Replacing internal extension wiring - VDSL extension

Hi All,

I was wondering if some of you could sense check my thinking with an issue I have running VDSL from an extension socket.

My master socket is located right beside where I sleep so when my router is plugged in here (vodafone) Its around 1m from my head. Id like to move it as not happy at having WIFI blasting me from this distance all night!

I've followed some guides, disconnected all other internal wiring from the extensions (i have 3 wired in serial) and used the existing wiring to the nearest extension in the living room to connect the DSL extension from the MK3 faceplate on the master socket, to pins 4 & 5 on a new RJ45 face plate in the living room.

Speed at master socket is 70meg down, 20 meg up
Speed at extension varies between 50 and 60 down, but only 11.5meg up

I believe extension wiring isnt shielded particularly well, and is likely picking up interference thats reducing the sync speed. The number of FEC errors is extremely high when connected to the extension, and CRC errors are higher (both upstream) - FEC as an example i've getting about 1000 per second as far as i can see when the router stats refresh. Downstream is not too bad.

Im thinking that if i replace this cable with a better quality shielded cable it will likely result in speeds very close to what I am getting at the master socket currently.

Im not 100% sure on what the best cable would be, double shielded with the pair and the cable braided and foiled would be my best guess from what i've read so far.

I have a 5m length of this cable that ive ran from the modem to master socket with no drop in sync speed. To put a similar cable via the same route will likely involve 15-20m of cable and a bit of patience.

Am I right in thinking that the existing cable is the likely issue and that better quality cable will help? Am I missing something else that could be causing the issue?

Any thoughts and experience with this would be appreciated before I embark on buying double shielded cable, hard wiring one end to the VDSL face plate and trying to route the new cable via the same route as the existing!

Many thanks

Allan

Things that need to happen:

- The cable that leads from the master (incl faceplate filter) to the data extension must end at the data socket, and not be wired serially onto any further extensions. Reflections will hamper.

- That same cable must be a good twisted pair. Decent round CW1308, or cat5e will do. A flat, untwisted pair is no good. Shielding may help on top of the twists.

You've not really said how you re-arranged your various extensions after making the data extension. And you've not described the makeup of your internal extension cable.

Hey WWWombat, thanks for the reply. I have completely disconnected the 2nd and 3rd extension sockets, they are not required. Other than the broadband router I don't have a landline telephone or anything else plugged into the telephone lines.

If at any stage I needed to connect them back up for phone only my plan would be to use different twisted pairs in the same wire, with jelly crimps at each earlier socket, to essentially use a twisted pair to extension 1 for VDSL and a 2nd twisted pair (jelly crimped at extension 1) and then routed onwards to extension 2, and so on for extension 3. This would allow me to gradually route new shielded cable to replace existing cable while also changing the current serial topology. To be honest I can't see that happening for a while if ever, as the VDSL router is the only device I have connected to the phone line.

Without opening up the master socket again I can't recall if the existing cable to the extension socket is twisted or has any shielding, is doesn't look markedly different from the cable connecting to the back of the master socket. It currently runs approx 2.5m up one wall, 4m along the ceiling and drops another 2.5m down to the first (and now only) extension. I'm assuming this is picking up noise on the way and is therefore in sufficiently shielded.

Rather than running VDSL from an extension socket you could do what I've done. My home has cat5e cabling in most rooms in the house, which all terminate at a patch panel in the garage. There's an RJ45 socket beside my BT master socket, so I've plugged the VDSL cable (it's an RJ11 cable?) coming out of the master socket into the adjacent RJ45 socket, and from there I've patched that connection to another RJ45 socket in another room, into which the fibre modem is plugged and connected to my cable wifi router. It all works perfectly with no drop in speed.

You could do something similar by installing an RJ45 socket next to your master socket, run a length of cat5e solid core cable from that to another room where you want to locate your router, and terminate the cable at another RJ45 socket, into which you can plug your modem/router using another RJ11 lead. The RJ11 plug will fit the RJ45 socket but it needs care and leaves the unused RJ45 pins exposed, so what I've done is cut an ADSL/VDSL cable in half and fitted RJ45 plugs at the exposed ends, but I now see that you can buy one of these to do the job.