Worst customer service ever, trying to just get a solution to my BB dropping

[thomo5949]

I am a relatively new customer to sky and since having broadband connect my connection keeps dropping out for a few seconds. This might happen 20 times a day and is effecting my PS3 gaming.

I have called sky so many time to try and resolve the issue and each time worked through the initial solutions they have suggested only got the problem to continue. on my last call I was told the issue was being raised to the 2nd tier support and that I would get a phone call in 72 hours. Well 5 days later still nothing and my problems continue. I am sure that if I treated customers like that they would leave to the competition straight away. However I'm tied into a 12 month contract and I don't feel I'm getting the service I pay for. if the problem continues I will be seeking to leave sky and go to a more reliable provider.

Has anyone else had similar problems? Does any one have any ideas for getting some results without sitting on the phone for hours on end?

[Scubbie]

Hello thomo5949,

You have two issues going on at present:

1. your connection keeps dropping
2. CST hasn't called you back after the promised 72 hours

With regards to your connection dropping, normally I would ask you to try a few different things, but perhaps it would be more useful for you to describe specifically what you have done thus far.

Could you also post your full stats please? If you could include with this the lines showing the connection times for WAN, LAN & WLAN.

Also you state that you are a relatively new customer. Could you confirm which router you have please. Your profile indicates that you have the D-Link DSL-2640S. Most new customers have been receiving the Sagemcom F@ST 2304n, to give it its full name, recently.

Finally your profile indicates that you are on Sky BB Connect. If this is the case, then please read this thread:

http://www.skyuser.co.uk/forum/sky-b...ect-users.html

Now for the 2nd part of your question:

You are more than welcome to call Sky customer services again. Unfortunately recently CST (the 2nd level of support) have been overwhelmed with calls. The issue was around the Sagem 2304n which has hopefully been resolved for now.

I would have hoped that these issues were finally being resolved.

A friendly phone call will do wonders sometimes and hopefully get someone to call you back sooner.

[thomo5949]

Hi, thanks for your quick response.

Firstly my problem is as follows:

I’ve renovated a house and BT have installed a new telephone line. I joined sky about 10 - 12 weeks ago on the BB connect package as this is the best option I can get at my exchange. I set up the D-Link router SN: PVG81AC069260 and started using my macbook pro, iPhone and PS3 wirelessly. I found that while gaming the internet connection was dropping out and I was getting kicked out of my games. I also noticed the problem while surfing the net but it was less of an issue as the drop out was for only a short period and then would work again, thus meaning I’d have to refresh a page to get it to load. I called sky and went through the trouble shooting process (I have done this 3 times now) with no positive effect. I then used Ethernet to connect my PS3 but the problems continued.

On one phone call to sky late at night I spoke with someone who gave me some suggestion that I have tried, none of which have worked:

1, turn off Upnp on router
2, fix a broadcasting channel
3, turn off SSID broadcasting
4, unplugging the phone line from the sky HD box.

I had been keeping my router stats for a while every time I lost the internet connection, each time the noise margins dropped to 0 then second later regained to normal levels, but after a while I got board and they were just repeating themselves. I was gathering the information from both the master socket and my socket in the living room and from what I can see there is very little difference.

Below are my latest stats taken today.




0938 - 29/03/11 - From livingroom socket

System Up Time: 09:28:10
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 5606 7005 0 5417 31621 00:04:28
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 108655 87627 0 403670 66525 00:04:19
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5184 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 25.5db
Noise Margin 10.0db 24.0db
Poll Interval: (secs)


1304 - 29/03/11 - From livingroom socket

System Up Time: 00:20:47
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 8419 9638 0 2426 13429 00:13:17
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 10705 9327 0 15241 2839 00:13:07
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5216 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 25.5db
Noise Margin 11.9db 25.0db
Poll Interval: (secs)


1403 - 29/03/11 - From test socket
System Up Time: 00:36:03
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 3449 5585 0 2332 16737 00:00:00
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 0 kbps 0 kbps
Line Attenuation 0db 0db
Noise Margin 0db 0db
Poll Interval: (secs)

1404 - 29/03/11 - From test socket
System Up Time: 00:37:45
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 21 13 0 11 11 00:01:26
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6528 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 13.1db 25.0db
Poll Interval: (secs)


1409 - 29/03/11 - From test socket
System Up Time: 00:42:22
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 3610 5327 0 2256 17988 00:06:03
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6528 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 12.9db 25.0db
Poll Interval: (secs)


1418 - 29/03/11 - From test socket with call being received - connection then dropped out.
System Up Time: 00:05:51
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 2575 3808 0 2610 14930 00:05:18
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6496 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 25.5db
Noise Margin 7.2db 20.0db
Poll Interval: (secs)


0048 - 02/04/11 - From livingroom socket (Kept dropping out every 5 -6 minutes\
System Up Time: 27:08:23
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 217 205 0 564 3837 00:00:36
LAN 316528 490847 0 1888 805 27:08:24
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5632 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 25.5db
Noise Margin 11.8db 20.0db
Poll Interval: (secs)

0050 - 02/04/11 - From livingroom socket (Kept dropping out every 5 -6 minutes\
System Up Time: 27:10:52
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 234 219 0 147 841 00:00:00
LAN 318687 492497 0 1906 806 27:10:52
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 0 kbps 0 kbps
Line Attenuation 0db 0db
Noise Margin 0db 0db
Poll Interval: (secs)

