Can't get the answering machine to work. - General Electric 28871FE3 Phone

Sounds like your settings changed. Refer to owners manual. Make sure your line is plugged in and the settings are set so the answering machine answers on a certain ring. Sometimes the answering machine may be fulkl and you need to delete messages to make room for more.

First, to make sure it will work, your fax machine should be going directly to the phone jack, with the answering mach/phone (if any) going to the ext port in the back of the fax machine. That way, the fax machine can "eavesdrop" for any fax tones for every call. If you want to use the fax machine to work with an answering machine on the same line, make sure to set the answering machine to 2 rings lower than the fax machine. Let's say, you have the answering machine set to 4 rings, your fax machine then should have 6 rings. You can set the number of rings for your fax machine under "basic fax setup" of the "menu". Otherwise, you can set the fax machine to auto answer by pressing the auto answer button.

Connect the telephone line of the answering machine from the series connection of the facts machine
.Now set the number of rings for the answering machine to activate to the maximum.{This is found on the side of the machine as a reed switch.}
Now when the calls comes in there is enough time for you to allow it to the answering machine or to attend a call or to set it to facts if a document is comming.While you are away you have to decide the priority needed for either facts or answering as it is a commonline. If answering machine has to work set the facts to telephone mode.If facts has to work set it to facts as the machine will activate before the answering machine.

My reliable GE 29897GE2-A speakerphone w/ digital answering machine works perfect on my AT&T landline, BUT the answering machine does NOT work when connected to my Vonage VDV21-VD line (w/ voicemail and call forwarding disabled). I called Vonage Customer Support to inquire about this from their website:

"Can I use my own answering machine instead of Vonage server based voice mail? If you wish, you CAN use your existing answering machine with Vonage. All you need to do is DISABLE Vonage’s server based voicemail system by logging into your account at www.vonage.com, and clicking on features. The voicemail menu will allow you to disable the entire Vonage voicemail system."

Vonage Customer Support was clueless. The only resolution offered was their suggestion that I might contact the manufacturer (GE-licensed Atlinks USA, Thomson)... lol, good luck with that!

So I installed a GE in-line "DSL Phone Line Filter" between the Vonage VDV21-VD and the GE 29897GE2-A, BUT the answering machine still does NOT work. It appears that Vonage is simply incompatible with the answering machine despite Vonage's bold claims to the contrary.

You have to set the fax to at least one more ring than the answer machine. When the phone rings the fax wakes up and listens after the answer machine picks up, if it hears a fax it will take over and print the fax.

Set your answering machine to pick up after four rings . This will give the fax machine enough time to take the call if it senses that it's an incoming fax. Setting the answering machine to pick up after four rings would give the fax machine enough time to accept the fax.
hope this was helpful .

unplugging the unit from the power source and waiting 30seconds seems to be the answer. the answering machine is working and i can call out again.
thanks you to everyone who posted that answer in different parts of FixYa.

Use this link to download a pdf copy

http://www.btcdirect.com/files/product-files/r52.pdf

you have both the fax machine and the answering machine on the same phone line.
The fax machine and the answering machine are set to answer in a certain number of rings.
In your case the fax machine is set to answer the line in less rings than the answering machine. You have to increase the number of rings of your fax so that the answering machine will work.

Set the reception mode to Fax with answer machine TAD. Make sure its set for fax with answer machine.