Leaving BT

[greenturbobob]

Hi All,
I am in the process of leaving BT having had no end of problems.  We were on BT Total Broadband Option 3 but recently dropped to Option 1.  The BT Wholesale checker said we could only get 0.5mbs when we first took Option 3 out so we made do with that.  A neighbour who lives 250 yards away (i measured it!) now gets 2 mb connection as he threatened to leave BT unless they did something about it which they have.  Now then, i decided to change our package as it was slow at 0.5mbs connection with a typical d/l rate of 0.4mbs in the hope of getting a similar speed as my neighbour.  Having spoken to BT in India they said i could easily get 2mb and possibly faster.  Happy days or so i thought!  During the 10 days testing phase we got some really good d/l speeds of upto 1mbs, very happy.  However, after the 10 days which then went to 15 days had expired our connection has now dropped to 0.5mbs again with a d/l rate of 0.1mbs! 4 times slower than before!  So i rang BT and the techy said if i wanted the full 0.5mb (whooppee!) i would have to change back to the option 3 package.  RIPOFF or what, it clearly states UPTO 8mb, i don't recall seeing anywhere where it sates it depends on your package.  Anyway i phoned BT and declined there services any futher. 
My question is this, my line is due to be disconnected on the 3rd of April 2008 by BT.  So can i get reconnected by IDnet which seems to have a good customer satisfaction feedback?  And if so what speed could i get based on my states below:

ADSL Status


Item Status
ADSL Line State: Showtime
Downstream: 736   Kbps 
Upstream: 448   Kbps 
Mode: t1.413
Transmit Power: 11.7 dB 
ADSL Link UP Time: 0 day 0 hour 9 min 7 sec

Item Downstream Upstream
SNR Margin 13.5 dB 10 dB 
Line Attenuation 56.5 dB  31.5 dB 
CRC Errors 49 2
FEC Errors 129 2
HEC Errors 45 2


Thanks in advance.

ADSL phone number xxxxxxx

Rob



Edit - Personal data removed

[Rik]

Hi Rob and welcome to the forum.

I've removed your phone number before you start getting calls.

Your line is almost identical to mine (56.3). I'm currently synching at ~3500 with a 3000k profile, I see no reason why you shouldn't achieve the same sort of level. It may be that a little tweaking of your internal phone wiring is called for, but that's fairly easily done. A few questions:

Do you have an NTE5 master socket, the type where the bottom part of the faceplate can be removed? If so, have you ever removed it, then connected the router to the test socket which is revealed?

Do you have any hard-wired extensions, or use extension cables?

What else do you have plugged into the line, eg phones, Sky boxes etc?

Unfortunately, you've done things the expensive way by cancelling, is there any chance you can still get a MAC code from BT? Otherwise, it's going to cost you a £47 activation fee.

[greenturbobob]

Rik,
Thanks for the quick editing! Doh!  And thanks for the quick reply also.
Yes, our house is new build and uses the new BT socket you mentioned.  There is internal phone wiring but it is not connected.  the only things plugeed into the BT master socket are 1) a Zoom X6 modem connected to home pc's wirelessly and 2) the house phone which uses a wireless base station and is connected to the same microfilter as the Zoom modem. I have tried to connect the microfilter into both plugs on the BT master socket (the second being when face plate is removed) but it makes no difference. It looks like our line is capable of supporting higher speeds but its just BT being being silly and not letting us have it.  As i have just started this new contract with BT i doubt if they will give me a MAC number as it is being cancelled, however i will try.  Quite frankly if IDnet can provide a faster speed with better customer support i don't care about the reconnection fee, i just want broadband.
Cheers,
Rob

[Rik]

Hi Rob

It would be worth disconnecting and powering down the phone briefly, and watching your noise margin. If that increases, then you have an issue with the phone putting noise on the line. It may even be worth your while fitting a filtered face plate, such as this from ADSL Nation.

As I said, our line attenuation is pretty much identical, so you should be able to achieve a profile of 2500-3500, particularly if we can get your noise margin down. (It should be at 6b, but looks like it has been raised in order to stabilise the line. Certainly, you have interleaving on.)

[greenturbobob]

Rik,

I have tried it with no phone connected for over 24 hours, no difference.  I have tried different phones, i have also bought expensive filters (4 in total) and tried them no difference.

I think i have done all i can do my end. 

Cheers,

Rob

[Rik]

Fair enough, Rob, get over here and let IDNet work their magic for you.

[Sebby]

Your poor speeds are most likely to do with BT Broadband (rather than BT). The sync is to do with your line/BT, so moving ISP won't increase that. That said, BT Broadband are poor as far as ISPs go.
Could you possible connect your modem to the test socket (behind the faceplate) and re-post your stats. I'd imagine there is room for improvement here, and it's your internal wiring that is causing the lower-than-possible sync.

