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FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

Hello,
Okay, so i'm au fait with VDSL, DLM and the bureaucracy involved with reselling BT OR/WS services.
Essentially to cut a long story short
- Moved into a new build property November 2013
- FTTC Plusnet Unlimited 80/20 product ordered
- 52mb down sync rate
- Between 02/11/13 and 02/02/15 I had a gradual reduction to 43mb downstream. Subscriber numbers, Crosstalk I can accept that.
- Between 02/02/15 and 21/02/15 I sudden loss of 10mb.
There was claimed to be a fault on my line and BT OR attended, supposedly the engineer couldn't find a fault, but OR remotely claimed they found something and "resolved" it but my line has never had a DLM reset to give it a fair chance of resetting. From reading the guide Chris wrote, i'm concerned that the barrier count for my line maybe huge.
Somewhere along the line BT have decided they deem my sync rate to be acceptable regardless of the history of the line and PlusNET faults claim there is nothing they can/willing to do to raise this as an exception with OR to be reviewed, although the individuals I speak to in customer services agree that it's a strange case.
I'm now at the point where i'm thinking of just ordering a new line with TalkTalk or another provider just so I can have a fresh new line with an open DLM profile and avoid all this nonsense.
I've literally exhausted all avenues and would appreciate a pragmatist to pick this up and have a word with OR. All i'm asking for is a FTTC DLM reset... I'm not asking the world!
Regards
Matt
17 REPLIES 17
jafreer
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 858
Thanks: 41
Registered: ‎13-10-2012

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

@xS9 - one avenue, though not ideal, is to look at the line stats from the modem. It sometimes helps reveal what is going on with your line. It gives a staggering amount of information, some of which is more useful than others.
One line stat in particular (number of forward error corrections) helped me diagnose an issue that I would have had no clue about without the statistics.
If you have an Openreach modem, and it is a Huawei one, you can easily unlock it to obtain line stats. If it is an ECI model, then it is not at easily unlocked.
This may or may not be a suitable route to try for yourself, but it can help under some circumstances.
jelv
Seasoned Hero
Posts: 26,785
Thanks: 971
Fixes: 10
Registered: ‎10-04-2007

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

What modem are you using (if BT supplied what is the makers name on the label underneath).
What make of cabinet are you on? See http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/fttc-cabinets.htm#fttc_street_cabinet
jelv (a.k.a Spoon Whittler)
   Why I have left Plusnet (warning: long post!)   
Broadband: Andrews & Arnold Home::1 (FTTC 80/20)
Line rental: Pulse 8 Home Line Rental (£14.40/month)
Mobile: iD mobile (£4/month)
xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

So take your pick!
I've got
- Currently running an Asus AC68U (All in one, running the new firmware from 14th which is alot more stable)
- BT OR HG612 (Just unlocked it this morning, bought it off eBay earlier this week)
- BT OR ECI (From when I originally had the service provisioned)
I am running off an ECI cabinet though, so I was wondering is running the HG612 is as effective when ran with an ECI Cab?
Cheers
Matt
jafreer
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 858
Thanks: 41
Registered: ‎13-10-2012

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

I don't know anything about the Asus but I do know the unlocked HG612 will give you lots of stats (there are a couple of good programs to use). The ECI modem is difficult to unlock as I understand it.
I don't think there will be any issue using the HG612 on an ECI cabinet (in fact some people prefer the Broadcom modem chip over the Lantiq).
If you use a program like HG612 Modem Stats or DSL stats, you can check to see what max attainable rates it reports. Also check you signal to noise ratios, and look for errors (FEC, errored seconds etc).
Since you already have the equipment to do all this, you have nothing to lose.
There are a lot of smart people on this forum who I am sure wouldn't mind looking over your stats and offering any advice/analysis.
xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

I guess, i'll go hook up my shiny new HG612 shortly and start stat logging.
The ASUS does give me stats. Interesting my Max Attainable is 63717kbps.....
I updated the firmware on the ASUS last night, hence the 12 hour uptime.
DSL Uptime 0 days 12 hours 23 minutes 36 seconds
DSL modulation ITU G.993.2(VDSL2)
ANNEX Mode ANNEX_B
SNR Down 9.0 dB
SNR Up 6.2 dB
Line Attenuation Down 16.5 dB
Line Attenuation Up         0.5 dB
Path Mode                 FastPath
Data Rate Down 34998 kbps
Data Rate Up         13071 kbps
MAX Rate Down 63816
MAX Rate Up       13358
POWER Down       12.5 dbm
POWER Up       7.4 dbm
CRC Down       0
CRC Up             16
xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

Okay.... so just hooked up my HG612... stats have deteriorated initially.
Line rate (kbit/s) 34999 11421
Attainable rate (kbit/s) 47396 11668
SNR margin (dB) 8.2 6.2
Line attenuation (dB) 23 0
Output power (dBmV) 12.3 7
danludlow
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 573
Thanks: 54
Fixes: 2
Registered: ‎03-12-2014

