Spark (Telecom) Issues Still?

Forums › Spark New Zealand (including Skinny and BigPipe) › Spark (Telecom) Issues Still?

BazNZ

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#152416 25-Sep-2014 17:42

I have noticed for the past few weeks a degraded intermittent service since Sparks (Telecom) reported problems. According to their current service status on the home page it says...There is a small issue. We're checking it out? Should I be paying for this???

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#1137684 25-Sep-2014 17:42

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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mxpress

376 posts

Ultimate Geek
+1 received by user: 17

#1137697 25-Sep-2014 17:45

In New Plymouth, mine is a s slow as a wet week at the moment

mxpress

tardtasticx

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#1137699 25-Sep-2014 17:51

We were having a lot of disconnections yesterday and when I checked the modem page it said it couldn't connect to one of the default DNS servers. The other was fine though and it seems to be stable now. Not sure if related?

BazNZ

258 posts

Ultimate Geek
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#1137700 25-Sep-2014 18:02

At this moment my Yahoo e-mail won't load which certainly suggests problems! Also as proof... for the past week I have been trying to download the latest Nvidia Graphics driver. This task normally takes minutes at a 500KB/s rate. This week I have given up due to a 36KB/s rate which states will take hours!

Inphinity

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#1137705 25-Sep-2014 18:12

I've not noticed any issues, on UFB in Auckland.

L0k1

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#1137784 25-Sep-2014 20:10

Rubbish speeds here too. 4.78 down on VDSL. Wondering why I give them $140 a month.

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sbiddle

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#1137833 25-Sep-2014 21:03

BazNZ: I have noticed for the past few weeks a degraded intermittent service since Sparks (Telecom) reported problems. According to their current service status on the home page it says...There is a small issue. We're checking it out? Should I be paying for this???

What is the issue?

These is nothing necessarily wrong with that sort of speed or latency to the opposite side of the world.

sbiddle

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#1137837 25-Sep-2014 21:04

L0k1: Rubbish speeds here too. 4.78 down on VDSL. Wondering why I give them $140 a month.

How are you testing? One can assume it's speedtest.net which is absolutely meaningless. What are your modem stats?

BazNZ

258 posts

Ultimate Geek
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#1137857 25-Sep-2014 21:52

I know when things are not normal...when it takes hours to download a graphics driver somethings not right. It just took me 20 minutes to download a 30mb audio clip from youtube it then became a failed state? I've had this same ISP for the past 3 years since moving into this new house so I know what service I should be getting.
I could move to another ISP to find out for sure I suppose?
Here are my Thomson Moden stats....
DSL Connection

Link Information

Uptime: 3 days, 22:54:23
DSL Type:G.992.1 annex A
Channel mode: Interleave
Maximum Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 716 / 5.248
Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 672 / 5.152
Data Transferred (Sent/Received) [kB/GB]: 0,00 / 11,14
Output Power (Up/Down) [dBm]: 11,5 / 15,5
Line Attenuation (Up/Down) [dB]: 6,0 / 12,0
SN Margin (Up/Down) [dB]: 12,0 / 12,0
Vendor ID (Local/Remote): TMMB / ALCB
Loss of Framing (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Signal (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Power (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Link (Remote): 0
Error Seconds (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
FEC Errors (Up/Down): 45 / 1.188
CRC Errors (Up/Down): 6 / 1
HEC Errors (Up/Down): 1 / 0

Default Gateway: 122.58.72.4
Primary DNS: 122.56.237.1
Secondary DNS: 210.55.111.1

L0k1

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#1137858 25-Sep-2014 21:57

sbiddle:
L0k1: Rubbish speeds here too. 4.78 down on VDSL. Wondering why I give them $140 a month.

How are you testing? One can assume it's speedtest.net which is absolutely meaningless. What are your modem stats?

Yes speedtest.net. I'm not sure it's "absolutely meaningless"; what is the point of having it then?
When one normally tests at 35-40 Mbps+, has noticeably slower internet (hence checking these forums to see if other are affected), runs a test and finds ~4.78 Mbps (over several servers) then it has some meaning, right?

It's not like their service claims anything like "The Global Standard in Internet Metrics" or "Accurate, free ... the global standard in network testing."
Someone should tell Google, Comcast, Microsoft, Cisco, Vodafone, Time Warner, AT&T, Verizon ... that they are waiting their money on OOKLA!

