SoliCall Personalized Noise Cancellation Software for Cellphones, PBX and VoIP

		*My Voice, Only.*
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Frequently Asked Questions

A. General

A1. What is SoliCall good for?
A2. How does it work?
A3. When to expect better performance?

B. SoliCall PBXMate
B1. Who is it targeted for?
B2. How can I use the PBXMate?
B3. What does it take to integrate the PBXMate in my system?
B4. Can the PBXMate help me cancel noise if I am using Asterisk?

C. SoliCall SDK
C1. Who is it targeted for?
C2. What are its main benefits?

D. SoliCall Mobile
D1. Who is it targeted for?
D2. What are its main benefits?
E. SoftPhone Add-on Issues
E1. How do I configure SoliCall to work with my VoIP programs?
E2. Add a new Speaker - how to record a sample of my voice?
E3. What if there are multiple users on the same computer?
E4. What modes does SoliCall have?
E5. What can I learn from the different icons?
E6. Why do I get a popup message during installation saying that the driver was not certified by Microsoft?
E7. SoliCall stays in Connecting mode and doesn't turn on. why?
E8. I've configured my VoIP program but now my micrphone or my speakers don't work. What's wrong?
E9. The person I'm speaking with hears echo. What can I do?
E10. I'm hearing echo. What can I do?
E11. I cannot hear the other party and vice versa. What could be the problem?
E12. The other party can hardly hear me, or the begining of my sentences is cut. why?
E13. When I make a conference call with Yahoo Messenger, SoliCall doesn't seem to work. How come?
E14. How to record my conversations?
E15. Recording files creation. How is it being done?
E16. When I play my recorded calls, I only hear one party. Why?
E17. The recording feature was on, but SoliCall did not create the recorded file. Is it lost?
E18. What if I still cannot merge the .MIC & .SPK files ?

A. General

What is SoliCall good for?

A1. SoliCall is designed to improve audio quality in VoIP calls or any other type of voice call. Ever get frustrated by the noise of your children when making a business call from home? Have you ever participated in a conference call with some annoying noises in the background? With SoliCall you will sound more professional and allow yourself the flexibility of conversing without worrying too much about background noises. SoliCall can also remove echo which is a very common problem in many conversations.

How does it work?

A2. SoliCall is designated to reduce noises that do not belong to the primary speaker. The default mode is "Anybody" which means that SoliCall will transmit all human sounds, and so it will narrow its focus on reducing other background noises (e.g., the ticking noise of your keyboard, running water, car horn).

By recording a sample of your voice, SoliCall will be able to learn and analyze the acoustic parameters of your voice and to minimize other noises during the call.

When to expect better performance?

A3. In general, the software will deliver more as the conversation lingers. That's why sometimes some noises will not necessarily be screened out at first, but once SoliCall is able to identify more parameters in your surrounding which increases its confidence to filter out or minimize more ambient sound.

Also, Echo problems, bad communication lines and PC-to-Phone calls (where quality tends to be lower), are all circumstances in which the use of SoliCall will help you conduct your conversation with less interferences.

B. SoliCall PBXMate

Who is it targeted for?

B1. SoliCall's PBXMate can work with any VoIP Network that supports SIP and it runs on Linux & Windows. This product allows you to easily integrate SoliCall’s advanced noise suppression technology, and cancel background noise. SoliCall can also remove echo which is a very common problem in many conversations.

How can I use the PBXMate?

B2. There are many benefits for the PBXMate, for example:
* Clean all calls entering a conference room to enhance the audio quality in conference calls.
* Clean all calls originated from a noisy call center.
* Reduce ambient noise coming from external cellular phones or from other external networks.
* Minimize the risk for an acoustic shock by constantly keeping the audio signal at a comfortable level.
* Reduce the acoustic echo (AEC) originated from far end devices.
* Acoustic Echo Cancellation for outgoing audio.

What does it take to integrate the PBXMate in my system?

B3. SoliCall PBXMate can be integrated in your network in a matter of minutes. You simply need to update a few configuration files and then you can instantly start canceling background noise with the PBXMate.

Can the PBXMate help me cancel noise if I am using Asterisk?

B4. Yes, the PBXMate works with any SIP supporting PBX including Asterisk, Nortel, CISCO etc. The PBXMate can reduce noise in Asterisk PBX, Nortel PBX or any other SIP supporting PBX.

