Broadband speeds, would a new modem help?

ding76uk

ding76uk

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Carl
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I am having problems with my broadband speed. It usually sits around 6mb and 0.5 upload but will drop to 0.4 download and 0.1 upload.

I have a airport currently going into an old wireless router/modem combined (linksys) in modem only mode.

My question is would I be better buying a separate modem such as the Dratek below give me a faster, or simply more stable connection?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/DrayTek-Vig...TF8&colid=1ZPCSBEOLET3J&coliid=I3EIZBEI8E8QCC

I contacted my provider, they were not great as at the time they checked it was a 6mb connection, but said they would check the line etc. Am I doomed to the curse of living in the country and the quality of broadband?

Cheers in advance
Carl
 
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Where are you measuring the 6Mbit and 0.5Mbit and 0.4 and 0.1? At the router by looking at the connection speed or using a web site such as speedtest.net?
 
I've been having the same problem with sky for the last 2years and every time I ring them we go through the same stuff but it never gets sorted. I keep thinking about a new router but never have lol I think my problem is more to do with living in a small village in Yorkshire.

I will be watching to see if you find a way to sort it


Rob
 
Have you got filters on all the phone sockets? Sometimes these go bad. Try pulling them all out, unplug the phones but leave the router plugged in. Then retest the speed. If it goes up then it could be a dodgy filter.

It's much better to complain about a noisy voice line, then BT will actually be arsed to go and check it properly.

You also need to test via ethernet and not wireless. If you have a near neighbour using the same wireless channel then you'll find yours will slow down a lot as they interfere with another. Run a wireless sniffer to see which channels they are using and how strong the signal is.
 
chivers67 said:
I thought your ISP could only provide a working modem that would give you an IP address - via it's registered MAC address . i guess you'd need to speak to them to see if you can do this
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No. It is the login details which give you your IP address. If your ISP requires a MAC address (some used to, but I'm not aware of any that do now) 99% of routers allow you to set the MAC address in the config pages (MAC address spoofing).
 
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arad85 said:
No. It is the login details which give you your IP address. If your ISP requires a MAC address (some used to, but I'm not aware of any that do now) 99% of routers allow you to set the MAC address in the config pages (MAC address spoofing).
Click to expand...

sky do or at least did. never really got around to replacing the router, only use it as a gateway.
 
neil_g said:
sky do or at least did. never really got around to replacing the router, only use it as a gateway.
Click to expand...

I've asked a few people including a BT engineer friend and I was told I had to use sky's own router as they wouldn't release the info needed to set up my own router.

Don't know if it's true or not as I've never tried it, maybe I should splash out on a router and give it a go


Rob
 
smurf123 said:
I've asked a few people including a BT engineer friend and I was told I had to use sky's own router as they wouldn't release the info needed to set up my own router.
Click to expand...
Sky may be different as they have a variety of ways of doing the backhaul - whether it's through the BT network or their own equipment in the exchange. For BeThere, there was no login at all - I just set my IP address and that was it (I had a static IP address).

To replace your router you need the type of connection, any login details and possibly the MAC address. If you don't have those, you won't get anywhere...
 
Thnaks for the comments so far. The problem is that it is random times of slowing down. Speedtest have shown 0.5 download one hour and then 6meg the next.

I was thinking of putting the modem I linked to into my airport, is that not possible then? I am with plusnet at the moment whether that makes a difference?

I am pretty sure it is going to be down to load on the lines etc. but so frustrating when you need to do stuff. I see all the offers on TV but again can't get any due to being rural. Lincolnshire just got turned down for funding for speeding up too.
 
ding76uk said:
Thnaks for the comments so far. The problem is that it is random times of slowing down. Speedtest have shown 0.5 download one hour and then 6meg the next.
Click to expand...
Speedtest is not an indicator of modem speed. It is an indication of network throughput. You need to figure out if this is your phone line doing this, your router or your ISP.

