Radio Shack TAD-1018 User manual

Cat. No. 43-778
OWNER’S MANUAL
Please read before using this equipment.
TAD-1018
Single Microcassette
Answering System with Trim-Style Phone

2
FEATURES
Your RadioShack TAD-1018 Single
Microcassette Answering System with
Trim-Style Phone is ideal for your
home or office. This combination tele-
phone and answering system is easy
to use and has many special features.
ANSWERING SYSTEM
Di
g
ital Out
g
oin
g
Messa
g
e— en-
sures the clearest possible recording
of the message you leave for callers.
Call Screenin
g
— lets you listen
while a caller leaves a message so
you can decide if you want to answer
the call.
Auto-Reset — stops recording when
you pick up any phone on the same
line.
Remote Operation — lets you use a
touch-tone phone (or rotary phone
and pocket tone dialer) to operate the
answering system while you are away
from your home or office.
Remote Answer-On — lets you call
from a remote location to set the an-
swering system to answer calls.
Selectable Toll Saver — lets you
avoid unnecessary toll charges when
you call by long-distance to check
your messages.
VOX (Voice-Activated Recordin
g
)
— stops recording after 7 seconds of
silence to conserve tape space for
other messages.
Supplied Incomin
g
Messa
g
e Tape
— lets you record up to about 29 min-
utes of incoming messages on each
side of the tape.
Volume Control — lets you set the
volume of the system’s speaker.
TELEPHONE
Ad
j
ustable Rin
g
er — lets you turn
the ringer on or off.
Redial — dials the last number dialed,
with the press of a button. Useful
when trying to reach a busy number.
Flash — generates a timed switch-
hook signal for use with special servic-
es, such as Call Waiting.
Volume Control — lets you set the
volume of the sound you hear through
the handset.
Touch-Tone or Pulse (Rotar
y
) Dial-
in
g
— you can use this telephone with
either type of service.
© 1997 Tandy Corporation.
All Rights Reserved.
RadioShack is a registered trademark used by Tandy Corporation.

3
We recommend you record your sys-
tem’s serial number here. The number
is on the bottom of the answering sys-
tem.
Serial Number:
This system has been tested and
found to comply with all applicable UL
and FCC standards.
This symbol is intended to alert you
to the presence of uninsulated dan-
gerous voltage within the product’s
enclosure that might be of sufficient
magnitude to constitute a risk of
electric shock. Do not open the
product’s case.
This symbol is intended to inform
you that important operating and
maintenance instructions are in-
cluded in the literature accompany-
ing this product.
READ THIS FIRST
We have designed your system to
conform to federal regulations, and
you can connect it to most telephone
lines. However, each device you con-
nect to the phone line draws power
from the phone line. We refer to this
power draw as the device’s
ringer
equivalence number
, or REN. The
REN is on the bottom of your answer-
ing system.
If you are using more than one device
on the line, add up all the RENs. If the
total is more than five, your phones
might not ring and your answering
system might not answer. In rural ar-
eas, a total REN of three might impair
ringer operation. If ringer operation is
impaired, remove a device from the
telephone line.
FCC STATEMENT
Your answering system complies with
Part 68 of
FCC Rules
. You must, upon
request, provide the FCC registration
number and the REN to your phone
company. Both numbers are on the
bottom of your answering system.
Note: You must not connect your an-
swering system to:
• Coin-operated systems
• Party-line systems
• Most electronic key phone sys-
tems
RISK OF ELECTRIC SHOCK.
DO NOT OPEN.
CAUTION: TO REDUCE THE RISK OF
ELECTRIC SHOCK, DO NOT REMOVE
COVER OR BACK. NO USER-SERVICE-
ABLE PARTS INSIDE. REFER SERVIC-
ING TO QUALIFIED PERSONNEL.
WARNING: To reduce the risk of
fire or shock hazard, do not ex-
pose this product to rain or mois-
ture.
CAUTION !
!

