Comcast cable internet questions?

indy2878

Member
Apr 9, 2013
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I have a few comcast cable internet questions?

First of, I have the extreme 50 service.
50 Mbps down and 10 Mbps up

http://www.speedtest.net/result/2961382269.png
I pay a monthly total of $139.99 including basic cable t.v. and phone with this service…

Okay now the questions….


1.) my comcast provided (rental) wifi router/modem combo has 4 downstream bonded channels and 3 usable upstream channels. So from this I figure I have around 152Mbps total download bandwidth and maybe 30Mbps total upload bandwidth. My wifi usually maxes out around 25Mbps to 42Mbps download and 10 upload with 11 to 25ms ping rates. How do I get my wifi connections to go up to 50Mbps download which is what my service is?


2.) Is it possible to increase my total cable internet bandwidth by getting a better modem? Say something with 8 channel bonded downstream and 4-8 channel bonded upstream.. I say that would make my bandwidth to around 300Mbps which would be better…

3.) Will my current 4 channel bonded downstream modem work with the comcast extreme 105Mbps 20 upload service? If I upgrade to this service how much wifi speeds can I expect to get?
Comcast says the extreme 105 service is "not available" in my particular area, but I swear people in my city have the extreme 105 service?

4.) Also, how much will each wifi device in my place get when connected all at the same time (including 2 cable t.v. boxes)? I usually have an ipad, 2 laptops and an xbox 360 all on wifi at the same time, although sometimes I have the xbox 360 hooked up directly to the cable modem via ethernet cat5e cable….

5.) I heard of "G.fast" which is supposedly fiber optic up to the last 300m of your house which would be all copper cable. I read this in "Maximum PC" magazine and it sounds like a compelling tech for the future. I've done some research and they mention 1Gbps for 100M of copper and 500Mbps for 300m of copper… Will AT&T U-verse have this in the future as an upgrade for the current DSL service? It sounds like a cool piece of technology, although I don't' know how quickly and the costs for the adoption rate will be?


6.) Will google fiber EVER deploy to more cities in the future? The pricing structure seems reasonable for 1Gbps symmetrical speeds. They'll probably upgrade that to like 2Gpbs and more in the future I'm guessing to compete with comcast and other providers….
I can definitely use such a service… :)


7.) Lastly, there's a provider in my area that uses "microwave" to provide service. They're basically called "Etheric Networks" and they're based in the san fran bay area. They offer up to 35Mbps symmetrical to residential and I dont' know if its possible to get the 2.5Gbps or so service to residential since those highly priced services are for "enterprise"....
The 1Gbps symmetrical is around $1,500 or so...
What technology is this? Must be Wi-max my best guess?
[Not that I can afford this service at this time... :) ]

Thanks very much ahead of time for any responses!
 
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kevnich2

Platinum Member
Apr 10, 2004
2,465
8
76
The chance of your wifi consistently hitting 100% of your provided internet speeds are 0. Wifi is an rf medium so there's a lot of variables that will affect your speed as well as both the AP side hardware as well as the client side hardware. With your other questions, if your only given 50/10 from comcast, that's all your going to receive through your modem. Getting a different modem with more channels isn't going to change this. The number of downstream and upstream channels just means it's more compatible to faster service later on. But if it's a comcast provided modem, if you upgrade your tier, they will make sure your modem is capable of achieving those. No ISP will ever guarantee you will achieve your capable speeds through wifi. Any speed tests would have to be run via a wired connection for the ISP to give it any consideration for an issue.
 

ImDonly1

Platinum Member
Dec 17, 2004
2,357
0
76
1. Wireless is tricky. Depends on signal, noise, distance, type of router, wireless G, N, or AC.

2. You have the 50Mbps package. Your modem supports 160Mbps, what would getting a 300Mbps capable modem do? You are still signed up for the maximum 50Mbps package.

3. Yes, the modem will work. If your wifi speeds suck now, why would getting a faster internet package help? The internet isn't the problem...

5. U-verse is a joke. They can barely do 40Mbps and just started to roll that out.

7. If you are in the Bay Area, I would look into Sonic.net they were supposed to offer 1Gbps service for $70/month.
 
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ultimatebob

Lifer
Jul 1, 2001
25,135
2,445
126
Wow, I'm getting ripped off. I'm paying $185 a month for Comcast's Triple Play bundle, and I'm only getting 20 Mbps internet :(
 

indy2878

Member
Apr 9, 2013
130
0
0
Cool thanks for the informative responses!

@Kevnich2
Yes, I was thinking of upgrading to the Extreme 105 service
and just plugging into the ethernet directly my main laptop
which I primarily use. And have the other devices on wifi.
But yes, thanks for answering my question
on the wifi issue.

@ImDonly1 Wow! I never knew about
Sonic.net 1Gbps service! That's a pretty darn good deal
and must be symmetrical speeds I'm assuming?

@ultimateBob go to the comcast website and look under
the "new customer special deals" and talk via chat
that you want the same packages you're getting now
but you want them cheaper including the 50MBps down 10 up
service. You should only be paying the same amount I'm paying
or even less if you want to keep your 25Mbps down service...
They'll have you pay around $139.99 or so for one year then
they'll raise that by $20.00 or so for the second year.
You're basically renewing your contract with them....
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,967
19
81
I hit about 40M now with triple play and all premiums for $186 :(

I am calling now actually about upgrading my bandwidth. My brother lives in an HOA where basic Comcast is covered so YMMV, but he was sent a new modem automatically and now hits 80M worst case. He was only getting 20M prior.
 

