ADSL for a dummy

Doug_Dread

Doug_Dread

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Hi.

I have little knowledge on the subject, but signed up with Telkom a few years ago, now on a Do Premium package with Mega 105WR modem and 4Mbps line. Tested speeds on this line were around 3.2Mbps, maxing at 3.6Mbps.

Yesterday, Telkom upgraded my line to 10Mbps and here's what puzzles me: My modem speed has only risen to 5Mbps (5012Kbps) and tested download speed only to 4.2Mbps.

Something is wrong that is preventing me from taking full advantage of the 10Mbps line. This dummy could really use some enlightenment here? :erm:

Thanks,
Doug
 
It depends on the condition and length of the physical copper cable connection between your modem and the nearest DSLAM (exchange). Telkom will put you on the highest profile (10Mbps) and then drop it in steps of 1024Kbps until you have a stable connection.
 
Note that they said there's a 4mbit account on the 10 mbit line(R675), or you upgrade to 10mbit account and 10mbit line(R999)... so you aren't on a 10mbit account just line...
 
Could it be my modem? I realise its old and newer modems have ADSL 2 and 2+, this make a difference?
 
NorthPole said:
Note that they said there's a 4mbit account on the 10 mbit line(R675), or you upgrade to 10mbit account and 10mbit line(R999)... so you aren't on a 10mbit account just line...
Click to expand...

That true? Telkom's line test says:

"Maximum speed available in your area 10 Mbps
Your Current Service speed 10 Mbps" (Used to say 4 Mbps)
 
Remember your line is an "Up to 10mbps" line.

In telkom's terms that means if your line sync 1 bit per sec faster than the "Up to 4mbps" package, you officially have a "Up to 10mbps" ADSL line.

Most often you will find that telkom decrease your sync profile because of faulty/aging or congested DSLAMs and sometimes because of bad copper line quality. You will also need to check on your router's web interface at what bit rate the line actually syncs, if it syncs at 5mpbs, you speedtest are actually normal.
 
Oh yes..... my package is the soft-capped type and isn't included in the email tables Telkom sent out.
 
I had the same modem, renewed the contract and they gave me d-link. faster download, no more restarts(had to restart modem regularly).
worth a try
 
What the Telkom line test is saying is that your EXCHANGE can support up to 10Mbps. The condition and length of the copper wiring between the exchange and your house is the primary limiting factor.

Routers & internal household wiring can make a small difference, but not enough to bother replacing in most cases. You can look up your line stats on your router. More info on these here: http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/186156-Understanding-SNR-and-Attenuation-Rates

In your position I'd downgrade to 4Mbps.
 
FuLL_MeT4L said:
What the Telkom line test is saying is that your EXCHANGE can support up to 10Mbps. The condition and length of the copper wiring between the exchange and your house is the primary limiting factor.

Routers & internal household wiring can make a small difference, but not enough to bother replacing in most cases. You can look up your line stats on your router. More info on these here: http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/186156-Understanding-SNR-and-Attenuation-Rates
In your position I'd downgrade to 4Mbps.
Click to expand...


Attenuation is shown as "DS=48" and "US=27", which one is it? Don't see any SNR or sync speed. You've got me on shaky ground here. lol
 
Doug_Dread said:
Oh, ok, Ds 48..... that would put it at 'good' on the cusp of 'poor' :(
Click to expand...

Yeah attenuation of 48 is fairly consistent with your average'ish speeds unfortunately.

On the Mega 105WR, your SNR should be listed as US Margin and DS Margin on the same page you found the attenuation values. Take a look and let us know what those are at.
 
Doug_Dread said:
Thanks for the clarification. :) Ds margin is 13, Us margin is 11
Click to expand...

Yeah 13 and 11 technically classify as 'ok' SNR Margin values... but with just the slightest drop due to environmental conditions you may see slower actual speeds, and intermittent connectivity.

Unfortunately there's fairly little you can do about your draw in the copper-lottery. I'd suggest downgrading to 4Mbps.

You could try another newer router and see if this improves anything. It definitely won't push you to 10Mbps but may give you a better 4Mbps experience.
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the advice. :) So to summarise, there's nothing I can do to improve the speed past 5Mbps and a new ADSL 2+ router will only serve to process the 5Mbps speed a little smoother?
 
Why not borrow one from a friend just to put your mind at ease? I have done this with several friends and in each instance, my one (TP Link) was no better than the ones they had been using. The wireless was much better, but the ADSL speed remained the same
 
Doug_Dread said:
Thanks for the advice. :) So to summarise, there's nothing I can do to improve the speed past 5Mbps and a new ADSL 2+ router will only serve to process the 5Mbps speed a little smoother?
Click to expand...

Nothing you can do to improve past 5Mbps - correct. You could go all crazy and rewire your house if you liked, making sure that there are no high-voltage power cables near your phone-lines - but the gains will be marginal at best. If you feel like kicking up a fuss with Telkom you can persistently log faults saying there's noise on your line; they do sometimes replace cabling in these cases. But unless you're committed this isn't worth the years it will drain from your life.

The router will very likely have little to no effect unless your current router is faulty or a particularly poor model - it's worth testing though. As has been said, borrowing a friend's router is the best way to check without spending for no reason.

If you have any issues with your line going forward at the current speeds, I'd urge you to downgrade from 5Mbps to 4Mbps. Noise margin (SNR Margin) measures how much higher your signal is than the minimum required to sync at the current rate. If you sync at 4Mbps, you will have a higher "SNR" than if you were to sync at 5Mbps; higher SNR provides a better experience as it reduces the likelihood of your connection bombing out.

A final note in favour of 4Mbps is that after the speed upgrades from Telkom taking place 18 November – 23 December 2013, you'll be paying R425.00 for your 5Mbps where you could be paying R299.00 for 4Mbps.
 
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The result: After Telkom was finished mucking about with the upgrades in Feb, I called them and got a very helpful lady on the line who answered all my questions at length, dumb or not. :) She undertook to sync my line at 10MBPS and if that was unstable, then back off until reasonable stability was reached. I've ended up with a floating connection speed between 6MBPS and 7MBPS each time I boot my modem. Initially, Telkom's speed was highly unreliable, I read that they were having problems such as congestion etc., but my speed has now stabilised and apart from the occasional drop, my connection is doing very well. Downloads are running at between 600kbps and 800kbps, way better than at the former 5MBPS sync speed.
 
Glad you got it sorted and speeds are up

How many GB are you doing in a month?
 
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