Remember: 99% of call quality/call drop issues and "lost connection" issues originate in your network and/or computer setup (your router, Google chrome, your actual computer's processing speed, your internet, etc.). This article is meant to help you troubleshoot these factors and resolve your call quality/drop or "lost connection" issues.
The Easy Steps to Help w/ Call Quality/Drop Issues:
- Check the internet that you're connected to. Is it the right one?
- Use an ethernet connection if possible, not a wifi connection.
- Restart your router (unplug it, wait 20 seconds, plug it back in)
Your Headset and Microphone
- To make sure that your headset is set up and paired correctly, see here.
- And to make sure you are using an appropriate headset for the Kixie dialer, see here.
- in short, use a USB headset for best results, not a 3mm like apple headphones
- if you're using Bluetooth, it is advisable to disconnect and re-connect your Bluetooth headset each morning before making calls, since bluetooth technology often loses connectivity with its end device (Kixie PowerCall in this case)
Make sure you are signed into an up-to-date version of Google Chrome (Stable)
- Sign into Google Chrome by doing the following:
- Sign into Google Chrome (and the Google chrome store) as a unique email that nobody else is using.
- if you're not signed as described above, then uninstall Kixie (right-click the K and remove from Chrome), sign in to Chrome and the Chrome store w/ a unique email nobody else is using, and then reinstall Kixie.
- Sign into Google Chrome (and the Google chrome store) as a unique email that nobody else is using.
- Updating Google Chrome
- Go to Chrome Settings > About Google Chrome
- Double-check that you are not running a beta version of chrome, or chrome canary.
- If you are already signed into Chrome but experiencing strange issues - see here
- if you're experiencing a "lost connection" error when making a call - see here
Your Computer, Multi-tasking, and Streaming
- Minimize the number of tabs you have open, especially those that eat up a lot of bandwidth or processing power.
- It is very much not recommended to stream media (audio/video, Chromecast, etc.) while using Kixie.
The Advanced Steps:
Please refer to the table below while testing.
|
Good |
Average |
Bad |
Jitter |
<= 10ms |
10ms - 30ms |
>=30ms |
Packet Loss |
< 0.5% |
0.5% - 0.9% |
>= 0.9% |
Your Router's Quality and/or Traffic Load
- If your wifi router is not high-quality and/or you have too much traffic going through it, you should just buy a higher-quality router. Here are the ones we recommend.
Your Network Setup (Latency, Ports/Firewall and Speed)
- Latency
- Verify the strength of your network and/or a firewall that may cause call quality issues or call drops by doing a quick, easy network scan from your browser.
- The network scan is just a snapshot of your network status, but any consistent Latency value (round trip time) of approximately 150ms or higher suggests that you may experience call quality issues and/or drops.
- Bufferbloat can be a common source of high latency. See https://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/bloat/wiki/Introduction/
- The network scan is just a snapshot of your network status, but any consistent Latency value (round trip time) of approximately 150ms or higher suggests that you may experience call quality issues and/or drops.
- Verify the strength of your network and/or a firewall that may cause call quality issues or call drops by doing a quick, easy network scan from your browser.
- Ports/Firewall/QoS
- Please see this advanced network configuration guide for ideal network setup (ports and firewall, QoS, IP addresses)
- Though advanced, QoS is recommended so you can prioritize voice traffic on your network vs. other less-critical traffic like YouTube videos
- here is an example of configuring QoS on a Ubiquiti Edgerouter ER6.
- Though advanced, QoS is recommended so you can prioritize voice traffic on your network vs. other less-critical traffic like YouTube videos
- Please see this advanced network configuration guide for ideal network setup (ports and firewall, QoS, IP addresses)
- Speed/Bandwidth
- High speed internet gives the best call quality experience but is rarely the cause of call quality issues and drops.
- To determine the minimum internet recommendations check this post.
- High speed internet gives the best call quality experience but is rarely the cause of call quality issues and drops.
Administrative Access Required
- Administrative Access must be available at all times to all Google Chrome directories including this in Windows:
- C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Local\Google
DISABLE SIP ALG
- Disable SIP ALG on your router
- See Disable SIP ALG for more info.
The Alternative Way to Make Kixie Calls While You Troubleshoot:
If everything else above seems ideally setup and you still have call quality issues:
- You can always use Kixie Connect to route your calls through a non-Kixie device to avoid the issues at least temporarily.
- Remember that you can always switch to Kixie Connect as a backup calling option at any time if you are experiencing bad call quality or drops through the Kixie dialer. In other words, you can at least temporarily make Kixie calls via your cellphone or another direct number. Don't worry, this method will still show your Kixie caller ID and track/record the call inside your CRM.
- Please submit to support@kixie.com at least two examples of calls you made or received where the call quality issues were present. You can either submit the call recording link OR the date/time and the number called for these two examples.
- Lastly, we can always provision a 3rd party computer softphone (think Bria or Zoiper) or deskphone which may resolve the issues, so keep that in mind.
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