Cell C black speedstick problem narrowed down.....but what now?

[Jacques_mybb]

Hi All,

So I have experienced some issues with my Cell C black speedstick over the past 2 months and I think I might have narrowed down as to when my issue occurs, ie. I can now re-produce the error successfully.

My issue is that at home whenever the modem is connected and I start do download big files (ati driver) or even play tdu2 online the modem will download for 40-60 seconds and then disconnect from the computer after becoming extremely hot. This happens in my desktop pc (back usb port and powered usb hub) and laptop usb ports. At home my RSSI is 63-70dBm and this is Brooklyn Pretoria.

At work my RSSI is 51-55 dBm (Hatfield, Pretoria) and using the same laptop as above I can download the same driver file no issues and very fast. Also, the modem also gets hot but not as it does at home.

So basically this means that my modem is not really usable at home as online gaming and big file downloads is a no go. And if I take this modem back and they test it might not mean they will get the same results as me at home.

So what do you guys suggest I do and are you experiencing the same issue?

I would appreciate a answer from a Cell C official as well.

Regards
Jacques

 

[ajax]

It would seem that the modem is not capable of transmitting at a high power. The transmitter power is more or less inversely proportional to your received signal strength. Assuming the signal strength in the Cell C shop is the same or lower than what you get at home, then the problem might be reproducible at the Cell C shop.

 

[ginggs]

My issue is that at home whenever the modem is connected and I start do download big files (ati driver) or even play tdu2 online the modem will download for 40-60 seconds and then disconnect from the computer after becoming extremely hot. This happens in my desktop pc (back usb port and powered usb hub) and laptop usb ports. At home my RSSI is 63-70dBm and this is Brooklyn Pretoria.

I would say this is a USB power issue, see here:
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/302233-USB-Modem-Power-Issues-USB-Extensions

I experienced exactly the same on Vodacom with a Huawei E272 and a 1.8m USB cable, exchanging the cable for a shorter one solved the problem.

 

[Jacques_mybb]

I would say this is a USB power issue, see here:
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthread.php/302233-USB-Modem-Power-Issues-USB-Extensions

I experienced exactly the same on Vodacom with a Huawei E272 and a 1.8m USB cable, exchanging the cable for a shorter one solved the problem.

Thanks, I had a look at the thread. I have three usb cables of different lengths and a powered usb hub. I have tested the modem with all three the cables and the hub and sticking it straight into the usb port but still it disconnects after a minute or so.

 

[avanie]

I have had the exact same issues since jan this year.. it used to work fine last year for about 2 weeks after i got the stick. Now it disconnects like clockwork about every minute and for me it seemed more of a network problem. I have even taken the stick to the Cell C super store in Centurion and upgraded the firmware... did not solve the probem. the tech support then said they will send the stick away for repairs and gave me a loan unit.. i get the exact same probem on the loan unit.. which for me is a clear indicator that the disconnect issue does not seem to be stick related.
What i found was that if i used MTN's software and just set up another connection to Cell C and chose (3G only in the network profile, unfortunetely this software does not have the WDCMA option) the connection was stable enough to stay connected for about an hour after which preformance seriously started downgrading due to overheating ( so yes the overheating problem is very real but i dont think it is the cause for the 1 minute disconnects).
However the new cell c firmware upgrade blocked this workarround of mine. luckily i found this link which is a modification on the cell C tool that alows you to force the stick to connect with WDCMA: http://www.mediafire.com/?xvf91lf0fbt9fcy#2. I tested this last night and the connection did not disconnect once however it did start to degrade due to the overheating issue after about 40 minutes use.

It is cear to me that whenever you alllow the CellC speedstick to automatically choose a signal instead of forcing it to a specific one, if disconnects each time it attemts to change signals, it also tends to prioritise EDGE, even though the new firmware was supposed to fix this.
try out the unofficial fix for te cel C software, it may at least give you a bit more stability and please let us know if it aslo worked for you.

 

[Jacques_mybb]

Thanks avanie, I will give this a try tonight and let you know.

 

[Jacques_mybb]

I have installed the software recommended above but I have a question. After installation I have set the network type to WCDMA only. But in the bottom left corner of the dashboard the connection jumps between HSPA+ and WCDMA. Is this normal?

 

[avanie]

it seems to report teh network it gets teh strongest signal, and if you had left it on "preferred" it would then try and switch neworks, thats when it disconnected... myself only tried the WCDMA option as i am not sure which is faster, but it shoud work fine with the HSPA+ only option as well

 

[Madhawk]

connection jumps between HSPA+ and WCDMA. Is this normal?

