Weird noises on my phone line

[Not_Giving_Up]

Seriously, what is this??

You can hear it on the phone, through the computer speakers (there's a phone line attached), and through the bass speaker of the surround sound system. Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzz...but it's not really a buzz...hard to explain. It doesn't happen constantly, but there's no rhyme or reason to it.

Nothing new has been brought into the house that would cause interference, and it occurs when nothing other than the TV and the computer are on. The computer is always on, the TV nearly always. Standard lighting of course, we're not vampires.

Tonight, while watching West Wing, just as someone said "liberal" the buzzing started. It's now a joke that I'm being watched, and that word triggered it.

Seriously though, what in the hell is this??

[donco6]

1. Do you wear or carry a cell phone?

Is it near the speaker?

[Not_Giving_Up]

4. Two cell phones in the house

Neither are anywhere near the computer or the speaker, or the one phone jack in the house, for that matter.

[Renew Deal]

5. SHHHHHHH!!!!

They can read your mind. :tinfoilhat:

[Not_Giving_Up]

8. I wish them the best of luck

With all of the meds and stuff, if they can figure out what's going on, I congratulate them!

[RevolutionaryActs]

2. They're tapping your phone lines!

:tinfoilhat:


Edit: I can't spell tonight.... weeeeeeeeeeee. :crazy:

[Not_Giving_Up]

7. Not funny!

I'm a Texas Dem, AND a DU'er!

[thecai]

51. Under The Patriot Acts

The fbi were given unlimited surveillance powers, so your phone could easily be tapped.

[Guy Fawkes]

60. thats a clicking sound

[Renew Deal]

3. Cell phone, Blackberry, NSA, DIA, Illuminati, Skull and Bones

It's got to be one of those.

:tinfoilhat::tinfoilhat::tinfoilhat:

[Not_Giving_Up]

6. Well, there's no Blackberry here

:tinfoilhat:

[Califooyah Operative]

52. haha.

[Huckebein the Raven]

9. You sure it's not the Mothman ?

:tinfoilhat: :P

[Not_Giving_Up]

10. Nah, my cats would be on to that

It's just a high pitched buzzy sound.

[Not_Giving_Up]

11. Oh, and I forgot to mention...

This only started about a month ago (maybe less). I've lived here for nearly a year, and the cell phones have been around for months.

[Historic NY]

12. Are the Nextels or the type with walkie talkie, if so...

no matter where they are being used in the house the will interfere.

[Not_Giving_Up]

13. Nope

One's Verizon, the other Cingular, no walkie-talkies

[nytemare]

54. My cell is a Cingular (formerly at&t) and it makes everything buzz

My clock radio with the sleepy noises, tv, computer speakers. Video equipment at work, it even made the speakers in a courtroom buzz while I was testifying, and the phone was turned off.

[Not_Giving_Up]

14. The lump on my couch has been saying

That black SUVs will be following me soon...Then I get weird noises on my phone.

:tinfoilhat:

[steely]

15. Long or short buzzes?

Do you have some sort of heater around, like a blanket or aquarium heater? They're notoriously noisy (from an electrical, not acoustical standpoint - that is to say the offending device may be quiet itself, but may cause some other devices to sound off. Is the phone a cordless. You said random, but really - any time of day or nite? for 1 minute or 2 hours? near dinner time? Maybe this could help you narrow it down.

Didn't notice if you mentioned...one room or thru the house?

You could disconnect something like a clock radio or whatever, one at a time for a day, and experiment - something like a power supply in a device may be just going down little by little. Some devices are called vampires btw, like digital cable boxes, since they draw power even when you shut them off - they really aren't off so they give you the appearance of turning on very fast.

[Not_Giving_Up]

16. Almost morse code like...short ones and long ones

No heater (central heat), no electric blanket, no aquarium. No cordless phone (tired of buying batteries that wouldn't hold a charge). Yes, ANY time...I've heard it at 2 AM, during the daytime, in the evenings, late at night.

[steely]

21. Like human morse code, or "slower"?

I can't sleep, and I'm a mystery lover and a double E geek.
I editted my above post while you were answering me, sorry I added more crap.

Ham radio interference? Not sure if hams use international code anymore these days tho'.

Any neighbors have wierd antennae on their home?

[Not_Giving_Up]

38. I don't know

Everything I know about morse ode, I see on TV. It's not the beep-beep like that, but the patterns remind me of it.

[Not_Giving_Up]

28. The living room/kitchen area

Near the phone line

No funny antennas...everybody has satellite. Why would it juyst start recently when nothing new has been added??

[candle_bright]

17. Weird...I have that too

I can hear it through computer speakers, my phone, and also my little portable am/fm radio.

It kind of goes in the same little pattern of noise each time too.

I've had it for about a year, but I think the last time it happened was about 3 weeks ago.

[Not_Giving_Up]

18. Cripes! Now I'm really freaking out

Dit-da-da-da-da-daaaaaaaa?

[candle_bright]

19. Yup

Mine is like dut-dutdutdut-dutdutdut-dutdut

The hypens are the small breaks between the string of noises.

[Not_Giving_Up]

24. If you're on the phone

Does it get louder than the person you're talking to?

[candle_bright]

27. Yes

It entirely blocks out the conversation. Likewise with the radio.

[Not_Giving_Up]

30. Same here

I have to hang up and call whoever I'm talking to back.

[candle_bright]

37. It's definitely very strange

and you are the first person I've talked to who also has this "thing."