C. SoliCall SDK

Who is it targeted for?

C1. SoliCall's SDK works with most popular toolchains. This product allows you to integrate SoliCall's advanced noise reduction technology in your equipment/software.

What are its main benefits?

C2. * Improve both outgoing & incoming voice quality (bi-directional).
* Works on variety of platforms (e.g. Windows and Linux).
* Reduce bandwidth & increase battery life.
* Minimize the risk for an acoustic shock by constantly keeping the audio signal at a comfortable level.
* Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC).

D. SoliCall Mobile

Who is it targeted for?

D1. SoliCall Mobile is targeting mainly manufacturers of mobile phones and mobile VoIP providers. This product allows you to integrate SoliCall’s advanced noise cancellation technology, by using its noise cancellation software. SoliCall can also suppress echo which is a very common problem in many conversations.

What are its main benefits?

D2. Manufacturers, operators and end-users alike will enjoy its benefits: better sound quality and improved customer satisfaction; reduced power consumption which will increase battery life; and lower OPEX for the operators by reducing the required bandwidth to handle phone calls.

E. SoftPhone Add-on Issues

How do I configure SoliCall to work with my VoIP programs?

E1. That's easy. Go to our Integration page and we will guide you through the process.

Add a new Speaker - how to record a sample of my voice?

E2. Adding a new speaker is simple. Go to Action --> Add Speaker. You'll be prompted to a walk-through process that will take less then a minute. Once you're done, you can change the default speaker to any person who has a recorded sample of his voice. The information gathered during the registration process will be stored as part of your speaker profile for later use.

What if there are multiple users on the same computer?

E3. No problem. Each person can register and record his/her voice separately so every user will get his/her own speaker name. That's why we don't require a password - SoliCall is trained to recognize the speaker's voice only, so no one will benefit from falsified use of your SoliCall identity.

What modes does SoliCall have?

E4. The "SoliCall On" mode is the default mode which reduces background noises and cancel echo coming from your end. While in this mode you can turn on the Screen Incoming feature which will improve the quality of the incoming audio by reducing noises coming from the other party as well as suppressing the echo coming from the other party. You can turn SoliCall off at any time, including during a call, if you want the other party to hear your ambient sound clearly.

What can I learn from the different icons?

E5.

---------> SoliCall is on, but is not transferring audio to the other party (either because no conversation is currently being held, or because the speaker was not recognized).

---> SoliCall recognizes your voice (in different levels of certainty).

-----------> SoliCall is off, and no filtering is being made, but SoliCall Audio Device will continue to work. While in this mode, you can not record calls or add new speakers to SoliCall. Do not exit from SoliCall, or else SoliCall Audio Device will be neutralized (and the VoIP program that was configured to work with SoliCall will not transmit any audio).

Why do I get a popup message during installation saying that the driver was not certified by Microsoft?

E6. During the beta period, changes are being made to this driver, hence there is no point in certifying an unfinalised version.

SoliCall stays in Connecting mode and doesn't turn on. why?

E7. Especially during our Beta period, we want you to have the most up-to-date version, hence establishing connection will make sure you are notified when the latest version is available for download. If it stays in Connecting mode for more than a minute, make sure you are connected to the Internet and that you can access www.solicall.com with a browser. If you can not access our website, please try again later. If you can access the website you need to verify that solicall.exe is not blocked by your firewall (via port 80) or by any other program.

If the problem remains, please let us know at support@solicall.com and state the time (EST or GMT) and the date when the problem occured.

I've configured my VoIP program but now my micrphone or my speakers don't work. What's wrong?

E8. This can happen if you have more than one microphone/pair of speakers. You need to make sure you have configured SoliCall to the mic/speakers you want SoliCall to work with. Go to Tools --> Options, and under the subsection Sound Devices choose the right device.

The person I'm speaking with hears echo. What can I do?

E9. Try to turn the volume of your microphone down (by using the Volume In slider in SoliCall's main window). Also, make sure that the Volume Out slider (which controls your speakers) is set to allow you to hear the other person conveniently (not too low, but not too high either).

I'm hearing echo. What can I do?

E10. When you hear echo, the problem usually originates at the far end. Try turning the “Screen Incoming” option within SoliCall since this option will suppress echo coming from the far end. If this does not help, we recommend that you ask the other party to: (1) Set his/her speakers’ volume to a comfortable level (not too high). Also, they should try to keep their speakers away from the microphone. (2) Reduce the volume of the microphone. (3) If the problem remains, the other party should either install SoliCall as well (since SoliCall has built-in algorithms that reduce echo) or use a headset for the specific call.

