Terrible internet speed.

Hi there, I've had a really, REALLY bad internet for several years now but i've managed to stick with it as it does allow me to surf the web even if it's at a snails pace. Recently just bought a new game and requires a very large download which at my current connection speed will take around 16 days which is a joke. I'm really no good with the technical aspects of the internet so if anyone decides to try help you'd really have to walk me through it step by step.
My mother is the one paying for the internet so some details I may not know.

When my internet connection is right clicked and I go to properties it says my speed is 54.0 Mbps, this means nothing to me, although it's probably the highest numbers i've seen around my internet.

My game was downloading at around 80-100 kb/sec, which is much higher than usual, but after a few minutes I disconnected, and upon reconnecting i'm struggling to get over 20 kb/sec which is pretty common for me.

Speedtest result;
http://www.speedtest.net/result/2157081640.png

Not sure what this is, but I've seen it posted elsewhere so here is mine;
Downstream Line Rate : 160 kbps
Upstream Line Rate : 448 kbps

My router is a D-Link DSL-2640r and my ISP is TalkTalk
My router currently has a cable going from upstairs to the downstairs socket next to my electricity box but both wireless and cable yield the same poor speeds.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Edited by deleted (Mon 03-Sep-12 15:50:02)

When you log onto the routers web interface (i.e. where you got the 160 Kbps figure) there should be some other numbers, attenuation and noise margin (SNR) can you copy/paste them along with the current line rates.

Then we can take things from there.

ADSL in simplistic terms is like AM radio squeezed down a copper wire, and the same rules as for locating the router, as for your old radio, not near other electrical devices. So located next to the fuse box may not be the best location, and the long cable if of the wrong sort may not be helping issues.

Once we see the attenuation and noise margin figures we can figure out if issues like this are the problem.

In reply to a post by zachh94:

When my internet connection is right clicked and I go to properties it says my speed is 54.0 Mbps

That's just your local wireless network speed; nowt to do with your BB.

Post your full router stats as requested.

I think these are what you are looking for;

Rate (Kbps): 160 kbps 448 kbps

SNR Margin (dB): 10.5 21.0
Attenuation (dB): 27.0 31.5
Output Power (dBm): 12.0 12.5

Super Frames: 564732 564717
RS Correctable Errors: 0 0
RS Uncorrectable Errors: 0 0

HEC Errors: 0 0
Total Cells: 75220 64615
Data Cells: 1471207 247173
Bit Errors: 0 0

Ok you appear to have a 27dB attenuation downstream, and 31.5 upstream.

Which is wrong, the upstream should generally be half the attenuation of the downstream. Can you reboot the router and see if the attenuation, SNR margin and connection rates change?

You also need to do the same when NOT using the long extension lead, and also with the router plugged directly into the test socket that is part of the master socket, and is reached by unscrewing the bottom half of the master socket as per the picture at http://www.thinkbroadband.com/images/faq/faceplates/...

If the rate is a lot better when using the test socket, then it tells us your wiring in your home is the big issue, and that can be easily remedied, but lets see if it is that first.

Here are the results immediately after restarting router and re-gaining an internet connection. Will try to do the other requests.

Downstream Upstream
Rate (Kbps): 160 kbps 448 kbps

SNR Margin (dB): 9.5 20.0
Attenuation (dB): 26.5 31.5
Output Power (dBm): 12.5 12.0

Super Frames: 2653 2653
RS Correctable Errors: 0 0
RS Uncorrectable Errors: 0 0

HEC Errors: 0 0
Total Cells: 139 85
Data Cells: 140 85
Bit Errors: 0 0

EDIT: Can't seem to get a connection without the long cable going downstairs. I'm getting dinner soon so hopefully i'll be able to try plugging it into the test socket afterwards.

In reply to a post by MrSaffron:

and also with the router plugged directly into the test socket that is part of the master socket

When you say directly, do you mean moving the extension cable from the master socket into the socket below (after removing the cover) ?

Edited by deleted (Mon 03-Sep-12 19:13:18)

I mean without using the extension cable, you want as limit cable involved as possible, i.e. using just a microfilter and the 1 to 2m long RJ11 lead supplied with the modem.

I only have 2 identical long extension cables and a smaller yellow cable which uses LAN I think.

I'm currently using one of the long cables, the other doesn't work, and the yellow cable when plugged from my computer into the router just gives the exact same speeds. I've tried putting the yellow cable from the router directly into the socket downstairs but it won't fit.

Not sure if the yellow cable is the one I got with the router, if it's not I don't know where my original cable is. I really don't know where to go from here..

The yellow cable is an ethernet cable, so not for plugging into a telephone line, hence won't fit.

Routers are supplied with what is usually a short grey cable with a square RJ11 plug on each end. Long leads > 2m for carrying the ADSL signal increase the chance of picking up noise and causing problems, you need to try and find out if your leads are the source of the probelm.

You do have microfilters on all the telephones/sky boxes/burglar alarms?

Don't have burglar alarm or a sky box, but I do have a microfilter for the phone. My game download jumped up to around 70 kb/s today, but I found a small grey wire wire earlier so I tried moving the router downstairs again but didn't work. After moving the router back my game is back to downloading at a measly 15kb/s

Maybe the wiring in the house is not as you think.

When using the short grey cable did it look like the grey lead in this picture http://www.thinkbroadband.com/images/reviews/billion...

and was it plugged into the same socket as the extension lead had been?

I believe so, and yes I added the grey lead into where I previously had the long cable plugged into.

Daft Question but do you have a Sky Box anywhere around the house and have the engineers rigged these up with telephone sockets.

If they have then pull the telephone leads out and test your internet connection again,personally i never use them and never have in the past 15 years.

I say this because at one point we had a new Sky HD box delivered and i went into the kitchen to make the Sky Bloke a drink,only took him a few minutes to replace the other but little did i know that he connected it to a telephone socket and for the next week i had massive problems with my download speed which took me ages to figure out why,only by chance about 5 days later and many calls to my isp did i spot the cable behind the tv.

When removed everything was spot on and my connection was back to its best.

Might have nothing to do with your situation but i thought i would mention it.

Just to add to this.

Some people when they use an extention cable have a filter plugged in at the socket, and then another filter at the end (as they use a phone near the main socket and the broadband router elsewhere in the house).

Can you tell us if you have 2 filters connected to that extention cable?

In reply to a post by Kaytfoh:

Can you tell us if you have 2 filters connected to that extention cable?

There isn't a problem 'double filtering' if that's what you are saying?