New to IDNet. A little help please!

[qweezy]

Hello,

First post and new to IDNet! 

I was switched over on Monday 28th after many horrible slow years with Orange.  Due to being away I wasnt able to use the new connection until today 30th.  I was very pleased to see my Belkin router was syncing at 5mb which is 3 more than when I was on Orange.  However, I started having connection issues after a few hours.  I would lose ADSL sync every few minutes.  By losing sync I mean my router ADSL light would flash and I would lose internet connectivity. During this time my internet was syncing slower and slower.  I understand I may have some issues during the 10 day training period, but it was becoming a nuisence so I decided to hook up my old Speedtouch 330 modem.  With the Speedtouch all my connectivity issues have gone.  The connection has been stable for a while now and synced at a reasonable 4.1mb.

I was wondering if there were any known issues with Belkin routers and an ADSL Max connection?  Also, any suggestions on what router to buy next?  I dont mind using the old 330 for a few days, but really need a router!

Thanks

[Glenn]

 

If you don't mind getting your hands a little dirty, a 2Wire 2700 is a very good router, they are not available new, only from ebay etc, but only cost around £15 delivered http://www.idnetters.co.uk/forums/index.php?board=25.0 Otherwise, IDNet sell Netgears, Speedtouch 585 v5 are also supposed to be good.

[Simon]

Can't add to the above, except to say,   

[qweezy]

Thanks for the quick replies!  I only wish I changed ISP sooner!

Hooked my Belkin back up and its syncing a little higher, but still keeps dropping out. 

I'll look into getting a NetGear.

Cheers.

[Simon]

Can you post your router stats, please?  That might help us determine the best suggestion for you.

Also, it might be an idea to try hooking the router up to the test socket, if you have one, and again, post the router stats from there.  I think it's possible that things may have become unstable now you have moved to a faster connection, which could be due to line noise, but I'm not technically proficient enough to go into more details on that.

You might also like to have a look at the FAQs, which might be of some help. 

[Steve]

 

Hi

Let us know which Belkin router you have,your line stats as already suggested, if stuck try http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/frogstats.php Are you on WBC ? If so your router  maybe struggling or has not got the latest firmware installed.

[qweezy]

Well here lies one of my problems with the Belkin!

The router stats don't display properly even after a Firmware update.

Noise Margin Up: 6db Down: 19db
Attenuation Up: 52db Down: --

Doesn't ever display attenuation for downstream and I doubt its actually 52db up.  Plugged into the test socket it falls to 49db and the connection issue remains.

Its a Belkin F5D7632-4.

[Steve]

If it was 52 down that would put you about 3.8km from the exchange? If you are on WBC you should expect a sync of about 4500 according to http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/max_speed_calc.php Have a look at the FAQ as Simon suggested ,but since its unstable with the test socket to me that suggests the router, the filter or noise external to the house is to blame. Since the modem's seems ok I suppose that makes the adsl router the culprit. Most  "834" Netgears,Speedtouch 585v6 and the BT2700 HGV seem to work with variable but some success with WBC

[qweezy]

Im not on WBC.  ADSL2+ Is apparently being activated at my exchange in October/November.

I suppose I'll leave the Belkin connected and it will sync lower and lower until its stable.  Fallen to 3.7mb sync now.

[Ray]

 

[qweezy]

Noise Margin Up has risen to 12db connection seems stable now.  Stayed connected for a while at 3.7mb sync.

I guess my line couldn't handle 5mb.  It was stable all day until the evening at that speed though.  Shame .

[D-Dan]

IIRC - the Speedtouch 330 is a USB modem, and limited to what you got with it (4 meg) so don't expect miracles with it.

As many here will testify, the 2 wire gets good results for an awful lot of people. Personally, my best router is a Speedtouchc 585v6, which consistently (read daily) gets me in the top 3 over at DSL Zone's speedtest.

Steve

[Lance]

It may be worth running routerstats if your it supports your router to track your noise margin. That will let you work out what your normal swing is and whether 12db is likely to be sufficient.

[Rik]

Hi Qweezy and welcome to the forum.

I suspect what you're seeing is the normal training period for a Max connection, were you on a fixed 2Mb service with Orange?

When a Max connection is first made, the BT software will try and run the line as fast as possible. That often causes instability (hence the 10 day 'training' period), so the software will aim to stabilise the line, first by switching on interleaving, then by raise the target noise margin (the margin at which the DSLAM will accept a connection from your router) in increments of 3db, until the line becomes stable. Each 3db costs you 5-700k of sync speed.

As others have said, it's worth checking out your phone wiring and, maybe, trying a different router.

[qweezy]

As far as I know my Orange service was up to 8MB.  I joined them as Freeserve on Dialup and stayed as they changed to Wanadoo then Orange.  Started with the 512k BB then the 1mb then 2mb and then went to the up to 8mb.  However, one of the main reasons for me leaving apart from poor service was the pressure to enter a new 18 month contract by trying to change my package back down to 512k.  I have had many problems with stability in the past with broadband and Orange including a period when I would barley get 1mb download.  At one point I did manage to pester them enough for an Open Reach engineer to come to my house.  He fiddled around for a bit and my internet was downloading around 5mb.  Was perfectly stable as well.  Alas a few months later my speed was back to not much above 1mb. 

I'm starting to think the wiring in my home must be rather suspect.  52db attenuation seems a bit high for my distance from the exchange.  That's 1.6m or 2.5km.  This is taking a long road route using GoogleMaps so should be more relative to actual cable length.  Attenuation is only 2-3db lower at best in the test socket.  I don't suppose there is much I can do about it beyond the test socket?

Thanks.     

[Rik]

There's nothing that you can do beyond the test socket, but 2-3db of attenuation within the house is very high, and you really need to find and fix the cause of that. There's no difference between the test socket and the hard-wired extension I use.

[talos]

Hi and welcome I too am an Orange defector, I spent two awful years with them, listening to every excuse under the sun. You will certainly notice the difference here.  I use a Belkin wireless  modem/router and must say have not had a moments trouble with it and the lifetime guar/tee is a boon.  My stats are not perfect, but there again I live in a rural area with overhead power and phone lines, so the fact that I get broadband speeds at all is amazing, but the best part is reliability of this provider, after Orange you will be pleased.

[qweezy]

Thanks for the help guys.

Been poking around again.  Plugged into the test socket now and the attenuation is 51db.  So thats 1db less.  Interestingly I get different results with different fliters.  I have 2 filters exactly the same make and one different.  The different one I have no idea where it came from, but the 2 others are Speedtouch ones that came with my Orange BB all that time ago.  I get the best attenuation with the unknown filter at 51.  One of the speedtouch comes out with 52 and the other 53!  Maybe invest in some new filters?

I had a poke outside my house too and noticed my phone line runs up the side of my house along next to a Sky dish and cable.  This dish is no longer in use as I had Sky TV sometime ago, but I didnt watch enough to warrent the cost.  Would the dish/cable cause any sort of interference to the phone line?

Thanks again.

[Rik]

The Sky dish shouldn't be a problem, if the LNB's are inactive there shouldn't be any signal on the cable.

As for filters, I'd suggest the ADSL Nation Xf-1e:

http://www.adslnation.com/products/xf-1e.php

I've never found anything better.

[qweezy]

Okay, thanks.  Good to know the dish shouldn't be a problem.

Just put one of those filters on order.  Will see if it makes a difference in a few days.

Cheers

[Rik]

Keep us posted.

[Sebby]