Speed Problems

I have Motorola Surfboard 5120, my provider is Comcast. My line speed should be 6144/384. I noticed that my download speed is not even close to what is promised by Comcast (checked w/ speed tests and w/ ftp downloads), I don't get more then 2600 kbps. I checked my wiring (the modem has a dedicated line split of the main line with a 3-way splitter before any TVs), could not find any flaw there. Before, I had DSL and there, I knew right away what was wrong w/ the line, when I got the specs from the modem, here unfortunately I don't know how to interpret it:

Downstream Value Frequency 597000000 Hz Signal to Noise Ratio 37 dB QAM QAM256 Network Access Control Object ON Power Level 9 dBmV

Upstream Value Channel ID 3 Frequency 27000000 Hz Ranging Service ID 3976 Symbol Rate 2.560 Msym/s Power Level 38 dBmV

I hoped to find a line where the modem tells w/ what rate it actually synced or any other hints about my speed but nothing.

Any suggestions?

Martin

Reply to
Martin Kusch
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depending on the site I download from my speed varies greatly. sometimes it is around 6000 other time 1500.

Reply to
BigJim

Unlike DSL, Cable bandwidth is shared by all the users who are currently online. SNR and power levels at your modem are good -both in upstream as well as downstream. pick a speedtest site (such as speakeasy.net/speedtest) and try the speedtest at different times of the day. if you consistently see low speeds you should talk to your service provider.

Reply to
none

What test did you use (URL) and what were your exact numbers ?

Reply to
$Bill

E.g.

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But in the meanwhile, I have found out that the problem is on my site. Somehow my main computer is not configured correctly, respectively my configuration Modem --> ATA --> Computer does not work together. When I just hook up my notebook directly to the Modem I get the full speed, even faster (over 6000 kbps)! So, I guess I have to find the flaw on my side now....

Martin

Reply to
Martin Kusch

Dude, DSL bandwidth is shared by all the users too. It just happens a little further into the network. A poorly engineered DSL network can suck just as bad as a poorly engineered cable network. It all depends on how the network is engineered and where the network company spends their money.

-Gary

Reply to
Gary

Are you using a router/gateway? Some forward packets better than others...

Tom's Hardware Guide

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had a comparison of several different router/gateways a while back. Look under the networking section. I was a bit suprised by the results.

Eric

Reply to
Eric

Dude, will you be able to point to some where I can get more info about the DSL bandwidth sharing?

Reply to
none

Don't know where to point you but basically all broadband networks look like inverted trees. End users are the leaves at the bottom. Things are aggregated as you move up the tree and "your" branch joins others. At every branch junction, there's almost always a sharing of bandwidth. Costs would be 10 to 1000 times what they are now if you got your full bandwidth all the way to a peering point.

And yes, network design means more than DSL vs cable. I've had both multiple times into my house and with business clients over the last, what, 8 years. I was one of the first in Raleigh with BellSouth DSL way back when. In the very early days it was great, then as their network got overloaded at the various places, performance would drop off about 1 hour after school got out, about 7 or 8 pm and about 8:30 am. Took them about a year to get things balanced for that go go away. I switched to cable after about 2 years and noticed similar slow downs. Took them about a year to get it worked out.

Currently I have a 3rd party DSL service into my home. Portbridge. Performance is almost always great. Bellsouth carries the traffic up to about the 3rd router then it gets put onto Portbridge's network. But if you're a Bellsouth residential customer you get run through a slew of routers (which implies lots of bandwidth sharing) and typically don't get nearly as good of performance as I get. Bellsouth business seems better but I don't have direct experience over the last year. Cable here in Raleigh with TWC seems great all the time just now and blows Bellsouth residential away in terms of performance.

So basically, it's up to how well the network is designed and the goals of the design.

Reply to
DLR

Thanks for the insight....that was helpful.

Reply to
none

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