Need Cheap ADSL Router (Broadcom 6358)

whats the cheapest router i can get that uses the Broadcom 6358 chipset? i dont need anything fancy, no wireless or anything, just something rock solid reliable and fast.

i currenty use a draytek vigor2600vg and it syncs at around 4meg average on my bulldog line, today i tried a billion bipac 5200 RC and i was solid at 6meg. the bipac i borrown from cousin. i not sure what chipset it uses but from reading around the best modems use the Broadcom 6358 chipset. so i trying to find something cheapo based on that chipset.

There is no such thing as "the best modems". It very much depends on what kit is installed at the exchange end.

In particular the huge focus in these forums on the Broadcom chip benefits is mainly to do with O2 and Be LLU, where Broadcom exchange equipment is used, and O2/Be use a setting on that which can improve performance if the user modem also has Broadcom.

What does the Bipac have? In fact what does the Draytek have? I confess I don't know.

Re the Broadcom 6358, that is quite rare except in the current expensive models. As far as I know the only significant difference from the very common 6348 is that the chipset supports wireless N, whilst the 6348 does not. As you aren't fussed about wireless I suggest you consider either.

So to answer your question, the SpeedTouch 585v6 and v7 are Broadcom 6348 based and seem to me to connect a few hundred kbps faster than the Netgears I'm about to list. However they aren't too good at handling noisy lines and can often overheat, causing trouble. The overheating is easily cured by propping one side up 1"/2.5cm to create a throughflow of air.

Netgears, the version number is very important. All the following are 834 models but only the versions I give (if I give a version) have Broadcom:-

834v4, 834Gv4, 834GT, 834PN, 834Nv1. The first of those does not have wireless, the rest do. Netgears are best stood on end - many have small detachable feet to do that. Possibly another heat problem and I would expect the ones without wireless to suffer less.

Those are 6348 chipsets apart from the 834Nv1 which is 6358.

There is also the later DGN2200. I think that is 6358 not 6348, as it supports wireless N.

Avoid 834v5, 834Gv5 and 834Nv2. Those are Conexant and seem to be poor on any connection.

834 and 834G v1,v2 and v3 are Texas Instruments AR7 chipsets and have a decent reputation, just not as good as Broadcom on O2/Be.

I suggest the place to look is on eBay. I believe there are a lot of Sky-badged 834s there. Those need unlocking to use them on other providers, but that seems to be easy enough, although I don't know how myself. Browse/ask around on these forums.

Edited by RobertoS (Sun 22-May-11 09:15:26)

In reply to a post by RobertoS:

There is no such thing as "the best modems". It very much depends on what kit is installed at the exchange end.

In particular the huge focus in these forums on the Broadcom chip benefits is mainly to do with O2 and Be LLU, where Broadcom exchange equipment is used, and O2/Be use a setting on that which can improve performance if the user modem also has Broadcom.

Actually that's not true. Its generally accepted that Broadcom chipset based routers provide the best line speed and stablity irrespective of what equipment is used at the DSLAM in the exchange. For example TalkTalk use Infineon gear in their DSLAM so you might think a infineon chipset based router will give you the best connection? Wrong! The Talktalk supplied router Huawei HG532 (infineon chipset) syncs far lower than any broadcom based router on a talktalk LLU line.

Anyway to the OPs question, get the Billion 7700N. It uses a Broadcom 6358 chip and is reasonably priced @ £50
http://www.expansys.com/billion-bipac-7700n-wireless...

Edited by deleted (Sun 22-May-11 11:36:25)

I don't agree, the tt supplied router may under perform when connected to tt's llu kit
but that's probably because it's a t3rd most probably almost any router will perform better than it,
And do you seriously expect tt to give you a router that will give top performance ?

as for broadcom routers in general they tend to offer a reasonable level of performance on almost any line,

In reply to a post by Anonymous:

I don't agree, the tt supplied router may under perform when connected to tt's llu kit
but that's probably because it's a t3rd most probably almost any router will perform better than it,
And do you seriously expect tt to give you a router that will give top performance ?

as for broadcom routers in general they tend to offer a reasonable level of performance on almost any line,

Believe it or not, TalkTallk do give out a free decent router on their plus package: Dlink 2640R which is (surprise surprise) broadcom based. But they also give out the Huawei HG532, its pot luck which router you get. As to why the HG532 is a "t3rd" its simply because of its inferior chipset...nothing to do with its looks, number of flashing disco lights, whether it can make the tea or not etc. The chipset is the main component of any router and determines how fast your line syncs and to what degree it can tolerate noise on the line.

Edited by deleted (Sun 22-May-11 13:12:33)

I don't agree with some of that I'm afraid.

My Broadcom 585v6 has transformed my line - which isn't LLU.

My Exchange uses 'Texas Instruments' equipement - so matching manufactures isn't the key. The TI Netgears are dead loss for me!

My line is noisy and the Broadcom chipset (585v6 / DG834GT) manages it much better than some of the other chipsets I've tried.

looks like that router isn't going to be available for some time unfortunately

thanks for the replies, i will probably go for the billion bipac 7700 since it seems like it is the cheapest one i can get. im still hunting for somewhere to order in the uk, i just need real cheapo.

found the netgear one on amazon, is this good price?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0000E0YHF/ref=asc_df_B00...

i cant seem to find the billion in stock for a good price.

Yep that's a good price - but are you sure that one's a v4 with the Broadcom chipset? Only the v4 has this chipset and they are up to v5...


I've bought from ADSL24's shop in the past - similar price:
http://adsl24.co.uk/compstore/broadband-phone-line-a...
They state it's a v4 and they know what they are talking about

In reply to a post by slybunda:

thanks for the replies, i will probably go for the billion bipac 7700 since it seems like it is the cheapest one i can get. im still hunting for somewhere to order in the uk, i just need real cheapo.

found the netgear one on amazon, is this good price?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0000E0YHF/ref=asc_df_B00...

i cant seem to find the billion in stock for a good price.

Why don't you give Expansys a call tomorrow am and ask about 7700n availability? AFAIK Amazon should have had this in stock on 16 May but that dates been missed.