Re. new Master Socket (sorry if you've already gone over all of this!):

BT_Care (TBB members) have quoted £29.38 for having a new NTE5 installed: http://forums.thinkbroadband.com/general/t/3809157-r...
You could try contacting BT_Care through TBB.

@BTCare on Twitter are also quick to answer - can't vouch for results though

EDIT: I've just re-read your 'dealing with BT' items!

Edited by b4dger (Tue 09-Nov-10 14:08:17)

it's in the price list. Get them to look at the price list and point it out.

you only want one master in the system if you can arrange it that way. Otherwise other bits of ring wire start to be introduced as aerials via the extra ring capacitors.

In reply to a post by yarwell:

it's in the price list. Get them to look at the price list and point it out.

So is the standard procedure to phone Sales?

So is the standard procedure to phone Sales?

dunno. But you are trying to buy something.

In reply to a post by Growltiger:

Incoming cable from overhead to tiny white box. Only the two wires connected to the new cable, which goes outside again.

In order to test that broadband is coming into the house, why not connect the Voyager router to the the little white box, to which the incoming cable/ drop wire is attached.
By doing this you by-pass all the wiring problems that you've described.
Once you've established that broadband is stable at this point, you can then go onto the next junction and test for broadband again, and so on and so forth. Eventually you'll come to a point where the broadband becomes unstable, and you would have solved the problem - or at the very least identified where it is located.

Wagstaff

Yes Wagstaff, thanks, I did think of that. The problem is that the joints inside that tiny box use those little BT silicone filled things. I do have some but the wires are already short. Better to wait for the new master socket further along that same cable and do it properly. If BT don't do it, I'll fit one myself.

Just to tell you what happened next. The BT Openreach engineer DID arrive. He was the most pleasant helpful engineer I have ever met.

First he fitted a new NTE5A and replaced the old type master socket with a normal extension socket.

There were still problems and we disconnected some parts of the wiring that were no longer needed. Then after some more tests the whole thing sprang to life.

Broadband speed before: about 512 in the day, no service at night (before it failed totally).
Broadband speed afterwards: 2500 in the day.

This is a quite amazing speed given the distance to the exchange (4 miles).

Thanks to everyone here for their suggestions.

Thanks for the update - sounds good

I may have missed it - but how did you book your engineer in the end?
...and do you know if any costs are involved?

In reply to a post by b4dger:

...and do you know if any costs are involved?

There are.

He is expecting a case of something alcoholic and good, (or something equally appropriate), for Christmas.