replacement router

[#1]

Hi

Am at the end of my tether with the current set up. Have a new plusnet router, and bought bt mesh discs last week. Even with those (which have ensured access throughout the house), and plugging my laptop in to one of them, I am still regularly falling below 3 (and often below 1) upload speed and therefore dropping out of MS Teams calls. Down speed between 20 and 25.

Will a different router solve it? I don't need huge speeds, I just need reliability.

If so which router is the current favourite. It's either this or go to virgin media.

thanks

Alex

[#2]

@alexatherton100  Welcome to the forum.

The first question has to be how are your mesh units connected to you hub? If it is wireless then you could still be suffering from the poor wireless performance of the Plusnet hub as it requires two way wireless communication. If so try connecting your hub to one of the mesh units over an Ethernet cable, even if that requires the two to be co-located.

Do you have this problem if you connect your computer direct to the hub via an Ethernet cable?

[#3]

thanks very much.

The first mesh disc is connected to the plusnet router via cable.

My laptop is connected to another one, but I have also connected it straight to the router. So same problem either way.

[#4]

@alexatherton100 

So you need to be checking for network problems. First take the front off your BT master socket, you may need to remove two screws. In the back section you will find the test socket. Plug a wired phone in here and ring 17070 then Option 2. If there is any noise on the line then report a phone, not broadband fault. This must be cleared before investigating any further.

If the line is quiet then plug your filter in to the test socket. Connect this to your hub with the DSL cable, connect your laptop to the hub via an Ethernet cable and check your speed.

If it's still bad then report a fault at https://faults.plus.net

[#5]

Thank you - but an engineer came not long ago tested it out and we got a new modem as a result. There were no faults. I'm sure lockdown has meant more traffic on the street and the house. My contract is about to run out and I need something sustainable. I will buy a router or move to another set up, ie virgin. Just need some idea as to which router and the kind of difference it might make.

[#6]

@alexatherton100 

If it's a network fault then no modem/router on earth will put it right. If you go to Virgin you will at least get a new connection.

The fact that there were no faults does not mean that there is no longer no faults or it might have been missed.

[#7]

OK thank you.

If there is no fault - which I will check now you have said that - is there a particular router you would recommend? Am wary of getting one which will not work with Plusnet.

[#8]

@alexatherton100 

Have you followed in exact detail Baldrick's fault checking procedure outlined above? Time and again we see people fiddling about at random (I know that's OK because we tried it last week, I just know I need a new router etc) so nobody can offer proper advice. Your fault finding must be systematic whoever your ISP may be, or you'll never get anywhere.

[#9]

no but I will.

I have been told though by a recent plusnet engineer that the router is good value, but we most likely need something better. Hence the question.

[#10]

@alexatherton100 

'Good Value' is a new description to me. The Hub One is an old BT Home Hub 5A, in a garish case, which might  or might not be noisy and has many wireless problems that Plusnet have been working on for at least a year.

If you want a better cheap (about £20) hub then go on to an auction site and get a BT Smarthub 6. These are far better devices. Setting instructions are here.  https://community.plus.net/t5/My-Router/Using-the-BT-Smarthub-6-on-a-Plusnet-Account/m-p/1587673#M85...

Whether that will resolve your problem will depend on the cause.

[#11]

Thank you really helpful. Will check the socket as you said.

[#12]

For modem/router combos, look at the Tp-Link VR900/VR1200/VR1900/VR2800 range, or the Fritz!Box's on Amazon.

[#13]

@alexatherton100 

What speeds were you quoted when you signed up to "fibre" ?

My relatives have a fairly long cable to the local "green box" and get 25Mb/s down but a solid 8 or 10 Mb/s up (up speed seems to be the primary problem for you).

Their broadband was considerably improved when the broadband was directly connected to the BT filtered master socket.

If you currently have all that can be provided on the Openreach network (essentially because the cable to the "green box" is too long) then a connection on the Virgin Media network is likely to be better.

[#14]

thank you - the green box is not close, around 600 yards and when an engineer visited they said it needed some overhaul/investment. When I walk past there is very often someone working on it.

I have tried the phone but there was no other socket within it when I took the front cover off. I don't see any other socket available anywhere to plug anything into. As of now 24 down and just over 1 up.

I have a live bid for the BT hub recommended so if I win that will try it and see what comes. Otherwise I'm off to virgin media. 

[#15]

The speed should be 36-40 coming in and 7 to 8 up. So I get a higher proportion of the former and half, if that, of the latter.

The issue is what difference another route might make. A consistent 4+ up is likely all I need.