Should I switch to Virgin?

Hollie_Rose_2

I have had sky for a while and am currently using their internet too. The internet keeps cutting out which I could do with getting rid of and I was wondering whether I should switch to Virgin as I have been told it is cheaper with a large variety of channels. Not only this, I go to V Festival and will be this year and I have been told Virgin customers get first dibs on tickets, Is this true? help!

spike7451

Cable broadband is more stable that DSL broadband as it comes over your CATV service rather than your phoneline if it is installed & set up correctly.When it's installed you should make sure the installer checks the signal levels at the modem point & adjusts it if needed with attenuators or forward path jellybeans (not the sweety kind!)
Same goes for the V+ boxes as the above,both Sky & VM have their plus & minuses,they have a greater choice of on demand than Sky but not as many HD channels.
As for the V Festival,dont know about that one.

Spike (ex VM Engineer)

Hollie_Rose_2

Ah thank you very much! hmm see it is a difficult choice because I love having all the channels but quite often I like to watch a film on the TV and there never seems to be anything that I like on Sky. I will definitely take this into consideration when making my decision! And I wasn't at home when the Sky was installed, so I am wondering whether maybe I should give them a ring and ask for them to come and check the signal levels at the modem (because I am not too good with DIY unfortunately).

lucylucky

In the first instance I would get Sky to sort out your internet connection, after all you are paying for it.

If you are a movie fan you might be interested in this

http://www.sky.com/shop/tv/anytime-plus/

macman

if you give some proper info about the issue with your internet problem, then maybe more help can be given-'internet keeps cutting out' does not really give us any clues...
You seem to be assuming it is a Sky problem, but based on the info above, nothing you have said supports that-it could be your router, filters, internal wiring, PC etc.

Hollie_Rose_2

Ah I'm just confused, I'm not too good with all these things. Thank you both. I will have a look at the link you provided luckylucky

spike7451

Hollie_Rose wrote: »

Ah thank you very much! hmm see it is a difficult choice because I love having all the channels but quite often I like to watch a film on the TV and there never seems to be anything that I like on Sky. I will definitely take this into consideration when making my decision! And I wasn't at home when the Sky was installed, so I am wondering whether maybe I should give them a ring and ask for them to come and check the signal levels at the modem (because I am not too good with DIY unfortunately).

That would be a waste of time simply because Sky's installers (they don't have engineers,just monkeys! (I worked for them after redundency from NTL/VM & hated it!)
You might get 1 or 2 who are computer savvy but the rest could write what they know about broadband on the back of a very very small stamp.

What you need to do is call Sky broadband technical support.You will be put thru to their Tier 1 line.Go thru the troubleshooting,should take about 10 minutes.After that,ask for your fault ticket number & to be put thru to Tier 2 (or what they are called now,I worked for them after Sky installs)
Only Tier 2 have the facilities to diagnose & fix your fault,if they tell you they'll call you back,insist to be put thru as,unlike when I was there,Tier 1 & Tier 2 are inbound only now & cannot call out.
Oh,& if you get thru to the Tier 1 Phillapines call canter...HANG UP!! They are f***** USELESS!!!:mad:
Tier 1 & Tier 2 are mostly in Belfast & Londonderry.
Oh,and ask the agents for their Chordiant ID & make a note of it,much easier to track down who you were talking to!

Hollie_Rose_2

spike7451 wrote: »

That would be a waste of time simply because Sky's installers (they don't have engineers,just monkeys! (I worked for them after redundency from NTL/VM & hated it!)
You might get 1 or 2 who are computer savvy but the rest could write what they know about broadband on the back of a very very small stamp.

Oh that bit did make me chuckle!! I will definitely take your advice. It is a nightmare that they say they will ring back in a circumstance where they are actually unable to! Well, I will certainly know now!

thank you so so much I didn't have a clue about this before.. You have been so helpful! thank you! and thank you for the laugh as well. :T

Hollie_Rose_2

macman wrote: »

if you give some proper info about the issue with your internet problem, then maybe more help can be given-'internet keeps cutting out' does not really give us any clues...
You seem to be assuming it is a Sky problem, but based on the info above, nothing you have said supports that-it could be your router, filters, internal wiring, PC etc.

It's only since I have had sky that my internet stops working for some time, and then will start again as normal.. I have been waiting to see if it will start working and just stay that way.. That's why I assume it must be a problem related to sky since I have only had that problem since I have been with them.. I will definitely get them to sort it out luckylucky, that's if I don't decide to switch altogether.

macman

You need to give more info-what do you mean by 'stops working'? What error message do you get?
How are you connecting-ethernet or wireless?
What model of router/modem?
Do you have known good ADSL filters on all your active extensions, including your Sky box (the latter is often forgotten)?
Have you tried testing while connected to the BT test socket behind the master socket faceplate?-this isolates any fault on your internal wiring.
All the above need to be checked first in order to eliminate any fault on your own equipment and wiring. If Sky call out Openreach to you and the fault is on your side of the master socket, then you will be charged a call out fee of £130 minimum.

spike7451

Hollie_Rose wrote: »

It's only since I have had sky that my internet stops working for some time, and then will start again as normal.. I have been waiting to see if it will start working and just stay that way.. That's why I assume it must be a problem related to sky since I have only had that problem since I have been with them.. I will definitely get them to sort it out luckylucky, that's if I don't decide to switch altogether.

Your set up should look something like this:
http://i38.tinypic.com/33o5pvo.jpg