Internet speed

[marinyork]

We're stuck between two towns, about 8km from the exchange in either which is right at the extent of reach for broadband. Cable was the only way we could get above 0.5meg lines (this was my result a month ago) and we had to argue with Virgin for about 4 months to get them to even acknowledge that the cable ran along our road.

At least you convinced them. Many people even in ultra urban areas have had this sort of madness the last 20 years with cable.

Sadly I don't hold out as much hope as a while ago. Digital Region are getting grilled by silly politicians who have now turned on them .

 

[cyberknight]

 

[ColinJ]

I'm only a few hundred metres from our exchange so I do get reasonable speeds on ADSL now the exchange has been upgraded. I'll try moving the router later to see if my telephone extension lead is slowing down the connection. I was told that I would get 'upto' 20 Mb/s and a guaranteed 8 Mb/s but I was hoping for more like 15 Mb/s.

A question for those in the know: Do ISPs do any kind of adaptive testing of a connection when it is first hooked up? I mean, can they ramp the speed up, testing for errors, and doing that until the connection becomes unreliable (or they hit the bandwidth limit)? I would do that if I was in charge and the technology supported it. if not, they would have to artificially lower the speeds for everyone to play safe. I'm hoping that the connection will speed up over a couple of days.

I'm not quite in the middle of nowhere here, Colin, but there is a sign out the back that says "Beyond". And your place looks positively urban, considering I just have to cross this bridge to this place.

Well, that is pretty much the whole town in each photo, and we are surrounded by countryside so I can be out of town by bike in about 3 or 4 minutes, or 10 minutes on foot.

What is that in your second photo - an Olympic watersports venue?

 

[Norm]

A question for those in the know: Do ISPs do any kind of adaptive testing of a connection when it is first hooked up? I mean, can they ramp the speed up, testing for errors, and doing that until the connection becomes unreliable (or they hit the bandwidth limit)? I would do that if I was in charge and the technology supported it. if not, they would have to artificially lower the speeds for everyone to play safe. I'm hoping that the connection will speed up over a couple of days.

It's not quite limited like that, but I understand that the router can learn / optimise its configuration so you might find things improve over the next week.

What is that in your second photo - an Olympic watersports venue?

It is indeed.
It's Eton Dorney where they will be holding the rowing

and flat water canoeing.

 

[ColinJ]

I've just logged into the router to look at some of the stats. No errors being reported and ...

• Attenuation Near End: 9.5
• Attenuation Far End: 5.5
• SNR Margin Near End: 18
• SNR Margin Far End: 14

Are those numbers okay? (I'll Google around to see if I can come up with an answer before you lot!)

 

[Bman]

 

[marinyork]

I've just logged into the router to look at some of the stats. No errors being reported and ...

• Attenuation Near End: 9.5
• Attenuation Far End: 5.5
• SNR Margin Near End: 18
• SNR Margin Far End: 14

Are those numbers okay? (I'll Google around to see if I can come up with an answer before you lot!)

You speeds and signals are all right given the distance from the exchange (which is probably slightly further than you've said due to cable routing going in nothing like a straight line). Your extension may well be shaving off large amounts off the speeds but there are other explanations e.g. aluminium or they have got the power levels wrong.

 

[ColinJ]

Hmm ... I'm not sure where I got that 10-and-a-bit Mb/s from because it is consistently about 8 now.

It just struck me that I am still using my 9 year old router because TalkTalk didn't send me a new one, but surely I must need a new one to use ADSL2+?

I'm going to try and blag one on the grounds that the TalkTalk sales rep told me that I didn't need a new one when he sold me the package, and I wouldn't have been quite so keen to switch if he had told me that I'd have to fork out extra. (He didn't mention the extra 55p/month to get Caller Display turned on either!)

Do you think I should tell them that they need to edit at least one of their sales videos? Their spokeswoman describes the service as "upto 24 Megabytes/second download, upto 1 Megabyte/second upload". Yes, technically 24 Mb is "upto" 24 MB and 1 Mb is "upto" 1 MB, but it is a bit misleading isn't it!

 

[alecstilleyedye]

 

[srw]

Roughly speaking what I'm paying for, and perfectly adequate for internet video.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

Is there a relationship between speed of download and the amount of porn you guys download?

 

[brokenflipflop]

Then again, I'm with the experts.......BT

 

[Shaun]

(NB: Bit of a cheat - this is the dedicated web server we use at work to host our clients web/email services. Fast eh?! )

 

[ColinJ]

TalkTalk finally sent me my new router and it has significantly increased my broadband speed ...

 

[marinyork]

Good stuff Colin. Hope you get Fttc in the next two or three years in the latter parts of roll out on the Hebden Bridge exchange.