4
CONTENTS
Installation ............................................................................................................ 5
Selecting a Location ........................................................................................ 5
Loading the Cassette ....................................................................................... 5
Connecting Power ........................................................................................... 6
Recording the Outgoing Message ................................................................... 6
Checking the Outgoing Message .............................................................. 7
Placing the Phone on a Desk Top ................................................................... 8
Mounting the Phone on the Wall ..................................................................... 8
Turning Off/On the Ringer ............................................................................. 10
Setting the Number of Rings ......................................................................... 10
Setting the Dialing Mode ............................................................................... 10
Telephone Operation ......................................................................................... 12
Using Pause .................................................................................................. 12
Using REDIAL ............................................................................................... 12
Using FLASH ................................................................................................. 12
Setting the Phone’s Volume .......................................................................... 13
Using Tone Services with a Pulse Line .......................................................... 13
Answerin
g
S
y
stem Operation ........................................................................... 14
Setting the Answering System to Answer Calls ............................................. 14
Setting the Recording Time ........................................................................... 14
Setting the Answering System’s Volume ....................................................... 14
Screening Calls ............................................................................................. 15
Playing Messages ......................................................................................... 15
Remote Control Operation ................................................................................ 17
Remote Playback .......................................................................................... 17
Erasing the Messages ................................................................................... 17
Remote Answer-On ....................................................................................... 18
Troubleshootin
g
................................................................................................. 19
Care and Maintenance ....................................................................................... 21
Cleaning the Tape-Handling Parts ................................................................. 22
The FCC Wants You to Know ........................................................................ 22
Lightning ........................................................................................................ 22

5
INSTALLATION
SELECTING A
LOCATION
You can set the TAD-1018 on a flat
surface (such as a desk top or counter
top), or mount it on a wall plate or di-
rectly on the wall.
Select a location that is:
• Near an AC outlet
• Near a modular phone line jack
If the phone line jack is not a modular
jack, you must update the wiring. You
can convert the wiring yourself, using
jacks and adapters available at your
local RadioShack store. Or, you can
let the phone company update the wir-
ing for you.
Note: The USOC number of the jack
to be installed is RJ11C.
LOADING THE
CASSETTE
Your answering system comes with an
MC-60 cassette tape (30 minutes of
recording time per side). You can buy
additional and different length cas-
settes at your local RadioShack store.
1. Turn the supplied cassette’s hub
with the tip of a pencil to take up
any tape slack.
2. Lift open the cassette compart-
ment door.
3. Put the cassette in the compart-
ment with its full reel toward the
back of the answering system and
its open edge to the right.
4. Close the compartment door.

6
Notes:
• You can turn the tape over and
record on the other side. This lets
you save any messages recorded
on the first side while using the
tape to record more messages.
• Replace the tape at least once a
year, or more often if it is used fre-
quently.
CONNECTING POWER
Use the supplied AC adapter to power
your answering system.
Cautions:
• Use only the supplied adapter.
• Always plug the adapter into the
answering system before you plug
it into an AC outlet. Always unplug
the adapter from the AC outlet be-
fore you unplug it from the an-
swering system.
Follow these steps to connect the
TAD-1018 to power.
1. Plug the AC adapter’s barrel plug
into the answering system’s
POWER SOURCE jack.
2. Plug the other end of the adapter
into a standard AC outlet.
The MESSAGE indicator lights while
the answering system checks for an
outgoing message.
If an outgoing message is already re-
corded, the answering system auto-
matically plays it back. If there is no
outgoing message, the answering
system sounds a continuous tone until
you record a message (see “Record-
ing the Outgoing Message”).
Note: If the cassette tape is broken or
is not inserted properly and the an-
swering system has power, the sys-
tem sounds a continuous tone. To
stop the tone, unplug the adapter from
the AC outlet. Reinsert or replace the
cassette tape, then plug the adapter
back into the AC outlet.
RECORDING THE
OUTGOING MESSAGE
Before you can set the answering sys-
tem to answer calls and record mes-
sages, you must record the message
the caller hears when the answering
system answers a call.
In the message, ask for the caller’s
name, phone number, and message.
The maximum length for your outgo-
ing message is 30 seconds.
Important Hint: Do not tell callers that
you are not home. Instead, say that
you cannot come to the phone right
now.