I cannot hear the other party and vice versa. What could be the problem?

E11. Make sure that SoliCall's application is running. The mode can be either ON or OFF, but SoliCall has to run (an easy way to tell is if the icon appears on your task bar). Another issue might be that you are currently adding a speaker. You have to complete or abort the process in order to conduct your call.

The other party can hardly hear me, or the begining of my sentences is cut. why?

E12. Change the speaker to "Anybody" and readjust the Volume In slider. If this solves the issue there might be a problem with the speaker you are using. Record new voice samples. However, if the problem remains there might be a problem with the sensitivity of your microphone. If you are using a low-sensitive microphone, talk directly into the mic (don't turn your head away from the mic too often). If SoliCall's gray icon turns yellow when you talk, it's a good indication that your voice is being transferred. If the problem happens for certain periods during your call, turn SoliCall off for a few seconds and then turn it back on (in a sense, it's like rebooting your computer).

When I make a conference call with Yahoo Messenger, SoliCall doesn't seem to work. How come?

E13. When you invite all the participants to start a conference call at once, we found out that in some versions Yahoo makes the call go through Microsoft audio devices and not through Solicall. The solution is to invite people separately (i.e. start a regular call and then add more people).

How to record my conversations?

E14. With SoliCall each user can record his conversations regardless of the VoIP program they use. Just right click on the SoliCall icon and choose "Recording Enabled". From that point on, all your conversations will be recorded in one library (you can change the default library at Tools --> Options). Each session will automatically be saved under the speaker's name. You can stop the recording feature by choosing the "Recording Disabled" option.

Recording files creation. How is it being done?

E15. There are two main recording formats: WAV and MP3 (Stereo and Mono). You can choose to have more than one format (all it takes is space on your hard disk). WAV Format - SoliCall creates two files, one with speaker extension (*.spk) and the other with microphone extension (*.mic). When the call ends, SoliCall merges them into a single wave file. It may take a few seconds, depending on the length of the call. MP3 Format - SoliCall is using LAME as a stand-alone application (lame.exe) distributed from www.mp3dev.org

When I play my recorded calls, I only hear one party. Why?

E16. That's because you listen to it in mono. Make sure you have two speakeres plugged-in and turned-on, and that your settings allow you to hear audio in stereo. Another option is to change the Recording Format to MP3 Mono.

The recording feature was on, but SoliCall did not create the recorded file. Is it lost?

E17. This is a rare scenario so please make sure you have waited a few minutes after the end of the call and that the size of the .TMP file is not changing (i.e. SoliCall is still working on the file).
If there are no .MIC & .SPK files but only .TMP, you should rename the suffix of the .TMP file to either .WAV or .MP3 (depending on the format that you are using). If there are .MIC & .SPK files, you should do the following: (1) go to the recording library and delete the .TMP file (if exist). WARNING: do not remove the .MIC & .SPK. (2) Exit SoliCall (right click on the icon). (3) Go to Windows "Start" menu, choose "Run" and copy paste the following command as is: "C:\Program Files\SoliCall\bin\solicall.exe" emergency

What if I still cannot merge the .MIC & .SPK files ?

E18. Please follow these instructions. Whenever it says "anybody_1" please replace it with the exact name of the file you have.
1. Remove the anybody_1.tmp file from the recording library (note: do it only if have the .spk & .mic files).
2. Go to Windows "Start" menu, choose "Run" and write "cmd". A command window will open.
3. Use the command "cd" (Change Directory) to go to the directory where the recorded files are stored.
4. In the command window copy paste the following command as is:
If you were using high recording quality - "%SOLICALL_BIN%bwavemp.exe" anybody_1.mic anybody_1.spk anybody_1.wav anybody_1.tmp anybody_1.mp3 anybody_1_mono.mp3 16000 1 1 1
If you were using the low recording quality - "%SOLICALL_BIN%bwavemp.exe" anybody_1.mic anybody_1.spk anybody_1.wav anybody_1.tmp anybody_1.mp3 anybody_1_mono.mp3 8000 1 1 1 4. The .spk and .mic files will be merged - into wav & mp3 files. It might take a couple of minutes (depending on the size of the file).