We need to start with basics. What modem/router do you use to connect to the internet with? First thing to do is see what the modem is syncing at with the exchange. Do you know how to look at the modem statistics page? Hopefully, it will be supported by the rather good router stats package so you can monitor the connection over time.
 
smurf123 said:
I've asked a few people including a BT engineer friend and I was told I had to use sky's own router as they wouldn't release the info needed to set up my own router.

Don't know if it's true or not as I've never tried it, maybe I should splash out on a router and give it a go

Rob
Click to expand...

It is doable an ex colleague did it
 
arad85 said:
Speedtest is not an indicator of modem speed. It is an indication of network throughput. You need to figure out if this is your phone line doing this, your router or your ISP.

We need to start with basics. What modem/router do you use to connect to the internet with? First thing to do is see what the modem is syncing at with the exchange. Do you know how to look at the modem statistics page? Hopefully, it will be supported by the rather good router stats package so you can monitor the connection over time.
Click to expand...

This is the modem I wireless that goes into the phone line

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Linksys-WAG354G-Wireless-G-Router-Gateway/dp/B000A2IV2M

I have this connected to a Apple Airport which is my wireless network.

I don't know how to look at modem statistics, well I have never tried.
 
smurf123 said:
I've asked a few people including a BT engineer friend and I was told I had to use sky's own router as they wouldn't release the info needed to set up my own router.

Don't know if it's true or not as I've never tried it, maybe I should splash out on a router and give it a go


Rob
Click to expand...

It's true, I had to buy one when mine packed in, and then I cancelled my Sky, so I have a shiny new router that only works with Sky- unless anyone can tell me how to reconfigure it.....
 
192.168.0.1 into your browser. Enter the password and username (usually admin for the username and sky for the password if you're with them). Then look at the connection stats - ie what speed are you synced at? If it's syncing ok, then your speed drop might be due to your WiFi stability. You could try changing the channel from say channel 1 (usually the default) and try channel 11 or something, where there might be less wireless traffic locally
 
Flash In The Pan said:
It's true, I had to buy one when mine packed in, and then I cancelled my Sky, so I have a shiny new router that only works with Sky- unless anyone can tell me how to reconfigure it.....
Click to expand...

Have a google for extracting the details, its normally just a java app
 
Have a look here: http://vwlowen.co.uk/internet/files.htm

Seems the 354G is supported directly.... I used to use this to check on BB speeds and reboot the connection if it fell below a certain speed.
 
ding76uk said:
This is the modem I wireless that goes into the phone line

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Linksys-WAG354G-Wireless-G-Router-Gateway/dp/B000A2IV2M

I have this connected to a Apple Airport which is my wireless network.

I don't know how to look at modem statistics, well I have never tried.
Click to expand...

Do all speed testing using an ethernet cable, not wireless. Wireless just adds an extra variable which makes diagnosis more difficult and less reliable.

Learn how to log into your modem and look at the stats, both when it is running at full speed and when it is slow. They provide crucial information in diagnosing speed problems.

I note you still haven't stated which ISP you are using, despite requests for the information.

6MBps is not that bad for ADSL, I only get 4MBps over ADSL2 where I am in a village outside Bristol, but it is stable at that speed and I am not tempted by VM. Despite the fact they keep sending me letters telling me they are in my street.
 
onomatopoeia said:
Do all speed testing using an ethernet cable, not wireless. Wireless just adds an extra variable which makes diagnosis more difficult and less reliable.

Learn how to log into your modem and look at the stats, both when it is running at full speed and when it is slow. They provide crucial information in diagnosing speed problems.

I note you still haven't stated which ISP you are using, despite requests for the information.

6MBps is not that bad for ADSL, I only get 4MBps over ADSL2 where I am in a village outside Bristol, but it is stable at that speed and I am not tempted by VM. Despite the fact they keep sending me letters telling me they are in my street.
Click to expand...

I have stayed ISP. Plusnet.
 
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