7
Follow these steps to record your out-
going message.
1. Rotate VOLUME on the base to
the right until it clicks. The MES-
SAGE indicator lights.
2. Lift open the cassette compart-
ment door.
3. Hold down OGM REC/PLAY until
the MESSAGE indicator turns off,
then release the button. The
answering system beeps once.
4. When the MESSAGE indicator
lights again, speak clearly in a
normal voice about 12 inches
away from the microphone.
Microphone
5. When you finish recording your
message, press OGM REC/PLAY
again. The MESSAGE indicator
turns off, then the answering sys-
tem beeps twice and plays back
the message as it is recording
from the digital chip to the tape.
(The message is backed up on
tape so after a power failure it can
be automatically restored to the
chip.)
Wait until the answering system plays
back the message before you contin-
ue installing your answering system.
Checking the Outgoing
Message
Press OGM REC/PLAY at any time to
hear the outgoing message. The an-
swering system beeps once, plays
back the message, beeps twice, then
resets to answer calls.
To adjust the volume, rotate VOLUME.

8
PLACING THE PHONE
ON A DESK TOP
To use your answering system on a
desk, table, or shelf, plug the tele-
phone cord into a modular phone jack.
Plug one end of the coiled handset
cord into the handset jack on the an-
swering system and the other end into
the jack on the handset. Place the
handset on the cradle.
MOUNTING THE PHONE
ON THE WALL
Using the supplied mounting bracket,
you can mount the TAD-1018 on a
phone jack wall plate or directly on the
wall.
If you are mounting the phone directly
on the wall, you need two screws with
heads that fit into the bracket’s key-
hole slots.
1. Pull the handset holder toward
you as far as it will go. Hold it out
as you rotate the holder 180°,
then let it snap back in place.
The holder’s tab holds the hand-
set in the cradle while the answer-
ing system is mounted on the wall.
2. To mount the TAD-1018 directly
onto the wall, drill two holes 31/4
inches apart, one above the other,
at the desired location.

9
3. Thread a screw
into each hole
until it’s head
extends about 1/8
inch from the
wall.
4. If you are mounting the system on
a wall plate, thread the telephone
cord into the left slot on the top of
the mounting bracket and pull it
through the large hole in the cen-
ter of the bracket. If you mounting
the system directly on the wall,
thread the telephone cord into the
left slot on the top and bottom of
the mounting bracket.
Thread the adapter’s power cord
into the right slot on the top and
bottom of the mounting bracket.
5. Insert the mounting bracket’s tabs
into the slots on the bottom of the
answering system. Then push the
bracket up until it snaps into
place.
1/8”
6. When mounting on a wall plate,
coil all the excess telephone cord
into the mounting bracket’s recess
by pushing it back through the
large hole. Leave only about 1–2
inches of the cord outside the
bracket.
7. Plug the telephone cord into the
wall plate or a modular phone
jack.
8. Line up the keyhole slots on the
bracket with the studs on the wall
plate (or with the screws in the
wall), then slide the bracket down
until it is secure.

