Problem

I get a high stable sync rate and speed for 1-2 months but then I get an unstable sync from 160 to 6000 kbps for about 1-2 months ish.

What could cause this? on my third router now and had a BT engineer down to check my line.

In reply to a post by vulco:

I get a high stable sync rate and speed for 1-2 months but then I get an unstable sync from 160 to 6000 kbps for about 1-2 months ish.

What could cause this? on my third router now and had a BT engineer down to check my line.

Does a neighbour work nights six weeks on and six weeks days?

Nope.

My connection has now started to drop frequently.

If the router is losing sync it's likely to be a line problem. Have you any noise on your line?

Not being funny - did you have a lot of rain yesterday?

Our BT line (voice) was very poor this morning and fine yesterday and before. Its quite common for rain to aggravate poor or failing connections. Had this with another line some years ago on voice and it only really showed up after it rained. BT fixed it in a "manhole near the park".

Phone line is quite noisy (has been for over a year) with the phone connected to the master socket, but when the BT engineer came down the external wiring was fine. Trying different phones didn't remove the noise.

Is the noise on the line audible when making a call?

If it is, you need to report a voice fault (not broadband) to whoever you pay your line rental to (also don't mention broadband when reporting the fault). Once the noise has been sorted your broadband should improve!

You may need to close down the broadband fault (assuming that's what you've reported up till now) before opening a voice fault.

In reply to a post by paulby:

Is the noise on the line audible when making a call?

If it is, you need to report a voice fault (not broadband) to whoever you pay your line rental to (also don't mention broadband when reporting the fault). Once the noise has been sorted your broadband should improve!

You may need to close down the broadband fault (assuming that's what you've reported up till now) before opening a voice fault.

That's assuming the noise is present when all the ADSL equipment is disconnected and the phone (non-DECT) is through the test socket not even the front of the master socket.

You're right - I should have added the usual provisos.

You need to test with a standard corded phone connected directly to the test socket at the master. (If the master is not an NTE5 with a removable front plate you need to test at the master with nothing else plugged in to any extensions - disconnect your extension wiring if possible - no broadband equipment must be plugged in.)

If the phone line is still noisy then report a voice fault as above.

Edited by paulby (Thu 12-Mar-09 13:45:33)

Just tested it, no noise through the test socket with my phone. Tried my router through the test socket and the problem remains

In reply to a post by vulco:

Just tested it, no noise through the test socket with my phone. Tried my router through the test socket and the problem remains

OK, so it's something to do with the ADSL side at your end, but you are on your third router.

Have they all been the same router? If so have you used one of the new power supplies or are you still using the original?

Have you tried a different filter into the test socket and a different power supply?

Is the router power supply lying on the ADSL cable or the cable to the phone?

Anything like that that could screw up the cleanliness of any cable.

Tried D-link, Netgear and Belkin routers. Tried different filters and the power supply isn't on the cables.

Hmm my fuse box is underneath my master socket, could that interfere?

Edited by vulco (Thu 12-Mar-09 17:30:30)

Don't know about the fuse box - if there was something dodgy in there causing an imperfect contact then I expect it could. Where's the actual meter?

I had a later thought as well, the ADSL cable from the router to the filter, have you replaced that? Cables can get damaged or a plug on the end get dodgy. In the days of Centronics printer cables that was a frequent cause of gibberish printing.

The meter is about 6 meters from the master socket.

Had a new cable delivered yesterday, didn't help.

Update.

Line noise is intermittent now.
All internal wiring has been replaced, problem remains and the external wiring is fine according to BT

Did you previously have broadband from somebody else?. Was it fixed rate or max? Was it stable?
When you joined PlusNet what sort of speed were you lead to believe you could have; 6K or better?

Are you able to get the noise, power, anntenuation and SNR (noise margin) figures for the upstream and downstrem channels from any one of the three routers and post them here?

Enceladus

Had virgin up to 8mb, wasn't stable and very slow.

First 6 months with plusnet we had a stable 6.4mb.


Downstream Upstream

Data rate(Kbps)
1952Kb 448Kb

Noise Margin
28 16

Output power(dBm)
123 192

Attenuation(dB)
29 17

I assume the data rates you quote are actually your sync rates. If so your downstream rate is WAY too low for the line conditions. With those figures you should be syncing at 8Mbs so that is something that needs to be investigated.

I know he said he was with Virgin but does he have Sky on his line without a splitter?

It sounds like there is something that is causing feedback .. a voltage thing.

And what are the figures just after restarting the modem,

You say all the internal wiring, how much is there, and what sort of cable was used....have you tried the modem at the test socket, i.e. so that all the extensions are dead?

In reply to a post by vulco:

Noise Margin
28 16

That noise margin is huge. I'd be intersted too to see what this displays at after a reboot...

...of the router.

Or even a factory reset.

Of all three routers?

Edited by RobertoS (Sun 22-Mar-09 03:11:44)

I agree with Bob Pullen above.

The noise margin figures are not plausible. In fact they appear to be reversed.

Assuming that there is a decimal point missing from the power figures (IE. 12.3 v 123 and 19.2 v 192), then the attenuation and power figures are roughly consistent with a sync rate of 6.4mbps which you say you used to have.

If this is the case then a downstream noise margin = 16db and upstream = 28db would be believable in combination with the quoted sync rate of 1952kbps.

This is because the DSLAM at the exchange has a default minimum target for the downstream connection of 6db. If there are a lot of disconnects in rapid succession then the DSLAM ups the target margin in 3db increments until the link stabilises. So yours is could now set at 15db. Each 3db increment will cause a corresponding reduction in sync rate.

I assume the two replacement routers were new? Ex PlusNet?

So I would factory reset one of the new routers. Leave it physically disconnected from the phone line for at least 30 mins. Restart - re enter your ID and password. And then report back the sync rate and noise figures etc.

Enceladus