Call failed: Network busy

[Jake_byrde]

I'm trying to call someone on their cell and it isn't getting through. I called my landline to test and it went through fine. Why wouldn't a mobile to mobile call not get through? I wonder if I'm missing calls. Anyone else having a problem? I'm in the NE.

[Andy]

Did you get a Call Failed: Network Busy message on your phone's screen?
IF so, there were no open timeslots for you to place your call and it should not have mattered whether or not you are calling a mobile or landline...could have just been coincidence that a timeslot opened up right when you dialed your landline.

[Jake_byrde]

Originally Posted by Andy

Did you get a Call Failed: Network Busy message on your phone's screen?
IF so, there were no open timeslots for you to place your call and it should not have mattered whether or not you are calling a mobile or landline...could have just been coincidence that a timeslot opened up right when you dialed your landline.

Yeah, I got the message on my cell phone screen.

I don't know what you mean by timeslots.

I've never had this happen before.

[Jake_byrde]

Now I get a recorded message saying:

"Your call can not be completed at this time. Please try again."

Am I missing incoming calls too?

[Andy]

Originally Posted by Jake_byrde

Now I get a recorded message saying:

"Your call can not be completed at this time. Please try again."

Am I missing incoming calls too?

If you are having problems making outgoing calls because of capacity issues, chances are you may be missing incoming calls as well.

[Andy]

Originally Posted by Jake_byrde

Yeah, I got the message on my cell phone screen.

I don't know what you mean by timeslots.

I've never had this happen before.

If you get a Call Failed: Network Busy message on the screen of your phone, it simply means that the cell site you are on is having capacity issues. There is a set number of active calls that can be placed on each sector of every cell site, and the sector of the cell site you are on has reached that number.

[Jake_byrde]

So the person I was trying to reach called me, but I can't call them.

Thanks, Andy.

[army1]

Originally Posted by Andy

If you get a Call Failed: Network Busy message on the screen of your phone, it simply means that the cell site you are on is having capacity issues. There is a set number of active calls that can be placed on each sector of every cell site, and the sector of the cell site you are on has reached that number.

maybe they should set the number higher so their customer's
can use the service they pay for,

[Andy]

Originally Posted by army1

maybe they should set the number higher so their customer's
can use the service they pay for,

Agreed, but this would include additional backhaul from the cell site to the switch, extra equipment at the cell site.... $$$ they may not willing to pump into certain areas.

[army1]

Originally Posted by Andy

Agreed, but this would include additional backhaul from the cell site to the switch, extra equipment at the cell site.... $$$ they may not willing to pump into certain areas.

aw yes but they still want there monthly payment from those certain area's,
even though they have degraded those customer's service's, make's ATT since to me.

[PCingAl]

Does anyone know what capacity each sector usually carries? On average?

[Andy]

Originally Posted by PCingAl

Does anyone know what capacity each sector usually carries? On average?

Good question and I can never remember those stats. If anyone could clarify this for us again, that would be great.

[RJB]

Originally Posted by Andy

Good question and I can never remember those stats. If anyone could clarify this for us again, that would be great.

Yeah I forgot them as well.

[SmArTeStChIlD421]

usually it is all about the time that you make the call.............i know that text messages stop going through on my phone sometimes cuz i text so much and then when the tower gets busy they just stop going through...........only had that happen like 3 or 4 times with sprint........

it happened a lot with T-Mobile

[adamjaskie]

Yeah, I'm getting this too in Houghton, MI (former Dobson/CellOne area). Sometimes I have to try four or five times before a call will go through. It gets really annoying; I figure I'll start calling CS and complaining, being a squeaky wheel.

[SmArTeStChIlD421]

yeah...................i'm sure they can go and do some upgrades on the towers to fit more calls............i mean there are limits to how many calls can fit on a band but i think that something like this might be a tower issue too..........it's not a serious metro is it

[RadioFoneGuy]

Originally Posted by adamjaskie

Yeah, I'm getting this too in Houghton, MI (former Dobson/CellOne area). Sometimes I have to try four or five times before a call will go through. It gets really annoying; I figure I'll start calling CS and complaining, being a squeaky wheel.

Still Cellone till 08. Where in Houghton?

[RadioFoneGuy]

Call capacity is based on the physical equipment at the site such as radio, PA's, antennas and cables and frequencies availability.

CDMA2000 running just 1X has a reasonable planning for approx 50 calls per sector / per 1.4 MHZ chunk of spectrum. This does not include 1X data or evdo.

GSM comes from the factory set up to run approx 40+ calls per sector not including data or text messaging.