Since I've had it for about a year, it's become more of an annoyance than anything. But I sure as hell would like to know what it is!!!

[Not_Giving_Up]

40. I'm thinking of having the phone company check my line

My father-in-law is a tech...I should ask him

[candle_bright]

45. Will you let me know

if you find out what it is?

I don't know any techs, and I am certain I'll sound like a lunatic trying to explain this to the phone company! Maybe your father-in-law can nail it down, or at least provide you with a way to ask the phone company about it without sounding tin foil. :tinfoilhat:

[Not_Giving_Up]

47. He'll love it...he's a repug and a half

Yes, if I find out what it is, I'll be sure to post it.

[candle_bright]

50. Hah, that should be fun!

Sorry I couldn't help figure it out, only commiserate!

Hope you get to the bottom of it.

I'm off to bed. :)

[steely]

26. I don't think it's man made

forgive me for catching up so slowly

[Not_Giving_Up]

32. Is it like in Signs? The baby moniter thing?

I've seen no crop circles!

[Floogeldy]

20. GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!

He's on the extension phone.

Maniacs can lick hands, too.

[Not_Giving_Up]

22. There is no extension phone

Just one functioning jack in thw whole house....very funny

[Floogeldy]

34. That you know of

Check the box and don't forget we live in the age of wireless transmissions.

[Not_Giving_Up]

36. There were 3 jacks in the master bedroom when we moved in

But none of them work. I don't have anything wireless here...what could be interfering?

[Floogeldy]

39. There could be a wireless unit around your house or in your wires

Haven't you ever heard of a bugging device?

[Not_Giving_Up]

41. OK....I wasn't sure if that's what you were talking about

I know my neighbors aren't running wireless networks...thought maybe that's what you meant.

[Floogeldy]

42. Your phone might be tapped

[Not_Giving_Up]

43. Yeah, that's my paranoia

I have to wonder why in the world it would be. yeah, i e-mailed Senators like mad before Jan. 6th, and I come here, would that be enough?

[Floogeldy]

48. I have no idea

But you can find a private investigator with the right equipment to scan your room for bugs or wiretaps.

For all I know, it could be nothing.

Good luck, and let us know what you find out.

Floog

[Not_Giving_Up]

49. Yeah, I'll sell my body to pay the PI (not!)

I just find this whole thing very strange. I'll post if I solve the mystery.

[steely]

23. See #21 above

[barackmyworld]

25. Probably interference, maybe from not even your house?

Maybe it's from big cars, or your neighbors, or cell phones outside.

Alternately, some metal part of your speakers might be touching something else metal. When I touch my speaker jack (from my laptop speakers) to my fingers or anything metal, it buzzes. The speakers can transmit the current through fingers, etc.

[Not_Giving_Up]

29. I basically live in the middle of nowhere, far from a highly traveled road

And there certainly isn't a lot of activity with my neighbors at 2 AM. We've checked everything, nothing's touching that shouldn't be.

[steely]

31. Maybe the wind blowing your phone line outside?

A poor connection could be made worse by the movement - but it affects other things in your house? hmmm

something with a loose ground

[Not_Giving_Up]

35. Wind, no wind....makes no difference n/t

[steely]

44. one last post and then I try to crash

Two main sources of juice into the house - excluding cable, the phone and the power. If the phone is connected in anyway to the power via the PC or an answering machine - there is a common link - I am reaching here. If you hear it on the phone while you're on it, and you can hear it on the speakers or wherever else, that tells me there is a link (you knew already), but that of course adds to the difficulty.

some device powered could be "throwing" to the phone or vice versa, do you use a phone modem?

I gotta go with a bad ground (no help to you), or something failing.

I can only suggest isolating something one item at a time.

I realy do wish you luck and sorry i couldn;t help.

[Not_Giving_Up]

46. The phone is connected to the PC for my dial-up

The satellite is also connected to the phone, which is why (I'm guessing) I hear it through the woofer.

[DU GrovelBot]

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[shesemsmom]

53. You need to have that line check

call the phone company it could just be water in your line. Or it could be someone tampering with it. Some one in government tampered with our line once. They had been recording our calls and we caught on due to funny noises just like that

[BiggJawn]

55. Have they started BPL service in your area?

"Broadband over Power Line", it's the latest solution looking for a problem brought to us by the unlamented recently-departed Mikey Powell at the FCC.

Supposed to be the newest way to bring the Internets to you, but it's fraught with interference to other services. It sounds like a "buzz-buzz-buzz".

[Not_Giving_Up]

58. No...I can't get any high speed where I live

and I really think that sucks!

[ScreamingMeemie]

56. It happens to us to. I chalk it up to the cell phone, because it gets

worse when the cell phone rings. Happens on my computer speakers, our land line, and even the car stereo. No worries...just cell phone interference....or Big Brother....;) :hi:

[Not_Giving_Up]

61. Nothing happens when either of the cell phones ring

I thought that might be it in the beginning, but it's not. It even does it when both cell phones are turned off.

[Blue Diadem]

57. It's problems in your phone lines,

I live in a rural area and I've had it happen as well. Either it's static or you're picking up other conversations and if the buzz is what I've heard, it's other conversations.

[Not_Giving_Up]

59. It's definitely not other conversations

I've had that problem before, and you can tell that it's another conversation. This is definitely not that.

[Unreconstructed Lib]

62. I had this and it turned out that the phone line buried in my front yard

had to be replaced. No biggie.