New Sky User (well, ordered tonight!)

[gorebrush]

Hi all.

Just like to say that I have placed an order for Sky Broadband and Talk, both unlimited.

Sky claim to be able to only provide 3.5Mbps for my line, but I beg to differ. My current line stats are below - and yes, I am aware that the calculation for ADSL2+ attenuation is slightly different and I should expect a few more dB's

Connection time
2 days, 1:31:27

Downstream
8,128 Kbps (Yes, I'm on ADSL Max at the moment, yet I can ONLY, EVER, download at 300KB/s. Funny, that only 2-3 months ago, that this was 850KB/s and to be fair to BT Broadband, for the 2 years previous to this - it was running at 850KB/s whenever I used it)

Upstream
448 Kbps

Noise margin (Down/Up)
10.3 dB / 24.0 dB

Line attenuation (Down/Up)
23.0 dB / 13.0 dB

Output power (Down/Up)
19.8 dBm / 12.3 dBm

I would have liked to provided the SNR - but the BT HomoHub appears not to display it. (Unless this is "Noise Margin" above)

I have seen 22.0dB line attenuation however.

In preparation (and in order to maximise my line before Sky even touches it) I have a new ADSL faceplate on order (ADSL Nation) which I installed at my dad's house, and he enjoys 16Mb ADSL through Sky

If anyone can agree that my line should be capable of much more than 3.5Mbps, I'd be obliged.



As an aside. Here's a synopsis of the 20 minute (yes, 20 whole minutes) conversation that I had to endure with BT Broadband in order to get a MAC code. Their attitude was awful. Granted they want to keep their customers, but jesus, don't treat me like I don't know what I'm talking about...

(and yes, I then found out that I didn't need the MAC code...)

"oh, but Sky uses the same lines, so the speed will not be any better" - Not true. My line stats are good for 17Mb on Sky LLU, Thanks.

...two minute wait while he thinks of the next argument...

"oh, but when you connect to Sky, you still go through the same exchange, and it's all BT Wholesale equipment, you'll have a contention ratio...." - I interrupted him and informed the kind gentleman that I happen to know quite a lot about DSL and how it works. I stopped before I said I could probably subnet him under the table so don't talk to me about contention ratios, but with the wife sitting next to me telling me not to get arsey (and I was getting really irritated), I thought the better of it

...two minute wait while he thinks of the next argument...

"oh, but Sky has an FUP" - Urr, no they don't. "BT doesn't have an FUP, we are truly unlimited" - Ahh yes, but you perform traffic management on P2P and heavy users - No Thanks

...two minute wait while he thinks of the next argument...

"oh, but you are a valued BT customer, we give you free 0845 and 0870 calls, Sky won't" - Ahh yes, but we make so FEW calls of these nature I don't care "oh, but it's free" - Yes, no really, I still don't care, where's my MAC code?

...two minute wait while he thinks of the next argument...

"oh, but BT will offer fibre broadband in September" - Ahh yes, but it's still with BT!

"oh, but Sky won't do fibre" - Ahh yes, they will eventually.

...two minute wait while he thinks of the next argument...

"oh, but when your broadband breaks, you won't have someone who is on the phone 24/7 - where can fix your problem" - Ahh yes, but I know a thing or two about networking - if it's down, it'll be because there's a fault on the line (therefore BT problem) or internal issues (which I can sort, because lo and behold I am qualified for this...)

I could go on, but I won't. I'm finally rid of BT in our house (after MUCH protest from the wife that "I've never had a problem with BT")

On the real upside, It's £16.25 a month for 3 months, then £23.50 a month for what we are currently paying £37 a month for!

[Smithy99]

I would guess you should double your current speed.

[gorebrush]

So you think 16Mb? Which double are we talking about?

Or do you mean 7Mb, being double the ~3.5Mb throughput I'm actually experiencing?

23dB shows up on various line estimators as 16-17Mb. Am I missing something from my current stats?

[Isitme]

I would think Smithy is referring to your sync speed, ie, 16-17Mb. Have you tried an Official BT Performance test? It looks like your Profile is stuck at a low rate.

[gorebrush]

IP Profile = 7150 (!)

Not that it matters I suppose, this IP Profile will be gone when Sky move cuts in

Coincidentally the chap from BT claimed "not to be able to do anything about my speed" - despite being told that I sync at 8Mb (This has been confirmed with the BT PoS Router, and a £300 Cisco ADSL Router - both reported similar stats as above)

[Scubbie]

Your speed will definitely improve.

With ADSL2+ (Sky's LLU), the line attenuation will be slightly higher than with your current ADSL based connection. However the change will not mean that you will get less that what you have at present.

You've placed the order now. Just sit back and enjoy the many phone calls you are likely to get from BT asking (sorry: begging) for you to return to them.

Also look at what you can do in the mean time to help you to make the most of your connection.

::. Kitz - Improve your adsl connection speed .::

[gorebrush]

Thanks for the clarification Scubbie

I had a text message from them saying that unfortunately my order encountered an error.

Apparently "the requested delivery date is invalid" - so they've had to cancel that order and make another one.

I bet BT are behind this. I hate BT

[Scubbie]

Thanks for the clarification Scubbie

No problem.

I had a text message from them saying that unfortunately my order encountered an error.

Apparently "the requested delivery date is invalid" - so they've had to cancel that order and make another one.

Whilst annoying that things aren't going really smoothly, at least the communication is good and prompt.

I bet BT are behind this. I abhor BT

I've already posted on this forum with regards to my experiences with BT India. I could never recommend them for their level of service.

The issue over changing your installation dates could be down to several different systems, so I wouldn't want to speculate without knowing the facts.

Sky will be dealing with BT Openreach (BTO) and not BT India. Ofcom insist that BTO, BT Wholesale (BTW) and BT each have their own independent systems and staff. They must also be financially separate within the BT Group.

[gorebrush]

Yes, but it's all still BT

[Isitme]

IP Profile = 7150 (!)

That is strange, you should have a throughput of 7Mb, throttling aside. Have you checked your speed on more than one device?