Low quality wiring & electrical interference

Hi all,

I have established that I have a problem with a loss of sync when one particular computer is switched on. I'm sure the probelm is an electrical interference issue as the computer does not need to be connected to the router, 100% of the time if the PC is switched on sync drops from 2400kbps to 1600kbps. Once the problem PC is switched off the router can be reset & the sync comes back to the higher rate. I managed to test a 2nd PC while the household was empty & the sync rate stayed at 2900kbps for 1 week without dropping out at all (I checked the router log). As soon as the family return the sync drops a little lower to 2400kbps - I assume due to more electrical appliances being used, however I can't find any other specific appliances that cause a sync reduction.

This is my mothers house, built 20 years ago & all the wiring is pretty shoddy. There are a number of phone line extensions which I've tried disconnecting where possible, but it doesn't help. Trouble is I don't think I can completely bypass the extensions & use the master box, see photos below: there is a box with no socket on the opposite side of the wall where the BT grey box is connected to the outside, this is wired to a 2nd box in a spare room which I thought was the master (apparently not) Click the links below for images (90K in total full size)

Photo 1: BT grey box outside wall
Photo 2: BT master box but no socket?
Photo 3: BT 'master' socket on extension?

My feeling is that it would be best to strip out all the current wiring & install a new NTE5 with built in filters & interstitial plate, then add any extensions off that. However I'm worried that BT could charge ���s & might not solve the problem.

Do any of the experts think we would be entitled to the:

"Conversion of hard-wired master socket to Linebox and Regularisation of illicit master socket"

This might be ideal - as mentioned this is for my mother & she is entitled to a disabled person blue badge, so the charge for the above might only be �30 rather than the �140 that seems to be the standard minimum for a call out these days.

Thanks for any help or advice

Edited by deleted (Tue 03-Jun-08 01:48:15)

Photo 2 - can't you fit a filtered ADSL face-plate in place of the socket-less front plate, and connect your router there?

Photo 3 - are you sure it's a master socket? Are there any additional components inside, or is the PCB just blank with a few wire links?
Can you take a photo of the inside of the boxes in photos 2 & 3?

Edited by adebov (Mon 02-Jun-08 20:51:48)

You already have an nte5 as shown in picture 2.

it's free for the disabled, although RJ says you have an NTE5 anyway.

Why not change the PSU or monitor on the offending PC as they're the likely culprits.

Thanks for the quick reply Ade, just took a couple of new photos as suggested:

Internals of the master box (from photo 2 in 1st post)
Now that I've opened this - is that the 'test socket' here? Would this be the socket to use to see what the best sync available on the line would be? I can fit a new face plate here, but I'm paranoid about damaging BT property if I try to re wire it ...

In case it's relevant - there used to be a 2nd line here, though it's now disconnected.


Internals of the accessible 'master' socket (from photo 3 in 1st post)
I don't know what I'm looking for - maybe it is just an extension.

Thanks yarwell & RJ

I'm not keen on replacing the monitor (it's <12 months old) & PSU as that won't fix the underlying problem - though the computer may get replaced anyway in the next year.

Well if NTE5 is configued as it should be then I guess I will have to resort to attempting to fit a new faceplate myself or paying the full call out charges...

While I was searching for infomation about this I saw mention of BT66 boxes & 'star wiring' being an issue for ADSL. Is this the type of box I have on the outside wall (photo 1) Would replacing this with something newer be advantageous? If I end up paying for BT to come out I'd like to know in advance everything that might be done to improve the line quality

Now that I've opened this - is that the 'test socket' here?

Yup.
As RJ has mentioned, this socket is a master.

You can test things, by plugging your router (using a micro-filter) into the internal 'test' socket.
If things improve, that's the way to go.
You can't leave it like that, of course, because with the front cover removed, your extension socket is disconnected.

but I'm paranoid about damaging BT property if I try to re wire it

The wires sticking out the front (once you've removed the lower front section) are your property.
This is an NTE5 socket, and is designed to allow anyone to terminate phones & extensions into the removeable front cover, without tampering with the BT network side of things.

The other "master" socket (photo 3 in the first post) is not a master, it's a plain old extension socket.

Edited by adebov (Mon 02-Jun-08 21:53:35)

Replace the front plate on pic 2 with a filtered faceplate. This is an nte5b and is the end of the Openreach network. Although, the source of your problems appears to be noise coming from a computer rather than a fault on the line, so maybe tackling the root cause would be beneficial.

I'll get a new face plate with built in filters & try that Do you recommend any particular brand with the interstitial plate built in?

As for the 'noisy' PC - I'm sorry I wasn't clear in my outline of the problem, yes this is the worst culprit and it will eventually be replaced, but there are other less freuqent losses of sync that definitely aren't due to the PC. My thinking was that if the phone line could be filtered, or the extensions that pick up the interference can be removed such that the the problem PC can be used without issue, then I will be much more confident that I've eliminated dodgy electrical appliances as cause of line noise.

Edited by deleted (Mon 02-Jun-08 22:32:11)

I have only had experience with the BT ADSL faceplate so I can't say which of the retail versions is the best.