To change ISP? Will this be worse?

dannyjo22

dannyjo22

dannyjo22

Caporegime
Joined
9 May 2005
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32,060
Location
Cambridge
I've had an on off issue for a few months now with my Broadband. The connection drops off and restarts and random times. The last time it was a real problem was at the start of january. If I pick the phone up during the times this is happening the line is very crackly. Sometimes using the phone will disconnect the Hub. Twice I've been through the call center and they have told me there was an exchange or line fault that has been fixed. My connection has been fine for a month but now the same is happening again.

If I talk on the phone with the crackling and then turn the Hub off the background hiss goes away and the line is fine. I've demonstrated this to the call center people.

I've changed the filters and gone through the master socket test connection and the situation is exactly the same.

Now thats with BT.

My thoughts are to ditch BT as my year contract is now up and go somewhere else. Or to just try another router to see if that helps. My worry with changing ISP is if this problem persists and the problem is with the line or exchange how will the new ISP resolve my problems?

Wouldn't it be easier to stay with BT?

Any thoughts or help?
 
Yeah stay with BT as they have more customers than anyone else + they own all the lines so u will not be better off going with anyone else i think it's the router just get a new one:)
 
NVIDIA_x64 said:
Yeah stay with BT as they have more customers than anyone else + they own all the lines so u will not be better off going with anyone else i think it's the router just get a new one:)
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I'm going to buy a new router as the hub is notorious for problems and if I do migrate it wont hurt to have my own.

If I then still get issues will BT mind me using my own? Or will I then have to plug in the HUB to troubleshoot problems?
 
NVIDIA_x64 said:
Yeah stay with BT as they have more customers than anyone else
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That doesn't mean much.

they own all the lines so u will not be better off going with anyone else
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No they don't. Openreach have control of the copper between you and the exchange, and BT Wholesale have control of the connection between you and your ISP. There's no connection between the two of them and BT Retail, the name aside.

Have you tried different filters, and/or reduced your extension wiring to nothing?
 
If you want decent tech support migrate - but if your happy for someone to read off a crib sheet and be pass from pillar to post then stay with BT
 
$anch3z said:
If you want decent tech support migrate - but if your happy for someone to read off a crib sheet and be pass from pillar to post then stay with BT
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:D

Yeah I always get that feeling, my worry was that if the problem was the exchange or line would the new ISP give me enugh support to follow that through?
 
Get a new router, at least you will be able to cross one thing off your list of causes then. Either buy one, or insist that they come round and replace their existing one.
Go cable if they cover your area, tech support just as bad, but at least you would have good bandwidth
 
edgedemon said:
Get a new router, at least you will be able to cross one thing off your list of causes then. Either buy one, or insist that they come round and replace their existing one.
Go cable if they cover your area, tech support just as bad, but at least you would have good bandwidth
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Cool thanks guys I will pick a router up today and try that. The only thing I can't really fault them on is the bandwidth. I get over 7meg down and the 400k upload. Its just the disconnects every few months and crackling line.
 
Sounds like a similar problem I had when I moved home. Took Tiscali 9 weeks to get mine sorted but it turned out the line I was on was just crap so the BT engineer connected me to another line and I've now got a good stable connection.
 
Final question, I've been looking at the SKY Broadband packages today and for the money it would probably do me. Is it likely if i'm getting 7mb with BT that I will get the same with Sky?

Also can I buy and use my own router with Sky or am I tied into the one the provide?
 
dannyjo22 said:
Final question, I've been looking at the SKY Broadband packages today and for the money it would probably do me. Is it likely if i'm getting 7mb with BT that I will get the same with Sky?

Also can I buy and use my own router with Sky or am I tied into the one the provide?
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I believe that Sky provide you with a Netgear router that you cant* change.

*cant, but can if you like using hacked firmware, but voids Sky contract iirc.
 
Should be near identical, except your actual throughput won't move in 512kbps steps (assuming you go on Sky's LLU setup, rather than Connect which uses BT Wholesale).
 
tolien said:
Should be near identical, except your actual throughput won't move in 512kbps steps (assuming you go on Sky's LLU setup, rather than Connect which uses BT Wholesale).
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I would I find out? I'm assumming it would just be the connect 8MB max service. I know I cannot get more speed than that til the exchange is upgraded in the third quarter of 09.
 
If all they offer you is Connect, you'll get exactly the same as you get now (as far as the connection between you and your ISP goes).
 
if you have a crackle on your phone line then report it as a voice fault.
then move your broadband to an enta reseller like adsl24 or titanadsl
and then relax
 
I had a line problem so ran the automated telephone line test, as I could hear crackle on the phone. It reported no issue, as did the customer service rep I spoke to, even though I could hardly hear what he was saying due to line crackle.

Requested an engineer and hoped he found something so I wouldn't have to pay the excessive callout fee and hourly rate. Turned out to be the point of connection to the house. The line connected to some ceramique style discs on a metal support arm. After line was replaced it was fine.

So I would be tempted to look at areas like this instead of a new router.
 
Bane said:
I had a line problem so ran the automated telephone line test, as I could hear crackle on the phone. It reported no issue, as did the customer service rep I spoke to, even though I could hardly hear what he was saying due to line crackle.

Requested an engineer and hoped he found something so I wouldn't have to pay the excessive callout fee and hourly rate. Turned out to be the point of connection to the house. The line connected to some ceramique style discs on a metal support arm. After line was replaced it was fine.

So I would be tempted to look at areas like this instead of a new router.
Click to expand...

Interesting, the thing though is twice this has happened before after a solid initial 6 months. Both times it was fixed and they claimed they found a fault at the exchange.

The thing that annoyed me the last time was they booked an engineer to come out on a thursday. The problem mysteriously rectified itself on the wednesday so my wife and I debated whether or not to cancel the engineer.

In the end we did late wednesday night. The thursday afternoon they then phoned us to tell us they found a fault at the exchange that was fixed. I wonder if they would have told me that if they sent the engineer on the thursday. I'm thinking not and I would have been shy of £130.

They know it's a problem because I've had support on the phone with the crackle and said "now listen as I switch the hub off" clear line.

I've ordered some new filters, I will try them then get back on the phone. My contract runs out in april I will switch then once I'm sorted.
 
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