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Hey Everyone
In my latest monthly statement I have noticed that my BB cost from EE jumped up by £10 per month, rang them and told I was now out of contract and reason why it had gone up.
They asked if I was interested in renewing but decided to look what other options I have. I have been with EE a number of years and been reasonably happy with them but don't always get the quickest of speeds from them, maybe because they are throttled speeds maybe or the distance I am from my exchange.
The cost per month for me at the moment is £40 which seems very steep for fibre BB and I have noticed that EE are offering new customers BB and phone for 18 months at £28.50 then upto £34.50 so its unlikely I will get much off that price in renewal.
The question is do I move to another ISP that charges less but still has great customer service but also has good stable speeds? Any recommendations? Ideally needs to be unlimited data too as I do play online games.
Thanks everyone
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First things first - enter your line number into this BT checker. Attach a screenshot of the results (without your personal info of course).
Likewise, enter your exchange, as shown in the previous checker, here. Do the results show a tick next to TalkTalk and Sky?
Based off this information we can advise further - the choice of providers and packages available to you depends mostly on your line and your exchange.
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OK, just done the BT Checker and here are the results from that
BT Checker Results
Results from SamKnows too
SamKnows Exchange Results
Also thought I might add my current router stats too just incase you need them and if I decide to stay with EE just incase I can get more speed out of the line
Router Stats
Current Router uptime - 12hr 30mins, not sure why the connection dropped.
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Register (or login) on our website and you will not see this ad.
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Also this is a current speed test using TBB speed tester
Speed Test Results
I am sure these speeds are quite slow for EE as I am sure I am on the upto 38mb/s Fibre although I am not 100% sure without giving them a bell.
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Sky have line and fibre (38mb) on offer at £ 19.50 a month , 18 month contract , £48.50 set up fee
Via MSE link , ends 11:59pm friday
https://promotioncode.sky.com/campaigns/msesab4647
Edited by deleted (Wed 24-May-17 13:16:55)
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Check out the offers on topcashback and quidco.
BT often have offers on there PLUS a generous pre paid mastercard offer.
Can make the overall cost pretty cheap in the first year.
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How does sky compare to EE?
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Will have a look, is it a pain to change nowadays or pretty straight forward?
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Sky are usually a reasonable ISP for most people. Support not dissimilar to any other big company. Using your own router on them is more difficult than with some but I think it is still possible (been some time since I was with Sky). In the end the big ISPs are all much the same and most of the small (arguably better) ISPs tend to be more expensive.
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You order a product from your new ISP. Pretty much everything else should be done automatically for you - there can be occasional issues with migration but given the number of complaints on here it is probably safe to say that the vast majority go through without a hitch.
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Cool sounds good.
What I am a little concerned about at the moment is that I am not getting speeds that I am paying for, around 18 mps according to TBB speed test (in previous post) that seems very slow for fibre and I am only 0.25km away from my cabinet.
Have you had chance to have a look at the data that I posted?
I don't want to move to another company if its still gonna be slow.
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If your line is only 250m long then your speeds are very low and there is a problem. However, your line may take a circuitous route to the cabinet - although at those speeds it is very much longer than the 250m you say.
There does seem to be a hard 20Mb speed cap on there and not sure what would happen if that was released. Have you spoken to the ISP about it (can't remember if you say in this thread)? Have you tried connecting the router directly in to the test socket and getting the stats when it is connected that way? Have you looked on the BT checker for neighbouring houses to see if they have similarly low estimates?
The upshot is changing ISP probably won't fix the speed.
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Just to double check that I am thinking correctly here, the cabinet is the green cabinet and distance from my house to that is the important one and not the distance from my house to the local exchange?
if distance from my house to local exchange is important then that is about 2 miles away.
I haven't spoke to them about it as I have only just noticed this problem, I think if my calculations are correct approx 18Mbps is about 2 meg a sec, which like you say is poor, considering I am meant to get upto 38 meg a sec max. Whats the best thing to say to them when I ring?
Will try connecting directly to the test socket (I presume thats the one behind the master plate?) How do I check on BT checker for neighbour speed estimates?
