I've just about had it with Zen

Only been with Zen since 10th of February and what a speed disaster it's been. I admit I was a little bit hasty at the start because I didn't know I needed to wait 10 days for the line to settle down. When it did eventually settle my top speed was between 5mbps and 7mbps which I suppose wasn't too bad but I was getting nearly 13mbps from my last isp. It's the evenings that make me rattled. My speed drops to 1mbps and sometimes slightly more but first thing in the morning it's back to between 5mbps and 7mbps. I can only think Zen must have too many subscribers unless somebody else knows better. I'm giving it this week and if things don't improve I'm off to pastures new after only 6 weeks with Zen. Anybody make any recommendations?

Caley.

What exchange are you on, and which ISP where you with before hand?

It sounds like congestion at the exchange. BT Wholesale are apparently seeing a lot of that round the country right now. If you were on an llu provider before hand you likely would not have experienced it.
http://revk.www.me.uk/2014/02/bt-21cn-not-fit-for-pu...

Have you raised a fault with Zen? Try to get a bunch of speedtests showing the issue at http://speedtest.Btwholesale.com including the part where you change the credentials in your router.

Thanks for responding.
I'm on Inverness Culloden exchange and I was with ADSL24 till they got taken over by Coms and that's another story. I did contact Zen previously but they didn't seem interested so I just plodded along till the evening speeds dropped right down into the 1mbps range and that did it for me. I have learned only recently that ADSL24 put us on llu with TTB I think and the speeds were good but before that I was getting a steady 8mbps into the evening also which was far better than what Zen are offering.

Caley.

That exchange isn't even 21cn!
http://www.samknows.com/broadband/exchange/NSICL
It's quite likely you are suffering congestion.

Your best bet is to get a few speed tests using the link I sent you, and to raise a fault with Zen.

In reply to a post by caley:

I have learned only recently that ADSL24 put us on llu with TTB I think and the speeds were good but before that I was getting a steady 8mbps into the evening also which was far better than what Zen are offering.

Sadly Zen are limited by their wholesale provider, and at your exchange the only provider Zen can use is BT. In BT's eyes they still haven't upgraded your exchange to their new network (21CN / WBC) but still using the old 20CN . Zen's hands will be tied, as BT are suffering congestion on their new network across the whole of the UK, and so I wouldn't be surprised if this is showing up even more problematic on older 20CN exchanges.

Sadly Zen don't offer service using another wholesale network, such as TTB, so you need to find a new ISP who can use a non-BT wholesale network on your exchange.

Our exchange is rather antiquated but fttc is supposed to be within the next couple of weeks but I'm afraid at our end of the road it's all fixed lines to the exchange so no fttc for us. Just ran a speed tes just now and this is the result. Not very good.

upload download
380 Kbps 1140 Kbps

Caley.

Like i previously mentioned to you here you're better off going to an LLU supplier at the exchange as BT will probably never 21CN it. Culloden exchange has the following ADSL2+ suppliers:

Sky LLU
talktalk LLU
C&W LLU

If you want the cheap as chips option and don't mind using forums for support then TalkTalk is your best bet, followed by Sky and then Tesco (who use C&W). However if you want ADSL24 or Zen quality phone support then going with a reseller such as Xilo is your best bet for TalkTalk resold services.

Also since Inverness Culloden is having FTTC under BDUK, i suggest you email Nick Scroggie of Highlands & islands Enterprise (HIE) and he'll advise you what (if anything) is being done for those on exchange only lines.

[email protected]

Thanks for that. Always seem to get quality information from yourself and others on this forum. Just emailed the person you suggested. Let you know if he responds.

Caley.

Been toying with the idea of Xilo. They're mentioned quite a lot on this site and seem to have a good reputation.

Caley.