Should I buy VDSL modem to use 20mbps line?

[John227]

Hi all
I would like to ask you few things since I'm not an expert in this area.
I'm only renting the line and using Axxess as ISP.
I signed up for 20mbps on Axxess and it worked perfectly from end of Feb to the end of March.
I got full 2.0 mbps download speed and upload was about 0.8mbps by then
and from roughly start of April, I only get 1.4mbps and 0.4-0.6mbps upload. My line also drops more than 5 times per day.
I have explained Axxess and they said Telkom's side has some problem and then about 6 Telkom's technicians came and go but they had no idea what's wrong except one. There was this tech guy, seemed like so sure what's wrong, telling me that the problem is caused since I'm using ADSL2+ modem, not VDSL one and then he suggested me to buy router from him saying he would give me good one which cheap price.
He also said ADSL cannot reach 20mbps full speed (which I got for about a month since I signed up). I asked him if ADSL2+ cannot be used on my profile as I'm only subscribing for 20mbps and I don't really have a problem with upload speed capped to ADSL but he said " No we only can give you ADSL or VDSL, not ADSL2+"

So I'm really confused if I should believe this story and spend bulk of money to buy VDSL modem or not.
I asked him if I can lend VDSL modem from Telkom and test it for a while to see if what he said is true but then he said " to do that, line modulation should be upgraded to VDSL and then it cannot go back to ADSL so once you test the VDSL modem then you should buy VDSL modem." He also said that I'm about 1.2km away from the exchange and if it was below 0.8km the connection could have been stable.

I asked Axxess if I should buy VDSL router but they said
"Good day. Your ADSL 2 + router is fine, you don't need a VDSL router because you have a 20 Mbps line. We have escalated the fault from our side because you changing the router to a VDSL router is not going to resolve anything. Please let us know of any feedback you get from the technician and please let us know if you need further assistance. The issue at hand is that your SnR values on your DSL line are simply too low at the moment to support the full 20mbps sync. At present the SnR is sitting on 6.2dB while the line is syncing at 16mbps. Telkom needs to rectify this low value so that your line can receive the full line sync rate."
But Telkom tech all just tell me the line is clean and good.

What should I do? should I buy a VDSL router?
Sorry for a long story and thank you in advance.
my line stats are:
Downstream Upstream
SNR Margin:
6.3 12.3 db
Line Attenuation:
17.9 10.7 db
Data Rate:
16245 1023 kbps
Max Rate:
17232 1279 kbps
POWER:
19.5 8.2 dbm
CRC:
5 0

 

[Idiosyncratic]

While VDSL will make a difference, it won't solve your problem per se if you're getting 2 Mbps on a 20 Mbps line. That's a no-no and Telkom should be able to rectify it as is.

 

[John227]

While VDSL will make a difference, it won't solve your problem per se if you're getting 2 Mbps on a 20 Mbps line. That's a no-no and Telkom should be able to rectify it as is.

Oh I meant i used to get full 20Mbps(2.0MBps) speed and now I'm getting 14mbps (1.4MBps)

Sorry for the confusion

 

[Idiosyncratic]

Oh I meant i used to get full 20Mbps(2.0MBps) speed and now I'm getting 14mbps (1.4MBps)

Sorry for the confusion

Mbps = mbps. And 1 Mbps = 125KB/s. Or did all those years in IT do nothing for me?

 

[John227]

Mbps = mbps. And 1 Mbps = 125KB/s. Or did all those years in IT do nothing for me?

Hmm i didn't know that. Thank you for letting me know! And okay then I will only speak about down speed i got when i was using torrent. So before I got 2.0mbps for download now I only get 1.4-1.5 max and when this happens the line drops few times. It happens when I watch streaming videos as well

 

[Idiosyncratic]

Hmm i didn't know that. Thank you for letting me know! And okay then I will only speak about down speed i got when i was using torrent. So before I got 2.0MB/s for download now I only get 1.4-1.5 max and when this happens the line drops few times. It happens when I watch streaming videos as well

Fixed.
MB/s makes life easier You're welcome.

No idea why this is though, but I must agree with Axxess that it's not because you need to switch to VDSL. It'll be a good idea, but that's not the answer as to why your speeds have gone down...

 

[falcon786]

Subscribed since i have the exact same issue and a Telkom technical person at the call centre suggested a VDSL modem to solve my issue.Apparently Telkom is now using an automatic system that tests your line and drops sync speeds for a more stable line...my line was never unstable before so no idea why it is now.

I used to get 14mbps now only 10mbps on my 20mb adsl line .