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You're getting mixed up between different abbreviations meaning the same thing  .
Mbps - short for megabits per second = megs per second. Which is what speed tests report.
Then complicated by the fact that data volumes are measured in MegaBytes, and downloaders/streamers measure in MBps (MegaBytes per second).
You seem to have the conversion between bits and bytes correct, eight bits = one byte, but you are applying it in the wrong place. ISP estimates are Mbps like speed testers, not MBps like downloaders.
The reason downloaders report that way is that file sizes are specified in MB, so it makes sense for people wanting to know how much longer they need to wait.
Your 18Mbps against the estimate of 38Mbps is poor, we all agree.
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 64513/13170Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6 |
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You're getting mixed up between different abbreviations meaning the same thing .
Mbps - short for megabits per second = megs per second. Which is what speed tests report.
Then complicated by the fact that data volumes are measured in MegaBytes, and downloaders/streamers measure in MBps (MegaBytes per second).
You seem to have the conversion between bits and bytes correct, eight bits = one byte, but you are applying it in the wrong place. ISP estimates are Mbps like speed testers, not MBps like downloaders.
The reason downloaders report that way is that file sizes are specified in MB, so it makes sense for people wanting to know how much longer they need to wait.
Your 18Mbps against the estimate of 38Mbps is poor, we all agree.
Lol I know. Ok just to clarify if EE say I should get 38 megabyte per sec max, what should that report back on the TBB speed test?
Do I have an issue on my line looking at the data I have provided? If so I will ring EE up and try and sort it.
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Just to double How do I check on BT checker for neighbour speed estimates? If you mean this checker, go to the Address option, (not the Postcode option) and enter just your postcode. Not your full address.
That will give you a dropdown list of all addresses having that postcode and you can click any you like for that address's estimate.
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 64513/13170Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6
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Ok just to clarify if EE say I should get 38 megabyte per sec max, what should that report back on the TBB speed test?
Do I have an issue on my line looking at the data I have provided? If so I will ring EE up and try and sort it. I hadn't followed your estimates link previously. But VDSL (=FTTC) is showing 22.4Mbps to 32.4 Mbps for a clean connection and only 13.2Mbps to 26.2Mbps for an "impacted" one.
Where EE got a 38Mbps figure from I don't know, unless you are thinking of just the headline product description on their website. That is just the connection speed that at least 10% of their FTTC customers can get.
Are you definitely looking at the BT FTTC and phone cabinets at 0.25km? Not Virgin Media.
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 64513/13170Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6Edited by RobertoS (Wed 24-May-17 17:23:45)
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Ah I see, so I am getting within that range, the impacted range I suppose.
Yeah I am pretty sure I have located correct cabinet, I followed the guide on http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/cabinet-lookup.htm
and concluded it was approx 250m to 300m away.
What do you think my best course of action should be now to improve these speeds?
I have the router plugged into the test socket and there is no change in the speed from what I can see.
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What do you think my best course of action should be now to improve these speeds? Move?
Remember that the cable between the cab and your property may not well not use the direct route, likewise don't forget to add in vertical distances plus the distance between the PCP and the FTTC DSLAM. Examples are frequently posted here where the actual line length is two or more times the shortest route from the cab to the user's property.
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He does seem to be possibly capped at 20Mbps sync however.
Power is well pulled back!
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 64513/13170Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6Edited by RobertoS (Wed 24-May-17 18:02:07)
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no chance of ee doing anything?
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No idea sorry  .
What is important is the connection speeds down and up and the noise margins to go with them next time you reconnect. And those power levels of course. I suggest you do the reconnection well inside daylight hours, preferably before noon on a weekday.
Take all the stats like you posted earlier immediately after the connection is made. Don't wait 5-10 minutes or do a speed test first! That will give us a bit more info.
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 64513/13170Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6 |
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Given that Line Attenuation of 25.2 dB, your line is almost certainly much longer than mine, which is 13.4 dB for 300 Metres known/identified, wire/cable length from the FTTC.
I am also on EE, 40/10 Contract, getting typically 38/9 on the TBB and BTW Tests, 41/10 on the "speedof.me" tests.
