Thompson TG585v7 Wireless problems

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Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 93926 1-Dec-2011 19:23

Hey,

Right, so I have a Thompson TG585v7 wireless modem. I've been using this for well over a year with absolutely no issues, however out of the blue a few days ago my connection became very sluggish. Doing a speed test, I had gone from a constant 8mbps to around 2-4mbps. However, I also lost the ability to stream any video. It would just constantly stutter and load slowly. Youtube videos are much the same.

So, naturally i got on the phone to xnet. They made me plug my modem in with an ethernet cable, which seems to resolve pretty much all of my problems. Thus, there appears to be an issue with the wireless part of the modem.

However, it's also important to note that when I plug my modem in with ethernet, then remove it, the wireless performance seems to hold up as it was while plugged in with ethernet, then however after a few minutes the same problem starts occurring. My speed lowers, and I am unable to watch video or streams.

I'm not quite sure what conclusion to come to from those facts. Do I need a new router? What's going on? Xnet said that changing the channel on my modem can help at times, so i changed it from channel 1 to channel 12. No noticeable difference really.

Oh, and games such as WoW and SC2 work perfectly fine on both wireless and ethernet.

Please advise.

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5572 posts

Uber Geek

# 552388 1-Dec-2011 19:54

Can you post your modem stats - sync rate, attenuation etc. ?

Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 552390 1-Dec-2011 20:00

Sure, as I am unaware of what's actually relevant, I've just copy/pasted the page which displays such data.

(Since [code][/code] doesn't appear to work. And it appears as a paragraph otherwise)

RunningMan

5572 posts

Uber Geek

# 552591 2-Dec-2011 12:19

Your sync speed looks fairly consistant with the line attenuation, however the number of errors is interesting.

What is your home wiring like - number of phone outlets / splitters / sky TV / alarm / fax etc.?

I would try an isolation test first, to confirm there are no issues with your internal home wiring (search on this site, there's plenty of info) and see what happens with that.

Also, check to see if you have the latest firmware for your modem.

cyril7

6958 posts

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Subscriber

# 552596 2-Dec-2011 12:41

Dont think its anything to do with your DSL but maybe interference on the WiFi leg, maybe your neighbours got a new Wireless router and on a nearby channel.

Have a look with inSSIDer and see what else is on nearby channels.

Cyril

Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 552609 2-Dec-2011 13:10

Hey Guys,

Thanks for the replies. An isolation test was the first thing that I did, however this made no changes whatsoever. The only other device we have on the phone lines is our phone. A filter is installed.

I don't know if this is relevant at all, but I use a Macbook Pro. However, I did boot up into windows 7 to run inSSIDer, and got the following data from it. I have absolutely no idea what this means, but it'll probably mean something to you guys.

As to the firmware, I know that i don't have the latest version. However, I did some searching around and can't seem to find a... reliable site that seems to host it. Also, this thread seems to indicate that there are issues with just downloading the first piece of firmware that i can find for the modem. So I'd rather not risk breaking the modem quite yet.

Cheers.

Edit: Geekzone appears to of resized the picture i've uploaded, if you need a better version let me know, and I will host it elsewhere.

cyril7

6958 posts

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Trusted

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# 552612 2-Dec-2011 13:18

Hi, bit hard to see the detail but i presume that is you in red, and am I correct thatthere is a green transmission under you. Anyway its waay below you so should not be an issue. Maybe if there is interference its not there now?

Cyril

RunningMan

5572 posts

Uber Geek

# 552615 2-Dec-2011 13:23

If you are using a Mac, you could try something like iStumbler instead of booting in to Windows, if that is easier. Basically, it will tell you what other wireless networks are around, and what channel they are on - ideally, choose a channel that is several away from any nearby networks.

It's odd that the connection seems to be fine for a while after having gone to ethernet. How long have you tried going for the wired connection for? Can you get it to fault at all with ethernet, or is it only ever with WiFi?

There seems to be some talk around of the Thomson modems not playing nice with OS X on WiFi - while not exactly the same issue you are reporting, here is one of several threads with a common theme.

Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 552616 2-Dec-2011 13:25

Here, this is in better detail sorry.

However, I did do a speed test when I was in windows, and I had the same low speed problem.

Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 552620 2-Dec-2011 13:29

Cheers for iStumbler Runningman, that definitely will make things a lot easier for me. As for the issues you described, I have had that problem in the past, but very very infrequently, so it doesn't bother me all too much. As in, maybe once a month.

To add another oddity, doing a speed test right now actually shows that my connection is perfectly fine at the moment. Getting the full 8mbps I should be on my current plan. Appears to be some sort of sporadic interference maybe?

I guess I'll run istumbler when the problem comes back, which really shouldn't be too far away, heh.

cyril7

6958 posts

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# 552622 2-Dec-2011 13:30

Hmm, so there is tomizone service using a UBNT radio on ch11, just trying setting yours to Ch1.

Cyril

RunningMan

5572 posts

Uber Geek

# 552626 2-Dec-2011 13:36

Do you just have the MBP, or do you have other computer(s) you could try when the problem re-occurs?

Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 552627 2-Dec-2011 13:36

Done, however I should point out that my router was actually set to channel 1 when I initially encountered the problem, and I changed to channel 12 while playing around with things.

Annnd, setting it back to channel 1 seems to of brought the problem back. Setting it back to channel 12 upped the speed a bit, but it's still slower than normal.

Running iStumbler, there is no new network detected besides what was already there.

Edit: @Runningman, my mother also has a macbook pro, and she has been complaining of similar problems. My iPhone shows the same speed.

cyril7

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# 552630 2-Dec-2011 13:41

Have you got another AP to try, if you are running a macbook it will have 802.11n (5GHz) option, so a Airport to replace the AP part of the Thompson might be in order, to be honest the Thompsons re not the most built proof devices.

Edit if you do go for an Airport then make sure you use it in bride mode so you only have one NAT.

Cyril

Ellisande

41 posts

Geek

# 552633 2-Dec-2011 13:43

Nope, I don't.

So you reckon the only option is for me to replace the wireless part of the router? Is there any reason to not just get a new router in general? Or does the 5ghz option of the Airport make it worth buying that?

Cheers for the help guys.

cyril7

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# 552635 2-Dec-2011 13:54

Hi, the apple routers/AP's are very good (from my experience) and well recommended especially if you have MAC PCs that can use either 2.4 or 5GHz.

If it were me, I would either find out how to set the Thompson in half Bridge ( I am sure it can be done) or get a basic TP-Link 8840 and put that into half bridge (very easy just one soft switch to flick) and use the Airport in router mode.

As I mentioned the forums are full of issues with these Thompsons and spuriously going bad is not uncommon. That said it might be worth trying to loan a basic AP from someone to see if it is the Thompsons AP or not thats gone bad.

http://www.ascent.co.nz/productspecification.aspx?ItemID=361956

http://store.apple.com/nz/product/MB321/AirPort-Express-AirTunes

Cyril

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