Phone-type cable question

[Denholm]

I'm supposed to get 768 Kbps and should be able to upload at 384 Kbps.

The speakeasy speed test reveals something similar. It says my download speed is 670 Kbps and my upload speed is 316 Kbps. Then when the test finishes it gives me this message:

Last Result:
Download Speed: 670 kbps (83.8 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 316 kbps (39.5 KB/sec transfer rate)

[OOZ662]

The AT&T support person I was talking to figures the problem lies with the CAT5 cables running behind my refrigerator. He claims the refrigerator causes EMI (Electromagnetic Interference) and to reverse it I need to move the modem and the cables 2 or more feet away from the refrigerator.

Get a "shielded" cable. They shouldn't be too much more expensive and the twisted pairs are wrapped in fancy foil that removes or greatly lessens EMI. Not much you can do about a modem being too close, although I don't see why that would have any effect. Signals inside the modem itself aren't traveling that far.

EDIT: Earlier someone mentioned running CAT5 cable up/down between floors. Make sure you use specific non-wicking cable. Not only does it meet building codes, but regular CAT5 wrapping will burn quickly like a fuse up to the next floor of your house. Non-wicking is just that; it'll burn and puddle until it puts itself out.

[Fulmar]

I'm supposed to get 768 Kbps and should be able to upload at 384 Kbps.

The speakeasy speed test reveals something similar. It says my download speed is 670 Kbps and my upload speed is 316 Kbps. Then when the test finishes it gives me this message:

Last Result:
Download Speed: 670 kbps (83.8 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 316 kbps (39.5 KB/sec transfer rate)

You have to realize, that though your plan says "768kb down and 384kb up" the fine print will say something like these speeds are not always obtainable or this is the maximum speed allowed.  There are several major reasons for this.  #1 Distance to your DSL probider's hub.  #2 Distance/routing to the server you're testing to.  #3 Traffic on the DSL providers network/backbone.

I use ATT DSL and pay for 3mb down and 768kb up.  During peak traffic hours I use Charter Internet's speedtest website and will register 2.5-2.8mb down and 700kb up.  At 3am I get maybe 3mb and 768kb.  http://speedtest.charter.com

I've used Speakeasy's test before and always registered lower speeds than say when I could get from downloading a file from a different site.  For me, the Charter test always seemed more accurate.

The variances you are getting Delholm are pretty small.  If you were getting say 256 kbps speeds, I'd raise an eyebrow.  I had a friend who moved to a new city and signed up for at the time Yahoo DSL.  He was actually too far away from their hub (they didn't tell him) and his 1.5mb DSL service was as slow as dial-up.

I'm not so sure the EMI from the fridge is causing such an issue.  It may, it's tough to say.  I've ran cable through more EMI rich enviroments before with unshielded cable and didn't notice any real difference.

[Denholm]

Well I've confirmed that EMI isn't the issue. Its either on AT&T's end or whoever wired the house did it incorrectly. People next door (who also use AT&T) have Internet that's cheaper and they have speed 40x faster than mine. So its definitely not because I'm "out-of-range".

I'll call AT&T sometime asking them to come down and check the lines, because this is sickening. $50 a month for 82 Kbps. Absolutely pathetic.

[Fulmar]

$50 for that?  Why so much?  I pay $30 for my 3mb DSL through ATT.

[Denholm]

We got the DSL a few years back when the company was still SBC. Apparently at the time DSL was just being installed in the area which meant the monthly charges would be higher. Still consulting with my Father to buy a new package from AT&T that gets us the Pro package for $35 a month.

[Fulmar]

We got the DSL a few years back when the company was still SBC. Apparently at the time DSL was just being installed in the area which meant the monthly charges would be higher. Still consulting with my Father to buy a new package from AT&T that gets us the Pro package for $35 a month.

If you sign up online I believe the prices are $5 cheaper.  So pro is $30, not $35.  However, this may be to new customers (like I was) and you're technically transferring to a new plan.  You may be able to talk India down to $30.

[Denholm]

Tried, however when I go to the "transfer" portion of their website to buy their Pro Internet Package, it says it can't locate a DSL account on our telephone number, although it did earlier when I was registering as a new customer.

[Denholm]

Alright. So now I've resolved the bill issue. I'll wait until the service switches to have AT&T check the lines.

[2bighorn]

I'm about to order another cable to do this, but before I do. Does this sound right to you?

To solve the problem you have to know what/where the problem is. Plug your DSL modem into your phone jack (the one which is closest to the place where your line comes into house) with the shortest possible cable.
Connect your modem and PC with shortest possible patch cable. Test your conection/speed. If it's significantly higher, then your cabling from phone jack all the way to PC, sucks.

If it's about the same, then either you're too far from the main office, or your house phone cabling is bad.

[2bighorn]

I'm supposed to get 768 Kbps and should be able to upload at 384 Kbps.

The speakeasy speed test reveals something similar. It says my download speed is 670 Kbps and my upload speed is 316 Kbps. Then when the test finishes it gives me this message:

Last Result:
Download Speed: 670 kbps (83.8 KB/sec transfer rate)
Upload Speed: 316 kbps (39.5 KB/sec transfer rate)

Nothing wrong with that. 670 Kbps + overhead = slightly less than advertised 768 Kbps.
You're seeing the problem where there isn't any...

[Denholm]

...or your house phone cabling is bad.

That sounds about right. Because if you had read the entire thread you would've noticed that I went from a 100FT phone line to a 25FT phone line. After running a speed test the only difference was our Internet speed increasing by 2 Kbps.

[2bighorn]

That sounds about right. Because if you had read the entire thread you would've noticed that I went from a 100FT phone line to a 25FT phone line. After running a speed test the only difference was our Internet speed increasing by 2 Kbps.

Judging by your speed test you don't have any problems.

Your advertised speed is in kilobits per second. 768 kbps to be exact. That's where your modem is capped at.

The way how DSL works, you have certain overhead. Usually ATM + PPoE + TCP/IP. With PPPoE your combined overhead would be about 15%. Without about 13%, so max data transfer (payload) would be about 87% in best case.

The speed shown on your speed test is pure data throughput without overhead.
Your result shows 670 kilobits per second, which is slightly over 87% of your advertised 768 kilobits per second.

That means your connection is nearly perfect.

As for "83.8 KB/sec transfer rate", that's your speed in kilobytes.  1 byte is 8 bits. 670 / 8 =  83.75 or 83.8

KB=kilobyte
kb = kilobit


You don't have any problems. Don't bug AT&T support. Let them use that time to help people who really need support.

[Denholm]

Ah, never knew that. And to make you feel better. I never asked them to come out and perform a line-test. I was going to wait until they switched us to the new servers this Monday, run a speed test, and if the results are similar (speed is slower, much slower than advertised) I would ask them to come out and check the lines to find the problem.

Well, thanks for the information.

[OOZ662]

The problem is when people use the abbreviations. It's hard to tell any more if people really know the difference between b and B. Makes helping on a forum somewhat more of a task. Sorry I didn't realize you were confused sooner.