View Full Version : Thinking of moving to ADSL24...
Hi everyone,
I'm thinking of migrating from Plusnet to ADSL24. I've not read one bad review about ADSL24, everyone seems to rate the service very highly.
With Plusnet I usually get a sync speed around 4.5 - 4.8 Mbps. According to info on my portal on Plusnet's site the fastest speed I can receive is 4Mbps. If I look on BT's website, they say the fastest speed I can receive is 5Mbps.
The last few times I've run a speed test, the results have been 3139.5, 3152 and 1369.3 kbps. Sometimes lower...
According to info on DSLZONE, I'm about 940 metres from the local exchange. Do these figures seem reasonable for that distance?? I'm aware that it depends on quality of wiring and time of day etc etc...
If I do migrate to ADSL24, would the line be retested to see what the maximum speed I can receive is? And also, is the speed likely to increase any if I do choose to migrate with ADSL24 using the Entanet pipes?
Thanks guys,
Dan.
tboorman
22/02/2007, 11:15
Hi Dan9385, welcome to the Adsl24 forums. Your IP profile of 4 Mbps is correct for your sync speed. If you migrate to Adsl24, you'll find that this is the actual speed you'll get most of the time, unlike with PlusNet, whose traffic shaping is causing the poor speeds you're seeing.
I did some minor tweaking to the settings.
I live 0.7 kms from the local exchange and got a Broadband Max service.
At BT speedtester I get these results
IP profile for your line is - 6500 kbps
DSL connection rate: 448 kbps (UP-STREAM) 7616 kbps (DOWN-STREAM)
Actual IP throughput achieved during the test was - 6130 kbps
Actual IP throughput varies between about 5700 and 6300 kbps.
I am currently using a humble Speedtouch 330 USB Modem.
Can these be bettered someway?
A better router, perhaps?
tboorman
22/02/2007, 19:35
Your IP profile is correct for your sync speed, so you'd need to increase your sync speed to get any improvement. Have you tried connecting your USB modem to the test socket at the back of your master socket to see whether this makes a difference? This eliminates any internal wiring which may be causing noise on your line.
No master socket. Property is over 25 years old. There is a rectangular shaped juction box in a cupboard near the front door. One wire comes in and two lots of wires going out to supply sockets in rooms. I cleaned everything with Servisol Super10. Made sure that only two wires (one twisted pair) are connected. All wiring from the socket was renewed about 9 years ago.
Hi-Fi enthusiasts spend a lot of time and money on cables and inter-connects. Silver plated Oxygen Free Copper wire, gold plated contacts, teflon di-electrics and so on...
Improves data transmission, reduces interference and s/n ratio resulting in clearer and stronger signal.
Anything like that available broadband?
BTW. what is the impedence of the cable used?
Hi-Fi enthusiasts spend a lot of time and money on cables and inter-connects. Silver plated Oxygen Free Copper wire, gold plated contacts, teflon di-electrics and so on...
Improves data transmission, reduces interference and s/n ratio resulting in clearer and stronger signal.
Anything like that available broadband?
BTW. what is the impedence of the cable used?
Yes, you can get cables of differing quality, and gold plated contacts on connectors. Micro-filters vary a lot too, as do routers.
The difference between hi-fi and broadband is that you only have control over your broadband signal AFTER it has entered your property. The rest of it is beyond your control really.
If you need help choosing quality/proven cables or routers etc. please feel free to ask, and we can go into detail a bit more.
Good luck
tboorman
24/02/2007, 13:28
Have a look at http://www.readman.dsl.pipex.com/other/UKphonecatwiring.htm.
Still got the L plates as far as ADSL Max goes but after a few weeks into the service one point seems to be conviniently overlooked in many discussion about download speed. Speed variation appears to be a fact of life with ADSL Max. I have a profile of 6500 and sych speeds of 448/7285. My best download speed has been 5950 and is usually in the range 3500 to 4500. Best speeds are always achieved early in the morning. As I write this I am connected to Telehouse 1 which has just gone from red (expected 2900) to amber (expected 3200). I'm sure that dodgy home wiring may have some effect on speed but lets have some discussion about the ISP not performing. Or maybe you know better.
(Before you start tearing the house apart)
tboorman
24/02/2007, 15:37
I think it's recognised that the centrals are becoming oversubscribed at times, which is why Entanet have 2 more on order from BT.
The point I was trying to make is that when lower than expected download speeds are experienced and questions are asked as to the reasons why, then the first answers always seem to include the distance from the exchange and potential problems with home wiring and installation and never ISP problems. Most users new to ADSL Max, myself included, are lead to believe that the Max product will deliver better speeds and become dissallusioned when these speeds are not consistently achieved. Its a marketing thing!
Whereas distance from the exchange will certainly effect the top download speed, it does seem a tad unfair to major on home installation when the chances are that all the problems are either BT or the ISP.
I believe that the sooner the marketing people start telling it like it really is and stop over egging the product, then users will accept the product for what it is and not be striving for the improvements that they have no control over.
In my opinion
I totally agree with you, Adslmax is a "rate adaptive product" but Max is sold as an "up to 8mbps product" and not an 8mbps product.
Regards,
I guess there are number of factors that govern download speeds. Practices of BT and certain ISPs are two of those. Some sites collate and present data from thousands of speedtests. These together with ISP ratings are a useful guide when chosing an ISP.
