FibreX Technicolor modem - lights and faults

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15 posts

Geek

#1793467 2-Jun-2017 09:39

Nish:

@DjShadow I had a similar run of really high uncorrectable errors, probably more so than yours but it also lead to my connection speeds dropping from 1000/100 to ~5/10 at its worst and a reboot of the technicolor box would resolve it and then it would be back to the same in a weeks time. After a few calls back and forth with Vodafone, a technician was sent out to have a look. There were no issues identified with the signal from my end and the ISP end but what he did do was to replace all the connectors on my line from the street all the way to the technicolor modem. This appeared to resolve the issue to the point where I do not get the speed drops or high errors. At the moment, I am seeing 3867 errors on the downstream channel 1 and this is after 9 days of uptime but no speed issues. I have only had to reboot the modem once since this was done but even with a few months uptime, the errors were minimal and only one one channel.

My parents connection ended up having the same issue and to my surprise, the last time I was at their place last week, I rebooted their modem (weekly routine) and I got a call from the vodafone tech team in about 30 mins of the reboot to advise that they saw the connection drop and that they were seeing some issues and booked a tech to come out and do exactly what was done at my place. This was done this monday afternoon so I will pop in over this weekend to check out the stats and speed to see if it has resolved their issues as well.

When i receive fault tickets similar to this. I will replace every connector in the line and also swap out the isolator in the grey box on the side off the house. The most common fault for uncorrectables is a loose F-connector......somewhere. They can come loose over time and a very common cause of faults, not only on FX modems but also on Docsis 3 modems also. Its just that the FX modems work on way more channels and are vulnerable to even the slight issue for a connector. Last week I went to a customers house for the same issue and spent over 1 1/2 hours there. The fault ended up coming from a 2 way splitter up in the ceiling hidden underneath batts which had corrosion on one of the ports, it was used to feed an old tv connection years ago. Removed the splitter and replaced all connectors from the pole to the modem outlet and 'guess what'. Fault cleared up straight away that i was seeing on my meter and customer now has a consistant 930/100 speed. It bugs me but 4 other techs had been there before me and had not bothered to do proper trouble shooting. At least the customer is happy. Now wainting for the next one to come in :)

Nish

155 posts

Master Geek

#1793474 2-Jun-2017 09:51

CableGuyChch:

Nish:

Snip

When i receive fault tickets similar to this. I will replace every connector in the line and also swap out the isolator in the grey box on the side off the house. The most common fault for uncorrectables is a loose F-connector......somewhere. They can come loose over time and a very common cause of faults, not only on FX modems but also on Docsis 3 modems also. Its just that the FX modems work on way more channels and are vulnerable to even the slight issue for a connector. Last week I went to a customers house for the same issue and spent over 1 1/2 hours there. The fault ended up coming from a 2 way splitter up in the ceiling hidden underneath batts which had corrosion on one of the ports, it was used to feed an old tv connection years ago. Removed the splitter and replaced all connectors from the pole to the modem outlet and 'guess what'. Fault cleared up straight away that i was seeing on my meter and customer now has a consistant 930/100 speed. It bugs me but 4 other techs had been there before me and had not bothered to do proper trouble shooting. At least the customer is happy. Now wainting for the next one to come in :)

@CableGuyChch It was on the back of your response when I first posted up about this issue that I had to tell the tech what to do after he did his initial checks and said that there are no issues.

eljefe

99 posts

Master Geek

#1793496 2-Jun-2017 10:07

Hi guys, a little off topic here, but since I changed from the 2 in 1 Worldxchange router/modem to the VF fiberx cable combo, my coverage is complete arse.

We have a very small compact house that goes up one more story, but the signal away from the bottom floor is so weak that it is barely usable.
Is there anything I can do?

I just came back from Japan where I hired a Sakura Portable wifi hotspot for 2 weeks, and it had a far bigger range than this crappy VF modem at home.