That's normal. When your connection is idle it shows WCDMA. (Dark Blue)

When you browse, it shows HSPA+ (Cyan colour)

 

[Jacques_mybb]

it seems to report teh network it gets teh strongest signal, and if you had left it on "preferred" it would then try and switch neworks, thats when it disconnected... myself only tried the WCDMA option as i am not sure which is faster, but it shoud work fine with the HSPA+ only option as well

I don't have a HSPA+ option, only GSM pref, GSM only, WCDMA pref and WCDMA only. So I set it on WCDMA only and the connection jumps between HSPA+ and WCDMA.

by the way, as I was typing this message the modem disconnected twice in a row.....

I will try it at home tonight to see what happens.

 

[avanie]

I will carry on testing also tonight, however i had some semblance of stabiity for the first time in 2 months last night when i ran it with WCDMA ONLY option selected.
However due to the overheating probem i removed it after about an hour and went back to my MTN 3g stick as it was much more stable and faster. ill try and run it for longer tonight see if the constant disconnects are still occcuring.

 

[ginggs]

I will carry on testing also tonight, however i had some semblance of stabiity for the first time in 2 months last night when i ran it with WCDMA ONLY option selected.
However due to the overheating probem i removed it after about an hour and went back to my MTN 3g stick as it was much more stable and faster. ill try and run it for longer tonight see if the constant disconnects are still occcuring.

Another thing you can consider is using an antenna to improve your signal strength, which should reduce the heat generated by the modem and the power requirements of the USB port.

 

[avanie]

by the way, as I was typing this message the modem disconnected twice in a row.....

MAN that is sooo disapointing, tought i finally had a handle on how to get past this issue, but if your saying the disconnects are still happening for you, then my stabiity last night can be due to some other unknown factor, maybe something on the network..
did you uninstall the previous version of the cellc tool before installing the unofficial one?

 

[Jacques_mybb]

MAN that is sooo disapointing, tought i finally had a handle on how to get past this issue, but if your saying the disconnects are still happening for you, then my stabiity last night can be due to some other unknown factor, maybe something on the network..

Very disappointing indeed... But usually it only happens when I download something and the modem is working, it now occurred while the modem was on idle. But had it on idle now for the last 15 minutes, did some speedtests and no disconnects. But the real test will be tonight when I play tdu2 online.

 

[RichardG]

Hi All,

So I have experienced some issues with my Cell C black speedstick over the past 2 months and I think I might have narrowed down as to when my issue occurs, ie. I can now re-produce the error successfully.

My issue is that at home whenever the modem is connected and I start do download big files (ati driver) or even play tdu2 online the modem will download for 40-60 seconds and then disconnect from the computer after becoming extremely hot. This happens in my desktop pc (back usb port and powered usb hub) and laptop usb ports. At home my RSSI is 63-70dBm and this is Brooklyn Pretoria.



Regards
Jacques

I am having the same problem as you - where you are only connected for around 30-60 seconds, try and download/browse on CELL C website from the same location and see if your USB modem gets unplugged, this is happening to me at the moment with a new "black dongle I received".

I think you just received a faulty dongle.

 

[avanie]

I get disconnected irrespective of which site i browse.. can not reach CellC's site either. i have received a loan unit from CellC and same problem on the second device so not the device that is the problem.

 

[Jacques_mybb]

Another thing you can consider is using an antenna to improve your signal strength, which should reduce the heat generated by the modem and the power requirements of the USB port.

Yes, think I might go to poynting on saturday to try an antenna.

I am having the same problem as you - where you are only connected for around 30-60 seconds, try and download/browse on CELL C website from the same location and see if your USB modem gets unplugged, this is happening to me at the moment with a new "black dongle I received".

I think you just received a faulty dongle.

I will test this as well tonight.

Just a quick update of what I am seeing now at work. The dashboard is set to WCDMA only, then when I start to download or speed test everything is fine and the speed is good, but the moment all downloading stops and the modem returns to idle it disconnects from the laptop. The occurrence of this is not consistent though.

 

[OMB]

read this thread

http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showthr...s-in-Gauteng-Region-Known-Issue-(From-Cell-C)

 

[RichardG]

Just a quick update of what I am seeing now at work. The dashboard is set to WCDMA only, then when I start to download or speed test everything is fine and the speed is good, but the moment all downloading stops and the modem returns to idle it disconnects from the laptop. The occurrence of this is not consistent though.

Seems like you do have a faulty dongle - I have 2 Black dongles 1 working perfectly without any errors or disconnecting(It has been connected 7 days non-stop so far) and have another 1 that is giving me endless problems (only connected to the network/internet for about 1 minute) then automatically gets disconnected unplugged - then windows detects the USB again..

If we could flush the firmware on the dongle and re-install it ourselves this would probably solve the problem you are experiencing.

 

[Tun@]

If we could flush the firmware on the dongle and re-install it ourselves this would probably solve the problem you are experiencing.

You can,its on the "drivers" "download" page but listed under Mac - it works for both Win & Mac