It is interesting to note that many small ISPs consitently get higher ratings than the big boys. With a score of 4.57 out of 5, based on 68 comments, ASDL24 is a top performer.
http://www.dslzoneuk.net/isp_ratings.php
Mains electricity is hardly a pure sine wave at the socket. It picks up a lot of gunge along the way and this can affect the quality of sound. Hi-fi enthusiasts take number of measures to clean it up and stabilise it. From simple DIY efforts to power conditioners costing £2000. I feel that much can be done to improve the quality of the signal one happened to be getting. Besides, tweaking is fun :D
The very fact that you post on this forum means that you are in a very very small minority who can even understand what it all means.
I reckon most users are totally unaware of the vagaries of ADSL Max.
If it is possible for the end user to improve performance, I wish someone, somewhere, sometime would explain to me, how, if I can achieve a download speed of 6000kbps at 06.30am, it is then quite normal to see speeds drop to half that at peak times. I really don't understand how the state of my internal wiring can have this effect, especially as speeds always seem to recover without any help from me. I agree that tweaking ones settings can improve download speeds but having optimised these settings, the speeds still vary dramatically during a 24 hour period.
ADSL Max is a relatively new product. People signing up expect speeds of 8M.
They do not read the small print. Some users will consistently get good speeds. Many, many more will not and it will have nothing whatsoever to do with their home equipment or settings.
Tim..
Many thanks for that link. Mine full info there of practical use.
I have used networking cables before. Belden bonded UTP with Teflon di-electric was the best. UK distributors did not have it in stock. So had to get a 100m reel from US. Platted six of these together to make speaker cables for bi-wiring. Blind listening tests proved that they were as good as commercially sold speaker cables costing £400+.
I guess there will be a big market for high quality equipment as the speeds increase and consumers want, for example, HDTV and high bit rate 9 channel sound. Then there are those gamers out there.
I reckon most users are totally unaware of the vagaries of ADSL Max.
If it is possible for the end user to improve performance, I wish someone, somewhere, sometime would explain to me, how, if I can achieve a download speed of 6000kbps at 06.30am, it is then quite normal to see speeds drop to half that at peak times. I really don't understand how the state of my internal wiring can have this effect, especially as speeds always seem to recover without any help from me. I agree that tweaking ones settings can improve download speeds but having optimised these settings, the speeds still vary dramatically during a 24 hour period.
ADSL Max is a relatively new product. People signing up expect speeds of 8M.
Hi Castro
Try to compare your internet connection to traffic on the roads. If you drive across a city at 06.30 am, you will do it a lot quicker than you would during rush hour. That is, unfortunately, how it all works. The more people there is online, the slower things are going to happen, because of traffic.
There used to be a thing called contention, and although the word is not used anymore, its effects still exist.
If you have optimized your equipment at your end, there is very little else you can do. (Except move to a house nearer the exchange lol) Swapping ISP's is not always the answer, because they all have to use BT's system.
Hi Robbie.
Thanks for your post.
Having recently helped a number of friends install ADSL Max, I am only too aware of the influence that distance from the exchange can have on speeds. The other problem that I have found is the BT line routing, which often bears no relationship to the straight line distance from a house to the local exchange.
I just think it's a shame that the problems associated with ADSL Max that are outside the control of the consumer, are not fully explained at the outset. I have a feeling that this forum will continue to be dominated by new users unhappy with their new high speed connection.
surfer_chick
25/02/2007, 10:26
Hi Castro
Try to compare your internet connection to traffic on the roads. If you drive across a city at 06.30 am, you will do it a lot quicker than you would during rush hour. That is, unfortunately, how it all works. The more people there is online, the slower things are going to happen, because of traffic.
There used to be a thing called contention, and although the word is not used anymore, its effects still exist.
If you have optimized your equipment at your end, there is very little else you can do. (Except move to a house nearer the exchange lol) Swapping ISP's is not always the answer, because they all have to use BT's system.
Excellent analogy Robbie! ... give that man a gold star :D
My first modem was 8K. No Windows or IE but it was handy for finding and downloading drivers from bulletin boards. Not many ISPs around, so had to pay national call rates.
So, around 6000 kbps with the current ADSL Max is kind of okay but looking forward to 100 Mbps, not too far in the distant future. :D
tboorman
25/02/2007, 11:27
So, around 6000 kbps with the current ADSL Max is kind of okay but looking forward to 100 Mbps, not too far in the distant future. :D
We're only going to see speeds like that if fibre to the home is rolled out, and imagine the capacity that an ISP would need to sustain everyone downloading at that sort of speed.
Hey :)
Not far off that 100Mbps now
This is Tiscali's speedtester for you :rolleyes:
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a328/robona5/speed3.jpg
My router is on fire OMG :D
PineappleJack
10/03/2007, 11:35
Is it true that a lot of the BT infrastructure is so old that it's constantly unable to do the job of providing reliable ADSL ?
I am moving shortly to ADSL24 and my present ISP seems to blame BT for every problem.
some of the copper cable was laid over 100 years ago. Apparently re-wiring is not easy.
If you are living in one of those posh old castles or mansions, you could very well get problems with broadband :D
PineappleJack
10/03/2007, 15:43
I'm actually only a few miles away from a castle. I go there into the grounds in the summer as they have a Classic Car day.
I'll have to ask the laird (it's a Scottish castle) if he has broadband. :)
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