Openreach not fixing DSLAM fault

Short version. Changed ISP in December.
Before move was with EE (FTTC) and stable at around 60Mbps. The cable length is approximately 550m from the cabinet as measured by Openreach.

I moved to Pulse8 as they offer a monthly rolling contract with a fixed IP address. Openreach recently put fibre down our estate but it could be 6 months before it is available so monthly contract is best.

After move, everything worked fine for a week or so. We then got a dropped connection for a couple of hours. The next day it dropped again and came back on at 1Mbps, sat at that for a few hours and eventually after rebooting the modem/router (Zyxel VMG8825-B50B) it came back up.

I reported a fault as the connection seemed to be slow and dropping at times but was going back up to 58-60Mbps.

Openreach engineer came out. Tested line - No faults, checked DSLAM and changed my connection to new ports. Speed dropped to 48Mbps. He then left and didn't come back.

I am now on my 6th or 7th Openreach engineer as none of them can fix the issue. Every time they come out they test the line, change the ports and still no speed difference. I have been told by one of the engineers that the fault lies at teh DSLAM as the speed to the DLSAM is 80Mbps as soon as it goes onto my line it drops to around 48Mbps. One engineer even tested the line in the street ducts between me and the cabinet and the line is perfect.

There is a second cabinet in the same location which has 110MBPs coming into the DLSAM but Openreach will not move me to that cabinet.

I have been advised by Pulse8 that as the cabinet I am on is full, should I move to another ISP I would probably be given a connection in the other cabinet.

My line is on a 80/60Mbps profile with a DLSAM reporting I should get between 80 - 67Mbps with a DHT of 60Mbps.

Yes, I can move ISP but don't want tied into a contract as I will take the FTTP as soon as it is available.

How do you go about raising this issue with Openreach to try and get the faulty DSLAM replaced or what else can I do?

48Mbps may seem like a good speed for some but as an example, 2 people online, my wife watching low res training video, me watching 1080p YouTube video and downloading a software update and everything grinds to a halt with both videos and download failing/buffering.

I am now waiting on my 7th or 8th or whatever engineer to come out to tell me the line is great and that the DSLAM is faulty.

I told you this was the short version.

Get your wife to order another connection with Pulse8 then once that is up and running cancel your existing contract (or would you get hit with installation charges)?

Edited by GonePostal (Fri 05-Feb-21 20:11:32)

There are many potential issues in a cabinet that can cause slow speeds, and there are many cabinets that have issues.so I dont doubt that there could be a larger problem with yours. Which cab and exchange is it?

There is a second cabinet in the same location which has 110MBPs coming into the DLSAM but Openreach will not move me to that cabinet.

Trying to understand that. Maybe they mean the max attainable rate but that would be specific to each line. Certainly the port and associated wiring can have a big effect on the max attainable rate .
The only way to get moved to another DSLAM on the same PCP would be to cease and reproduce the line or order a new line as it will require a change of headend (most likely , and definately if they are different vendors)

In reply to a post by GeoPrice1:

I have been told by one of the engineers that the fault lies at the DSLAM

Why didn't that engineer pass the fault over so the team who look after the DSLAM investigate the issue.

In reply to a post by GeoPrice1:

I have been told by one of the engineers that the fault lies at teh DSLAM as the speed to the DLSAM is 80Mbps as soon as it goes onto my line it drops to around 48Mbps. One engineer even tested the line in the street ducts between me and the cabinet and the line is perfect.

That's how it's supposed to work.
The fact the engineer gets 80Mb at the DSLAM proves the port is working.

The signal degrades on its way to you. The fact you don't get the 80Mb after the signal has reached your home isn't an issue with the DSLAM.

Speeds also drop over time as more customers get connected to a cabinet (crosstalkers).

Changing ports or "fixing" the DSLAM won't change anything. You still have the same pair of wires, with the same crosstalk interference, carrying the signal to your home.
If possible you should try push for a pair swap (changing the pair used between you and the cabinet for either some or all of the distance).
This can mitigate crosstalk, which can vary massively between pairs.

My line is on a 80/60Mbps profile with a DLSAM reporting I should get between 80 - 67Mbps with a DHT of 60Mbps.

Your line isn't on a 80/60 profile. I'm sure you meant 80/20??

Do you have any line stays from your modem?

Obviously 550m is quite long and not guaranteed to offer you 80Mbps.

The longer the line length the higher the risk there is to noise and if DLM causes it to disconnect that 80Mbps speed will obviously not be maintained and will drop to 60Mbps.

But since your connection does drop to 1Mbps that may indeed indicate that the problem is related to the DSLAM or router. Check your router settings. Is it maintaining stable system uptime?

If the router is faulty and causes it to reset, then it is router fault. Make sure when your connection drops the system uptime does not reset! Because if it does then the router is faulty.

Sometimes Openreach engineers are not honest. They will say that no fault is found when clearly there is, but they are simply unable to fix it!

This happened to me when I had ADSL on EO Line for years I would have intermittent drop outs every single day with no solution whatsoever. And my exchange was 1300 meters to home so I knew noise was a factor. Openreach engineers claimed everything was fine and can't find a fault.

Less than 2 years ago October 2019 I got upgraded to FTTC for the first time from an EO Line and my connection problems disappeared! When an Openreach came to install my NTE5c pre-filtered faceplate last year as part of my FTTC upgrade he admitted there was a line fault and reassured that with FTTC the drop-out problem will stop.

I am now with a 320m cabinet and I do get 80/20 Mbps. But crosstalk is a factor. Last year when I switched to TalkTalk FTTC I was getting 80/20 Mbps with a 6dB SNR. Due to crosstalk, I am now syncing at 80/20 with a 2.30dB noise margin profile. Fortunately my connection is maintaining stability even with a 2.30dB profile for more than 60 days connection uptime!

Also you can try checking with your next door neighbours who are connected to the same cabinet and ask them if they have the same issue with connection speeds and drop-outs.

Geopirce

max of FTTC is 80 (so not sure what you are on about the 110) - your service will be based on what your provider offer and the distance you are to the cabinet you are connected as the cable runs (also dependin on usage on that cab there might be some cross talk interference which migh reduce you speed)

openreach will never move you from one enabled cabinet to another fro 2 reasona reason 1 - its actually not about the VDS at all -- (if that cab increased your ADSl line distance it would not be be allowesd to do that as that could be seen to disadvantage copper providers and provide unfair advantage to providers that offer FTTc services, . Reason it if did that it would have to offer that as serivice to every one in the uk . as it would be a predent

it will route the same way over the same cable to the same block and the same Dslam

The condition of the copper as well as the length from the cabinet will affect speed too.

I'm 500m via the cable route - not crow fly - from my cabinet.


With copper in very good condition I *should* have got 60.


In reality I never got more than 50 and most of the time it was much lower.

(Why I switched to Community Fibre)

it will route the same way over the same cable to the same block and the same Dslam

It will likely route to the DSLAM the most available ports which could be the 2and DSLAM cabinet. This maybe a different vendor and it may have CAT5 ties which may give a better connection speed.
It may turn out the 2nd cabinet is a g.fast pod so it will make no difference as the OP is too far for g.fast. Would need to know the cab and exchange though.

Edited by witchunt (Sat 06-Feb-21 13:48:24)