Broadband -cable/lead length

LucianH

Live in the sticks but have finally managed to get a Broad Band reasonable performance by switching to LLU (recently enabled in the exchange). Modem says speed is 9mbps, BBC iPlayer BB Speed test on a wired LAN PC shows approx 7.5mbps.

However, the problem I have is that the position of the Phone Socket (and hence the modem) is right in the corner of our house which means that the wifi reception is only "good" as opposed to "excellent" in some of the main rooms where we have Laptops and Smart TV. So first question is - does this matter? What's the impact of having a only "good" as opposed to "excellent" and does it reduce the bandwidth?

The second question relates to moving the modem. I could move it to the other side of one of the internal (thick brick) walls, where it'll be more central in the house, but I will need to use a 10m RJ11 to BT lead. Will a "standard" (ie, cheapo Amazon) lead have any impact on the BB speed or is there such a thing as a higher quality screened lead.

Gut feel says that, since the cable run from exchange to my socket in the house is a few miles then a few metres ain't going to have much effect - with the exception that there's going to be more interference from domestic appliances inside the house.

So the overiding trade-off question - stick with reduced WiFi reception or increase the phone lead length to the modem.

Advice would be much appreciated

[Deleted User]

LucianH wrote: »

So the overiding trade-off question - stick with reduced WiFi reception or increase the phone lead length to the modem.

There are so many variables with Wi Fi that it's impossible to say for certain whether your proposal will improve your current connection. One thing is for sure, it won't cost a lot to do as you say, so it will probably be worth the experiment.

kwikbreaks

The problem with using plugin extensions isn't the minimal extra attenuation it's the fact that they carry a ring wire which will be connected via the ring capacitor in your master socket to one side of the ADSL pair. The electrical noise pickup on that ringwire could well result in a reduced sync.

As you are only getting 7.5Mbps data rate it's quite likely that less than perfect WiFi will still be fast enough that you don't see a reduction. This will be especially true if you have N WiFi.

As you are on LLU rather than BT based ADSL you are unlikely to be penalised for days with a lower IP profile just because you tried it out and caused a lower speed resync so by all means do it if you want to.

Owain_Moneysaver

Leave the modem where it is and run an ethernet cable to a wireless access point in a more suitable location.

If you must use a telephone extension then install a proper permanent wired extension with CW1308 spec cable and extend only pins 2 and 5, omitting the bell wire as mentioned above. Most of the extension leads are flat cable which isn't twisted and will be vulnerable to interference.

LucianH

Moneyineptitude wrote: »

One thing is for sure, it won't cost a lot to do as you say, so it will probably be worth the experiment.

kwikbreaks wrote: »

As you are on LLU rather than BT based ADSL you are unlikely to be penalised for days with a lower IP profile just because you tried it out and caused a lower speed resync so by all means do it if you want to.

It's not quite as easy to try it since I'll have to drill the hole throught the wall.

kwikbreaks - what do you mean by "lower IP profile"?

If I did move the modem the set up will be: BT socket with build in splitter (NTE5 Master Socket?) to which will be connected the phone and then the 10m RJ11 to BT lead connecting the modem straight to the socket.

LucianH

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

omitting the bell wire as.

I believe the bell wire is already disconnected at the NTE5 Master Socket.

Lifeforms

I get around the wifi by using an access point. I just run a long cable to where it's best located.

Have you considered home plugs, you can get a wifi one to put in a better area, and a standard wired net from the router?

Drilling holes is drastic just to move the wifi signal a wee bit. But it'd be the cheapest option. Remember to pick a drill bit wide enough to actually fit the network cable plug through too. This is usually wider than the cable. Also before insertion, through the drilled hole, of any plug tape the end up totally, or clingfilm it a few times so it is protected from any dust or debris that it might catch as it goes through.

If it were me, I'd investigate home plugs as a more permanent solution, or an access point. (could even be an old wifi router that you might already have at home)

kwikbreaks

Lower IP profile - The BTw line management routines set maximum speed possible in steps which are based on the sync speed. A lower sync will result in an immediately reduced maximum speed. It can take several days after a resync at higher speed for the profile to be raised. If there are too many resyncs the line management can set a higher target noise margin which results in a lower sync. It takes several weeks of stability to recover from that. LLU operators in the main do not operate DLM (dynamic line management) and instead just deliver speeds in line with sync.

Ring wire - unless you have one of the newer BT master sockets or have fitted an iPlate the socket on the front of your master socket will have an unfiltered ring wire connector and fitting a plug in extension will connect the extension ring wire to it.

I'd suggest you test your speeds over wireless using a laptop in each of the rooms you are concerned with before going to any trouble or expense. I suspect that you'll find you can get your maximum ADSL rate anyway. The only reason you may want to improve the WiFi is if you have a home network linking the machines and want fast file transfers between them.

http://www.thinkbroadband.com/speedtest.html is a reliable speedtester

kwikbreaks

Just spotted

LucianH wrote: »

If I did move the modem the set up will be: BT socket with build in splitter (NTE5 Master Socket?) to which will be connected the phone and then the 10m RJ11 to BT lead connecting the modem straight to the socket.

I'm not sure what faceplate you are using. The standard NTE5 faceplate has no splitter. If you have a filtered faceplate the phone socket has no ADSL signal on it so you can't run a router off it. You could use a longer cable to connect the router to the ADSL output socket but that won't involve any BT phone type plug and won't be a standard phone extension cable.

macman

Leave the router in situ and use Homeplugs where the signal is unacceptable.

Oblivion

macman wrote: »

Leave the router in situ and use Homeplugs where the signal is unacceptable.

That certainly solved a similar situation as the OP's for me. My wireless router is in one far corner of the property so signal to rooms at the other end was minimal and out in the back garden, impossible.

I bought a Devolo starter kit (you can add extra plugs if you really need them). It's brilliant. Master plug simply plugs into a mains socket near your router and is connected to the router by a Lan lead. The other plug can go into any other mains socket in the property (the flexibility of this is superb in that you can just move the plug into the room you want to work) and will communicate with the router via the mains wiring and transmit the signal. I've got mine set up as a separate network ID (SSID) but you can set it to be integrated with your existing SSID so that you still have only one network, but now it's a boosted one.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00472MMC6/ref=wms_ohs_product?ie=UTF8&psc=1