Orbi RBR50 and NBN but no landline phone connection

[Dinosaur]

I recently ditched by Optus NBN supplied WiFi Router is it was flakey and could not deliver aa stable WiFI throughout my home.  I purchesed an Orbi RBR 50 AC3000 Tri Band Router which works perfectly. With the speed pack I aman internet speed of 96.06/38.01.  Everything work beautifully, except my home landline is not able to connect to the Orbi.  

How or what can I do to allow the home phone to be cnnected.  The original Optus router allowed for a landline.

Is there any way I can istall a modem between the NBN box and the Orbi.

I also have a nighthawk modem/router which I previously used before the NBN.  Can I use this as a modem only and disconnect the wireless on it so that the landline will work with the NBN?

[CrimpOn]

I am not aware of any Orbi product which supports telephone service.  My Spectrum cable service provided me with a modem which supports telephone service.  (no "router", no "wifi").

My experience is exclusively with US "cable systems".  "NBN" sounds like it is, "not from here."

If the NBN box provided telephone jacks, then you probably need to reinstall the NBN box and have the company set it to "bridge" mode.

I'd call them and say, "what the hell?" (or, however you talk to them)

[Mikey94025]

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@CrimpOn wrote:

If the NBN box provided telephone jacks, then you probably need to reinstall the NBN box and have the company set it to "bridge" mode.

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#1 -- I agree with CrimpOn and this is the best advice for how to use both your old modem, which provides telephone service, with your new Orbi's superior wi-fi and router capabilities.

#2 -- You could also use the Orbi in Access Point mode, attached to the old way you used your previous Optus router.  In this mode the Orbi only provides wi-fi and you can turn off, or ignore, the old wi-fi provided by your old Optus system.  If you leave both wi-fi systems on then use a different wirerless SSID name so they don't conflict.

#3 -- Finally you can use your new Orbi in Router mode as you have it now to leverage its wi-fi, but still connected to your old Optus router.  This creates something called Double NAT, which is not ideal and can cause issues for things like multiplayer games or if you need something called "port forwarding" or UPnP, but many people don't notice.  In this mode your old Optus is still running as you had it before so it can provide telephone service, but you connect everything wired/wireless to the Orbi instead.  Your old Optus is really only there to provide telephone.

How does your Orbi and your old Optus router connect to your internet provider?  I'm assuming they both connect the same way to some wall port via an ethernet cable and that's why you're able to swap the Orbi in for the old Optus?

I suggest you try #3 and see if Double NAT causes you any problems.  It's easy to try #3 because you just need to do:

1. Just disconnect your Orbi and plus the Optus back in.
2. Then connect your Orbi to the Optus, like it's a computer (you're chaining the two routers together, creating Double NAT).
3. Reconnect your phone line to the Optus.
4. Does it work?  If you have any problems, it's easy to undo this just by reversing the steps above.

[Dinosaur]

Thank you your response.

1.  NBN is fibre to the kerb so from the street it is normal copper phone line to a single point in the house.  The NBN box is connected to that single point. It has one ethernet port which was to the Optus Router which had a number of ethernet points plus a phone point.  I got rid of the useless Optus Saecom router and connected the Orbi with the ethernet from the NBN Box.  Hence no phone point being available.

The Orbi has 3 ethernet points.  One from the NBN box, one to the computer and one spare. The WiFi coverage and speed is exceptional.

I will try your suggestions.  My preference would be to turn the wireless off on the Optus Saecom router if the Orbi would still raccess the internet as a number of my home appliances rely on WiFi.  Playstation, LG Smart TV, 2 laptops, google assistant and some smart lighting. 

Thanks again for your prompt response to my query.