Register (or login) on our website and you will not see this ad.
|
|
This is why I am sceptical that they ever really intend to take being a wholesale network seriously - along with the zero progress that Nexfibre have actually made getting wholesale partners on board.
Do they *really* want to have to handle ONT registration for every retail provider? If they're going to put an ONT in place if you buy a non-VM service then why does the Hub 5X exist?
You make a good point, a wholesaler logically would supply their own ONT, as NexFibre and VM should be separate entities.
It would be a bit like if in the DSL days, every retailer fitted their own NTE5.
What happens if Zen e.g. resell NexFibre, they are used to on OR and CF not needing to supply PON equipment, and then with NexFibre they do, it all feels like they not building as a wholesaler, and just pretending to be.
|
|
|
Surely if Nexfibre planned on running a wholesale network where other ISP's can sell services then they wouldn't be tagging their fibre as Virgin Media. I'd expect it to say Nexfibre.
I just learnt from Wikipedia (assuming it is accurate) that nexfibre started out as a much smaller company owned by Liberty Global as "Virgin Media Networks Ltd" back in 2021. Then in 2022 with the VM & O2 merger into VMO2 UK Ltd, the company Virgin Media Networks ownership moved to the owning company of Liberty&Telefonica, and the French equity capital lot.
So at a guess they don't care a hoot at the moment about being open, they want customers, and are building fast, they are already passing 2m homes, which is quite an achievement given they started a lot later than CityFibre. I guess we will have to watch the next year or so... but the technology choices made don't bode well for future wholesale.
Of course the coax areas are starting to be replaced by PON, but that's under VMO2 ownership, and they also talked about wholesale access to coax & VM PON under "NetCo".
Lots apparently going on, but not much to see maybe?
25 years of broadband connectivity since Sep 1999 trial - Live BQM
|
|
|
|
And just to be clear, you're definitely got APC (green) and UPC (blue) in the right places?
Most fibre networks use APC - it gives lower connector losses when mated correctly. Most data patch leads and SFPs use UPC. Trying to mate UPC to APC isn't going to give a great connection.
|
|
Register (or login) on our website and you will not see this ad.
|
|
|
|
Thought had crossed my mind. But I think it’s not our OPs first rodeo with fibre. That would be a very school boy/girl mistake
|
|
|
And just to be clear, you're definitely got APC (green) and UPC (blue) in the right places?
Most fibre networks use APC - it gives lower connector losses when mated correctly. Most data patch leads and SFPs use UPC. Trying to mate UPC to APC isn't going to give a great connection.
Is this the part when I tell you I’ve patched my LC fibre into an old school ST connector patch panel?🫣🤣
Haha, yea of course. Learnt from that mistake many years ago. People still forget that you can get different types of LC cables, UPC and APC and mixing them together doesn’t end well!
I’ve got a LC/APC to SC cable, purely to reduce the need for extra connectors & loss, so there’s only one LC coupler where the VM patch lead joins to mine.
As much
|
|
|
Thought had crossed my mind. But I think it’s not our OPs first rodeo with fibre. That would be a very school boy/girl mistake
You have a lot of faith in me! 🙀
I’ve seen some questionable stuff over the years to be fair, the government buildings are terrible, only ghosts know how some of their stuff works, I think the people who worked on it must have died there!🤣
|
|
|
Interestingly, I asked the same question on a YouTube video posted by a Virgin Media engineer named Jude 6 days ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n32DQsyfoek&lc=UgxkB...
He responded to some of my questions. I asked him why the Nexfibre isn't designed or printed on the omnibox and it only says Virgin Media. Since this can cause confusion especially for those less informed customers who do not know that they could eventually choose another ISP on the network or even know that it is full fibre. It would've also helped differentiate between Nexfibre and Coax DOCSIS 3.1, this is important as not many people even know this yet!
He claims that he is not 100% sure why this is the case but he thinks this is because Virgin Media want to save money not having to re-badge the design equipment as it will increase cost and delay the roll out.
This is the answer to my second question... judepl: In relation to your second question, if you were to join an ISP which uses the Nexfibre network, an XGSPON ONT would be installed, similar to an Openreach FTTP installation. The fibre connection terminates at the XGSPON ONT which is then connected by ethernet to the providers gateway device. If you were a Virgin Media customer beforehand and had moved to another provider on the Nexfibre network, with how we install currently this would need another engineer visit to install an XGSPON ONT, unless they make it so the customer can plug it in and set it up themselves, similar to QuickStart orders. As for your last question, you can use your own router if you require. You can put the Hub 5X in modem mode and connect your own router via ethernet to the Hub 5X.
Thanks for watching!  These were the answers to my questions. I watched a few of these videos and found his videos hence why I asked him those questions.
I think Hub 5X exists to save money not to have to install the ONT. They are probably passing on the buck to the ISP rather than Nexfibre taking responsibility. Unless, of-course the ISP calls Nexfibre engineer to fit one manually. But this just means multiple visits and that may incur a cost to the customer indirectly by raising the packages to compensate this loss...
Also putting in modem mode isn't something I would like because if the Hub 5X is faulty then it will make things complicated. We won't know what is causing problems whether our own router or the Hub 5X.
Also someone on YouTube reviewed the Hub 5X named Off Topic Reviews saying you can't open IPv4 websites as VM only has IPv6 support. And also DMZ wasn't working and would not open any of the ports. I'm not sure about the legitimacy of those complaints.
If this is the case, that would be a major disappointment and will repel a lot of potential customers. If the Hub 5X is problematic people are going to skip Virgin Media since I think most people don't use their own router.
|
|
|
|
Hahaha. Of course we have faith in you. You just need to get to the bottom of that horrendous loss on your internal cabling.