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

xS9, Like you, I have seen a reasonable speed drop suddenly during this year (January onwards), in my case there was no longer any point continuing with the 80/20 service as PlusNet/BTO cannot even supply a speed above the 40Mbps Down. (Up is over 12Mbps, but came down from about 17Mbps). Today, I note that my down speed has dropped by about 10%, which I'm hoping is temporary.
It was very sudden, my speed dropped to about 31Mbps (on OOKLA, at the PC, at the socket is about 34Mbps) and speeds have been rigidly fixed, every test hits the same speeds. That looks man-made doesn't it, as conditions and loadings vary?
The top rated speeds on the BTW test have been cunningly lowered and what once showed up as a red line with a recommendation to "contact your ISP" now shows green, and operating within expected speeds (that never were, they were not as intimated at time of ordering, and even now my current best speed is shown as the minimum I could expect if I took out a contract with BTO. The top possible speed shown is where I used to be, and PlusNet tell me that this is no longer achievable).
It is damn annoying, I feel cheated, and I feel that better should be possible. Broadband seems to be treated as a hobby and not a serious communication tool. Using the old phone lines is a quick fix, but not if service is unreliable or deteriorating, better is needed, even if it costs a bit more, IMHO.
jafreer
Aspiring Pro
Posts: 858
Thanks: 41
Registered: ‎13-10-2012

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

What is your BT IP profile and your plusnet profile?
http://speedtest.btwholesale.com/ (do further diagnostics and enter your phone number).
https://portal.plus.net/my.html?action=stable_rate
xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

Hey,
So on the 9th April, my PlusNET ticket indicates the following
Profile Name 0.128M-35M Downstream, Interleaving High - 0.128M-12M Upstream, Error Protection Off
I've attached my BTW Speed Test Output.

Cheers
Matt
adie:quote
xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

Quote from: danludlow
xS9, Like you, I have seen a reasonable speed drop suddenly during this year (January onwards), in my case there was no longer any point continuing with the 80/20 service as PlusNet/BTO cannot even supply a speed above the 40Mbps Down. (Up is over 12Mbps, but came down from about 17Mbps). Today, I note that my down speed has dropped by about 10%, which I'm hoping is temporary.
It was very sudden, my speed dropped to about 31Mbps (on OOKLA, at the PC, at the socket is about 34Mbps) and speeds have been rigidly fixed, every test hits the same speeds. That looks man-made doesn't it, as conditions and loadings vary?
The top rated speeds on the BTW test have been cunningly lowered and what once showed up as a red line with a recommendation to "contact your ISP" now shows green, and operating within expected speeds (that never were, they were not as intimated at time of ordering, and even now my current best speed is shown as the minimum I could expect if I took out a contract with BTO. The top possible speed shown is where I used to be, and PlusNet tell me that this is no longer achievable).
It is damn annoying, I feel cheated, and I feel that better should be possible. Broadband seems to be treated as a hobby and not a serious communication tool. Using the old phone lines is a quick fix, but not if service is unreliable or deteriorating, better is needed, even if it costs a bit more, IMHO.

Dan,
I agree, seems as though BT OR & Wholesale have decided to manipulate their Line Management tools and datasets to degrade services in order to reduce the scope of remediation required from OR.
As usual, the ISP's are left with no avenue for recourse when we complain and the end client just suffers!
Not particularly impressed.
Regards
Matt
w23
Pro
Posts: 6,347
Thanks: 96
Fixes: 4
Registered: ‎08-01-2008

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

The profile 'band' 0.128M-35M Downstream is almost certainly limiting your sync, not sure if the upstream 0.128M-12M is though.
These, I believe, are set by BLM.  Angry

Link with some information (though I think the 'bands' often differ (bottom end at least) from those here: http://community.plus.net/library/browsing/fttc-dlm-what-it-is-how-it-works/
Call me 'w23'
At any given moment in the universe many things happen. Coincidence is a matter of how close these events are in space, time and relationship.
Opinions expressed in forum posts are those of the poster, others may have different views.
xS9
Dabbler
Posts: 20
Registered: ‎26-01-2013

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

Definitely!
So i've been led to believe that either I get a DLM reset and my profile gets opened back to 0.128-80mb, or I sit and wait for DLM to decide it wants to upgrade my profile, but it's been like this for weeks now!
adie:quote
XFi
Newbie
Posts: 2
Registered: ‎17-04-2015

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

I have a similar issue although I haven't lost as much as yourself. When I first had FTTC installed I could manage 55Mbps all day long although I was one of the first on my cabinet. Since then I can only connect at 40Mbps and the Plusnet checker says that my line will only support 35Mbps!
w23
Pro
Posts: 6,347
Thanks: 96
Fixes: 4
Registered: ‎08-01-2008

Re: FTTC - Lost 20mb - Losing My Patience!

Quote from: xS9
So i've been led to believe that either I get a DLM reset and my profile gets opened back to 0.128-80mb, or I sit and wait for DLM

Unfortunately.  I'm not sure if Plusnet have any 'work-arounds' for this.
Call me 'w23'
At any given moment in the universe many things happen. Coincidence is a matter of how close these events are in space, time and relationship.
Opinions expressed in forum posts are those of the poster, others may have different views.