About Plusnet and "Up to 76Mb"

Yesterday evening I signed up to Plusnet Fibre. My cab went live on Wednesday 19th. And for two days I have been trying to sign up to TalkTalk fibre, but their sign-up website would only let me get through 3 of the four stages I could not get to stage 4, the payment stage. I did post on the TT community forum and was advised to order over phone. Turned out to be a lucky break. I took advantage of the Plusnet promo of £12.50 for 9 months on the up to 76Mb Fibre. Free install, and I have "tracked" for £100 cashback with Quidco. So if it does pay up, a good deal.
My main question is about the Plusnet speed. I know I wont get anything near the 76Mb - I am 750 Mtrs from the cab. I can't do a speed check with my phone line as I am with SKY (LLU) But I used my address and get this: http://postimg.org/image/9ecp07scj/
I know an address is not as good as a line. All the speed quotes I get when I check with various fibre providers Plusnet, TalkTalk, EE all say 35Mb - The lowest end of the checker quote.
Although I selected Up to 76Mb with Plusnet - in the ordering stage it showed 35Mb: http://postimg.org/image/l3h8ip9ol/
So, will plusnet allow my line to find it's highest stable speed up to 76Mb, for example 42Mb or will it be locked from the outset to go no higher than 38Mb? This speed is fine for me as I am on 3.5Mb at the moment, so a possible ten-fold increase - But it would be nice to see how close it could get to the 50Mb quote in the BT wholesale checker.
And an additional question regarding quitting SKY.
Do I have to inform them. I'm not in contract and don't have Sky TV, just BB and phone. MY plusnet installation is set for 7th April. And Sky will take their next payment by DD on 1st April.

Many thanks

If your estimate is 35 you will probably be provisioned on the "up to 38" product but still unlimited usage. This is not a major issue, if you find you are connecting at the maximum speed, Plusnet will move you onto the "up to 76" product if you ask. The cost is the same

If you are moving the LLU BB away from Sky are they still happy to provide calls and line rental or have you moved the phone/line rental over to Plusnet as well?

In reply to a post by Apprentice:

..... or have you moved the phone/line rental over to Plusnet as well?

Yes a full move to plusnet from SKY LLU including phone line.

Hi Sir_Jasper,

If your estimated speed is showing as 35Mbps then you would be placed on the 40/10 profile when your order is placed. It can be changed to 80/20 if you wish to have this changed after you transfer over, however, based on the fact that your speeds are estimated at 35Mbps there's every chance you wouldn't see an increase being on 80/20.

Post deleted by kwikbreaks

ARRGGHH!!!! Why Linn ??

Time and time again we see people with estimates of 35 getting on the 40/10 service only to then ask for the upgrade and find they get 65/17

Why put them on a low product ... ?

Example: http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/plusnet/t/4316859-r...


Sir_jasper - Sadly once you have your connection, you will then have to ask plusnet to increase your connection to the proper one ... shameful really.

Looks like there's too much reliance being placed of the the BTwholesale availability checker being accurate , I hope that isp's aren't placing similar reliance on it's estimates when customers report losses in speed too Surely ISP's are able to access other info such as distance from cab ?

It's intentened as a guide only, and is not a true representation of actual speeds,

Edited by tommy45 (Wed 26-Mar-14 18:06:28)

Many thanks to all who have replied to this post.
I was prompted to make the post after reading this thread in response to a post by tbailey2
http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/fibre/4228896-hurst...

His details match mine i.e. The estimated range on bt checker (High 50 low 35), the distance from cab (he is 800 mtrs - I'm about 750). His est by plustnet is the same as me 35Mb. And he was provisioned on 40/10. But after requesting a move to 80/20 he initially got 56/12....this did fall and is now 48/9.. but still quite a bit more than 35!

If, when doing speedtests, I get 35Mb..then I will accept that is the max.... but if it hits 38Mb I think my line should have a chance to see how much it could get.. after all the product is "Up to 76"

Are plusnet using the same checker I used? I can't put in my line number as I am on Sky LLU, so used me address. Do ISPs have access to a more accurate checker or are they just using my address to get an estimate? When I checked my speed with EE they gave me a speed of 35.2Mb which is the exact "lowest" estimate on the BT checker- right down to the .2
Ignoring the high estimate of 50.7 !!!

Edited by deleted (Wed 26-Mar-14 22:53:00)

In reply to a post by Sir_Jasper:

Are plusnet using the same checker I used?

To answer my own question - it looks like they do!
I notice this speed estimate in an email I had from plusnet
http://postimg.org/image/9zlg96yzv/
Identical to the lower end of the result I had from a BT checker, which was based on address and post code only.

Edited by deleted (Thu 27-Mar-14 20:17:00)

Plusnet Fibre Installed today, by Kelly Comms. They didn't have the modem extension kit with them that was ordered at sign-up. But, I did have my own extension cable. And they came about 10:00 am, not between 1:00 - 6:00pm , the time slot I selected at sign-up. They fitted an ECI modem, the Cab is a Huawei. I'm not too sure how important this miss-match is. They were quick and did a neat and tidy job.
This is my latest speed test:
http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/results.html...
So, the 35Mb quote seems correct. I would assume that if I could get more on the 80/20 provision, I would have to be hitting the maximum of 38Mb in the speedtest on the 40/10 that I am on now?

Well it's good that they did a good job, but no, I wouldn't think that is as good as your line can go. What does a BT Wholesale Performance Test have to say if you take the Further Diagnostics option of the initial results page? (Ignore all the Red instructions, just say yes you've done them).

Please copy and paste the full contents of both the down and up results text boxes .

