In reply to a post by eckiedoo:

my NM as seen above has worsened from 3.8 to 3.9 dB.

You really need to clock the Target NM at sync time, as that determines the sync speed. It then wanders about in response to noise while the sync speed remains as as it was set at sync time.

Your Target NM was probably 3dB, but maybe 4.5dB, as they are set at intervals of 1.5dB, I observe.

In reply to a post by eckiedoo:

The marginal improvement on Saturday in the Upstream was from 1,215 from 1,191 Kbps.

I gather arithmetic isn't your strongest subject .

Thanks, Robertos.

It should have read from 1,191 to 1,215 Kbps.

I was thinking too much about the logarithmic basis and complications of the deciBels etc.

Taking me back some sixty years to when I first encountered them!

The difference when quoted for Power versus Voltage and/or Current - was it 3 dB on Power equated to 6 dB on Voltage and Current?

Some revision needed!

In reply to a post by eckiedoo:

was it 3 dB on Power equated to 6 dB on Voltage and Current?

That's right- provided both measurements are taken using the same value of resistance, otherwise it gets more complicated.

A mathematical annoyance which is ignored much more often than it's obeyed!

If this had been me I would now write up the entire story and send that to BT with a request for a refund for the years of poor service they provided before this bad joint was found by the engineer. Feel free to give him lots of praise and describe what he found and the remedy.
Would be a nice alternative to them charging you £100 - you can but try...

Thanks, Bill.

Just an update and, hopefully, final post on this issue.

We have now had 11 days broadband without a disconnection, which is a record, and a steady speed of around 4.5mbps. It seems as though the problem is finally fixed.

I did get in touch with BT to express our displeasure at the years of hassle which could have been avoided if they had made more of an effort from the start and have received an abject apology plus some compensation by way of discounted broadband for the next 12 months. It's not a fortune - works out at a saving of around £220 for the year which sounds a lot, but BT are more expensive in the first place. Sadly BT are our only option where we live.

Thanks again for all the help and advice.

There is no location in the UK where BT is the only retail provider.

BT Wholesale service is available at every exchange that BT Retail is available. So there is retail competition, but not from the ones like Sky who charge £17 for their Connect product which is a poor choice, TalkTalk used to but stopped and EE charge more for an out of area, as do PlusNet.

Still lots of other providers like A&A, IDnet, Zen and a long list of others that can provide better customer service, but you may find unlimited more expensive.

In reply to a post by milamber:

a saving of around £220 for the year

Better than nothing but poor for the amount of problems you've had due to their sloppy work in the past. Good to hear you've now got a stable service.

Been wondering how your BB service has been since your last posting on 3rd Sep.

Is it holding up, similar to the first 11 days?