 

[WaRLoRd ZA]

Hi all
I would like to ask you few things since I'm not an expert in this area.
I'm only renting the line and using Axxess as ISP.
I signed up for 20mbps on Axxess and it worked perfectly from end of Feb to the end of March.
I got full 2.0 mbps download speed and upload was about 0.8mbps by then
and from roughly start of April, I only get 1.4mbps and 0.4-0.6mbps upload. My line also drops more than 5 times per day.
I have explained Axxess and they said Telkom's side has some problem and then about 6 Telkom's technicians came and go but they had no idea what's wrong except one. There was this tech guy, seemed like so sure what's wrong, telling me that the problem is caused since I'm using ADSL2+ modem, not VDSL one and then he suggested me to buy router from him saying he would give me good one which cheap price.
He also said ADSL cannot reach 20mbps full speed (which I got for about a month since I signed up). I asked him if ADSL2+ cannot be used on my profile as I'm only subscribing for 20mbps and I don't really have a problem with upload speed capped to ADSL but he said " No we only can give you ADSL or VDSL, not ADSL2+"

So I'm really confused if I should believe this story and spend bulk of money to buy VDSL modem or not.
I asked him if I can lend VDSL modem from Telkom and test it for a while to see if what he said is true but then he said " to do that, line modulation should be upgraded to VDSL and then it cannot go back to ADSL so once you test the VDSL modem then you should buy VDSL modem." He also said that I'm about 1.2km away from the exchange and if it was below 0.8km the connection could have been stable.

I asked Axxess if I should buy VDSL router but they said
"Good day. Your ADSL 2 + router is fine, you don't need a VDSL router because you have a 20 Mbps line. We have escalated the fault from our side because you changing the router to a VDSL router is not going to resolve anything. Please let us know of any feedback you get from the technician and please let us know if you need further assistance. The issue at hand is that your SnR values on your DSL line are simply too low at the moment to support the full 20mbps sync. At present the SnR is sitting on 6.2dB while the line is syncing at 16mbps. Telkom needs to rectify this low value so that your line can receive the full line sync rate."
But Telkom tech all just tell me the line is clean and good.

What should I do? should I buy a VDSL router?
Sorry for a long story and thank you in advance.
my line stats are:
Downstream Upstream
SNR Margin:
6.3 12.3 db
Line Attenuation:
17.9 10.7 db
Data Rate:
16245 1023 kbps
Max Rate:
17232 1279 kbps
POWER:
19.5 8.2 dbm
CRC:
5 0

Hey John227, Yes it is true you can use a ADSL router on a 20meg line. But changing your modulation to VDSL will actually improve your line stats as it runs on a different frequency. And you can change Modulation type back and forth between then 2. I had a technician come to my place and test my line on VDSL with his router. He simply logged into his telkom profile and logged into the exchange with his programme and changed it. They can even change your sync speed on there..so I would maybe invest in a cheap or second hand VDSL router and your monthly line will cost you the same regardless as 20meg is 20meg.. you will just be getting better value for your money bud. That's my two cents

 

[avr-rulez]

I have a VDSL modem on a 20MB line.

My SNR is a little worse than yours at: 5.8 -5.9db return path is 2.4km from ISAM.

My line hovers at 18.6MB ping around 19mS

 

[ɹǝuuᴉM]

Subscribed since i have the exact same issue and a Telkom technical person at the call centre suggested a VDSL modem to solve my issue.Apparently Telkom is now using an automatic system that tests your line and drops sync speeds for a more stable line...my line was never unstable before so no idea why it is now.

I used to get 14mbps now only 10mbps on my 20mb adsl line .

That "automatic system" is called ASSIA. If you find that it drops your line excessively, ask the technician to change its settings to "FastPath" mode. It will maintain higher speeds (at the expense of stability).
Changing from ADSL2+ to VDSL definitely should improve things! Especially if you are at less than 1KM from the exchange. It is pretty useless to compare your stats to other people because every line has its individual characteristics. Line Noise is a complicated thing. It can have many reasons and faces. It can be induced by parasitic EM or because of poor interconnects on the line itself or or or....
VDSL is a newer technology than ADSL. With VDSL the entire thing of data transmission is better handled. It uses an wider frequency band and it modulates the date in a less error prone way (for most lines but not all). Furthermore, VDSL gives "more room" to the connecting devices, to change parameters in "real time" (in order to achive the desired data rate). But for all this to work you must be fairly close to the exchange. Less than 1000ft (300m) is ideal, if you want to achive maximum benefit (speed). At 1KM (or less as in the case of the OP) the benefit is substantial. If VDSL is offered by your provider - go for it. Even at between 1KM to 2KM you will see some benefit but if you are at over 2KM..... a change to VDSL2 (from ADSL2+) won't help much (if at all).