10
9. Plug one end of
the coiled hand-
set cord into the
handset jack on
the answering
system and the
other end into the
jack on the hand-
set. Place the
handset in the
cradle.
TURNING OFF/ON THE
RINGER
To turn off the telephone’s ringer, set
RINGER to OFF. You can still make
outgoing calls. If you hear an exten-
sion phone ring, you can still answer
calls.
When you want the telephone to ring
again, set RINGER to ON.
SETTING THE NUMBER
OF RINGS
You can select the number of rings the
answering system waits before it an-
swers calls. Set RING SELECT to the
desired position.
The system answers calls in 2, 4, or 7
rings, or if you set the switch to TS
(Toll Saver — the last position), the
answering system answers in 4 rings
if no messages are saved or in 2 rings
if you have messages. Toll Saver can
save you long-distance charges be-
cause, if there are no new messages,
you can hang up before the answering
system answers.
SETTING THE DIALING
MODE
Pick up the handset, then set TONE/
PULSE for the type of service you
have.
If you are not sure which type you
have, do this test.
1. Pick up the handset and listen for
a dial tone.
2. Set TONE/PULSE to TONE.
3. Press any number other than 0.

11
Note: If your phone system re-
quires that you dial an access
code (9, for example) before you
dial an outside number, do not
press the access code either.
If the dial tone stops, you have
touch-tone service. Leave TONE/
PULSE set to TONE.
If the dial tone continues, you
have pulse service. Set TONE/
PULSE
to
PULSE.
Notes:
•#does not function when TONE/
PULSE is set to PULSE.
• If you have pulse service and
want to use a special service that
requires tone signals (such as
bank-by-phone), see “Using Tone
Services with a Pulse Line” on
Page 13.

12
TELEPHONE OPERATION
You can make and answer calls with
this telephone as you would with any
other phone. Read this section to
learn about special features.
USING PAUSE
In some telephone systems, you must
dial an access code (9, for example)
and wait for a second dial tone before
you can dial an outside number. You
can enter a pause after the access
code to allow the outside line time to
connect.
To enter a 4-second pause while dial-
ing a phone number, press PAUSE.
For a longer pause, press PAUSE ad-
ditional times.
USING REDIAL
To quickly dial the last number dialed,
press REDIAL. The redial memory
stores up to 32 digits so you can
quickly redial local as well as long-
distance numbers.
USING FLASH
Many special phone services, such as
Call Waiting, require a switchhook sig-
nal. Pressing FLASH performs the
electronic equivalent of a switchhook
operation.
For example, if you subscribe to Call
Waiting, press FLASH to put your cur-
rent call on hold and answer an in-
coming call on the same line. Press
FLASH again to alternate between the
two calls.

13
Note: If you do not have any special
telephone services, pressing FLASH
might disconnect your current call.
SETTING THE PHONE’S
VOLUME
Slide VOL (volume) on the handset to
set the handset’s volume to the de-
sired level.
USING TONE SERVICES
WITH A PULSE LINE
Some special services, such as alter-
nate long-distance and bank-by-
phone, require tone signals. If you
have pulse service, you can still use
special services by following these
steps.
1. With TONE/PULSE
set to PULSE,
call the special service.
2. When the service answers, press
TONE.Any additional numbers
you dial are sent as tone signals.
3. When you complete the call, hang
up the phone. The phone auto-
matically changes back to the
pulse mode.

14
ANSWERING SYSTEM OPERATION
SETTING THE
ANSWERING SYSTEM
TO ANSWER CALLS
Rotate VOLUME on the base to the
right. When the MESSAGE indicator
stays on without the answering sys-
tem sounding a tone, the system is
ready to answer calls.
The answering system records mes-
sages and hangs up and resets to an-
swer the next call when:
• The caller hangs up.
• The maximum message length of
about 1 minute or 5 minutes is
reached.
• There are more than 7 seconds of
silence.
The answering system can record up
to about 29 minutes of incoming mes-
sages on the supplied tape. If the tape
reaches the end while a caller is leav-
ing a message, the answering system
beeps twice and hangs up.
If the incoming message tape is full,
the answering system answers a call
after 10 rings, plays back the outgoing
message, then waits 7 seconds for the
remote operation security code. If the
correct code is not entered, the an-
swering system beeps twice and
hangs up. See “Remote Control Oper-
ation” on Page 17.
To have the answering system not an-
swer calls, rotate VOLUME to OFF. The
MESSAGE indicator turns off.
SETTING THE
RECORDING TIME
You can select the length of recording
time for incoming messages. Slide
REC TIME to 1 MIN to set the TAD to
record for up to 1 minute for each
message or to 5 MIN for up to 5 min-
utes.
SETTING THE
ANSWERING SYSTEM’S
VOLUME
Adjusting the answering system’s
VOLUME control sets the speaker vol-
ume. (This does not affect the volume
of the message the caller hears.)

