Very annoying problem

[Gramps]

Thanks for that, I will give it another try.




Ah, success

[Rik]

Hi Gramps

I can't see your sync speed anywhere in the thread (which is not to say it isn't there ). Could you post d/s sync speed, attenuation and noise margin please. If possible, do a BT speed test, here and post back what your profile is.

Fwiw, I get this from Speedtest.net:



That's on a 2500 profile, sync is 3296, attenuation is 55db and noise margin is 9db. Interleaving is on.

[psp83]

Mine today is better.

Connection Speed = 6336 kbps
Line Attenuation = 40.0 db
Noise Margin = 13.2 db
Profile = 5500 kbps

[DorsetBoy]

I do think that the Speedtest.net results are extremely "suspect".

Take a look at the mileages that are quoted as distance to the London server.

Rik = 50 miles

Me = 50 miles

Gramps =150 miles

now take a look at where we all live................??

Wareham is a lot more than 50 miles away........
Scotland only 150? 

It also shows a ping time of 443ms for my connection

[Rik]

Though Speedtest.net got me right on distance, it isn't my first choice tester. If Gramps can get a BT result, we'll have a better idea of what's going on.

[Gramps]

Is this what you need?



Test1 comprises of Best Effort Test:  -provides background information.
    IP profile for your line is - 250 kbps
    DSL connection rate: 448 kbps(UP-STREAM)  992 kbps(DOWN-STREAM)
    Actual IP throughput achieved during the test was - 225 kbps

If you wish to discuss these results please contact your ISP.

If you are experiencing problems with specific applications, servers or websites please contact your ISP for assistance.

Your test has completed please close this window to exit the performance tester.

[DorsetBoy]

That is the one!

Your connection is less than 1meg are you a long way from the exchange?

Even so your profile should be a lot higher,say @ 900kbps.
Are you turning your router off a lot or is the synch dropping out frequently?

[Rik]

Hi Gramps

Looking at that, I would agree with Dorset. Either you live a long way from the exchange or your connection has been dropping a lot, your profile should be at 500kbps for your current sync speed.

Do you have an NTE5 master socket? If so, can you try connecting at the test socket and see if your figures improve?

You might want to read this post on improving your internal wiring (which can bring ADSL to its knees). If you can post your noise margin and attenuation, that will give us a fuller picture of what might be happening. If you're not sure how to get these figures, there's a guide here.

[Gramps]

I am 3 mile from the exchange.
I am using a 330 modem connected to the BT adsl v1.0 socket via a long lead. if I connect directly into to the master socket I get the same results.
About 3 weeks ago I had the same problem and support arranged for a BT engineer to visit, typically when he came my speed had gone up to about 450kbps, He more or less said that speed was acceptable, he did fit the v1.0 socket but that made no difference.
Last Thursday my speed dropped again to 222kbps,I have emailed support and tried to phone but I understand they are closed till Tuesday.

I hope you can make sense of that.

[Rik]

Hi Gramps

The important thing about using the test socket and not the master socket is that it disconnects your internal wiring from the line, so if you have several extensions, these are all taken out of the equation and you will find out what the best possible performance of the line is.

If it improves, then your house wiring is almost certainly putting noise on the line, and you will need to consider whether you can improve things in any way. If the extension you are using is a long one of the 'flat' design sold by many DIY stores etc, this will not be helping your situation. Ideally, you want the wire between socket and modem to be as short as possible. This is where routers score, as you can have it adjacent to the master socket then run a long ethernet cable to the computer.

I appreciate that this is stating the obvious, but have you double checked that everything connected to your phone line is filtered, eg phone, Sky box, fax machine, analogue modem etc? Have you tried using a different filter(s)?

[DorsetBoy]

You should be able to receive a better service than this.

BT Exteneded Reach is supposed to deliver speeds up to and possibly beyond 1MB at a distance of over 6Kilometers.

I know people that are 3 miles out from an exchange that get 3.5MB

Can you get your line stats using this info from KITZ..............

KITZHOWTO

[Gramps]

Rik, When the BT engineer came I had my computer next to the master socket connected via a short lead, he did all his tests in that situation.
I have also removed the faceplate and plugged into the test socket, in all cases I get the same results as when I am connected via a long lead.
I have tried diagnostics on Dr Speedtouch, I get a red exclamation mark in the internet box with a message
"A Problem Is Detected To The Internet"

[DorsetBoy]

From memory Dr.Speedtouch should offer you a diagnostic process for assistance with this fault.

[Rik]

I've seen that red mark a lot from Dr Speedtouch, even when the connection is working fine. What attenuation and noise margin does the good Doctor report?

[Gramps]

Rik, He doesn't report anything.

[Rik]

You need to run "Diagnostics".

Right Click the icon in your system tray, then select Advanced > Write log to disk

Now open the log file in IE (its in .xml format so you may have to use IE to open it).
You should now be able to see your line stats amongst a lot of other information.

The stats you are looking for are:-

    ReceiveAttenuation_dB=
    ReceiveMargin_dB=
    SendAttenuation_dB=
    SendMargin_dB=

They're buried well down the long list of stuff it reports, so expect to scroll a bit.

[MoHux]

Quickie .... has Gramps downloaded the high-speed drivers for the frog?? 

[Rik]

Good question Mo. Gramps??

[DorsetBoy]

Quickie .... has Gramps downloaded the high-speed drivers for the frog?? 

A very good point MO!

So much easier if you have a router though.

[Gramps]

Hi, yes I have the latest drivers for my 330 modem. I am not very well up on the technical side of things but I tend to think that the problem lies with BT and the overhead lines, all the lines around here are overhead and exposed to the weather right up to my house, surely if I plug directly into the test socket and still get the slow speeds it must be a BT fault, BTW I have two computers and two modems (one for each computer)and I am getting the same results on both.

[Rik]

It's likely that it is a BT issue, but without knowing what figures you are getting, it's hard to give you specific advice. The attenuation will tell us a bit about the length and condition of your line, the noise margin will tell us how well it's performing. In addition, armed with those figures, we could see what sort of speeds you would get with a fixed-rate service.

[Adam]

Just for your information; the distance field on the Speedtest.net tester refers to the distance from IDNet's servers to the Speedtest.net servers. It does not, and can not, get the distance from you personally to the server.

[Rik]

Interesting, Adam. Why does it give people different distances then? You have me curious. I suppose Letchworth is about 40 miles from London? (MK is 50...)

[Adam]

The difference in distance is most likely because the user did not select the "London" server. The distance is an estimation, indicated by ~, so it may be that a distance of 45 miles is being rounded up. I live well over 50miles away from London, but it gives me the exact same distance (50 miles).

It's also important to note; they have no way to actually get your physical location, the only thing they can get is the registered location of the IP address block, which is obviously IDNet's address.

[Rik]

So, the distance they are reporting is based purely on the registered location for the IP block, it's not even down to some clever timing of the signal? How disappointing.

Thanks for the info.