I posit that it absolutely has meaning!

Not sure if your post was intended to help or not, not sure what you hoped to achieve. The issue is not at my end so nothing I can do.
I'm not worried, I'll be on UFB with a different ISP soon.

Thanks for taking the time to reply to my moaning post.

sbiddle

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#1137861 25-Sep-2014 22:08

BazNZ: I know when things are not normal...when it takes hours to download a graphics driver somethings not right. It just took me 20 minutes to download a 30mb audio clip from youtube it then became a failed state? I've had this same ISP for the past 3 years since moving into this new house so I know what service I should be getting.
I could move to another ISP to find out for sure I suppose?
Here are my Thomson Moden stats....
DSL Connection

Link Information

Uptime: 3 days, 22:54:23
DSL Type:G.992.1 annex A
Channel mode: Interleave
Maximum Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 716 / 5.248
Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 672 / 5.152
Data Transferred (Sent/Received) [kB/GB]: 0,00 / 11,14
Output Power (Up/Down) [dBm]: 11,5 / 15,5
Line Attenuation (Up/Down) [dB]: 6,0 / 12,0
SN Margin (Up/Down) [dB]: 12,0 / 12,0
Vendor ID (Local/Remote): TMMB / ALCB
Loss of Framing (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Signal (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Power (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Link (Remote): 0
Error Seconds (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
FEC Errors (Up/Down): 45 / 1.188
CRC Errors (Up/Down): 6 / 1
HEC Errors (Up/Down): 1 / 0

Default Gateway: 122.58.72.4
Primary DNS: 122.56.237.1
Secondary DNS: 210.55.111.1

Such a poor sync rate with low attenuation my money is a wiring issue, with statistically speaking is highly likely to be within your premises.

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BazNZ

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#1137864 25-Sep-2014 22:11

The house is barely 4 years old (New Wiring) ???? and I'm still on ADSL1 !!! Any bearing on my stats?

sbiddle

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#1137866 25-Sep-2014 22:13

L0k1:
sbiddle:
L0k1: Rubbish speeds here too. 4.78 down on VDSL. Wondering why I give them $140 a month.

How are you testing? One can assume it's speedtest.net which is absolutely meaningless. What are your modem stats?

Yes speedtest.net. I'm not sure it's "absolutely meaningless"; what is the point of having it then?
When one normally tests at 35-40 Mbps+, has noticeably slower internet (hence checking these forums to see if other are affected), runs a test and finds ~4.78 Mbps (over several servers) then it has some meaning, right?

It's not like their service claims anything like "The Global Standard in Internet Metrics" or "Accurate, free ... the global standard in network testing."
Someone should tell Google, Comcast, Microsoft, Cisco, Vodafone, Time Warner, AT&T, Verizon ... that they are waiting their money on OOKLA!

I posit that it absolutely has meaning!

Not sure if your post was intended to help or not, not sure what you hoped to achieve. The issue is not at my end so nothing I can do.
I'm not worried, I'll be on UFB with a different ISP soon.

Thanks for taking the time to reply to my moaning post.

A speedtest.net test without any reference to DSL sync rate is a but like complaining your car is slow - and not mentioning that you're stuck in peak hour traffic. It means very, very little.

If you want help with a potential fault DSL statistics are the only thing that's relevant right now. A suden drop like that is pretty indicative of a wiring issue causing a sudden drop in DSL sync, or you're testing over WiFi and not mentioning this.

sbiddle

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#1137869 25-Sep-2014 22:15

BazNZ: The house is barely 4 years old (New Wiring) ???? and I'm still on ADSL1 !!! Any bearing on my stats?

You're only going to get a maximum of 5Mbps based on those stats, but testing to the other side of the world isn't a good indication of speed.

What do you get to NZ?

ADSL1 BUBA congestion is a common problem in the last few months with unlimited plans, only takes a few people torrenting all day to ruin things for everybody.

L0k1

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#1137871 25-Sep-2014 22:19

It's a bit coincidental that multiple people suddenly have "wiring issues" at the same time, and that it coincides with the ISP acknowledging issues with their network. You're not on the spark payroll are ya? :p

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