BT Broadband Problems...

SoAdCrAzY · 2 Jul 2015 at 22:04

The connection on this computer is rubbish. I have BT Unlimited wireless and used to get (on speedtest.net) around 2mb/s which wasn't that fast but at least I could watch things.

As of the last few weeks, I have only been able to get about 0.20mb/s.

I have spoken to many BT staff but got no where. I've replaced microfilters etc.

Now, someone has said that they have probably slowed my speed down in order to get me to upgrade. However, I am now wondering if a fibre optic wireless connection would improve things?

I cannot get a wired connection as the PC is too far away.

SoAdCrAzY · 2 Jul 2015 at 22:22

bremen1874 said:
You should really test with a wired connection as a first step. Even relatively long Ethernet cables are cheap to buy.

My phone is connected wirelessly and that is slow even when I am right next to the router. If I do get a long ethernet cable just to check and everything is as fast as it should be, what then?

SoAdCrAzY · 2 Jul 2015 at 22:39

bremen1874 said:
If the speed is normal with a wired connection then you'll know it's a wireless problem you're dealing with. If it's still slow you'll know that it's a WAN side broadband issue.

Have you checked the line stats the router is reporting?

If you have FTTC available to you (eg BT Infinity) then it'll almost certainly be much faster than your existing connection.

It says that my internet speed on the BT Home Hub troubleshooting page is 286kbps.

Do you still recommend trying a wired connection?

SoAdCrAzY · 2 Jul 2015 at 22:45

MeFox said:
use a laptop, and their 1.2 m lan cable provided to do the test, also do a ping -t google.com and post it here whit cable and one on wireless

I'm afraid I do not have a laptop any more but I have ordered a long ethernet cable and will post them results when it comes.

SoAdCrAzY · 2 Jul 2015 at 23:23

bremen1874 said:
What the router is reporting matches what you're getting on speedtest.net. Testing with a cable is still a good step but it'll probably just confirm that it's a WAN issue.

Do you have any noise on the line or other phone related problems?

What are the full line stats from the router?

Have you tried using the test socket on the master socket?

There is no noise on the phone line.

Do you mean you'd like to know all the information from the troubleshooting page?

thenewoc said:
You could try redoing the termination of the A and B IDC's on the master socket. I assume your router is plugged into the master socket? Also could try removing the bell wire if it's been terminated in the master socket. Adding a vdsl faceplate to the master socket could help also. Are there any other telephone extensions in the property?

I'm not too sure what most of that means I'm sorry. There is only one telephone line in the house with 2 telephones and the router attached.

SoAdCrAzY · 8 Jul 2015 at 22:04

So, I have got a long ethernet cable and tried a speed test with it connected. I'm getting similar results. I think I should just upgrade to BT Infinity (which is actually 80p cheaper than what I am currently paying).

SoAdCrAzY · 8 Jul 2015 at 22:41

thebennyboy said:
What does it say in your ADSL stats?

1. Product name: BT Home Hub
2. Serial number: +058720+NQ25113978
3. Firmware version: Software version 4.7.5.1.83.8.94.1.37 (Type A) Last updated 20/05/14
4. Board version: BT Home Hub 3.0A
5. ADSL uptime: 0 days, 07:56:22
6. Bandwidth: 1148 / 286
7. Data sent/received: 0.0 / 0.2
8. Broadband username: [email protected]
9. BT FON: Yes
10. Wireless network/SSID: BTHub3-XG77
11. Wireless connections: Enabled, (802.11 b/g/n (Recommended)) 20 MHz, WPS enabled
12. Wireless security: WPA and WPA2
13. Wireless channel: Automatic / 1
14. Firewall: Default
15. MAC Address: 7c:03:d8:50:20:30
16. VPI/VCI: 0 / 38
17. Line profile: Interleaved
18. Software variant: -
19. Boot loader: -

SoAdCrAzY · 10 Jul 2015 at 10:57

I will not have a chance to have an engineer come round to install Infinity for another month so I thought I better try and resolve this problem in the mean time.

Do you recommend me contacting BT through the live chat and telling them I ave found out there is a problem on my line (after checking the stats)?

SoAdCrAzY · 10 Jul 2015 at 13:20

MissChief said:
Problem with live chat is they'll need to run a line test which will drop your internet connection. They should have an '03' support number which should be included in any free minutes you get on your mobile?

Okay thank you. I'll look into that.

SoAdCrAzY · 11 Jul 2015 at 12:43

I have just spoken to someone. They ran some tests and nothing worked. They told me to unscrew the cover off of my phone line socket and use the test socket to see if that helps but I couldn't unscrew the cover! It seemed really hard to unscrew like it was really stuck in. It didn't help that the socket is underneath a table and really awkward to get to.

They have said that they can send an engineer around to see but he could charge £130 if he finds a fault. So I said that surely it'll be cheaper to upgrade to BT Infinity and get an engineer to come around for £35?

SoAdCrAzY · 11 Jul 2015 at 16:42

Would you advise getting an engineer round to sort out my line before I upgrade to BT Infinity?

SoAdCrAzY · 12 Jul 2015 at 11:32

Tealc said:
You didn't post the most important line stats information...

Line attenuation, expressed in dB. For your initial line speed I estimate a 60dB+ figure.

Signal to Noise Ratio, or SNR, also expressed in dB.

Which type of master socket do you have? Is the socket the type where you have the BT jack right slap bang in the middle, or perhaps one where it is in the lower section?

Your line speed readings are wierd though. 2Mbit download and basically no upload going to 1/4Mbit download and almost 1Mbit up.

I doubt BT would restrict anyone on 2Mbit to get them to upgrade. 2Mbit is reason enough to upgrade to FTTC.

Sorry I can't find that information. I have an NTE5 socket which has a face plate on the top part. I have an engineer coming around on Thursday to take a look.

SoAdCrAzY · 17 Jul 2015 at 10:05

So, an engineer didn't turn up yesterday. I'm trying to work out another appointment. I hate BT.

SoAdCrAzY · 18 Jul 2015 at 11:40

This is my situation:

I have told my nan that we should go with Virgin as it's cheaper and faster. She has said no as she's been with BT since 1960. I tried re-booking the engineer but had to go through all the same tests and questions again. Should I just forget it and upgrade to BT Infinity. It will be much quicker and I'm going to at some point anyway!

[EDIT]

Would the best option be to to call customer services and tell them that I want to upgrade (maybe get a discount?)?

SoAdCrAzY · 29 Jul 2015 at 21:52

*bump* Magically today my internet has returned back to normal speed! I'm not sure if my email claiming that I would cancel my account and contact Ofcom helped!

I still am going to try and be reimbursed for the month I paid for but was unable to use the internet.