Viking Electronics E-1600BLT2IPEWP VoIP Emergency Tower Phone
The Viking Electronics E-1600BLT2IPEWP is a two-button SIP-based emergency tower phone engineered for outdoor and industrial environments where failure is not an option — parking structures, campus walkways, transit platforms, and loading docks. It draws under 4 watts via standard 802.3af PoE Class 1, so no separate power supply or conduit run is required. The high-power LED strobe and beacon give responders a visual fix on the caller's location while the 95 dB SPL speaker cuts through ambient noise at 1 meter.
Key Features
- IP66 Enhanced Weather Protection (EWP): Rated for direct water jets and total dust exclusion, plus humidity tolerance up to 100% — deploy it in car washes, covered marina docks, or freeze-thaw climates where standard IP65 enclosures fail prematurely.
- Operating Range -40°F to 140°F (-40°C to 60°C): This is a genuine arctic-to-desert envelope. Most competitive units are rated only to -4°F; the E-1600BLT2IPEWP handles cold-storage facilities and rooftop installations without auxiliary heating.
- PoE Class 1, under 4 Watts: Runs on any 802.3af port — no PoE+ switch required. At this draw level, a standard 8-port switch can power eight units off a single UPS without budget math.
- 95 dB SPL at 1 meter: Intelligible over forklift traffic and HVAC noise in warehouse environments. Combined with the LED strobe beacon, it delivers both audible and visual confirmation that a call is in progress.
- SIP 2.0 (RFC 3261) over 100BASE-Tx: Integrates directly with any standards-compliant SIP PBX or call manager. No proprietary gateway required — assign it an extension like any desk phone.
- G.711u, G.711a, G.722 Audio Codecs: G.722 wideband support means higher voice clarity when your PBX supports it — relevant in noisy environments where the narrowband codec can blur speech under acoustic interference.
- 5 Emergency Numbers + 5 Info Numbers Programmable: Map the two physical buttons to specific dispatch queues, security desks, or call groups. Automatic polling and programming software is included, so bulk configuration across a campus deployment does not require per-unit manual entry.
- 28-Second Voice Memory with Announcer: Pre-recorded announcements can identify the station location automatically on answer — useful for dispatchers managing multiple tower phones across a large property.
- 2 Amp Relay Contacts: Trigger a door release, alarm panel input, or strobe controller independently of the SIP call — integrates emergency voice with physical access control in a single device.
- FCC Part 15, CE, Canada ICES-003 Class A: Ships ready for deployment in the US and Canada without additional certification steps.
Integration and Compatibility
The E-1600BLT2IPEWP connects to any SIP 2.0-compliant platform — Cisco Unified CM, Avaya, FreePBX, 3CX, or hosted SIP trunks. The 2 Amp relay contacts support dry-contact integration with access control panels, annunciator boards, or building automation systems. Explore the full Viking Electronics product line for companion intercoms and emergency phones. Pair with a VoIP phone system or review our PoE switches for powering multiple units. For larger campus deployments, see our emergency phone category for additional tower and call station options.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Does the E-1600BLT2IPEWP require a PoE+ switch or will standard 802.3af work?
A: Standard 802.3af is sufficient. The unit draws under 4 watts (PoE Class 1), well within the 15.4W budget of any 802.3af port.
Q: What is the humidity rating for the EWP version?
A: The Enhanced Weather Protection (EWP) model supports humidity up to 100%, compared to the standard model rated at 5% to 95% non-condensing.
Q: Can the E-1600BLT2IPEWP be configured without visiting each unit on-site?
A: Yes. Automatic polling and programming software is included, enabling remote bulk configuration across multiple units from a central workstation.
Q: What SIP standard does this tower phone follow?
A: It follows SIP 2.0 per RFC 3261, compatible with any standards-based SIP PBX or hosted SIP trunk — no proprietary gateway required.
Q: How many emergency destinations can be programmed?
A: Up to 5 emergency numbers and 5 informational numbers can be stored. The two physical buttons are assignable to specific call destinations or groups.
Q: Does the relay contact output work independently of the SIP call?
A: Yes. The 2 Amp relay contacts operate independently, allowing integration with door controllers, alarm panels, or external strobes without requiring an active voice call.
The E-1600BLT2IPEWP is the unit I specify when a project combines extreme temperature swings, outdoor exposure, and a hard requirement for SIP integration with an existing call manager. The -40°F floor is not a marketing claim — it closes out cold-storage dock installations and northern campus walkways that would crack cheaper enclosures by February.
Technical Highlights:
- IP66 EWP with 100% humidity tolerance: The jump from 95% non-condensing (standard) to 100% (EWP) matters in covered parking, coastal installations, and freeze-thaw zones where condensation is a recurring failure mode.
- PoE Class 1 under 4W: At this draw, you can run eight units from a single 48W PoE switch budget — no upsize, no PoE+ — which simplifies the electrical design on multi-station campus projects.
- 2 Amp dry-contact relay: This is the integration point that keeps projects on budget — trigger a gate release or annunciator panel input directly from the tower phone, eliminating a separate relay module from the BOM.
Deployment Considerations:
- Surface mount only — confirm your pole or wall substrate before ordering. This unit does not support flush or recessed mounting configurations.
- G.722 wideband codec is available but only benefits voice clarity if your SIP PBX and codec negotiation support it end-to-end; verify your call manager's codec policy before counting on wideband audio in noisy environments.
Best fit for university blue-light networks, transit authority platforms, and industrial campuses where a single device needs to handle voice dispatch, visual alerting, and access control relay in one PoE-powered surface-mount enclosure rated for all-weather operation.
