actual poor quality or dropped calls.

Yeah, funny how the mobile phone industry is allowed to get away with crap quality phone lines and service after all these years.

Antenna · 28-08-2019 09:52PM

zoobizoo wrote: »

That's exactly it.

I've organised phone interviews for the radio and the producer would ask that the person being interviewed use a land line.

Any time I've done a "phoner", I used a landline.

Clearer, no drop out and no background wind / passers by / cars etc

And if a landline can be used, use a directly connected phone rather than a cordless phone ! a directly connected phone will be better quality audio (unless its defective), the improvement would be even more apparent after the radio station's audio processing.

If a mobile has to be used in a building, tell them stay near a window, generally where signal is best.

KReid · 28-08-2019 10:16PM

It's 2019 and it seems some stations can't comprehend online dialing and VOIP. You can have high quality calls over the internet, you can even use Whatsapp or Viber for high quality calls on the go.=, not sure why stations persist with Mobile calls all the time. I appreciate we don't have amazing wireless coverage across the country, but for international calls its a handy solution which is pretty much free.

TheChizler · 28-08-2019 10:20PM

KReid wrote: »

It's 2019 and it seems some stations can't comprehend online dialing and VOIP. You can have high quality calls over the internet.

If someone calls me on WhatsApp I generally hang up and call them the old way, never had a decent quality call with it. No issues with WiFi or mobile data on my end.

jeremyj1968 · 29-08-2019 05:36AM

RINO87 wrote: »

Skype seems to be used more and more too tho. Off the ball seem to use it constantly and it causes them awful hassle

Yeah, I remember they were speaking to Pat Nevin and I couldn't understand a word he was saying. It was only afterwards that I discovered he was actually in studio.

L1011 · 29-08-2019 10:33AM

NIMAN wrote: »

Yeah, funny how the mobile phone industry is allowed to get away with crap quality phone lines and service after all these years.

Its mainly landline to mobile calls that are crap; the better codecs for 3G and LTE calling on mobile-mobile sound superior now.

You can get 3G AMR phone hybrids that would improve some mobile calls on radio; but you need to be able to handle splitting outbound calls and can't take inbounds on them either without giving out the specific mobile number of each one - not practical. Not seen an LTE one offered yet

ButtersSuki · 30-08-2019 09:50AM

Ironically Gerry Ryan (who was the host of a phone in show) died of a bad line. :pac:

Too soon?

zoobizoo · 30-08-2019 10:01AM

TheChizler wrote: »

If someone calls me on WhatsApp I generally hang up and call them the old way, never had a decent quality call with it. No issues with WiFi or mobile data on my end.

Yep - me too.

callaway92 · 30-08-2019 11:43AM

TheChizler wrote: »

If someone calls me on WhatsApp I generally hang up and call them the old way, never had a decent quality call with it. No issues with WiFi or mobile data on my end.

I'm opposite - WhatsApp call quality are perfect imo

dxhound2005 · 30-08-2019 12:01PM

NIMAN wrote: »

Joe Duffy often says it over a perfectly good phoneline when the person is saying something he doesn't agree with.

How often is often? I listen to the programme fairly often, and I have never heard that happening.

ButtersSuki · 30-08-2019 12:17PM

dxhound2005 wrote: »

How often is often? I listen to the programme fairly often, and I have never heard that happening.

:rolleyes:

The J Stands for Jay · 31-08-2019 12:38PM

Comhra wrote: »

It seems the number of radio interviews that are interrupted by bad phone lines has greatly increased in recent times.

I'd guess that close to 50% of phone interviews on RTE & Newstalk throughout the day, are plagued by drop-out, poor sound quality etc. with the interviewer/presenter apologising and the interview being temporarily abandoned and re-connected. Seems ridiculous in this day and age of telecommunication greatness.

Is it all just down to using only mobile phones by the interviewee? Maybe a land-line only rule for anyone doing a live radio interview or is that just plain old-fashioned and too inconvenient now?

I generally find the sound quality better when calling mobiles, and worse when calling landlines. Perhaps it's down to cordless phones, but I'd always assumed it was poor quality eircom phone lines

31-08-2019 04:04PM

McGaggs wrote: »

I generally find the sound quality better when calling mobiles, and worse when calling landlines. Perhaps it's down to cordless phones, but I'd always assumed it was poor quality eircom phone lines

Really?

I'm like another previous poster -- when I receive a whatsapp call, I know the quality will be shít, I reject the call and phone back on a regular mobile line, or on the house/ work phone.

I can't remember ever having disruption on a landline, at home or in work.

Whereas if you're making a whatsapp/ skype call and move away from the router, or walk around the house at all, there's bound to be some drop-out.

"Sorry?"
"Say that again?"
"Can you hear me?" -- "Yeah, can you hear me?" -- it gets so tedious.

When listening on radio, it's a real change-the-channel moment.

31-08-2019 04:07PM

Good on ya. Some wouldn't call back because it would cost them. Or be like me, with no phone credit!

Sonny noggs · 31-08-2019 04:09PM

ButtersSuki wrote: »

Ironically Gerry Ryan (who was the host of a phone in show) died of a bad line. :pac:

Too soon?

No, if he was a coke head then he is fair game.

31-08-2019 04:27PM

ButtersSuki wrote: »

Ironically Gerry Ryan (who was the host of a phone in show) died of a bad line. :pac:

Too soon?

Reminds me of an unfortunate statement of praise by a journalist when lamenting the passing of the late Katy French

"You'd ring her up, and she'd always be great for a few lines"

"We seem to be having trouble with that phone line"

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