Going from ADSL to ADSL2+

Tute · 11 Mar 2012 at 13:24

Right guys, our exchange was given a date of "by May 2012" to be upgraded. I checked this morning and it's showing as completed and upgraded. So I checked on the BT site to see what speed they reckon I can get and they say about 20MBit, great!

I assumed it would just be as simple as a modem restart and it'd start re-training for the faster speed. But i've restarted the modem a few times and i'm still only getting the ADSL Max speeds.

So what do I need to do? Do I need to phone BT and ask for it to be upgraded? Do I need a new modem (currently using a Linksys AM200)?

Exchange in question is WWCRED.

Thanks in advance.

mikeo · 11 Mar 2012 at 13:50

You will need to request your ISP to move you onto ADSL2+ (there's "usually" a regrade charge of around £11+VAT for this). Either that, or wait for them to do a "bulk upgrade".

As for the somewhat fictitious "10 day training period" (see http://www.robertos.me.uk/html/10-day_training.html). All this does is calculate the MSR (Maximum Stable Rate) and the FTR (Fault Threshold Rate). Assuming you are on BT kit (IE. C20/C21 and not LLU), then their DLM (Dynamic Line Management) actually runs all the time.

PS. Your modem (while getting a little long in the tooth) should be ADSL2+ compatible.

Jamauk · 11 Mar 2012 at 14:10

That modem will work, I used a AM200 as an ADSL2+ modem with Sky for a few years and it worked perfectly.

Tute · 11 Mar 2012 at 15:43

So it's as simple as a phone call? Fantastic, will have to get the ball rolling then. Pity they don't just upgrade you when they do the exchange work though.

mikeo · 11 Mar 2012 at 16:03

Tute said:
So it's as simple as a phone call? .

Should be

Tute · 11 Mar 2012 at 16:04

Haha, it's BT. It's never as simple as a phone call.

Regarding what you said above, we're on BT as an ISP, not sure what kit that puts us on. When we took ADSL out many moons ago they were the only choice so that's what we went with, and if you look at the list it's probably not worth switching. They've had their ups and downs, but me threatening to withhold money a couple of years back suddenly fixed our slow speeds.

We get ~7MBit from ADSL Max, I assume this should be good for ~20MBit when upgraded?

mikeo · 11 Mar 2012 at 16:51

Tute

"Haha, it's BT. It's never as simple as a phone call." ... Indeed. Hence why I moved to an ISP (IE. Xilo/Uno broadband) that doesn't use BT's kit in our exchange! What they call "partial LLU" (IE. broadband only).

"We get ~7MBit from ADSL Max, I assume this should be good for ~20MBit when upgraded? " ... unluckily doesn't really work like that. We would need your line stats. The rx attenuation and your rx SNRM are the main thing.

Try this calculator:
http://www.kitz.co.uk/adsl/max_speed_calc.php
and feed in your downstream line attenuation. It will give you an "idea" of what you should get. But even then, it depends on what "target SNR your line can hold".

The problem with ADSL2/2+ over max, is it uses the higher frequencies to carry the extra speed (so to speak) and these are much more prone to noise issues. So basically, a lot depends on how "good" your line is. And unluckily, it's pretty much a "suck it and see" job.

And don't get me started on BT's rubbish Dynamic Line Management! Much better off with a static profile on ADSL2+ in my opinion! Again the main reason that I moved ISP.

Good luck.

Tute · 3 Apr 2012 at 20:01

Finally got around to calling them (busy month, don't ask) and been given a date of 12th April for the upgrade.

There was no charge either, we're already on Option 3 so they just moved us across. Meant starting a new 12 month contract, but I can't move anywhere so it doesn't really matter.

olibb · 4 Apr 2012 at 07:45

That's good news. Did they give you an estimated speed?

Tute · 4 Apr 2012 at 10:18

12-19MBit, probably somewhere around 17.5MBit.

Lunch_box · 4 Apr 2012 at 12:33

Tute said:
12-19MBit, probably somewhere around 17.5MBit.

I am moving over to ADSL 2+ tomorrow and was hoping to get similar speeds to you as im currently getting 7.5mbs.

Do you know what your attenuation is??

mikeo · 4 Apr 2012 at 18:33

Lunch_box said:
Do you know what your attenuation is??

Asked the same question myself

Tute · 8 Apr 2012 at 01:47

It's a right faff to get the data, currently my modem is set as a gateway and I can't access it without resetting it completely.

I tried setting it up to appear on the network, but I can't get into it, no matter what I try.

3dcandy · 8 Apr 2012 at 11:51

can you not telnet in even though it's a gateway?

Tute · 8 Apr 2012 at 13:22

Nope, it's not got an IP address, plus when I set it as a gateway it disappears off the network.

I've followed some guides on the internet but none of them work with the Apple Airport Extreme.

mikeo · 8 Apr 2012 at 13:30

Looks like it's "wait and see" then.

Good luck.

Tute · 8 Apr 2012 at 16:58

I'll go have a look tonight, it's just such a faff as I have to reset the modem, plug in and look, then reconfigure it to get it back into gateway mode.

You'd have thought that router manufacturers would have thought of this and allowed for it, but I guess ADSL users just buy something with an integrated modem anyway?

Azuse05 · 8 Apr 2012 at 18:02

This is just one of the many reasons the dg834gt is so popular still, after all these years. It just works.

However using an adsl modem with separate router is uncommon. There aren't many adsl modems out there frankly and the ones that are are, in general, poorly configured or have limited options.

mikeo · 8 Apr 2012 at 21:33

Azuse05 said:
This is just one of the many reasons the dg834gt is so popular still, after all these years. It just works.

Indeed

Speedtouch 585v6 (preferably version 6 firmware) is another classic. In fact this is what I've gone back to after trying several (including much newer / expensive models like the Billion 7800N!). The modem in the Speedtoouch just hangs on and on and on. Funny old world.

Tute · 9 Apr 2012 at 15:48

Right, got them.

Are those what you're looking for?