0051 - 02/04/11 - From livingroom socket (Kept dropping out every 5 -6 minutes\
System Up Time: 27:12:05
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 32 27 0 51 107 00:00:60
LAN 319823 493325 0 1915 807 27:12:05
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5504 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 25.5db
Noise Margin 13.0db 20.0db

1850 - 04/04/11 - From livingroom socket
System Up Time: 93:11:23
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 109992 69075 0 276 682 13:16:21
LAN 1161842 1121444 0 3787 438 93:11:24
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5792 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 14.6db 20.0db



2015 - 08/04/11 - From master socket
System Up Time: 00:33:33
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 198 179 0 29 44 00:01:59
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 31000 30182 0 236788 40631 00:01:49
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5984 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 12.4db 20.0db


0754 - 09/04/11 - From master socket
System Up Time: 12:10:32
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 0 0 0 0 0 00:01:10
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 445084 392550 7309670 877131 00:00:60
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6560 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 12.7db 20.0db

0805 - 09/04/11 - From master socket
System Up Time: 12:20:01
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 458608 411548 713224 87347 00:10:29
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 0 kbps 0 kbps
Line Attenuation 0db 0db
Noise Margin 0db 0db

0805 - 09/04/11 - From master socket
System Up Time: 12:20:13
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 458767 411688 700105 85737 00:10:41
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6496 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 12.6db 20.0db



1834 - 09/04/11 - From master socket - Playing PS3
System Up Time: 04:49:37
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 41049 27741 0 189 1035 00:00:00
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 0 kbps 0 kbps
Line Attenuation 0db 0db
Noise Margin 0db 0db



1834 - 09/04/11 - From master socket - Playing PS3
System Up Time: 04:50:19
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 40 34 0 729 743 00:00:14
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6432 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 12.3db 20.0db

1836 - 09/04/11 - From master socket - Playing PS3
System Up Time: 04:51:12
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 52 38 0 159 158 00:01:07
LAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 6432 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 39.5db 25.5db
Noise Margin 12.6db 20.0d






Below are my latest stats taken today at 0706 hrs

System Up Time: 133:55:59
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 5451 6240 0 42 247 03:30:19
LAN 1218301 950251 0 3009 259 133:55:59
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5728 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 26.0db
Noise Margin 11.9db 20.0db


Lastly I can hear no noise on my line from the telephone. I also don’t believe I would have been adversely effected by the FUP as all I do is play a couple of hours a week on the PS3, surf the web (facebook etc) and occasionally download a couple of music tracks and short video podcast, nothing that would take me even close to the download limit. All this is done at various times of day / night and not just at peak times. I think that is all the information I can give you

[Scubbie]

Below are my latest stats taken today at 0706 hrs

System Up Time: 133:55:59
Port Status TxPkts RxPkts Collisions Tx B/s Rx B/s Up Time
WAN PPPoA 5451 6240 0 42 247 03:30:19
LAN 1218301 950251 0 3009 259 133:55:59
WLAN 0 0 0 0 0 00:00:00
ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5728 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 40.0db 26.0db
Noise Margin 11.9db 20.0db


Lastly I can hear no noise on my line from the telephone. I also don’t believe I would have been adversely effected by the FUP as all I do is play a couple of hours a week on the PS3, surf the web (facebook etc) and occasionally download a couple of music tracks and short video podcast, nothing that would take me even close to the download limit. All this is done at various times of day / night and not just at peak times. I think that is all the information I can give you

Thank you. All those stats have told me two things:

1. your internal wiring is interfering with your connection speed to a small degree
2. today's figures in particular confirm that you have a line problem that is causing your ADSL connection to drop

From reading all your stats, you have used the test socket previously for checking things out. What I would ask of you is to gather some meaningful evidence and then you can take this to CST.

Since it does appear that your internal wiring is holding things back, you need to be made aware that this is your responsibility to resolve. I'll let someone else go through some suggestions with you, but perhaps you should think about a filtered faceplate.

Not only would a filtered faceplate provide you with the best method to filter the ADSL signal from your incoming telephone line, it would isolate your internal wiring from the ADSL signal too. You would need to purchase an IDC tool at the same time.

With regards to evidence, the stats provide one side of the story. If you look at the picture I've attached of my own stats, you'll notice that the WAN time is significantly shorter than the LAN & WLAN times. This is specifically due to the problem that Sky had a couple of days ago with it's BB network. My connection was reset at around 11am on that day.

If you can collect similar screen shots to show how your connection is reseting, then this will be of great use.

The other piece of evidence is line noise. Now you mentioned that you have no noise. Can you perform the following tests please to confirm this:

1. using a corded telephone plugged into the test socket (nothing else connected), dial '1' and listen for any noise (hiss, crackle, etc.)
2. again with the telephone in the test socket, dial 17070 and perform a 'quiet line test'

If both these fail, then you need to contact whomever you pay your line rental to. If it is not Sky, please do not mention that you have a problem with your BB connection as this will confuse things.

If both those tests pass, connect the microfilter & Sky router and redo the tests.

If they fail this time, then the problem is likely to be with the microfilter. This will need to be swapped with another and rechecked.

Finally a word of caution about Sky BB Connect. It isn't the monthly limit that you need to be careful of, it is the daily limit of 1.3Gb. If you go over this too often, then things start getting bad.

This means that you can never stream a film or HD content in safety from any of the on-line players (i.e. BBC iPlayer & Sky Player).