[colug-432] talking to your ISP

Fri Dec 28 13:05:12 EST 2012

I have an ancient (probably had it for 10 years) Surfboard SB4100. When I called TW to complain about being charged $3.95 a month for a modem I'd had for 10 years they offered to exchange it for a newer one. I figured if it's working why switch it out. Although I'm considering buying my own since I suspect they're less than $100 so it would pay for itself in less than 2 years. Yes, it wouldn't surprise me if the IP varies by model. 

Has anyone else purchased their own and have recommendations for a specific model and place to buy it?

Dave

On Dec 28, 2012, at 12:20 PM, yanovich.1 at osu.edu wrote:

> I think the internal IP address may be different depending on the model
> of modem they issue you. I have had two different models, and the
> 192.168.0.1 as worked for both. I don't have the make/models available
> at this moment to do a comparison.
> 
> The power level for the downstream looks good. I'm not sure what the
> ideal range is for the upstream power level is though.
> 
> From a snapshot I have from a while ago when I was taking screenshots,
> one of my old modems was a WebSTAR DPC2100R2 and reported the following
> numbers:
> 
> downstream Power Level -5.6 dBmV
> upstream Power Level 55.0 dBmV
> 
> At the time I was having problems with the modem not connecting to TWC's
> hub and providing access. They eventually came out and rewired the
> connection. The contractor said it's best to put or split the wire that
> goes to the modem closest to the main hookup in the house, and to avoid
> using coaxial connectors along the way to the modem. This makes sense in
> eliminating more faults and reducing possible loss of signal.
> 
> On 12/28/2012 12:13 PM, davelist at mac.com wrote:
>> 
>> For TimeWarner, this is the link that usually works for me.
>> 
>> http://192.168.100.1/signal.html
>> 
>> As a data point, for me this shows:
>> 
>> downstream
>> S/N 36 dB
>> Power Level 3 dBmV
>> 
>> upstream
>> Power Level 41 dBmV
>> 
>> Dave
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> On Dec 28, 2012, at 10:10 AM, yanovich.1 at osu.edu wrote:
>> 
>>> Another metric you may want to look at is the Power Level being reported
>>> by your cable modem from TWC.
>>> 
>>> In the past I've been able to access it by using this address when
>>> behind the cable modem: http://192.168.0.1/
>>> 
>>> Look for a status page that contains some of this information:
>>> 
>>> Downstream Status
>>> Channel ID
>>> Downstream Frequency
>>> Modulation
>>> Bit Rate
>>> Power Level
>>> Signal to Noise Ratio
>>> ----------
>>> Upstream Status
>>> Channel ID
>>> Upstream Frequency
>>> Modulation
>>> Bit Rate
>>> Power Level
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Specifically, from my experience with TWC and according to the numerous
>>> techs I've talked to when dealing with crappy speeds the number to look
>>> for is the Downstream Power Level. This number is in units of dBmV and
>>> should be between -7.0 and +7.0, if it is outside of this range CALL
>>> THEM UP. As then you can put the blame on them for the crappy speeds, as
>>> this means (from how I understand what the techs explained to me) is
>>> that the signal from their nearest hub to your house is not reaching
>>> your house with enough power and is degrading the signal. If the number
>>> is within -10.0 and +10.0 they will probably try brushing this off as
>>> being nothing, but if it is outside +14.0 and -14.0 then start
>>> complaining ever more, as that is entirely their fault for not having an
>>> adequate line down your street. Either way, I would recommend keeping a
>>> log of this Downstream Power Level number.
>>> 
>>> At first, they will probably send somebody out to your house to look at
>>> the quality of lines to your house and inside your house. They'll
>>> probably replace a few coaxial cables, replace the hookup out on the
>>> street, or they may even install a signal booster. Then they'll probably
>>> do some tests with the device they carry around that plugs directly into
>>> the coaxial cable and ask you to use it for a few days and call back in
>>> if there are any more problems.
>>> 
>>> If the problems persist, they might need to boost the signal down your
>>> street, which in turn will fix your neighbours problems too, assuming
>>> they even notice. I've never had them do this, but lots of people
>>> running off of the hub you are running off of will need to complain
>>> before they'll probably do this, as I imagine this is expensive and
>>> takes more time from them than just sending out a contractor to replace
>>> a few wires outside/in your house.
>>> 
>>> Good luck!
>>> 
>>> On 12/28/2012 01:00 AM, Rick Hornsby wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> On Dec 27, 2012, at 23:53 , Dan <dcarruth2 at columbus.rr.com> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>> Did you stop to think that the slow response may be from a slow or busy server? 
>>>> 
>>>> I did.  I said as much, right here:
>>>> 
>>>> "I know there are a lot of factors that go into a download speed, and that download speed itself isn't everything.  I know that some servers can be overloaded, and that some links can get saturated."
>>>> 
>>>> That's why I took numbers from multiple servers in multiple cities, and multiple "speed test" websites.  That's also why I targeted servers locally.  Not just because they were local, but because unlike Chicago, New York, etc a server in Kansas City is probably not on very many national radars for a speed test.  That 3 of 4 unrelated KC servers are all "busy" seems a little odd.
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>>>> 
>>> 
>>> -- 
>>> Michael Yanovich
>>> 
>>> 
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> 
> -- 
> Michael Yanovich
> 
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