Charter Cable Broadband Support Problems

In my experience, Charter Communications has the worst broadband, cable internet service of any company I've ever dealt with. Their tech support has been lousy. I just moved into a new apartment and the only cable broadband available in the area was from Charter. From day one the service has been terrible. My supposedly "always on, always connected" Motorola SURFboard SB5120 cable modem has to be reset 50 times a day because the cable signal is too weak to keep a connection. I've even had a Charter technician sent to my home to try and fix the problem to no avail. He simply replaced the cable running into my house and tweaked something on the line outside. Before he left, the technician assured me that he would call me the following Monday to check and see if what he did helped fix the problem. And, of course, he never called and the problem is still going.

So, in frustration I've had to call Charter back several more times. This last time, the support person told me that my cable modem was probably going bad and that I would have to purchase a new one. I told him that this was ridiculous because I just paid $75 for the one I have and it's only 6 weeks old. What a rip-off! Charter expects me to buy another expensive modem within 6 weeks of service. I think I'm going to try DSL and give up on Charter Communications once and for all. I'm very disappointed in their service.

Reply to
silverfishbookstore
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Did you give them your signal levels to show them it wasn't the modem ? What are you signal levels ?

Reply to
$Bill

Could it be the modem? I hear more complaints from people about having to reset the 5120 modems than the 5100. I just got cable internet service this week and I have to reset the new 5120 I got daily. Usually people have to start doing this after a year or two.

Reply to
Raldolpho

You don't mention where you are, but here (Ft. Worth, Tx.) Charter service is very good. Even large companies are greatly affected by the quality (or lack of it) of local management.

As for your problem, why not just tell Charter to install a rental modem, and if that fixes the problem, return your purchased one for a refund. In the several years I have had cable internet service, I have been through 8 modems. They really don't last very long, so renting seems to be the best bet, at least in this area where thunderstorms are the rule, rather than the exception. Note that just because your modem is new, that doesn't mean it is working properly.

Reply to
Ron Hunter

Hey check this Motorola website. It will tell you your cable signal level and all kinds of other stuff like modems errors.

http://192.168.100.1 Click on "Signal" to check your signal levels.

Also, Motorola sells a cable signal booster that people on the CircuitCity.com website have reviewed as excellent (which is where I got the website above). It is on sale now for $79.99 (normally $99) plus a $30 rebate for a final cost of $49.99. Lots of good reviews. Increases the signal up to 32 times and rated for 15 Db gain.

One guy checked his signal at the website above without the booster and it was -17Db. When he put the booster in his signal was -2Db for a 15Db gain as the booster is rated.

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I may pick up one of the boosters as I have several splits in my house and picture is degraded at some TV's.

Hope this helps.

Reply to
Raldolpho

Reply to
Raldolpho

That's not a website, that's your modem. Each modem has a small built-in webserver to display status etc.

Reply to
$Bill

Oh okay, cool. Thanks.

Reply to
Raldolpho

I contacted Motorola and they were more than happy to warranty and replace the cable modem at no cost to me (except shipping of course). It arrived a couple of days ago and I haven't had any connectivity issues since swapping the modem out. I guess the modem was bad all along, but that still doesn't excuse Charter from trying to con me into buying a second modem from them at full retail cost when my existing modem wasn't two months old.

The Motorola technician had me check my modem power levels and logs. They showed the following:

Downstream Signal to Noise 32db Power Level -7 dBmV (she said it should be between -15 and 15)

Upstream Power Level 31 dBmV

I also had 12 Priority 3 Critical Errors: No Maintenance Broadcasts for Ranging opportunities received - T2 time-out

I must say that I'm very pleased with Motorola's technical/customer support service. They were a lot more accommodating that Charter. That's for sure!

BTW. I'm speaking of Charter's service and support in the Knoxville/Chattanooga TN area.

Reply to
silverfishbookstore

Charter service (and probably that of other cable companies) varies quite a bit around the country. Ours is good, at least right now.

Reply to
Ron Hunter

I had a similar bad experience with Charter Internet.

In the morning I noticed my Internet connection stopped working so I called Charter. They had an announcement stating there were problems in my area.

