My dropped and slow ADSL issues seem fixed, but is this a typical repair?

[Chris Wilson]

I have posted several times about my slow and sometimes dropping ADSL connection. My problems have gone on for months at an annoying but tolerable level, but when Zen wrote saying my line is to be automatically "upgraded" at no cost then things came to a head. I posted RouterStas graphs showing lots of intermittent noise and a gradual (or sometimes sudden) drop in sync speed. I tried everything I could here, but due to ignorance missed one point, that now, addressed, seems to have effected a cure

My filtered master socket is in the loft where there is a big boarded storage area at one end of the bungalow, and my home office at the other end. The line from outside runs across 2/3rds of the roof space to the master socket. The 3 house phone lines are spurred off, and the ADSL socket in my office was taken from the ADSL port on the master socket, to another ADSL socket and separate phone socket in the office. I eventually found some improvement by running a new (Ebay cheapy) ADSL extension cable from the ADSL socket on the fascia plate of the master socket, direct to my (new, Zen sourced Technicolour TG582n) router. Things would be OK for a few days, then noise would again show and sometimes sync dropped right down, needing an exchange reset to bring things back. In desperation I decided to take the router to the master socket and plug it in using a very short ADSL cable to the ADSL front port. I then ran a long ethernet cable from router to PC. I have since enjoyed several days of totally trouble free fast speeds and low noise (save when I mismatched a transmitter to a linear amp and put a load of harmonics ridden RF into the area, this caused a huge noise spike and a dropped connection, but I feel mea culpa there!). I am now thinking of permanently hard wiring from the router by the master socket to the PC with CAT 6 cable. But before I do that is there any future in having the master socket moved to where the drop cable (up cable in my case, as the previous owner / builder of the house insisted the phone lines came across the garden underground, not overhead), comes into the property and ridding the loft space of as much in house, pre master socket cabling as possible?

Is this something many people have to do to get a stable connection? Thanks for all the great help and support here!!

 

[thenewoc]

Just had a similar experience in a fairly new property with the same router but from Plusnet. I have an external master socket which was a pain as I needed it to be a conventional nte master to fit the filter faceplate. Luckily the first extension was near to the front door and therefore the external master so I was able to change the first extension for the conventional nte type so I have the router right next to it. In essence the same principle as your describing, put the router as close as you can to the master and then ethernet from there to a faceplate or a network switch if you need several data points. Since making the change including removing the bell wire and adding the vdsl interstitial faceplate it has roughly doubled the speed from 4.5 to 9 Mbits and the connection doesn't disconnect like it used to.

I personally wouldn't want the master in the loft but you would need to speak to your telephony supplier to arrange the moving of a master socket. I'd suggest some happy medium between it being close to the cable coming into the property and the center point of where you'd be likely to want to make use of the wireless signal.

 

[Chris Wilson]

Sorry, I should have said, the network here is all hard wired, I don't like wireless, in fact it's turned off in the router menus. Thanks for the info on your situation, it sounds similar to mine. Cheers.

I can actually see the noise from local thunderstorms, there was one about 90 minutes ago here, and the noise ripples are quite noticeable, even with the router near the master socket. I suppose attenuating RF from several hundred thousand volt high amperage discharges is asking too much of the phone network. I assume it's normal? It doesn't impact sync speed or show noticeable internet connection problems

 

[Deleted member 651465]

Personally I'd terminate the master socket as close as possible to where it enters the property, then run a short ADSL cable (RJ11) to the router and a long cat6 to the nearest network point.

E.g. NTE5--Router------------------------------internal Ethernet faceplate

At least this way you're ruling out the external line as much as possible.

You'll probably find that all your ring mains run through the attic/roof space, so I'd almost maintain at least a 12-18" gap to the main, and cross at 90 degrees if necessary, to minimise electrical interference.

 

[Chris Wilson]

OK, understood, you bring up a salient point, a lot of BT cabling runs parallel to mains cables, and very close to them as well. I can address this! Thanks.