Changing home again and have specific reqs for FTTC

Hey all,
Hope you're all doing well!
Coming to you after searching the forums for 30 mins trying to find an answer.
I'm moving to an area where FTTP isn't ready yet so I have to stick with FTTC. No one seems to guarantee upload speeds, and download speeds seem quite inferior too (I know you can't really compare).
My partner and I both work from home with regular Teams meetings, the kids game a lot, and we're usually streaming on the TV as well — probably 8-10 devices connected at any one time.
So I'm looking for a good solution that also lets me use my own router (I've got an ASUS RT-AX92U). Cost is important, but speed and reliability matter more.
I'm in the East Midlands, so any advice for this area would be greatly appreciated!

Before moving house this is the minimum I would check for the new property:

For FTTP coverage try https://bidb.uk you never know there may be FTTP coverage.

If you are stuck with FTTC or even ADSL be absolutely sure wherever you move to can get the speeds you want. You can use https://www.broadbandchecker.btwholesale.com as a guide.

Remember both urls are estimates on speed and coverage and could be completely wrong.

Also worth seeing what type of speed you can get on your mobile phone ideally one from each of the 3/4 providers O2, Vodafone/Three and EE as a fall back. If you have decent 4G/5G coverage it may be quicker than FTTC but comes with some disadvantages also.

Thanks for this and the tool.
I've got to decide today, was thinking about going with IDNet.
I don't have any of those tool values to input, but I am sure there is no FTTP yet (work will be carried out this year I've been told).
I hope ID Net will be better than OneStream I had now (current location had FTTP)

In reply to a post by grumpygamer:

So I'm looking for a good solution that also lets me use my own router (I've got an ASUS RT-AX92U).

Are you sure this works on FTTC? A quick look on the internet turned up no evidence that it could and an AI essay which said you need to use a DSL type modem.

oh ... is like fttc = dsl?
wow that takes me back some years!
Uh you're right then, my router is not a DSL modem!
Dang, big mistake averted, thanks!
So I will need an external modem anyways....

FTTC = VDSL = a higher speed version of ADSL. Many years ago, Openreach used to provide you with a modem, but it's "wires only" now.

I used to use a Draytek Vigor 130 modem on FTTC (I believe that's an end-of-life model and they replaced it with a new one).

The larger consumer ISPs will provide you with a router with built-in VDSL chipset; and if you still want to use your own router, you may or may not be able to switch the ISP router into modem mode / bridge mode. YMMV.

Smaller ISPs like IDNet, Aquiss etc often don't provide you with the equipment, and the speeds you get won't be any different to the larger ones since they're all taking the same Openreach service into the same VDSL line card in the cabinet. However the smaller ISPs will have better customer service, and if you end up with (say) an intermittent copper fault, may be better at diagnosing it and/or push harder through to Openreach to fix it. It's worth it, in my opinion.

broadbandchecker.btwholesale.com (address checker tab) is the place to start to get an estimate of what you might get from FTTC. But beware, it's based on line models as well as measured speeds. The actual speeds you get may be at the lower end of the predictions, or below.

If the speeds on FTTC aren't good enough, then you could consider 4G/5G subject to coverage - try SIMs from different providers - although it's also subject to big variations in performance, for example towers being turned off for maintenance without notice. If it were me, I'd stick the kids on 4G/5G and keep the slower but more reliable FTTC line to myself. In the absence of good coverage from any mobile network, Starlink is another option.

You could use an HG612 modem.
I was surprised to find that they now cost as much as £20 on ebay.
You might find a dsl router that can be set to modem mode.

You say "My partner and I both work from home with regular Teams meetings, the kids game a lot, and we're usually streaming on the TV as well".

If FTTP is not available to you, then the only practical solution to meet your needs is STARLINK.

Post deleted by bit_bucket

Edited by bit_bucket (Wed 25-Feb-26 14:23:22)

Indeed, the Openreach branded Huawei HG612 is the most reliable and best performing VDSL modem in my former (I am now retired) experience.
The Broadcom chipsets, used by Huawei, outperform the Lantiq VRX chipsets, as used in ECI modems, even on the R-DSLAMs from ECI themselves.

The one and vital caveat is not to use Version 1 of the HG612 modem, which is unstable due to overheating.
The higher the version the better.
Version 3/3A/3B etc are best.
Version 2's are OK.
Don't touch version 1's, even with the proverbial barge-pole.

The version number is printed, in large bold typeface, on the boiler-plate label, on the underside of the modem.
If an eBay listing doesn't show the label, don't buy it.
I always used to get the seller to confirm and guarantee the version to be supplied, before purchase, after one time I got caught out, when the modem didn't match the listing's photos.

Having said all of the above, I agree others, in that you stated use case:

"My partner and I both work from home with regular Teams meetings, the kids game a lot, and we're usually streaming on the TV as well — probably 8-10 devices connected at any one time."

... is going to be a stretch, even with an FTTC line that syncs at >= 80mbps.

Good luck!