15
SCREENING CALLS
To screen calls, let the answering sys-
tem answer them, then listen to the
caller’s message through the answer-
ing system’s speaker. If you decide to
answer the call, pick up any phone on
the same phone line as the answering
system (including the system’s
phone). The answering system stops
recording and resets to answer the
next call.
Note: If you pick up the phone just as
the answering system answers, the
answering system might not stop re-
cording the message. If this happens,
hang up the phone for a moment then
pick it up again.
PLAYING MESSAGES
When you have messages, the MES-
SAGE indicator flashes. If you have
four messages or less, the light flash-
es once for each message stored.
(For example, if you have two mes-
sages, the light flashes twice, pauses,
then flashes twice more, and so on.) If
you have more than four messages,
the light flashes continuously.
To play the messages, press PLAY.
The answering system beeps, re-
winds, then plays the messages.
To pause playback for up to 60 sec-
onds, press PLAY. To restart play-
back, press PLAY again.
Notes:
• If you do not restart playback
within 60 seconds, the tape fast-
forwards to the end of the last re-
corded message, as though play-
back was never started.
• If a call comes in while playback is
paused, the tape fast-forwards to
the end of the last recorded mes-
sage and then answers the call.
• If you turn VOLUME to OFF during
playback, the system stops play-
back, the tape fast-forwards to the
end of the last recorded message,
and the MESSAGE indicator turns
off, as though playback was never
started. All messages are saved.
After you play back all the messages,
the answering system beeps twice
and resets to answer calls. New mes-
sages will be recorded over the mes-
sages you have heard.

16
To save the messages, press SAVE
before a new call is recorded. The
tape fast-forwards to the end of all the
messages and resets to answer calls.
To replay the messages, simply press
PLAY again.

17
REMOTE CONTROL OPERATION
While you are away from your home
or office, you can use a touch-tone
phone or a pulse phone with a pocket
tone dialer to:
• Play your messages
• Erase your messages
• Set the answering system to an-
swer calls
REMOTE PLAYBACK
You must know your remote operation
security code to play back your mes-
sages from a remote phone. This
code (a 3-digit number) is on the bot-
tom of your answering system.
To play back your messages from a
remote phone, follow these steps.
1. Dial your phone number.
If RING SELECT is set to TS, the
answering system answers on the
second ring if there are mes-
sages. If there are no messages,
the answering system answers on
the fourth ring.
2. After the outgoing message stops
and a beep sounds, enter the re-
mote operation security code
within 5 seconds. Be sure each
button press is at least 1/2second
long. The answering system
sounds a tone while the tape re-
winds. If no tone sounds, re-enter
the code.
Note: If you do not enter the code
within 7 seconds, the answering sys-
tem hangs up.
The answering system plays back the
incoming messages. At the end of all
the messages, the answering system
sounds single beeps and tones then
four short beeps.
Note: The answering system auto-
matically saves your messages after
remote playback.
To replay the messages, wait about 8
seconds after the four short beeps.
When you hear a single beep, enter
the remote operation security code
again.
ERASING THE
MESSAGES
If you want to erase the messages af-
ter playback, enter the remote opera-
tion security code within 8 seconds
after the four short beeps at the end of
all the messages. After the answering
system beeps, hang up the phone.
Note: After you erase messages by
remote, you cannot recover them
(even if you press SAVE as soon as
you get back to your answering sys-
tem).

