What is the difference between ADSL master filter and a Splitter?

Forums › New Zealand Broadband › What is the difference between ADSL master filter and a Splitter?

floatingkiwi

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#16997 7-Nov-2007 18:08

Hi There

First post for me!

I have a monitored alarm and I want to get broadband installed.
Now, I'm a very competent diy'er but I understand that I need a splitter to seperate the DSL line and run it to it's own jack.

Now I just read another post on this forum that talks about an "adsl master filter" that appears to do the same thing.

Can anyone tell me what the difference is between these two? Am I right in thinking that the ADSL master filter must be a splitter that also has a filter in it? Which would mean I only need the master filter, and not splitter plus the small plug in filters on every phone?

Cheers

Matt

tonyhughes

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#94119 7-Nov-2007 18:14

I just saw a proper splitter for the first time today, about the size of a cigarette packet (with the apparent density/mass similar to a battery that size). It had two wires on one side, to connect in parallel to both the incoming POTS line, and the ADSL jackpoint, and another set of wires to go off to the master telephone jack (meaning no individual filters are required).

Very cool. How much are they, does anyone know?

tonyhughes

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#94120 7-Nov-2007 18:15

Oh, and welcome to the zone containing Geeks!!

Heaps of new users lately!!

coffeebaron

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#94135 7-Nov-2007 19:38

tonyhughes:

Very cool. How much are they, does anyone know?

http://www.acquire.co.nz/acquire/default.asp?PageID=ProductDetail&pf%5Fid=689902&dept%5Fid=9990999&mscssid=K2QLW0C9EESR2P2U000GX0X774CKBHF7

I have installed a few of these, ~$50 exc

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coffeebaron

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#94138 7-Nov-2007 19:46

floatingkiwi: Hi There

First post for me!

I have a monitored alarm and I want to get broadband installed.
Now, I'm a very competent diy'er but I understand that I need a splitter to seperate the DSL line and run it to it's own jack.

Now I just read another post on this forum that talks about an "adsl master filter" that appears to do the same thing.

Can anyone tell me what the difference is between these two? Am I right in thinking that the ADSL master filter must be a splitter that also has a filter in it? Which would mean I only need the master filter, and not splitter plus the small plug in filters on every phone?

Cheers

Matt

The "master filter" is a hard-wire filter that you connect at the white box where you phone cables first come into house. As you have a monitored alarm, you will need this type of install (as alarm should be hard wired to phone line).

As TH mention there are two pairs of wires, the "data or line" to be wired in parallel to the (new) ADSL jack point. The "phone" to be wired to the existing internal wiring.

Using a master filter (or central splitter, or some other name), means you don't need "in-line" filters. In-line filters are used between every phone / fax / sky decoder etc etc, and jack point.

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n00dy

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#94142 7-Nov-2007 19:59

A splitter is more convenient if you have a few phones / jacks in a house. It is placed at the point the phone line enters the house. They are very easy to install (if you are handy with sidecutters and a crimp) and most are marked with an "in" line end & "out" phone end. Once installed nothing else needs to be done, you can plug any phone / modem / alarm panel into that line. Can cost from 75 - 120 to have installed professional.
A filter is for a phone / jack only. Convenient if you have 1-2 phones / jacks in a house. One filter for every phone / modem / alarm panel. Self install and there are usually a couple in ADSL modem packs. Extra filters between 10 - $20 each.

tonyhughes

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#94163 7-Nov-2007 21:18

When doing any telephone jackpoint work, first, make sure you know what you are doing, and never connect a wire to a terminal or another wire, unless you know exactly that its right.

Also, go to warehouse or Mitre10 or DSE and get one of these (the M10 and Wurry Whare ones look a little different), and all your jackpoint wiring should work first time every time. My M10 one has a long side and a short side, the short goes closest to the center of the jackpoint when pushing the wire into the terminal.

(Sorry for those of you that know all this, but im sure many also dont!)

cyril7

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#94172 7-Nov-2007 21:40

I guess the other posters have pretty much explained. But a master filter is placed at the first jack in the house wiring or at the demarc point. If you have a central hub it should or could be placed there. A splitter technically is the same thing, but normally are micro versions of the filter itself that is good for filtering one or two downstream POTs devices and is what you normally hang off each phone jack if you dont have a central/master filter.