You said the VM tested light levels at the router previously and it was -12dBm. Your ONU stick is saying it’s got -26dBm. So if they’re both correct that’s 14 dB less. Remember that the dB scale is logarithmic, so every 3dB is a halving (or doubling) in absolute light levels.
At -12 dBm the light level is 0.0630957344 mW
At -26 dBm the level is 0.0025118864 mW
So the light level is actually 25 times weaker! Ultimately that is going to cause you issues over time. Any minor changes in light on the PON will push you into dodgy territory reliability wise. It works both ways with the light your receiving and the light your also sending back. The sensitivity limit on your ONU stick is -28.5 dBm.
Try firstly replacing any couplers. Clean the fibre ends. Ideally inspect them using a scope as they could also be damaged or have stubborn spots which your not removing. Fibre patch leads can also have unseen damage along the cord; if they were ever mishandled or over-bent then there could be micro fractures in the core and cladding which can lead to high loss. So replace any patch leads.
More generally, reducing the total number of mated connections in the overall link is really important. Mated connections introduce the highest loss. They are also a point of weakness for contamination.
Good luck 🤞
|
|
|
Interestingly, I asked the same question on a YouTube video posted by a Virgin Media engineer named Jude 6 days ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n32DQsyfoek&lc=UgxkB...
He responded to some of my questions. I asked him why the Nexfibre isn't designed or printed on the omnibox and it only says Virgin Media. Since this can cause confusion especially for those less informed customers who do not know that they could eventually choose another ISP on the network or even know that it is full fibre. It would've also helped differentiate between Nexfibre and Coax DOCSIS 3.1, this is important as not many people even know this yet!
He claims that he is not 100% sure why this is the case but he thinks this is because Virgin Media want to save money not having to re-badge the design equipment as it will increase cost and delay the roll out.
This is the answer to my second question... judepl: In relation to your second question, if you were to join an ISP which uses the Nexfibre network, an XGSPON ONT would be installed, similar to an Openreach FTTP installation. The fibre connection terminates at the XGSPON ONT which is then connected by ethernet to the providers gateway device. If you were a Virgin Media customer beforehand and had moved to another provider on the Nexfibre network, with how we install currently this would need another engineer visit to install an XGSPON ONT, unless they make it so the customer can plug it in and set it up themselves, similar to QuickStart orders. As for your last question, you can use your own router if you require. You can put the Hub 5X in modem mode and connect your own router via ethernet to the Hub 5X.
Thanks for watching! These were the answers to my questions. I watched a few of these videos and found his videos hence why I asked him those questions.
I think Hub 5X exists to save money not to have to install the ONT. They are probably passing on the buck to the ISP rather than Nexfibre taking responsibility. Unless, of-course the ISP calls Nexfibre engineer to fit one manually. But this just means multiple visits and that may incur a cost to the customer indirectly by raising the packages to compensate this loss...
Also putting in modem mode isn't something I would like because if the Hub 5X is faulty then it will make things complicated. We won't know what is causing problems whether our own router or the Hub 5X.
Also someone on YouTube reviewed the Hub 5X named Off Topic Reviews saying you can't open IPv4 websites as VM only has IPv6 support. And also DMZ wasn't working and would not open any of the ports. I'm not sure about the legitimacy of those complaints.
If this is the case, that would be a major disappointment and will repel a lot of potential customers. If the Hub 5X is problematic people are going to skip Virgin Media since I think most people don't use their own router.
Modem mode on the Hub5X has never worked properly, and to enable it you have to manually punch in the link to the page on the hub, and even then its a complex and diabolical process to get working correctly.
IF you get it working, it only works on the 1Gb ports, which again is useless for customers with 1Gb+ connections, and potentially useless with the future support of more than 1Gb.
The IPV4 website issue has never been a problem, and i ran a few low maintenance proof of concept websites through my Hub5X, you need to disable the IPV6 option on your local devices which then pulls local, and public IPV4 address. I don't think i have ever seen a IPV6 address from my 5X, ever!
Interesting information about the VM engineer and the nexfibre branding though.
|
|
|
Hahaha. Of course we have faith in you. You just need to get to the bottom of that horrendous loss on your internal cabling.
You said the VM tested light levels at the router previously and it was -12dBm. Your ONU stick is saying it’s got -26dBm. So if they’re both correct that’s 14 dB less. Remember that the dB scale is logarithmic, so every 3dB is a halving (or doubling) in absolute light levels.
At -12 dBm the light level is 0.0630957344 mW
At -26 dBm the level is 0.0025118864 mW
So the light level is actually 25 times weaker! Ultimately that is going to cause you issues over time. Any minor changes in light on the PON will push you into dodgy territory reliability wise. It works both ways with the light your receiving and the light your also sending back. The sensitivity limit on your ONU stick is -28.5 dBm.
Try firstly replacing any couplers. Clean the fibre ends. Ideally inspect them using a scope as they could also be damaged or have stubborn spots which your not removing. Fibre patch leads can also have unseen damage along the cord; if they were ever mishandled or over-bent then there could be micro fractures in the core and cladding which can lead to high loss. So replace any patch leads.
More generally, reducing the total number of mated connections in the overall link is really important. Mated connections introduce the highest loss. They are also a point of weakness for contamination.
Good luck 🤞
Sorry for the slow replies, i have still not had time to do this yet! i changed the LC/APC coupler to a better quality one and things have been fine, but ill need to sort out the NAT addressing so i can access my SFP on the local network through OpnSense.
|
|
|
Pages in this thread: 
Print Thread
Chrysalis