That evening it still wasn't working. I called Charter and spoke with someone. He said there were no problems. I bought my own Motorola modem (same model as was currently being installed), so I asked if it could be a problem with my modem. I was told no, it was probably a connection problem.

They sent someone out the next day and verified that I was receiving a good signal to the house (but nobody was home so they couldn't check inside).

That evening I called again and they said there was nothing wrong with the connection coming into the house. I asked again if it could be a problem with my modem and was told no.

A couple days later they sent two technicians over in the afternoon when I was home. I asked them, could it be a problem with my modem. I was told "highly unlikely". I asked if they could try a different modem to be sure. They told me they would check some other things first. After they tested a bunch of things outside and in, 3 hours later, they tried a different modem and it worked.

So they told me my modem was bad and they would have to charge me for a 3 hour service call (I think they said it was $75 an hour) because it was a problem with my hardware. They told me if I signed up for the inside wire maintenance they wouldn't have to charge me.

I called Motorola because the modem was still under warranty. They told me I should have called them first because they could have analyzed the logs to find the problem. But they sent me a new modem for a small shipping fee.

I could go on and on about how bad I think Charter service is. My most recent is with the Moxi DVR. The brochure makes it sound like the high-def channels will be included in the DVR fee. I asked the local customer service rep about it when I visited the local office. She did some research and told me yes, it includes all the available high-def channels.

I schedule an install (they won't let you install it yourself). The installer hooked it up using the S-Video connection. I asked why he didn't use the high-def connection. He said my TV didn't have it. I showed him the two connections it has.

I only get the local high-def channels (NBC, CBS, and ABC). No FOX high-def because the local FOX channel wants to charge Charter extra. Charter doesn't want to pay but yet they charge me extra for the high-def channels! I asked why I wasn't getting all the high-def channels. They want an extra $6.99 monthly for those!

I called and explained the brochure and was told he didn't have a brochure so there was nothing he could do.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

Jeff, The modem thing is YOUR FAULT. First, you owned the modem, second, you didn't try another modem, and you didn't apply common trouble shooting techniques that would have pointed to the modem.

Now the DVR thing seems to be a communications problem within Charter. When mine was installed, I got all the premium (not HD) channels for 6 months, at no extra charge. So WHY are you carping about paying for the HD channels?

Reply to
Ron Hunter

Thanks for the feedback Ron!

I don't see how the modem thing can be my fault. Sure I own the modem, but I can't try another modem unless it is provisioned first. And I don't have any spares just laying around.

And I did try common trouble-shooting techniques that would have pointed to the modem. That's why I asked Charter customer service multiple times if the problem could be with my modem.

I'm carping about having to pay for the HD channels because they told me they would be included in the DVR fee, they told me I would get them at no extra cost.

Jeff

Reply to
Jeff

Your modem problems are the reason I have always rented the modem. I believe the current one is number 8 or 9. That should give you some idea. If the modem is theirs, they have no reason to complain about changing it. Next time insist the person who comes out change the modem, if the symptoms seem to indicate that could be the problem, if for no other reason to eliminate that as a possibility. Basic trouble shooting.

As for the DVR and HD, did you get it in writing? If not, well, next time, DO.

BTW, it isn't perfect, but the DVR is the best thing to happen to television since the remote control.

Reply to
Ron Hunter

I have noticed that i'm a little late on this topic but i hae been fighting with charter for the past month trying to get my internet fixed. I have had more problems than i care to describe and it is getting to the point of wanting to change providers.

i had the same problem with the sb5120 disconnecting. i was told to replace the modem wich was only about 2 weeks old tops. i did that, still nothing. so they sent someone out. all the signals checked out .. but the modem was disconnecting every 2 minutes even while the tech guy was here.. when he left the modem still didn't work. he had no answers for me... now i have down graded back to my old modem and my internet that was running in the 3 mbp/s range is now running in the 3 kbp/s range ..... and i sure as hell dont pay charter for high speed dial up.....

to sum things up .. if i had a choice i would use comcast or roadrunner .. and i am even thinking about dsl.. ( YUCK :puke: )

Reply to
Samuel_Braid

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