1 Mb line required, why pay for 'upto 8Mb'??

I am currently on an old 'Unlimited' Pipex service but I have recently had a FUP warning (even though their FUP was introduced after I contracted them to provide my broadband service). Due to my distance from the exchange I only get a 1Mb service but am paying

In reply to:

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when I know I will only get 1 Mb.

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If you post your router stats then we can tell you how much of the "upto8mb" you will be likely to get.

If your 1Mb link is an older fixed-rate ADSL product then you may get a better rate out of a rate-adaptive product, though you may of course get less... You may also get a bette rupload rate too (up to 400kbit instead of the 256kbit of fixed speed lines) which may be useful depending on what you use your link for, though again you could also get less.

As a one-of example, a friend of mine who was on a fixed 1Mb line gets closer to 2Mb after being moved to a rate adaptive product. If you could post some line stats from your modem someone here might be able to give you a better idea of what to expect. You'll find that some ISPs "fixed rate" products are actually Max (up to 8Mb) products with a fixed rate speed cap - so check before signing up if you want to stick with the true fixed rate setup.

How much bandwidth do you actually use? I'm assuming it is 100Gb+, or at leas the high 10s of Gb, in a month to get a FUP warning. For less than you are paying Pipex (

I am not an expert, but I have been using NTLFREEDOM,1mbs,for the last 13 months. It is stable and gives me 954K on regular tests. Never drops out, and with the phone package cost

Thanks All. I have checked the line with BT and the max I can get is 1MB irrespective of the modem - I live a long way from the exchange so I am lucky to get any broadband.

I am dubious about 'Unregistered's comments about NTL. From what I have heard, it looks like their service isn't great. Anyway, it is a moot point as I live in a rural area so no cable for me.

Because of the contention (many users on the estate) I only get a download speed of around 100-150 Kb/s, so even if it is on all month it only downs around 30-40GB. I am contesting the Pipex FUP at the mo as it was introduced after I contracted Pipex but I am looking for a potential new ISP just in case.

The Entanet option sounds good though, what is there service like?

Thanks all.

I am in a similar situation to OP (except not FUPed) a long way from exchange line stats:

Atten: 58db
Noise Margin: 15db

I was looking at Vivaciti 1Mb but what do you guys think would be my Max prospects?

Hi, I just posted in the other thread, but just putting the figure into our system, if you get an SNR of 15 instead of the 12db, then it would be more likely 2.6 - 3.3mb

Speaking as someone with a line attenuation of 58db (same as yours), and one who's been stuffed onto a 15db noise margin target in the past, I can say you're likely to get a connection speed around 2-2.3Mbps (should you end up with a 15db margin on ADSLmax).
If you get onto MAX, starting with the default 6db target, you could get up to 3.5-3.8Mbps, but only if your line is very quiet, is underground and doesn't suffer much from nightime noise (e.g. AM radio), otherwise you're likely to get around 2.5-3Mbps.