Low connection speed(4mbit/1mbit) troubleshooting

Forums › Spark New Zealand (including Skinny and BigPipe) › Low connection speed(4mbit/1mbit) troubleshooting

loceff13

915 posts

Ultimate Geek

#141195 4-Mar-2014 13:00

Having a look at my parents connection and the speeds are pretty poor(DSL-G604T). I don't think it's ever connected at more than ~5,5

First thought was the modem firmware might be limiting it to adsl speeds but plugging in mine(TG585 V8) proved no better in sync speed and swapping out the existing filters made little difference. The low speeds have been constant(4-5mbit) since moving from Iconz(who at the time didn't offer adsl2 and was FS/FS) to Telecom a number of years back.

The second modem I tried works fine at another property/connection at adsl2 speeds so my assumption is it may be back-end related(still on the same profile as it was with Iconz or something) if that makes sense.

Any suggestions as to what might be the cause? I don't really have time for phone-tag but can PM the associated details as required.

Thanks

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PeterReader

5935 posts

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#998742 4-Mar-2014 13:00

Hello... Our robot found some keywords in your post, so here is an automated reply with some important things to note regarding broadband speeds.

If you are posting regarding DSL speeds please check that

- you have reset your modem and router

- your PC (or other PCs in your LAN) is not downloading large files when you are testing

- you are not being throttled by your ISP due to going over the monthly cap

- your tests are always done on an ethernet connection to the router - do not use wireless for testing

- you read this topic and follow the instructions there.

Make sure you provide information for other users to help you. If you have not already done it, please EDIT your post and add this now:

- Your ISP and plan

- Type of connection (ADSL, ADSL2, VDSL)

- Your modem DSL stats (do not worry about posting Speedtest, we need sync rate, attenuation and noise margin)

- Your general location (or street)

- If you are rural or urban

- If you know your connection is to an exchange, cabinet or conklin

- If your connection is to a ULL or wholesale service

- If you have done an isolation test as per the link above

Most of the problems with speed are likely to be related to internal wiring issues. Read this discussion to find out more about this. Your ISP is not intentionally slowing you down today (unless you are on a managed plan). Also if this is the school holidays it's likely you will notice slower than usual speed due to more users online.

A master splitter is required for VDSL2 and in most cases will improve speeds on DSL connections. Regular disconnections can be a monitored alarm or a set top box trying to connect. If there's an alarm connected to your line even if you don't have an alarm contract it may still try to connect so it's worth checking.

I recommend you read these two blog posts:

- Is your premises phone wiring impacting your broadband performance? (very technical)

- Are you receiving a substandard ULL ADSL2+ connection from your ISP?

I am the Geekzone Robot and I am here to help. I am from the Internet. I do not interact. Do not expect other replies from me.

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NonprayingMantis

6434 posts

Uber Geek

#998755 4-Mar-2014 13:03

get a master filter installed.

loceff13

915 posts

Ultimate Geek

#998778 4-Mar-2014 13:28

They are not experiencing frequent disconnections or anything, it's stable at it's connection speed so I suspect they might not want to pay ~$200-300 for that.

I guess if it's the case best to just leave it if they are happy until they move house.

sbiddle

30853 posts

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Retired Mod

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Biddle Corp

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#998840 4-Mar-2014 14:26

You really need to establish whether their poor attenuation (which isn't going to deliver speeds any faster) is a limitation because of their distance from a cabinet/exchange, or whether it's because of poor internal wiring. Are you in a Chorus 10+ or 20mbps+ zone?

loceff13

915 posts

Ultimate Geek

#998844 4-Mar-2014 14:37

10+ according to the checker, neighbours connection was ~15 last year when checking their line stats. I'll look into the filter option as both of you have said in this case it's probably the wiring.

richms

25150 posts

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#998867 4-Mar-2014 15:12

Are you in a cabineted area? You might still be connected to the exchange even tho the neighbour is on a cabinet so check with the isp first.

Impact of no splitter will vary depending on the internal wiring quality and types of sockets. If it's really old with master and secondary sockets then defiantly sort that but otherwise wait for the chorus tech to confirm its not them.

Richard rich.ms

RunningMan

7039 posts

Uber Geek

#998893 4-Mar-2014 15:46

If you answer the questions asked by PeterReader then people can probably give some far more definitive areas the problem may lie.

loceff13

915 posts

Ultimate Geek

#998905 4-Mar-2014 16:02

- Telecom Home 150GB
- Type of connection (ADSL, ADSL2)
- Your modem DSL stats Included in OP, 2nd modem was almost identical stats
- Your general location South Dunedin, more specifically west ave(>10 zone)
- If you are rural or urban - urban
- If you know your connection is to an exchange, cabinet or conklin - unknown
- If your connection is to a ULL or wholesale service - unknown, residential
- If you have done an isolation test as per the link above- yes, minimal difference at any phone jack points or after disconnecting devices(2x phones)

richms

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#998908 4-Mar-2014 16:04

How old are the jacks - do they have a 2 on the face or a M one one and S on the others. Are they so old they have a post shop logo on them?

Richard rich.ms

sbiddle

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#998909 4-Mar-2014 16:05

West Ave is just outside the VDSL2 zone and on the edge of the Exchange coverage. I'd expect to see sync rates of around 12-14Mbps.

The issue is almost certainly wiring related, and statistically speaking most wiring issues are within the premises.

RunningMan

7039 posts

Uber Geek

#998931 4-Mar-2014 16:45

I would suggest a full isolation test as the next step.

Basically, you need to disconnect all your internal wiring at the demarc point between the incoming line and the rest of the house, and connect the modem directly to the incoming line to rule out the house wiring.

Line stubs like "T"s and junctions can have a very detrimental effect on sync rate.

The demarc point will be different for every house, but commonly will be either a small square white box on the house exterior, or in older dwellings, the first jackpoint where the black line from the road comes in.

I would have expected a downstream sync rate of about double (give or take) what you are seeing, given the attenuation figure. There are quite a number of variables which can affect it, but the 4Mb/s is pretty low.

richms

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#998933 4-Mar-2014 16:48

Yeah the problem with suggesting that is that when it comes to reconnection most people won't be able to without buying stuff.

Chorus allowed self installs on any old crap so they should be the ones paying for a tech to test at the demarc.

Now if they installed proper dmarcs that didn't need wires cut to isolate then a self test at that point would be viable.

Richard rich.ms