Worth trying ADSL MAX with my line...?

Richdog

Richdog

Richdog

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I am currently on a 2MB fixed ADSL (ye olde IPstream) line that is rock solid and does the job admirably for £29 a month... however with the crazy cheap O2 internet deal available i'm considering ditching the tried and tested 2MB ADSL24 connection for O2's ADSL MAX.

My stats are as follows:
  • Linksys WAG200G router
  • 3.44km straight-line distance (so probably much longer in terms of actual line length)
  • 6 downstream SNR on a good day with MAX enabled.
  • 55 downstream attenuation (I can just scrape 2MB regular ADSL)
All reports point towards me being able to get a 3MB synch speed or thereabouts... i'm just worried that my downstream SNR will screw me with MAX on it... I can see it dropping to below 2 on a regular basis, and won't that mean disconnections galore?

Question is... approximately what speeds will I get both downstream and upstream on a 3MB synch rate... and would it be enough to be worth trading a rock solid 220kb/s down and 35kb/s up regular ADSL line for? I'm considering going with an online backup storage facility so increased upload speed would be nice. I also game frequently though so an unstable MAX connection that was falling over a few times a day would be the end of me.

Cost isn't a major issue... i'd rather pay more for stability than less for hell. Should I just give it a try... or not risk what i've got?:)
 
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You could just as ADSL24 to change your package type to an ADSL Max one and give it a go for a month, a lot less hassle than changing ISP's.

Also AFAIK O2's broadband isn't ADSL Max anyway its ADSL2+ as an LLU service (they share Be's equipment in the exchange?) so it would probably give you improved speed anyway if it's available.

Edit-

Just thought I'd also mention that at my parents house they have a 5.6Km line that would previously only get 512k sync and when it got moved onto Max they now get a happy 1.6Mbit that is very stable using a Netgear router (good on poor lines because of the broadcom chipset used). And the line stats are far worse than yours :)
 
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You're 12dB over the limit for 2Mbps, so it might be worth noting that it could be a one-way trip.
If you see fluctuations in your SNR margin, you'd see disconnections and fluctuation in sync rate - if you're seeing a drop from 12dB to 3dB, you really need to straighten that out.
 
Hmm I may just stay as-is then... but regarding my attenutation, all line tests come back as saying my line is fine for 2MB.:confused:
 
Most of them will be using the one database, and it wouldn't be unheard of for the BTw DB to be wrong. It's possible your modem's misreporting too.
 
Well, just as an update MAX is now active on my line and I seem to be averaging a very healthy 3MB synch speed, making for a 2.5MB profile, and download speeds are a healthy 25% higher at peak. Best thing is I don't think i've had a single disconnection yet with the Linksys WAG200G router, and my line is appalling!

Interleaving is ON, and downstream SNR fluctuates between 0-6dba. I'm hoping it may be able to synch a bit higher, but if not and I get a stable 25% speed boost then I will be more than happy with it, not to mention the upload speeds being higher. Very pleasantly surprised so far!

Oh and I have a question... i'm considering the O2 broadband deal now that I know my line is ok with ADSL MAX but am just wondering... does ADSL2+ have any different affect on my line than say... ADSL MAX? Would ther ebe the possibility of it being a bit quicker, more stable, or the opposite?
 
Richdog said:
Oh and I have a question... i'm considering the O2 broadband deal now that I know my line is ok with ADSL MAX but am just wondering... does ADSL2+ have any different affect on my line than say... ADSL MAX? Would there be the possibility of it being a bit quicker, more stable, or the opposite?
Click to expand...
I have almost the same attenuation as you (I have 54 dB) and I get a 4 Mb sync on Max giving me a 3.5 Mb profile.

My exchange is due to be unbundled at the end of June and I'm thinking of migrating to BE when (and if) this happens as I can save over £130 a year compared to what I'm paying now!

As I understand it, we won't benefit much in the way of downstream speed due to our long lines but we should get at least twice the upstream speed on ADSL2+ which is currently 448 Kbps on Max (excluding overheads).
 
Hmm I think its downstream SNR not attenuaiton that counts with MAX... what's yours according to your router matey? :)
 
I have a NTE5 box and special ADSL filter faceplate filter running from my "old style" BT socket (which I can't legally tamper with unfortunately) straight up through the ceiling into my router. Ringwire is removed. Stats still aren't great unfortunately. :(
 
Richdog

My line is worse than yours (59 attenuation and 7Km line length!) and I started on max with a 3200 synch profile and 2.5mbit/s actual throughput. Now I'm lucky to get 1.5 to 1.8 mbit/s

What happened with mine is that I would get frequent disconnects at higher speeds and BT would raise the required SnR to give me a rock solid connection. Sadly for me rock solid = 1Mbit/s

After complaining they lowered the required SnR and I'm happy to accept the odd disconnect here and there for the extra speed (currently around 1.8mbit/s). Thats a long way off where I first started to I hope it doesn't follow that pattern for you.
 
Using a Router with a Broadcom chipset would usually give much better connection seeds - which I find astonishing and not just with exchanges equipment with broadcom as is the case with o2/BE but with exchanges with other chipsets such as Globalspan etc
o2 supply routers with this chipset Thomson speedtouch
otherwise Netgear DG834GT and DG834N

o2 use adsl2+ G.992.5 annex A which can prove more sensitive to line conditions which can be negative on long lines.
However, have you put your number into o2's checker? Your paying way way over the odds at present so a change is overdue!
Don't forget £25 back if joining by clicking thru www.quidco.co.uk and no joining fee at present.
o2 is an excellently run organisation not to be compared with a certain Telephone company that throws the bb in "free"

Here's my figures for my £7.50 a month connection taken at noon better noise SN during the day using a Thomson 780WL which I use for all of my telephone calls (www.internetcalls.com) I disconnected last evening at 2230 ish because I was connected too fast at 8750 - though this is fine during the day.


Uptime: 0 days, 13:10:18
DSL Type: G.992.5 annex A
Bandwidth (Up/Down) [kbps/kbps]: 1,256 / 7,522
Data Transferred (Sent/Received) [MB/MB]: 100.60 / 74.03
Output Power (Up/Down) [dBm]: 12.0 / 19.0
Line Attenuation (Up/Down) [dB]: 22.0 / 44.0
SN Margin (Up/Down) [dB]: 6.5 / 9.0
Vendor ID (Local/Remote): TMMB / BDCM
Loss of Framing (Local/Remote): 1 / 0
Loss of Signal (Local/Remote): 8 / 0
Loss of Power (Local/Remote): 0 / 0
Loss of Link (Remote): 0
Error Seconds (Local/Remote): 14 / 0
FEC Errors (Up/Down): 4,231 / 64,264
CRC Errors (Up/Down): 4,231 / 69
HEC Errors (Up/Down): 2,669 / 50
 
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