cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Joining trial soon - questions on config, routers and wiring

grahamt
Rising Star
Posts: 599
Thanks: 37
Registered: ‎05-04-2008

Joining trial soon - questions on config, routers and wiring

I've applied to join the ADSL2+ trial and have been told that my order should be placed in the next few weeks. I've got a few questions that might save me time and effort later. If anyone can answer any part of the following I'd be grateful.
Moderator's Note by David (spraxyt)
"Original post" (see first reply for explanation) moved here from Question Thread to avoid possible duplication of any replies.
Rest of the original snipped - the full text is in the first reply.
4 REPLIES 4
grahamt
Rising Star
Posts: 599
Thanks: 37
Registered: ‎05-04-2008

Joining trial soon - questions on config, routers and wiring

(I posted this at the end of the 'Question thread' a few days ago but didn't get any replies. I'm hoping this was because nobody looks at that thread rather than because nobody can or wants to reply. Apologies if you've read this before.)
I've applied to join the ADSL2+ trial and have been told that my order should be placed in the next few weeks. I've got a few questions that might save me time and effort later. If anyone can answer any part of the following I'd be grateful.
My router is a ZyXEL Prestige P660HW-61, bought just under four years ago. It does claim to be ADSL2+ compatible, but I can't see any way of switching between ADSL and ADSL2+ for the WAN connection (and I've looked at both the web and telnet interface). Does anyone know if this just happens automatically, or does an extra option appear when there's an ADSL2+ signal coming into it? (I'm running the latest firmware for this model, 3.40 PE.11, though that's not saying much as it's dated Jan 2007).
I've been pretty happy with this router, but if I have to change does anyone have any recommendations? I could always get the Thomson from Plusnet, but I'm wary about routers supplied by ISPs as they sometimes have settings restricted by the ISP. I don't need anything particularly fancy - 4-port ADSL router with wireless and good reliability and performance.
My current line profile is 2500 (the router syncs after a reboot at around 4000, but then falls back in mid-evening to around 3000 then stays there for days), so I'm not expecting a big increase from ADSL2+ - as I understand it, very fast and very slow connections get a boost but there's a range in the middle that's not affected much, and I'm in it. I am hoping for an improvement in my upload speed, though.
My line stats are as follows: downstream SNR 12, downstream attenuation 38; upstream SNR 15, upstream attenuation 25db.
When I feed the downstream attenuation into the Kitz maximum speed calculator, it says I could be getting an ADSLMax sync speed of 7200 with a line profile of 6000. So I'm wondering about the effect of my internal wiring (though disconnecting other devices and plugging in directly to the master socket has very little effect on the line stats). My wiring was put in (by BT) back in 1989 and so doesn't have the modern master socket (with the test socket, and that can take the ADSL-friendly faceplate). If I want to get my wiring updated I assume I contact Plusnet support in the first instance (I'm with Plusnet for both broadband and home phone) and they'll contact Openreach. Can anyone give me an estimate of how much Openreach might charge?
Finally, is there anything else I should be thinking about?
(Sorry if this is too many questions at once.)
Graham
scootie
Grafter
Posts: 4,799
Thanks: 1
Registered: ‎03-11-2007

Re: Joining trial soon - questions on config, routers and wiring

Quote
My line stats are as follows: downstream SNR 12, downstream attenuation 38; upstream SNR 15, upstream attenuation 25db

yep you should certainly be getting a better sync on max adsl and on adsl2+ you should get a very nice increase.
but as you all ready know your internal wiring is holding you back.
iam sure batman(anthrone) will be long shortly to help you out with your old master socket and ways to go about improving your wiring before coughing money up for bt to re-wire all tho getting bt to re wire a new master socket maybe the only way but anthrone or one of the other line fault experts will tell you whats needed.
itsme
Grafter
Posts: 5,924
Thanks: 3
Registered: ‎07-04-2007

Re: Joining trial soon - questions on config, routers and wiring

I assume that you have an old master socket as the attachment below?  You must have been unlucky as the telphones in my house were done either at the end of 1988 or the beginning of 1989 and I had the two part master socket fitted.
The first thing worth trying to improve your sync speed is to remove all wires other than the ones going to terminal 2 and 5 on the master socket. Especially the ring wire wire on terminal 3 but you may find that terminal 4 also have a wire on it which should also be removed.
Go here for a schematic of the wiring system.
grahamt
Rising Star
Posts: 599
Thanks: 37
Registered: ‎05-04-2008

Re: Joining trial soon - questions on config, routers and wiring

Thanks, guys. I'm not sure I have the confidence to go disconnecting wires, especially as my wiring's a bit complicated. I originally had two lines installed, one of which was for my old dial-up connection and is no longer live. On the line that is live (which has four sockets on two floors), the socket that's officially designated the master socket (with a BT logo) isn't really the place that controls the line. There's something that looks like a small distribution frame (this may be the wrong terminology) for both lines on our landing, and I can't quite work out exactly how the wiring goes to each socket from there - as I say, it's a bit complicated. I'd need to lift fitted carpets and move bookshelves to work it out, and even then, because of the two lines and the shared socket, I'm not sure I'd work it out fully.
I'll see how the conversion to ADSL2+ goes, then I'll probably call Openreach in to rework everything, simplify the layout (the second line wiring can go and I won't need as many sockets if I get some cordless phones) and make everything as good as it can be for ADSL2+ reception.
Graham