Just to clarify one point, a splitter is just a filter, there is only ever a filter involved, the ADSL circuit always sits on the direct line, all posts devices must sit behind a filter, either a good master/central one or one at every jack in the house.

The best solution is a master/central filter, and the one that Telecom installs is the MM3200B that can be obtained from MasterTrade for around $50-60, this should be wired in at the first jack from the Demarc point and all other POTS lines wired from it. The direct inbound line can then be distributed to a single point where the ADSL modem is sited. Cat3 or Cat5/5e/6 cabling should be used from the demarc point to the ADSL modem.

If a central/master filter is used then no splitters are required at each jack, however from the point of the master/central filter there will now have to be two twisted pairs, one to distribute pots lines and one to go directly to the ADSL modem.

The ADSL filter or splitter has two main functions, the first is to lift the impedance of the downstream (or filterered) line in the ADSL band. The second is to stop ADSL energy from getting into POTS devices. POTS devices can appear to be a short circuits above the voice band (ie in the ADSL band) hence the filter stops those devices from shorting out the ADSL signal, this is the most important use of the filter and the detail that affects ADSL connection speed. The stopping of ADSL noise gettting into POTS devices is secondry.

Cyril

POTS=Plain on Telephone Service, ie phones, faxs, etc.

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floatingkiwi

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#94284 8-Nov-2007 15:31

cyril7: I guess the other posters have pretty much explained. But a master filter is placed at the first jack in the house wiring or at the demarc point. If you have a central hub it should or could be placed there. A splitter technically is the same thing, but normally are micro versions of the filter itself that is good for filtering one or two downstream POTs devices and is what you normally hang off each phone jack if you dont have a central/master filter.

Just to clarify one point, a splitter is just a filter, there is only ever a filter involved, the ADSL circuit always sits on the direct line, all posts devices must sit behind a filter, either a good master/central one or one at every jack in the house.

The best solution is a master/central filter, and the one that Telecom installs is the MM3200B that can be obtained from MasterTrade for around $50-60, this should be wired in at the first jack from the Demarc point and all other POTS lines wired from it. The direct inbound line can then be distributed to a single point where the ADSL modem is sited. Cat3 or Cat5/5e/6 cabling should be used from the demarc point to the ADSL modem.

If a central/master filter is used then no splitters are required at each jack, however from the point of the master/central filter there will now have to be two twisted pairs, one to distribute pots lines and one to go directly to the ADSL modem.

The ADSL filter or splitter has two main functions, the first is to lift the impedance of the downstream (or filterered) line in the ADSL band. The second is to stop ADSL energy from getting into POTS devices. POTS devices can appear to be a short circuits above the voice band (ie in the ADSL band) hence the filter stops those devices from shorting out the ADSL signal, this is the most important use of the filter and the detail that affects ADSL connection speed. The stopping of ADSL noise gettting into POTS devices is secondry.

Cyril

POTS=Plain on Telephone Service, ie phones, faxs, etc.

Thanks man - you are the only one who actually answered my original question! (But thank you to all the other answers as well!).

So it is what I thought - an ADSL "master filter" and splitter are one and the same, except the master filter is probably a more capable filter and just doesn't have quite the nice connections (i.e 2 connection points instead of 3). I bought the mastertrade one.

Cheers

Matt

cyril7

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#94294 8-Nov-2007 16:33

The MM3200B, is what I presume you bought, and is the only Telepermited central filter. Compared to basic little splitters that come with your modem or found on the self at DSE, it has superiour characteristics in every sense, one of the most significant is that the inductors used have greater saturation capability, hence can pass more DC line current to downstream POTS devices without effecting there filtering performance.

In the end of the day, if you live in the 1-2km region of the exchange and dont have a large number of POTS devices, (ie say a FAX, CordLessPhone base, and purhaps a Skybox) then 2 or 3 micro filters will most likely give you the same performance as a central fitted filter. However the quality of your house wiring and the number of star stubs are still things to watch out for. So central filtering will bypass all this.

Cyril