Speeds on 4mbps?

fz1 said:
This is really strange. You're not being picky - I don't see why your speeds should be so much slower if everything indicates that your line is as good/stable as those of us who are getting 3400+kbps.

The only reason I can think of for your line to not be operating as fast as it should is that you are getting errors while transferring. However, you mention that this is not the case. Do you have error figures from your routers control panel that you can paste here, or are they zero?
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* What modem/router are you using?
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Crappy old Marconi which we salvaged from other half's parents after ours decided to kick the bucket as we got the DSL line installed. I'm meaning to replace it next month.

* Have you always had 4Mbps? Has it always performed at this speed?
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Used to have a 4mbps line in the previous house and it ran at over 3,500 - which is why I found it weird.

* Do you have anything else connected to the phone line that your ADSL line is on (e.g. fax, other telephones, alarm, etc.?)
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Just a telephone, but it's the same even when I unplug and reboot the router.

* When you do speedtest.net, what ping do you get?
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Between 93ms & 110ms. Usually 93 after 17:00 ;) IS ^.^

* Have you tried other speed tests (e.g. the ones I did in the thread linked to from my signature)?
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Yep.

I'm starting to think that it may be the router in that case, only way I'll know for certain is when we get a new one.
 
fz1 said:
That's just what it is - a rumour. If I recall correctly, Telkom has not announced anything (can't recall if they denied it either). It was expected/predicted/rumoured that they would trial 8Mbps for 4Mbps users starting August (or whenever they announce new prices for the year) along with more bandwidth (higher caps) being provided for the same amount of money. Unfortunately, none of it was true. In typical Telkom fashion, we were let down (read: screwed) and instead prices went up slightly, and more bandwidth was not provided :mad:

I do recall someone from Telkom posting his line stats from an 8Mbps test line so it's not entirely impossible that we will get it eventually, though... Doesn't do too much good if caps stay the same though.
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Well lets keep fingers crossed.
Yeah its useless without a bigger cap.
 
Lycanthrope said:
...

I'm starting to think that it may be the router in that case, only way I'll know for certain is when we get a new one.
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Yeah, it may be the router. I guess that is the only thing left that could be the cause. Can you borrow a router from someone else to test with temporarily? Alternatively, you can go to an Incredible Connection (for example), and pick up a decent router/modem, hook it up to test, and then return it the next day (or later) - just confirm the refund policy at the store first though. I bought a router this way and was able to return it without hassles when I was not happy with it (I opened it up, hooked it up and tried it out and everything...)

I would highly recommend Netgear. Something 'classic' like a DG834GT. People here report that Billion routers are also very good.
 
@ fz1 - I was actually considering a D-Link - specifically the DSL-2640U... I haven't really put much thought into a NetGear, but if you're adamant on it, eh, sure, why not.

I'll see if I can get my hands on someone's router, although I plan on getting a new one anyway. The one my other half brought back has a constant high-pitched buzz. It's enough to drive you to murder - it keeps feeling as though my ears are ringing lol :p

Thank you for your help, fz1 & everyone else as well :)

@ gambithunt - Physics and geometry, you say? I might cut out a few equations and stick to a good old fashioned hammer's 3-step process:

1 - Raise hammer to a comfortable height.
2 - Bring hammer down on router with FORCE!
3 - Repeat until router can be swept up with a dustpan.
 
*throws peanuts at lilGr*

Yes, yes - we've established my connection needs to be shot >.> Stop rubbing it in! :D
 
Lycanthrope said:
@ gambithunt - Physics and geometry, you say? I might cut out a few equations and stick to a good old fashioned hammer's 3-step process:

1 - Raise hammer to a comfortable height.
2 - Bring hammer down on router with FORCE!
3 - Repeat until router can be swept up with a dustpan.
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lol, why not blend it, post it on youtube, sell advertising space, get 1mil hits retire, but a netgear or a d-link and enjoy life ;)
 
Lycanthrope said:
@ fz1 - I was actually considering a D-Link - specifically the DSL-2640U... I haven't really put much thought into a NetGear, but if you're adamant on it, eh, sure, why not.
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I don't see anything wrong with the D-Link. It's just that the Netgear model that I suggest is tried and tested locally as a rock solid stable and great performance router (there are lots of fans on this forum of the DG834G(T)).

It's more expensive than the D-Link you are looking at, but I personally think it would be worth it. Has recent firmware too, which means its still supported by the manufacturer. It can monitor line statistics pretty well (in lots of detail if you use a program called RouterStats) - useful for debugging. A quick scan of the D-Link seems to suggest it may be slightly more feature-rich and up to date. Did you want to do anything special with your router (e.g. VPN) or just use it to browse?

Of course, the choice is entirely yours and I'm not (intentionally) being adamant ;) You should get what suits your budget, feature requirements and what is accessible to you.
 
To be honest, I've heard a lot of good things about Netgear & D-Link, but I've never tried either before. Price doesn't really faze me as long as it's reasonable and I have some certainty that the router will be around for a long time.

One thing that I noticed - and I'm sure you could correct me or explain it - is that the D-Link I pointed out supports ADSL2/2+ - sort of future-proofing, whereas the Netgear doesn't seem to have that.

I don't plan on doing anything too fancy. The only features which really interest me are how future-proof it will be and whether or not it supports UPnP. WiFi is a must for the laptop and the other odd little things that use it.

Oh, and finally... The D-Link is black :) It'll go wonderfully with my computer :D

I have to admit that I'd like to be able to use RouterStats and similar software. While not necessary - as silly as it sounds - I love being able to see how hardware works and whether or not it's working correctly.
 
killer1973 said:
That's bloody good will that be the same for a 384 line as well?:(
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I think it should be the same for a 384Kbps line also, because latency is a function of your ISPs connectivity (e.g. satellite vs. fibre) as opposed to being based on your bandwidth. I get 30-50ms using a fibre based IS semi-shaped account (and SAIX shaped too). I think the only time bandwidth (i.e. 384Kbps vs. 4Mbps) plays a factor in latency is when you are downloading: I would imagine that you can download more stuff (simultaneously) on a 4Mbps line while still maintaining a low(ish) latency (depending on how much/how fast you are downloading) as opposed to using up all of your 384Kbps bandwidth while downloading and trying to ping. In other words, the faster your connection, the more capacity you potentially still have available for 'multitasking' using your bandwidth (i.e. downloading a file and checking ping times).

Not sure if that's clear (or even correct), maybe a networking guru can confirm.
 
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