Cheers
Jeff

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#1793885 2-Jun-2017 18:32

eljefe:

Hi guys, a little off topic here, but since I changed from the 2 in 1 Worldxchange router/modem to the VF fiberx cable combo, my coverage is complete arse.

We have a very small compact house that goes up one more story, but the signal away from the bottom floor is so weak that it is barely usable.
Is there anything I can do?

I just came back from Japan where I hired a Sakura Portable wifi hotspot for 2 weeks, and it had a far bigger range than this crappy VF modem at home.

Cheers
Jeff

Very few wireless routers will cover more than one story of a house - this includes the ubiquitous Huawei HG 659 router provided by VF for "FibreX".

IMHO the Huawei is a very good entry-level wireless router.

Most wireless routers broadcast horizontally, not vertically, so multi-story WiFi coverage is always a problem.

Your best solution is a Wireless Access Point (WAP) on the "other floor", connected by Power over Ethernet (PoE).

Second-best choice would be Ethernet over Power (EoP) between the floors.

Disclosure: I'm on VF "FibreX" cable and use a Ubiquiti router and 3x Ubiquiti WAPs.

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eljefe

99 posts

Master Geek

#1793893 2-Jun-2017 19:04

Thanks for the advice. I will do some googling. This is what worked so well for me.

https://www.wxc.co.nz/residential/hardware/residentialgateways/mp264/

Nish

155 posts

Master Geek

#1793963 2-Jun-2017 20:35

Sideface:

Disclosure: I'm on VF "FibreX" cable and use a Ubiquiti router and 3x Ubiquiti WAPs.

Would recommend this 100% for wireless coverage. I have 2 x UAP-AC units behind pFsense at home and 2 x UAP-LR units behind an Edgerouter lite at my olds.

invisibleman18

1360 posts

Uber Geek

#1797597 10-Jun-2017 08:44

Not specifically about the modem, but thought I;d ask here rather than start a new thread.

Basically moving house from Johnsonville to Churton Park (Wellington) next week and the new place already has fibre installed. Never managed to get it at the current place as although it is installed to the street we are up a shared driveway and didn't manage to get it installed. Am currently on Vodafone ADSL and as I understand it they won't let you have fibre if you're in a cable area so just trying to work out what to do.

Had a Vodafone salesman at the door giving me the spiel about why FibreX is better and the latest deal they have etc a couple of days ago. Would there be any point going with this at the new place if actual fibre is already installed in the house or is fibre the best option?

Also given it's a rental I'd prefer not to sign up to a contract in case I have to move before it's up. If that happens and the service is not available at your next address and you're under contract, are you still stuck in the contract?

Thanks

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Shop now on Samsung phones, tablets, TVs and more (affiliate link).

Jase2985

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#1797614 10-Jun-2017 10:01

invisibleman18:
Not specifically about the modem, but thought I;d ask here rather than start a new thread.

Basically moving house from Johnsonville to Churton Park (Wellington) next week and the new place already has fibre installed. Never managed to get it at the current place as although it is installed to the street we are up a shared driveway and didn't manage to get it installed. Am currently on Vodafone ADSL and as I understand it they won't let you have fibre if you're in a cable area so just trying to work out what to do.

Had a Vodafone salesman at the door giving me the spiel about why FibreX is better and the latest deal they have etc a couple of days ago. Would there be any point going with this at the new place if actual fibre is already installed in the house or is fibre the best option?

Also given it's a rental I'd prefer not to sign up to a contract in case I have to move before it's up. If that happens and the service is not available at your next address and you're under contract, are you still stuck in the contract?

Thanks

One, fibrex is not better than fibre, cheaper yes better no

Two, read this http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/93421854/vodafones-fibrex-label-attracts-attention-from-watchdog
If you as for fiber they should give it too you. Especially if the ont is already there.

SteveC

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#1797626 10-Jun-2017 10:38

Jase2985:
One, fibrex is not better than fibre, cheaper yes better no

Two, read this http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/93421854/vodafones-fibrex-label-attracts-attention-from-watchdog
If you as for fiber they should give it too you. Especially if the ont is already there.

