Speed issues, no NTE - how to test?

Hi All,

I have a customer on an 8Mb line who is having speed issues as follows:

1. Router syncs ok at full 8Mb
2. Speed tests are all coming back between 2 & 4Mb
3. Youtube is buffering on all devices and general web browsing is slow at times.

I've done some normal troubleshooting - changed filters, routers, it's the only thing on the line, single device cabled straight to the router, spoken to the ISP, etc. The only thing I haven't been able to do is test it in the master socket as there isn't one!

It's a fairly new build (~4 years old) for a well-off customer so fully cabled house. The flow of cabling appears to be:

BT Internal DP -> RJ-45 Patch Panel -> Mod-Tap -> ADSL Filter -> Router

Which means that I can't do a master socket test to properly confirm whether it's internal or external. So, can anyone suggest anything else I can do to test, or something blindingly obvious that I'm missing?

Regards,

Rob.

Strange for a new house not to have a Master Socket.

Have you checked the current IP Profile to see if it matches the sync?

If the Sync and IP Profile are all good then it doesn't look like a wiring issue.
Who's the ISP?

As b4dger says, it is surprising that there isn't a conventional master socket.

Scroll down this page to the section on "External NTE". Is there one of those outside?

If not, it is possible that what you call a BT Internal DP is in fact an NTE5 master socket fitted with a blank faceplate (NTE5B) rather than the normal single socket faceplate (NTE5A). Have you (carefully as the faceplate may have wires attached) looked inside it?

Edited by RobertoS (Wed 05-Feb-14 14:41:08)

In larger houses it's not entirely unheard of to be without a standard master socket.

One house I do quite a lot of work at had a Panasonic PABX with two lines directly into it from a BT 201D connection box which also had two other lines that terminated beyond in standard non-NTE master sockets.

Well, the PABX has gone now, as have all the non NTE master sockets

One of the main functions of the NTE5 is to disconnect the house wiring from the circuit to allow tests to be made unaffected by non-BT problems.

If the BT drop wire comes in and connects via a junction box like the 201D to the back of the RJ45 patch panel, then there is no house wiring involved and plugging the mod-tap into the appropriate RJ45 socket in the distribution panel is equivalent to using a test socket on an NTE5 - provided, of course, that the mod-tap isn't faulty.

Testing with the router directly connected with a mod-tap (and no ADSL filter) at the RJ45 distribution panel is what you want to do to establish whether there is a line issue or not.

Edited by caffn8me (Wed 05-Feb-14 15:34:23)

Thanks for the thoughts so far. Caffn8me, I think you are the closest so far.

There is a BT 201D in the garage, however in the main comms cupboard, there is a BT Versatility phone system (should probably have mentioned that originally...!) and then two, what I would call, distribution points, but I believe I may have the terminology wrong here. I've found a suitable image of one here.

So basically, I need to look at potentially the mod-tap being the issue as well I think.

Cheers all - I will see how I get on from here.

Rob.

You should be able to do the Quiet Line Test, not as thoroughly - but sufficiently to get an assessment of the line quality.

That will tell you about audible noise on the line but won't say anything about unexpected attenuation of higher frequencies which can impact ADSL. You also won't be able to hear any interference in the ADSL frequency bands (unless you're a bat )

Rob, you need to check whether the socket you plug the router into bypasses the Versatility system or goes through it. I would have thought that It should bypass it although BT does talk of 'Broadband modules' as an option in Versatility systems.

Also bear in mind there are both master and slave type mod-taps. If the phone line comes through the Versatility system it will already effectively have a "master socket" in the analogue line card so putting a master mod-tap will change the capacitance presented to the line (doubling it) which may well affect ADSL. Hopefully the ADSL line goes nowhere near the Versatility system.

Good luck!

Edited by caffn8me (Wed 05-Feb-14 16:32:35)

Agreed - BUT surely some idea of the Line Quality is better than none?

That's a box conn 301, the 201's bigger sibling. I think some of the other advice, although helpful, is missing the main issue. It can't be running through the PABX switch, or else there would be no sync at all. If there were noise on the line, then you'd most likely not be seeing the full sync with an increased SNR.

You say they have full sync, but slow throughput speeds, you've swapped out the router, I'm guessing speed tests are being run hard wired (are they ?) So maybe we are looking at exchange or ISP congestion ? Do the speeds improve at 'quieter' times of day ?