18
REMOTE ANSWER-ON
You can use any remote phone to set
the answering system to answer calls
if:
• The answering system has power,
• The cassette is loaded, and
• The answering system is off.
To set the answering system to an-
swer calls, dial your phone number
and wait about 60 seconds until the
answering system answers. Then
hang up the phone.
Note: Be sure to turn on the system
when you get home, to play back any
recorded messages.

19
TROUBLESHOOTING
We do not expect you to have any problems with your answering system, but if you
do, be sure you installed the tape correctly. If you still have a problem, this chart
might help. If it does not, take the answering system to your local RadioShack store
for assistance.
Problem Cause Solution
The answerin
g
s
y
s-
tem does not answer
and record callers’
messa
g
es.
The s
y
stem is turned off. Turn on the answerin
g
s
y
stem
b
y
rotatin
g
VOLUME to the
ri
g
ht.
Record an out
g
oin
g
messa
g
e.The out
g
oin
g
messa
g
e is
not recorded.
Bad phone line connection. Check and reconnect the mod-
ular phone plu
g
s.
Check to see if the phone
works properl
y
.
Be sure
y
ou have electrical
power.
The answerin
g
s
y
s-
tem records a dial
tone, beepin
g
, or the
operator’s voice in-
stead of the caller’s
messa
g
e.
The caller hun
g
up without
leavin
g
a messa
g
e or with-
out usin
g
the maximum
time, and
y
our phone com-
pan
y
does not send out
CPC (Callin
g
Part
y
Control)
si
g
nals.
If this happens often, discuss
the problem with
y
our phone
compan
y
.
The answerin
g
s
y
s-
tem does not re-
spond to an
y
button.
The answerin
g
s
y
stem has
been turned on b
y
remote. Turn on the answerin
g
s
y
stem
b
y
rotatin
g
VOLUME to the
ri
g
ht.
The answerin
g
s
y
stem is
locked up. Reset the answerin
g
s
y
stem b
y
unplu
gg
in
g
the AC adapter
from the AC outlet, then plu
g
-
g
in
g
it in a
g
ain.

20
Recordin
g
s sound
distorted. You were too close to the microphone or
y
ou spoke
too loudl
y
when
y
ou record-
ed the out
g
oin
g
messa
g
e.
Record the messa
g
e a
g
ain.
Speak clearl
y
into the micro-
phone in a normal voice about
12 inches awa
y
.
The tape head is dirt
y
. Clean the head usin
g
a tape
head-cleanin
g
kit (see “Clean-
in
g
the Tape-Handlin
g
Parts”
on Pa
g
e 22).
The tape is worn out. Unplu
g
the adapter from the
AC outlet, replace the tape,
then plu
g
the adapter back into
the AC outlet.
Remote control func-
tions do not work. The correct remote opera- tion securit
y
code was not
entered.
Enter the correct code.
You are usin
g
a pulse dial-
in
g
phone. Use a touch-tone phone or pocket tone dialer.
The tone output from the
phone or tone dialer is not
lon
g
enou
g
h.
Press and hold the buttons for
at least 1/2second or tr
y
usin
g
another phone or dialer.
The telephone line is nois
y
. Enter the remote operation se-
curit
y
code a
g
ain.
Seven seconds of silence
have passed so the an-
swerin
g
s
y
stem han
g
s up.
Call the answerin
g
s
y
stem and
tr
y
a
g
ain.
Continuous tone
sounds. No out
g
oin
g
messa
g
e re-
corded. Record an out
g
oin
g
messa
g
e
(see “Recordin
g
the Out
g
oin
g
Messa
g
e” on Pa
g
e6).
The cassette tape is bro-
ken. Unplu
g
the adapter from the
AC outlet, replace the tape,
then plu
g
the adapter back into
the AC outlet.
The cassette tape is
j
ammed. Unplu
g
the adapter from the
AC outlet; remove, un
j
am, and
reinstall the tape; then plu
g
the
adapter back into the AC outlet.
Problem Cause Solution