Totally agree. I will refer to FibreX as 'cable', which is the technology that Vodafone use to deliver the product they call FibreX.
For us, if we had fibre in our street, the only reason we would stick with Vodafone is TV. Cable is a hybrid technology using a delivery mechanism that was created in the 1950s for analouge TV. It is good quality copper (it could be argued ADSL uses a telephone technology from the 1920s!) which has seen some very, very, clever changes in the signal shoved down it. In the end, fibre is a current technology, serving the purpose it was designed for, very well.
Delivery technology aside, Vodafone has major issues (not as bad as it has been in the past, but still bad) with Customer Service, and this independent analysis suggests they have technical issues which mean any Vodafone Internet connection will often under-perform claimed speeds, to a greater degree than other ISPs. https://www.truenet.co.nz/story/2017/04/march-2017-urban-broadband-report.

If you really want to stick with Vodafone, badger them to get a fibre connection. Worked for a friend of mine (ref above comment on Customer service - just one example). She wanted to switch from cable to fibre, while keeping her Vodafone TV, and was told she was not allowed to. (First they said she already had 'UFB', then they said there was a technical reason not to give her TV over fibre, then they relented).. She asked to speak with the 'Customer retention team', and said she would leave Vodafone unless they put her on fibre. Eventually she won!
If you want Vodafone, that is what I would recommend.

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#1797734 10-Jun-2017 15:18

Jase2985:

FibreX is not better than fibre, cheaper yes better no

+1 Agree

In my experience, "real" fibre (UFB) is much better than "FibreX" cable, in terms of performance and reliability.

I have used both - at the moment I'm stuck with "FibreX" until late 2019, when UFB reaches our suburb.

I will switch back to UFB at the earliest opportunity. If Vodafone refuse to provide UFB, I will move to another provider without any hesitation.

My advice - avoid "FibreX" if you can get UFB.

EDIT See SteveC's good advice, above. Another +1.

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Eitsop

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#1797737 10-Jun-2017 15:31

My sister just just got fibrex.. I was there with technician when installed.. said there was a firmware bug in modem. and that there was a fix coming in 1-2 weeks

SteveC

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#1797739 10-Jun-2017 15:45

attewell:
My sister just just got fibrex.. I was there with technician when installed.. said there was a firmware bug in modem. and that there was a fix coming in 1-2 weeks

I have always had excellent rapport with the Downer contractors who come calling. They have been great!
On the other hand - Vodafone have acknowledged bugs in the wireless router firmware, then either never addressed them, or delivered later than promised. I've never been aware of any issues with the modem (the Technicolor device that connects to cable, not internal wireless). Must be months since I last rebooted it. Other people report needing to reboot daily, or more. I guess it depends on outside factors.

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#1797740 10-Jun-2017 15:58

SteveC: <snip>

I have always had excellent rapport with the Downer contractors who come calling. They have been great!
On the other hand - Vodafone have acknowledged bugs in the wireless router firmware, then either never addressed them, or delivered later than promised. I've never been aware of any issues with the modem (the Technicolor device that connects to cable, not internal wireless). Must be months since I last rebooted it. Other people report needing to reboot daily, or more. I guess it depends on outside factors.

I need to reboot my Technicolor modem about once a week - not because of outages (which had been a major problem until mid April) - but because my connection slows down to a crawl down/upstream after about a week on the same IP address.

A reboot gives me a new IP address and restores normal performance for several days.

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yitz

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#1797742 10-Jun-2017 16:02

attewell:
My sister just just got fibrex.. I was there with technician when installed.. said there was a firmware bug in modem. and that there was a fix coming in 1-2 weeks

Would be interesting to know whether they are referring to the TC4400 or HG659.

Eitsop

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#1797763 10-Jun-2017 17:11

the one connected to the rg6 cable

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