[greenturbobob]

Sebby,

This is the link to my test results having plugged it into "hidden" master socket plug: http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/results/id/120689035046565113101.html
As you can see the upload is considerably higher than the download rate. 

From the stats below, the downstream rate has increased from the first post above but i still don't get any faster d/l rates to reflect this.  It seems to me that BT are throttling my connection, but i could be wrong.

Rob

ADSL Status


Item Status
ADSL Line State: Showtime
Downstream: 1184   Kbps 
Upstream: 448   Kbps 
Mode: G.Dmt.BisPlusAuto
Transmit Power: 11.9 dB 
ADSL Link UP Time: 0 day 0 hour 8 min 1 sec

Item Downstream Upstream
SNR Margin 12.0 dB 12 dB 
Line Attenuation 62.5 dB  31.5 dB 
CRC Errors 6 0
FEC Errors 35 0
HEC Errors 2 0

[Rik]

Your profile will be restricting your d/s rate, Rob, but I'm guessing you last re-synched at night, and doing so now has just picked up a higher sync speed because there is less noise around. (Your noise margin has dropped to 12db, which suggests that is your current target, set by BT's line management software to stabilise the line.) Have BT ever sent out an engineer to check your line, because it does look very prone to noise. Even so, I have a target margin of 9db, by choice, and the speed difference should only be 500-700k, whilst it's actually double.

I think that your line needs to be looked at, and you won't find a better ISP than IDNet at getting BT to do that. (Do you live near a railway line?)

[greenturbobob]

Rik,

BT came out to look at the socket when we first moved in as Pipex were having problems sorting it out (Pipex being our first ISP before BT).  Of the 250 yards of cable to my neighbours about half is new and fixed on new poles.  I have phoned numerous times and BT said they have tested the line extensively and can't see anything wrong with it and as such that the only speed i will get, UNLESS i upgrade to Option 3, which initself is an admission of guilt i think.

I will give IDnet a ring once i have finally binned BT.

Rob

[Rik]

BT aren't the most responsive ISP, Rob. IDNet will do what they can, but they are in BT's hands for the stretch between you and the exchange. As you probably know, there is no universal service obligation on BT for ADSL. Nonetheless, I still believe your line can do better than it is doing. Fwiw, my immediate neighbours have connections running at 512k-2000k, I was an early adopter and got swapped to the best pair available by a friendly BT engineer. Bacon butties and mugs of tea can work miracles.

The other thing you could try is an alternative router, many of us here use the 2-Wire 2700HGV.

[greenturbobob]

The other thing you could try is an alternative router, many of us here use the 2-Wire 2700HGV.

Interesting!  I will look at that.

Cheers,

Rob


Edit: Markup sorted

[Rik]

We have a board dedicated to it, Rob, as it's so popular and there is no official support channel.

[greenturbobob]

Cheers, i just bought one from eBay, £40.  I will try that. (Still binning BT though!)

Rob

[Rik]

There's a setup guide in the sticky, Rob. Start with a factory reset (power on, paper clip in rear panel for 20 seconds, allow to re-boot), don't connect it to the phone line initially, but just to the PC, then check out what firmware you have and poison if necessary.

[greenturbobob]

This says it's been chipped already.  (Hopefully it comes with salt and vinegar!)

I think it just allows different ISP to use it as i read it. Hopefully all will become clear when it turns up.

Thanks for the info.

Rob

[Rik]

NP.

If you have any issues, just pop in and yell.

[greenturbobob]

Rik,

Just one last thing, if i get for example a 2mb connection with IDnet, can BT override IDnet and reduce it.  Or does IDnet have the say in that matter?

Rob

[Rik]

Basically, your line negotiates with the exchange equipment (DSLAM). That sets the sync speed and from that the profile is determined (which controls actual throughout). There's no reason for BT to intervene in the process except to stabilise the line - which is an automated process. BT Retail, with whom you have been dealing, will have no part in this, IDNet buy the service from BT Wholesale.

[greenturbobob]

ta

Rob

[Ted]

This says it's been chipped already.  (Hopefully it comes with salt and vinegar!)

Oh no, food already!!
You'll fit right in here. 

[Rik]

 

[madasahatter]

Oh no, food already!!
You'll fit right in here. 

ooooooo - I could just eat a nice big plate of chips - with a runny yolked egg or two  

[Rik]

I did, last night. Tonight, it's Steak Diane... 

[madasahatter]

Why have you nicked Diane's steak?