Edited by deleted (Thu 25-May-17 07:33:02)
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If you have it, post the Cabinet Number.
Others may be able to help locate its actual position.
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Still a good idea to check on neighbours estimated speeds on the link RobertoS gave using the address checker - if you really are only 250m from the cabinet (and the cable is relatively direct routed) I would expect some of your neighbours to be getting significantly higher estimates which could point to a problem with your line.
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Yeah I will have a good look at them today and see what my neighbours get.
My cabinet number is 7 according the BT checker if thats any help?
Here are my results from plugging the router directly into the master test socket, can anyone spot any major changes here compared to the other stats when not plugged into master socket?
STATUS
Configured Current
Line Status -- UP
Link Type -- Fast Path
Operation Mode Automatic G.993.2 (VDSL2)
DATA RATE INFORMATION
Upstream 4670 (Kbps)
Downstream 18000 (Kbps)
DEFECT/FAILURE INDICATION
Operation Data Upstream Downstream
Noise Margin 6.1 (dB) 9.1 (dB)
Line Attenuation 0.0 (dB) 25.1 (dB)
Indicator Name Near End Indicator Far End Indicator
Output Power 7.1 (dBm) 7.2 (dBm)
Fast Path FEC Correction 1077 0
Interleaved Path FEC Correction -- --
Fast Path CRC Error 0 0
Interleaved Path CRC Error -- --
Loss Of Signal Defect 0 0
Fast Path HEC Error STR 0 0
Interleaved Path HEC Error -- --
Error Seconds 0 0
STATISTICS
Received Data 1103 (Kbits)
Transmitted Data 633 (Kbits)
Here is a speed test from test socket, seems a bit slower too
https://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/14956997986...
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When you have physically and positively identified Cabinet 7, measure the straight-line/"as the crow flies" distance from it to your house.
Google Earth is useful for this, using the Line facility under "Show Ruler" - a narrow, vertical rectangle icon.
That will give the absolute minimum distance/length of your line, from the PCP; to which you would need to add the FTTC to PCP distance.
Then try to trace the (likely) actual route from the PCP to your house.
If (parts of) it are underground, look for the covers to the underground chambers, typically about 100 Metres apart.
They are generally in the footpaths; but could be in verges, in the road particularly if there has been widening etc.
Occasionally they show up in the middle of newer roundabouts etc.
When you (think you) have accurately identified the route, re-measure on Google Earth, using the "Path" facility.
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And add verticals. One at each of the cabinets, plus things like poles and from reaching the house to the master socket location. If a long drop wire a bit for sag as well.
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 64513/13170Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6 |
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I have looked at apparently most of the Post Codes for East Ayton; and PCP Cabinet 7 is not amongst them, suggesting that your house is distinctly outside East Ayton.
All preceded by 9H -
PC
Last
Char. Cab
A 8 - YO13 9HA
B 8
D P3
H 4
J P4
L P4
N P11
P P8
R P8
S P8
T P3
U P3
W P8
X P8
Y P4
Z P3
I note that the Exchange is on the periphery of the village, B126 - Seamer Road, at the "30 MPH" signs.
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Cabinet 7 is in village called Seamer, not too far away from Ayton.
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I have the router plugged into the test socket and there is no change in the speed from what I can see.
You need to be looking at the stats generated by the router to appreciate differences rathe than just speed testing.
Throughput may have a 'cap' on it usually in response to errors and disconnections the remote monitoring has picked up.
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Yeah these were the stats plugged via the test socket
STATUS
Configured Current
Line Status -- UP
Link Type -- Fast Path
Operation Mode Automatic G.993.2 (VDSL2)
DATA RATE INFORMATION
Upstream 4670 (Kbps)
Downstream 18000 (Kbps)
DEFECT/FAILURE INDICATION
Operation Data Upstream Downstream
Noise Margin 6.1 (dB) 9.1 (dB)
Line Attenuation 0.0 (dB) 25.1 (dB)
Indicator Name Near End Indicator Far End Indicator
Output Power 7.1 (dBm) 7.2 (dBm)
Fast Path FEC Correction 1077 0
Interleaved Path FEC Correction -- --
Fast Path CRC Error 0 0
Interleaved Path CRC Error -- --
Loss Of Signal Defect 0 0
Fast Path HEC Error STR 0 0
Interleaved Path HEC Error -- --
Error Seconds 0 0
STATISTICS
Received Data 1103 (Kbits)
Transmitted Data 633 (Kbits)
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Anyway to remove this cap?
