Crystal Web ADSL performance feedback thread Part 3...

[mugikhan]

Our support staff are far, far from useless, and are upskilled far beyond those of other ISPs. We however cannot intercede with line syncs as ISPs any longer, and we cannot interfere with Telkom's new automated ASSIA system that processes these changes. We can report the fault, but asking our staff what is causing it and accusing them of being useless for not knowing without a Telkom technician having actually been dispatched and investigating, is quite simply not on from where I stand. Our staff, when we manage the line, do not control Telkom technicians and their schedules, nor who is dispatched to which faults. If we could, we most certainly would.

I have checked with our staff and confirmed with the logs that at all times, all faults from your line have been timeously logged and communication has in fact been very good. At all times you have however accused us of being useless (this is not the 1st time by a long shot). I do believe that it is probably best that we migrate your line back to Telkom for you so that you can deal with them directly instead, as what Crystal Web manages with respect to the line has been explained to you before, by me personally. However it doesn't appear as if you wish to accept the limitations we are bound by by Telkom, and the line would probably be best managed by you and Telkom in the future. Your data account will remain unaffected, but if you agree I think it's best that we move the line back to avoid these misunderstandings and frustrations...

I think that would be best, but is there going to be downtime if I transfer back? Dealing with telkom should be easier as they will have some actual information about my line rather than just logging a fault and me sitting with a basic useless connection. Yes and in the future it will also make moving my data account around easier if needs be.

 

[DJ...]

I think that would be best, but is there going to be downtime if I transfer back? Dealing with telkom should be easier as they will have some actual information about my line rather than just logging a fault and me sitting with a basic useless connection. Yes and in the future it will also make moving my data account around easier if needs be.

They will have the same data we have, to be honest. Your issue requires a techie to visit the exchange, test the line, and visit your house. We don't simply log faults. We actually conduct tests on our side. The chance of downtime is slim as long as they do their job properly when it comes to claiming the line from the wholesale holding pool. That's something only they can do - we cannot assist further in accordance with Telkom policies, as once in the pool it is out of our control. While past the cutoff date, I will make an exception in this case as I know your line has had frequent issues and there are extenuating circumstances here. Just speak to support and request the migration back and I'll authorise the late transfer for you...

 

[StevenC]

CW has been fantastic with regards to the "outage" today.

My D3 has been flying while other less fortunate people on other ISPs have had massive lag. Thank you Shaun and team, for keeping things running smoothly

 

[DJ...]

It's been a pleasure, and the guys at IS reacted very well too and were the ones responsible for implementing the config and routing changes (but commercially we have to prepare for them as always), so should never be forgotten. We could probably source cheaper connectivity (in fact we can), but we can never replace the expertise, experience, and commitment from the guys behind the scenes at IS and internally at Crystal Web, and the relationships built. This is why we choose not to look for the cheapest possible solutions - we prefer to opt for the best and we absorb a lot of the costs so our customers can receive the best...

 

[mugikhan]

They will have the same data we have, to be honest. Your issue requires a techie to visit the exchange, test the line, and visit your house. We don't simply log faults. We actually conduct tests on our side. The chance of downtime is slim as long as they do their job properly when it comes to claiming the line from the wholesale holding pool. That's something only they can do - we cannot assist further in accordance with Telkom policies, as once in the pool it is out of our control. While past the cutoff date, I will make an exception in this case as I know your line has had frequent issues and there are extenuating circumstances here. Just speak to support and request the migration back and I'll authorise the late transfer for you...

I will request on Monday as I don't want to be without internet on the weekend, can you schedule it for monday or will I have to ask on Monday?

 

[DJ...]

I will request on Monday as I don't want to be without internet on the weekend, can you schedule it for monday or will I have to ask on Monday?

I've spoken to the guys and it's scheduled for end of the month. Just pop them the message so there's confirmation from your side as well...

 

[DJ...]

WACS traffic fully restored...

 

[Paparazzi]

Thought ill just pop on here and say well done to Crystalweb for the way they handled the outages yesterday. I give you 10/10. With WACS and Seacom down I absolutely had no issues while several of my friends who were with other ISPs couldn't even browse the internet or login to Steam. Well done boys. Big thumbs up from me.

 

[DawieZA]

Thought ill just pop on here and say well done to Crystalweb for the way they handled the outages yesterday. I give you 10/10. With WACS and Seacom down I absolutely had no issues while several of my friends who were with other ISPs couldn't even browse the internet or login to Steam. Well done boys. Big thumbs up from me.

I have to agree. Best experience I have ever had during a major outage like this.

 

[GSRit01]

Just to ask, what is FUP threshold for the 4mb home uncapped product? And how does it work? Is it 30 day rolling? I mainly stream. Hardly download or game...

 

[GSRit01]

Sorry I read about the 10 day rolling on the website, just want the FUP threshold please

 

[DJ...]

Sorry I read about the 10 day rolling on the website, just want the FUP threshold please

There is no set number. The reason is if we operate a dynamic shaping network. There is no specific shaping threshold and no specific shaping severity. This means that if we have sufficient spare capacity on the network you are not penalised.

We have algorithms setup however to check for managing these accounts but they use a number of factors and only of the criteria is usage, and even then the checks are for peak usage.

We naturally cannot disclose this algorithm publicly to our competitors, but for the entry-level basic 4Mbps account, I'd say if you're going to be using more than 100GB overall rather opt for the premium uncapped. While that's not a number built into our algorithms, it would be indicative of usage that would in all likelihood flag the checks. But if you're using all of the data in the off-peak window it really doesn't matter to us and you won't be affected. So this is why I say there's no set number in play here, as we don't throttle - we just deprioritise which acts very differently and is far more fair to the end user...

