Comparison
Telnyx AMD alternative: Telnyx answering machine detection vs VM Hunter
Telnyx AMD is a parameter on calls placed through Telnyx. VM Hunter is a dedicated detector that works on any carrier and keeps a transcript and a reason for every call. Here is what each gives you and when each is the right choice.
Telnyx documents two tiers: standard AMD and premium AMD, which it describes as using speech recognition and machine learning and marks as recommended. This page describes Telnyx from its public documentation and VM Hunter from ours. Check Telnyx's site for current details.
Side by side
| Telnyx AMD | VM Hunter | |
|---|---|---|
| How you turn it on | The answering_machine_detection parameter on a Call Control call: detect, detect_beep, detect_words, greeting_end or premium | A client on your dialer (VICIdial, Asterisk, FreeSWITCH) or a WebSocket stream of the answered call |
| Result | Webhooks. Standard: human, machine, not_sure. Premium: human_residence, human_business, machine, silence, fax_detected, not_sure | AMDSTATUS HUMAN / MACHINE plus AMDCAUSE with the reason, returned on the same connection |
| Decides from | Standard: audio analysis. Premium: speech recognition and machine learning (per Telnyx) | A transcript of the first two seconds, plus beep, tone and silence analysis |
| Call screening | A premium option, premium_ios_call_screening_detection, with its own webhook | Labelled CALLGUARD_PHRASE on every plan: iPhone, Google and call blockers |
| Disconnected numbers | Not a documented AMD category | SIT tones labelled DISCONNECT |
| Evidence per call | The webhook result | Transcript, reason and audio sample in the portal; CSV export |
| Carrier | Calls placed through Telnyx | Any carrier, including Telnyx SIP trunks |
| VICIdial / Asterisk / FreeSWITCH | Not a dialer plugin; AMD is part of Call Control | Open source clients for each |
When Telnyx AMD is the right choice
- Your application is built on Telnyx Call Control and you want detection with no extra component.
- You need beep detection to leave a voicemail message:
detect_beepandgreeting_endare made for that. - You want the residence / business distinction that premium AMD reports.
When VM Hunter is the right choice
- You run VICIdial, Asterisk or FreeSWITCH, with Telnyx or any other carrier as the trunk.
- You use more than one carrier and want one detector, one set of verdicts and one log across all of them.
- You need to audit verdicts: what was said, why it was called a machine, and the audio to check it.
- You want call screening and disconnected numbers labelled without choosing a premium mode.
How to compare them on your own calls
- Split one list at random into two campaigns on the same day: one with Telnyx AMD, one through VM Hunter.
- Record both. Listen to the first three seconds of 200 calls from each and mark what was there: person, voicemail, carrier prompt, screening, silence.
- Count people dropped (false machine) separately from voicemails that reached an agent (false human). They cost different things.
- Compare time to verdict from your own timestamps. VM Hunter decides about two seconds after answer on a normal call.
FAQ
Questions
Is VM Hunter a Telnyx AMD alternative?
Yes, for teams that want detection independent of the carrier. Telnyx AMD works on calls placed through Telnyx Call Control. VM Hunter runs beside your dialer (VICIdial, Asterisk, FreeSWITCH or your own WebSocket client) and works whichever carrier the call goes out on, including Telnyx SIP trunks.
Can I use VM Hunter with Telnyx SIP trunks?
Yes. If your dialer is VICIdial, Asterisk or FreeSWITCH and Telnyx is the trunk, VM Hunter is installed on the dialer and listens to the answered call. Nothing changes on the Telnyx side.
Does VM Hunter work with Telnyx Call Control directly?
There is no ready-made Telnyx Call Control bridge today. If your application can stream the call audio to a WebSocket at answer, the VM Hunter API can classify it; otherwise Telnyx's own AMD is the simpler route on Call Control.
Which is more accurate?
We have not measured Telnyx AMD on a shared set of calls, so we do not publish a comparison figure. Run one list through both for a day and score the recordings; the method is on this page.
Which is cheaper?
See the Telnyx pricing page for its current AMD rates. VM Hunter has a free plan of 5,000 calls a month and paid plans from $100 a month.
Try it on one campaign
The free plan includes 5,000 calls a month, enough to run VM Hunter next to your current AMD for a day and compare the dispositions. No card needed.