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That can only be done by Openreach, so EE would have to request that from them ......
OR if you wait it should go on it's own if the line is now error free.
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This is it now after a few days, what do you think?
DSL STATUS
This page shows information about your DSL connection. If you are using Ethernet Broadband then this page is not applicable.
STATUS
Configured Current
Line Status -- UP
Link Type -- Fast Path
Operation Mode Automatic G.993.2 (VDSL2)
DATA RATE INFORMATION
Upstream 4401 (Kbps)
Downstream 16495 (Kbps)
DEFECT/FAILURE INDICATION
Operation Data Upstream Downstream
Noise Margin 6.1 (dB) 9.9 (dB)
Line Attenuation 0.0 (dB) 25.3 (dB)
Indicator Name Near End Indicator Far End Indicator
Output Power 7.2 (dBm) 7.2 (dBm)
Fast Path FEC Correction 7965342 14
Interleaved Path FEC Correction -- --
Fast Path CRC Error 0 2817
Interleaved Path CRC Error -- --
Loss Of Signal Defect 1 0
Fast Path HEC Error STR 0 685
Interleaved Path HEC Error -- --
Error Seconds 46 4
STATISTICS
Received Data 25571952 (Kbits)
Transmitted Data 3158148 (Kbits)
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Not encouraging. The downstream connection speed has been reduced even more. Possibly by a night-time re-sync, judging by the rise in noise margin. Have you done any re-sync's since your 18000Kbps reading?
My broadband basic info/help site - www.robertos.me.uk. Domains, site and mail hosting - Tsohost.
Connection - AAISP Home::1 80/20. Sync 63018/13016Kbps @ 600m. BQMs - IPv4 & IPv6 |
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I think the only time its being resynced is when I had to move router downstairs a couple of times to test in the master socket.
Is there anyway to force resync?
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An update
I am finding that I have noise on the line when making voice calls. I have tested this via plugging phone into test socket and doing quiet line test and quite a bit of hiss and noise there which I suppose could be affecting the BB speeds, also notice in my router log that the BB does drop out quite regularly, seems like once every 24hrs or so, is this normal or should it stay up longer than that? EE will not do anything yet until I have tried the line noise test with corded telephone which I am going to sort today, got no corded telephone in the house.
More confusingly is these are my updated router stats and its now synced at higher speed and noise margin is way lower than it was before however my BB is increasingly slow and painful to use and this BB speediest shows the drop in performance
https://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest/14964771683...
What do you guys think?
DSL STATUS
This page shows information about your DSL connection. If you are using Ethernet Broadband then this page is not applicable.
STATUS
Configured Current
Line Status -- UP
Link Type -- Fast Path
Operation Mode Automatic G.993.2 (VDSL2)
DATA RATE INFORMATION
Upstream 4401 (Kbps)
Downstream 21968 (Kbps)
DEFECT/FAILURE INDICATION
Operation Data Upstream Downstream
Noise Margin 6.2 (dB) 4.9 (dB)
Line Attenuation 0.0 (dB) 25.3 (dB)
Indicator Name Near End Indicator Far End Indicator
Output Power 7.2 (dBm) 7.2 (dBm)
Fast Path FEC Correction 739302659 3
Interleaved Path FEC Correction -- --
Fast Path CRC Error 0 4901438
Interleaved Path CRC Error -- --
Loss Of Signal Defect 0 0
Fast Path HEC Error STR 0 1245239
Interleaved Path HEC Error -- --
Error Seconds 26698 0
STATISTICS
Received Data 4757835 (Kbits)
Transmitted Data 444088 (Kbits)
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