Switched from Virgin to BT

Hi all,

I just switched supplier from Virgin Media National broadband to BT and it is the first time I have ever changed. I was under the impression that my connection would at least be the same speed as I had a BT line which Virgin purely adopted, but it has dropped considerably. I see no evidence of a 10 day 'training' period and wonder why this would be?

I used to get fairly consistent 2.4 Mb download (2.8 Mb connection) and sometimes higher, but now it is 1.75 Mb @ 2.4 connection. It is quite amazing how much affect it has on streaming. BT advised me that I would get speeds at least equal to those from Virgin as there was no line change, so I wonder if I can cancel under a cooling off period?

Cheers,

Daz

post your router stats (sync speed, attenuation db, SNR db, error rates/connection time).

Hi,

I guess this is what you are referring to. It hasn't changed since install. IP profile is 1750 kbps from the BT speedtester

ADSL Line Status
Connection Information
Line state: Connected
Connection time: 3 days, 00:47:09
Downstream: 2.344 Mbps
Upstream: 448 Kbps


ADSL Settings
VPI/VCI: 0/38
Type: PPPoA
Modulation: G.992.1 Annex A
Latency type: Interleaved
Noise margin (Down/Up): 9.8 dB / 21.0 dB
Line attenuation (Down/Up): 55.5 dB / 29.0 dB
Output power (Down/Up): 18.2 dBm / 12.4 dBm
FEC Events (Down/Up): 269886 / 253
CRC Events (Down/Up): 414 / 61

.. and do those stats change if you reconnect the router in the test jack of the master socket, all else removed ?

So your currently sync'd at 2400kbps, If that sync speed proves stable you should end up on an IP profile of 2000kbps.

With that error rate, syncing at that speed with an SNR margin of 9db seems the likely target, you could try resyncing during the day time when the SNR is at its highest and that may give you your best sync speed but it'll have to hold that through the night for a few days before your profile changes (if it sync's high enough to warrant a change).

How can I switch off the router when its training - does this not screw with the settings?

FYI = I have a BT master filter socket actually fitted by BT and another filter fitted to the line before it gets to the master socket (also done by BT). This was carried out under Virgin Media as I got frequent diconnections and extremely slow speeds. This was found to be a 'hot' card or something in the exchange and became stable about 6 months ago, from which time I got a steady 2.4 GB download with a connection just under 3.0 GB.

There is no other equipment as it is a second dedicated line originally installed for dial-up.

You'll be okay with a 1 off resync - imagine you had a USB modem - that would go on and off everytime your PC did. Just make sure the SNR is nice and high when you do though.

Thanks for the reply FRS_Plunderer. How do I ensure SNR is high - is it best to do it during the day when all are at work or school?

In reply to a post by Pokerdaz:

Thanks for the reply FRS_Plunderer. How do I ensure SNR is high - is it best to do it during the day when all are at work or school?

Watch the numbers.

Do it in daylight, preferably in the morning.

Ok - switched off in morning, left it about an hour and now it came back with a connection of 1.8 Mb instead of 2.4 as it was before - am I doing something wrong?

Post your router stats.

What have Virgin got to say for themselves?

Here are the latest stats - taken at 21:00

ADSL Line Status
Connection Information
Line state: Connected
Connection time: 0 days, 06:56:47
Downstream: 1.875 Mbps
Upstream: 448 Kbps


ADSL Settings
VPI/VCI: 0/38
Type: PPPoA
Modulation: G.992.1 Annex A
Latency type: Interleaved
Noise margin (Down/Up): 12.8 dB / 21.0 dB
Line attenuation (Down/Up): 55.7 dB / 29.0 dB
Output power (Down/Up): 18.0 dBm / 12.5 dBm
FEC Events (Down/Up): 6923 / 37
CRC Events (Down/Up): 4 / 4
Loss of Framing (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Signal (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Power (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
HEC Events (Down/Up): 24 / 2
Error Seconds (Local/Remote): 4 / 3

Ok looks like your down stream SNR target is now 12db. The system is basically aiming for stability over speed. And due to the high number of errors before its raised the SNR 3db to reduce the errors.

Before you had over 3700 fec errors per hour now its under 1000 - and similar drop for the CRC's - thats the logic behind it but for more accuracy you need to let it run for a day and a night at least.

Have you tried plugging in at the test socket? If you can see what the error rate is like there over a day or so.

After the 10 day training your going to have to challenge your SP over it if the SNR target stays at 12db but you really need to rule out anything in your property that could be causing.

In reply to a post by Pokerdaz:

How do I ensure SNR is high -

Can you run RouterStats or RouterStats Lite? Then you can monitor SNR from minute to minute or less and pick your time to resync. It works for me.