DSL, Modem and Download Speeds

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George7941

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May 10, 2005
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Toronto, Canada
My ISP advertises "speeds up to 5Mbps".

Speedtest.net measures my download speed at 2.66 Mbps. When I log into my DSL modem, it displays 3095 kbps as "downstream speed".

I have one degraded branch telephone line in the house which I keep disconnected. If I hook that branch line up to the incoming telephone line then my modem displays speed around 1800 kbps, I lose internet service and the internet led on my modem goes out.

Is all this normal(other than the degraded branch line) or do I need to contact my ISP?
 
Quote:
speeds up to 5Mbps


"Up to" being the disclaimer. DSL speed is directly related to distance from hub. Wire quality also plays a big role.
 
Yup. Probably normal. When it comes to DSL, it's all about how far from the CO you're located. 5 Mbps is ideal conditions, if the CO is right around the corner.
 
And ISP's aren't bashful at all about charging you for hypothetical speeds they can't provide. We should be allowed to pay them only "up to" the speed they actually provide.
 
The modem is probably only able to connect at 3095kbit. That is probably raw speed and does not include TCP overhead which the speedtest.net test will show. That is why its lower than what the modem states.
 
My 6Mbps DSL connections shows as 6016 Kbps (Downstream) when I log into the modem.

ATT only guarantees greater than 3Mbps for a 6Mbps line.

I usually get around 5.1 Mbps on speedtest.net although sometimes it is down around 3Mbps.

I think the 3095 kbps is what your line is set for by your isp. It should be set of at least 6 so there might be a setting problem in their equipment.

A couple of years ago they reset my line for 3Mbps and it showed up at 3000 something kbps when I logged into the modem. I spent a couple of hours on the phone talking to script kiddies that knew even less about DSL than I do before I finally got transferred to a tech in the local that knew the system. She went out and checked and found out my line was set for 3Mbps during some maintenance on whatever they call the local DSL repeater box. She re-reset my line for 6Mbps and gave me her local office phone number so I could call directly instead of talking to the call center idiots if I had any more problems.
 
I am going to stay with DSL for now since it is only $34 a month (including taxes). That is not bad by Canadian standards.

Since I am not subscribing to cable TV service (cable does come to the outside of the house) I expect there will be an extra charge, like the "naked" DSL charge, if I go cable.
 
My 6 MB DSl is intentionally overprovisioned at 7197 Kbps in order to produce the speed I'm paying for. That's what all DSL providers should do but usually don't.



 
Who is your provider?

Most of the BELL CO DSLAM's are upgraded to VDSL2 at this point. They are slowly working at upgrading the remotes. HOWEVER, if you are using a 3rd party ISP and synching to BELL's DSLAM, IIRC, you are restricted to ADSL speeds (not ADSL2+, or VDSL2) which means a maximum throughput of ~8Mbit/sec. I would be surprised if you couldn't get it to sync at at least 6,000Kbps.

Do you have a plug at your NID that you could plug the modem into directly and see if you get a better sync speed?

FWIW, my ADSL2+ (I'm about 45 minutes from you):

1230503455.png
 
My ISP is Acanac and they have the lowest rates in Toronto.They sublease from Bell. When there is a problem with the line, Bell techs show up to repair it.

I just checked Nexicom and their 5Mbps DSL is $39.99 per month (for the first twelve months, who knows how much afterwards).

I plugged my modem into the Network Interface Device on the side of my house with the inside wiring disconnected and the speed did not improve, the max I could get was about 4200 kbps.
 
Quote:
And ISP's aren't bashful at all about charging you for hypothetical speeds they can't provide


True but not all the time, i pay for 15 down and 5 up.
This is my norm, never slower but sometimes faster.



1371824068.png


Edit: This is a wireless Fujitsu laptop using an Intel 5300 AGN over a Cisco E3000
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: George7941
My ISP is Acanac and they have the lowest rates in Toronto.They sublease from Bell. When there is a problem with the line, Bell techs show up to repair it.

I just checked Nexicom and their 5Mbps DSL is $39.99 per month (for the first twelve months, who knows how much afterwards).

I plugged my modem into the Network Interface Device on the side of my house with the inside wiring disconnected and the speed did not improve, the max I could get was about 4200 kbps.


Yes, and if you notice in smaller print on Nexicom's site, it says up to 20Mbit in some areas. I'm in one of those areas.

The reason for the 5Mbit number is for people, like yourself, who are on BELL remotes. Bell only gives you ADSL speeds.

That being said, I've been able to get ~7Mbit out of connections on BELL remotes. So it may simply be that BELL has set your port speed to a max of what you are seeing.

FWIW, I paid ~$47/month all-in for my ADSL2+ before I bundled it with my phone through Nexicom. I've been with them for four years now. This is 20Mbit service, no download caps or upload caps.
 



Wow!! compared to you guys mine is so friggin slow...

At&T just flat out stinks... but we here have no other options...

I do have a question.... We had major problems about 1 month ago, with our speed... as well as always being disconnected... many times a day...{AT&T}...DSL... The service tech came out and did a search for a few hours and found a problem 3 blocks away...There was a ground fault problem he said... Well we actually had faster speeds for a few weeks, then they slowly started to fall off, as well as in the afternoon and evening times we loose connection many many times... My son plays x-box Call of Duty Online, which his 3 man group is #9 in the world... And the last month or so he has been playing within a top clan much and automatically gets disconnected during the afternoon and evening hours... Which really hurts his rankings...He said they have dropped 4 spots since this has been happening... I really don't care about this, but it means a great deal to him...

My question is... Is it AT&T or is it our AT&T 2Wire Gateway Wireless router with Modem?

Is there better faster router modems out there or will it make a difference?

Thanks SyN
 
I am happy with ATT here due to their price ($15 a month dry loop, switch account holders when promotion expire), get 6mpbs per advertisement but we can see their office from our house (or should i see the lawn fridge now they upgrade to VDSL2).

Upgrading router won't do anything as even the worst will do 10mbps fro 1998, 2 wire modem isn't bad signal wise, as long as you turn off the WEP faux security and use a real security like WPA2 in your router you should be safe.
 
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