 

[GSRit01]

Ok cool. The streaming usually happens weekly from around 4 when the wife gets home until around 9-10. Only 1 device.

Weekends it's a lot more.

Averaging probably just over +-120gigs per month or so which is probably 95% streaming.

I do see that streaming is prioritized...

 

[Ho3n3r]

I had some hangs on sites and a few timeouts as well, and a temporary reduction in speed, but nothing major - certainly nothing compared to what I read on the other ISP's.

Well done. Still proving to be the most proficient ISP SA has to offer.

 

[DJ...]

Ok cool. The streaming usually happens weekly from around 4 when the wife gets home until around 9-10. Only 1 device.

Weekends it's a lot more.

Averaging probably just over +-120gigs per month or so which is probably 95% streaming.

I do see that streaming is prioritized...

It's always important for us to ensure that our customers are on the best product for their needs. In your case it's data in peak over 100GB mostly streaming. My best advice would be to opt for premium uncapped which is purposefully designed for your type of usage. Our basic accounts are intended for general, low demand customers and make for an affordable entry into the broadband market. For streaming intensive requirements, gaming, downloaders etc it's far better to opt for a premium uncapped which is built for such use instead...

 

[GSRit01]

It's always important for us to ensure that our customers are on the best product for their needs. In your case it's data in peak over 100GB mostly streaming. My best advice would be to opt for premium uncapped which is purposefully designed for your type of usage. Our basic accounts are intended for general, low demand customers and make for an affordable entry into the broadband market. For streaming intensive requirements, gaming, downloaders etc it's far better to opt for a premium uncapped which is built for such use instead...

Than for your advice! Will take it all into consideration.

 

[game@holic]

I have a weird thing happening with my account. I have a telkom ADSL capped account which is a 10 Mb line.

I recently applied for a crystal web account. When doing a speedtest on the telkom account I get close to 10mbs on speedtest.net. When I do the same test on speedtest using the crystalweb one, its limited to around 4megs.

I raised a ticket and even called in several times but the tech support says nothing is shaped in any way. Had a telkom technician come over and look at the line recently as well. No one can seem to figure out whats going on. I ran tests in Dec, Early Jan and recently and had a telkom tech come over 3 times to check my line.

I spoke with a crystal web tech over the phone to raise this. Within that hour i disconnected and swapped over to the telkom and Crystalweb accounts and there is a clear difference between both. the telkom one is close to 10mb and the crystal web is fixed on 4-4.5 mbs. There is some sort of shaping going on yet the guys tell me theres nothing from their side at all.

My friend literally across the street is getting full speed. Literally 3 doors away though he is with Vox.

 

[ToxicBunny]

I have a weird thing happening with my account. I have a telkom ADSL capped account which is a 10 Mb line.

I recently applied for a crystal web account. When doing a speedtest on the telkom account I get close to 10mbs on speedtest.net. When I do the same test on speedtest using the crystalweb one, its limited to around 4megs.

I raised a ticket and even called in several times but the tech support says nothing is shaped in any way. Had a telkom technician come over and look at the line recently as well. No one can seem to figure out whats going on. I ran tests in Dec, Early Jan and recently and had a telkom tech come over 3 times to check my line.

I spoke with a crystal web tech over the phone to raise this. Within that hour i disconnected and swapped over to the telkom and Crystalweb accounts and there is a clear difference between both. the telkom one is close to 10mb and the crystal web is fixed on 4-4.5 mbs. There is some sort of shaping going on yet the guys tell me theres nothing from their side at all.

My friend literally across the street is getting full speed. Literally 3 doors away though he is with Vox.

What speed account did you get with CW.... sounds suspiciously like you got a 4meg account.

 

[DJ...]

I have a weird thing happening with my account. I have a telkom ADSL capped account which is a 10 Mb line.

I recently applied for a crystal web account. When doing a speedtest on the telkom account I get close to 10mbs on speedtest.net. When I do the same test on speedtest using the crystalweb one, its limited to around 4megs.

I raised a ticket and even called in several times but the tech support says nothing is shaped in any way. Had a telkom technician come over and look at the line recently as well. No one can seem to figure out whats going on. I ran tests in Dec, Early Jan and recently and had a telkom tech come over 3 times to check my line.

I spoke with a crystal web tech over the phone to raise this. Within that hour i disconnected and swapped over to the telkom and Crystalweb accounts and there is a clear difference between both. the telkom one is close to 10mb and the crystal web is fixed on 4-4.5 mbs. There is some sort of shaping going on yet the guys tell me theres nothing from their side at all.

My friend literally across the street is getting full speed. Literally 3 doors away though he is with Vox.

Can you provide me with your username so I can check for you? You can PM me the details.

Our uncapped accounts are subject to the speed limits of the product selected, whereas capped operates at your line speed. Let me check for you.

Having built the packages myself, I can assure you that nothing is specifically rate limited other than uncapped that is limited to the speed selected, so a 4Mbps uncapped would obtain 4Mbps even if the line is 10Mbps enabled...

 

[game@holic]

What speed account did you get with CW.... sounds suspiciously like you got a 4meg account.

I got a 10mbps speed account. I even asked the tech about this and they said that everything seems fine from their side. You can blatantly see that it is limited to around 4mbps and I even asked them to check that. They said that i seem to be the only guy they know of experiencing this.

I am really frustrated because no one can resolve this. I moved away from MWeb to crystal web because i read amazing feedback. But I may jump on to another provider. Vox seems to provide amazing speed in my area.