Normally a text message wont be blocked on GSM as it usually a different signalling channel than that of voice calls.

[Andy]

Originally Posted by Cellonetech

Call capacity is based on the physical equipment at the site such as radio, PA's, antennas and cables and frequencies availability.

CDMA2000 running just 1X has a reasonable planning for approx 50 calls per sector / per 1.4 MHZ chunk of spectrum. This does not include 1X data or evdo.

GSM comes from the factory set up to run approx 40+ calls per sector not including data or text messaging.

Normally a text message wont be blocked on GSM as it usually a different signalling channel than that of voice calls.

40 calls per sector for GSM does not seem like it would be enough... Is that 40 calls per sector per channel or something?

[Andy]

I have learned that on CDMA, the theoretical maximum calls per channel per sector is 61.

[RadioFoneGuy]

The power of 10 my friend. Everyone you talk to will give you different numbers on CDMA capabilites. CDMA 1st GEN averaged about 40 calls and the latest renditions can do a claimed 75 calls per sector.

When you get a sector on CDMA that gets quickly loaded due to say an emergency or traffic jam or whatever you begin to get CO-channel interference and the site will begin to drop call until it is back within a safe operating state. My buddies at Alltel say they plan for 50 calls per carrier on a sector to be safe and leave alittle of a buffer.

The same is true on GSM, it can do alot more that 40 calls from the factory based on how you set the site up in the switch. On GSM you have to set aside TDMA based timeslots for SMS/MMS GPRS/EDGE and Voice. GSM is more dependant on physical equipment so most of the time capacity can be added just by putting more radios at the tower. I have GSM equipment doing over 50,000 calls a sector with no blocking.

Both systems are limited by antennas and antenna cabling and tower restrictions.

[adamjaskie]

Originally Posted by Cellonetech

Where in Houghton?

MTU campus and in the residential area up on the hill past downtown (between Bridge Street and Memorial Drive). Houghton isn't that big, but there are a lot of college students who only have cell phones, and no land lines. The problem seems to be mostly during evenings and weekends when everyone is making phone calls. I think the capacity just isn't up to the number of people using their phones.

[Andy]

Originally Posted by Cellonetech

The power of 10 my friend. Everyone you talk to will give you different numbers on CDMA capabilites. CDMA 1st GEN averaged about 40 calls and the latest renditions can do a claimed 75 calls per sector.

When you get a sector on CDMA that gets quickly loaded due to say an emergency or traffic jam or whatever you begin to get CO-channel interference and the site will begin to drop call until it is back within a safe operating state. My buddies at Alltel say they plan for 50 calls per carrier on a sector to be safe and leave alittle of a buffer.

The same is true on GSM, it can do alot more that 40 calls from the factory based on how you set the site up in the switch. On GSM you have to set aside TDMA based timeslots for SMS/MMS GPRS/EDGE and Voice. GSM is more dependant on physical equipment so most of the time capacity can be added just by putting more radios at the tower. I have GSM equipment doing over 50,000 calls a sector with no blocking.

Both systems are limited by antennas and antenna cabling and tower restrictions.

50,000 calls per sector per day or something?
The newer CDMA cards are supposed to be able to handle 64 voice calls per channel per sector, but 3 of those are taken up by the paging channel, whatever, which leaves 61. Like you said, this is theoretical and will vary depending on many factors.

[Fire14]

Wow, I am learning a lot from this information guys, thanks.

[SmArTeStChIlD421]

it's really nice that we have statistics......now how many sectors are there to a tower cuz 40 calls per tower is never enough

[Andy]

Originally Posted by SmArTeStChIlD421

it's really nice that we have statistics......now how many sectors are there to a tower cuz 40 calls per tower is never enough

That depends on the tower. There are omni-directional sites with just one sector, and some 6 sector sites that Metro PCS is putting up in Southern California. Usually, carriers have 3 sectors, so this should give you a pretty good idea.

[SmArTeStChIlD421]

okay that makes more sense.................120 calls to like 2 miles is better..........but obviously they need more towers in places like NY

[army1]

i love this place

[adamjaskie]

Originally Posted by SmArTeStChIlD421

okay that makes more sense.................120 calls to like 2 miles is better..........but obviously they need more towers in places like NY

I really doubt that is enough in most reasonably populated areas, especially if you stick a college campus with 7000 students or so in the middle of that.

[army1]

Originally Posted by SmArTeStChIlD421

okay that makes more sense.................120 calls to like 2 miles is better..........but obviously they need more towers in places like NY

you can include w.ky in this also, the odds of hitting the lottery is better then
not dropping a call