Many thanks.
These are the results from the Further Diagnostics test:

Download speedachieved during the test was - 35.07 Mbps
For your connection, the acceptable range of speedsis 20 Mbps-38.72 Mbps .
Additional Information:
IP Profile for your line is - 38.72 Mbps

Upload speed achieved during the test was - 7.46Mbps
Additional Information:
Upstream Rate IP profile on your line is - 10 Mbps

Screen grab:
http://postimg.org/image/u3p8sc5jb/

Edited by deleted (Wed 09-Apr-14 00:09:32)

That means you are connected at the full 39999kbps. (IP Profile is 0.9679 of sync). So you could definitely get more. I would give it a go, it costs you nothing.

Thanks for the reply.
If I was to buy a Huawei modem from ebay and "flashed it" would that give me more info on what my line could do?

Yes.

Not sure if you need to go to that expense - first step would be to ask PN to put you on to 80/20.

I agree. As per my previous reply to him.

I've requested a move to 80/20. Should be done for tomorrow morning.

Edited by deleted (Thu 10-Apr-14 15:41:43)

Great . Let us know how it goes. I wonder if they'll remember to up the Current line speed for you, or if it will have to wait to update.

The IP Profile from the BTW Performance Test Further Diagnostics tell you, if the test speed is still 35Mbps or so.

You can also calculate your downstream sync speed within a few kbps from the IP Profile. Multiply it by 1.033. You can't do that with the upstream, it is 10Mbps now, will be 20Mbps after the upgrade.

Looks like Plusnet moved me up to 80/20 this morning as promised. The speedtests as yet haven't changed - still showing 35Mbps. But, IP Profile from the BTW Performance Test Further Diagnostics shows a change, having moved from 38.72Mbps to 43.87Mbps.
http://postimg.org/image/506d8gjib/
I think, if I have calculated this correctly, a downstream sync speed of approx 4532 ??
So, it looks like I could gain about 5 Mb. If that's the case - it's moving in the right direction. Considering that before moving to fibre I was getting 3.5Mb on a good day.

Edited by deleted (Fri 11-Apr-14 14:37:20)

Sync approximately 45324kbps. The upstream of the speed test 10-11Mbps?

If the Plusnet Current Line Speed doesn't rise by the middle of the evening, when convenient turn the router off for ten minutes. Leave the modem on - don't touch it at this stage.

If that doesn't work give them a buzz and tell them your IP Profile and you think your Current Line Speed needs kicking to 43.8Mbps. (Just below the IP Profile).

Edited by RobertoS (Fri 11-Apr-14 14:43:09)

I had to turn off the router to shift the line speed.
Speedtest now
http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/button/13973...
and before
http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/button/13969...
and BT Wholesale Broadband Performance Test
http://s4.postimg.org/5cx7l38sd/diaog2.png

There appears to be no positive affect on the upload, though.

Many Thanks

How long for?

Edited by RobertoS (Sat 12-Apr-14 14:46:32)

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

How long for?

I know! Being on the far end of the exchange there could be some interest in FTTC localy. But, I get the impression that not many people are aware of the availability of FTTC in the area. I, on he other hand, have been plotting it's progress on a map since October . Still, even getting the 35Mb was a big jump up from the 3.5Mb I am used to, so no complaints.

LOL.

I meant how long did you need t turn the router off. (Just stopping the PPP would do but not everyone knows how to do that, and I think not all routers let you).

Ahhh! I see.
I thought you were referring to the potential cross-talk


I Just switched it off for about 10 - 15 mins - or so . So,will doing that on its own be enough to keep the speed?

Edited by deleted (Sat 12-Apr-14 19:13:18)

So,will doing that on its own be enough to keep the speed?

No, it's just a way of kicking the Plusnet Current line speed if the auto-update by a new IP Profile fails. It may work, it may not, but if it does it's easier than getting on to support to sort it out .

Speed's back down to 35Mb
http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/button/13975...

The latest BT Wholesale Broadband Performance Test
http://s30.postimg.org/fqxfv6y41/2014_04_15_diaog.png

The upload speed has gone up, though - to 9Mb.

The modem must have disconnected because I have had 3 different IP address in the last 24 hours.

That looks like a 40Mbps connection again , but with the 20Mbps upload.

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

That looks like a 40Mbps connection again , but with the 20Mbps upload.

Looks that way. All the speedtests that I have tried since Saturday have all registered 41Mb.. right up to the last one I did at 1.30am. But today...!!
Still, it was worth a try.

I suggest you do a disconnection of the modem some time between 10am and 4pm. Do that by pulling out the power supply, so it can send a "dying gasp" to let the DSLAM know it isn't a line fault.

Leave it off 10 minutes, and see how things are afterwards, particularly the IP Profile. Remember, the Plusnet Current line speed can take a while to adjust to match.

Blimey!!!

http://s29.postimg.org/pbfyzg8av/speed_2014_04_16.png

http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/button/13976...

http://s8.postimg.org/jp97jzcf9/bt_2014_04_16.png

Not sure whats going on there!!
And isp now showing as Infonet services

Edited by deleted (Wed 16-Apr-14 22:57:55)

That's what I got the other day .

http://s4.postimg.org/8ogoj0ict/speed.jpg

Would hitting the router with a hammer help? Or maybe jabbing at the modem with a big screwdriver?!!!!!!

As of 23.38 back to 35Mb after two hours of all over the shop!

Edited by deleted (Wed 16-Apr-14 23:38:56)

Have you got a BQM? (Needs a static IP address, a one-off £5 through your Member Centre). Mine stayed perfectly normal through the speed blip!

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

Have you got a BQM? (Needs a static IP address, a one-off £5 through your Member Centre). Mine stayed perfectly normal through the speed blip!

No. I don't have a static IP address.