Cabletek

Member
Sep 30, 2011
176
0
0
1.) my comcast provided (rental) wifi router/modem combo has 4 downstream bonded channels and 3 usable upstream channels. So from this I figure I have around 152Mbps total download bandwidth and maybe 30Mbps total upload bandwidth. My wifi usually maxes out around 25Mbps to 42Mbps download and 10 upload with 11 to 25ms ping rates. How do I get my wifi connections to go up to 50Mbps download which is what my service is?

Stop using that shitty wifi they provide and get a real router. Seriously I work for them, the wifi is going to be short on range unless you live in like a small apartment and then its going to be full of interference becasue its only 2.4Ghz band. Google inSSIDer for more info on interferance, its a free app that will show you all wifi signals in range of you.


2.) Is it possible to increase my total cable internet bandwidth by getting a better modem? Say something with 8 channel bonded downstream and 4-8 channel bonded upstream.. I say that would make my bandwidth to around 300Mbps which would be better…


No, they provide a BOOT file that limits its bandwidth after the BOOST for the first 10MB of a download, you may increase the boost by getting an 8 channel bonded modem [highest available at this moment I am sure more will come out later] but that's really only enough to run a speedtest for bragging rights, and you'd have to be doing it during a low usage time. The system has X bandwidth available and Y used at any given moment, x-y = extra bandwidth, that extra is split between boost downloads, so during peak times there is less extra boost available.

3.) Will my current 4 channel bonded downstream modem work with the comcast extreme 105Mbps 20 upload service? If I upgrade to this service how much wifi speeds can I expect to get?
Comcast says the extreme 105 service is "not available" in my particular area, but I swear people in my city have the extreme 105 service?


Yes a single channel modem can run 30-35 Mbs, so 30 X 4 = 120, you are fine for 105, but an 8 channel may be offered by salesmen, as they like to talk smack about shit they have no clue about. and will likley say you have to have an 8 channel bonded modem. If you have D3 you have 105 available, go to a cable store and ask do not use the phone they have no idea and may not even be in this country.

4.) Also, how much will each wifi device in my place get when connected all at the same time (including 2 cable t.v. boxes)? I usually have an ipad, 2 laptops and an xbox 360 all on wifi at the same time, although sometimes I have the xbox 360 hooked up directly to the cable modem via ethernet cat5e cable….

Total bandwidth / number of devices using it. If you have 4 ipads and each one is streaming, then each will likley only get 105/4, for about 26 Mb/s, but you'd be liuucky if it works out that way, consumer grade electronics do not split bandwidth evenly among users, so one user will get like 30 and another will get like 10, etc..

5.) I heard of "G.fast" which is supposedly fiber optic up to the last 300m of your house which would be all copper cable. I read this in "Maximum PC" magazine and it sounds like a compelling tech for the future. I've done some research and they mention 1Gbps for 100M of copper and 500Mbps for 300m of copper… Will AT&T U-verse have this in the future as an upgrade for the current DSL service? It sounds like a cool piece of technology, although I don't' know how quickly and the costs for the adoption rate will be?

300 miles? Or meters? Jesus if its miles I feel for anyone who's central office is over 300 miles, the way telco works at the moment is they run fiber to the central office, usually a small fenced areas where you will often see telco company vehicles. From there they run twisted pair to the node [a point where you run from one medium to another] then twisted pair to the house, where you have twisted paid running through the house although sometimes its not twisted ><.

The way they are moving is what cable already does, although they call the central office a headend or cmts [cable modem termination system]. For simplicity I will use building.

So its already fiber to the building, now they will run fiber to the node, then [cable already does this] and then twisted pair from the node to your house what this does for telco is effectively change the distance point for signal loss, it used to be X feet form the central office, to get max speed now it will be X feet from the node. This is a timely build out it will not happen overnight but rather piece by piece over years.


6.) Will google fiber EVER deploy to more cities in the future? The pricing structure seems reasonable for 1Gbps symmetrical speeds. They'll probably upgrade that to like 2Gpbs and more in the future I'm guessing to compete with comcast and other providers&#8230;.
I can definitely use such a service&#8230; :)


search my posts on google fiber, all is not as it appears, its a lot of smoke and mirror tricks to try and pressure existing ISP's to beef up their offerings in the end. A lot of behind the scenes trickery is going on the public is unaware of like how the cities are practically paying for the build out and dismissing fees and taxes they normally charge the other isp's ,to get google to show up becasue they think it means profit for them on the business side. Gogole has stated multiple tiems it doe snot want to get into teh ISP business and that these are only pilot tests to show things can be done even though the ISP's are claiming they cannot, unfortuantley taking advantage of not paying for services other ISP's have to limits that argument a little on the cost effective side.


7.) Lastly, there's a provider in my area that uses "microwave" to provide service. They're basically called "Etheric Networks" and they're based in the san fran bay area. They offer up to 35Mbps symmetrical to residential and I dont' know if its possible to get the 2.5Gbps or so service to residential since those highly priced services are for "enterprise"....
The 1Gbps symmetrical is around $1,500 or so...
What technology is this? Must be Wi-max my best guess?
[Not that I can afford this service at this time... :) ]


Thanks very much ahead of time for any responses![/QUOTE]

Microwave is old technology a lot of telco's used it to get around physical barriers like mountains in the old day for telephone, and there are rumors of seeing fried birds near the points, I have never seen this in person so I say rumors. But the idea was you place towers so many feet up the mountain with line of sight [very important] up to the very top then towers down the mountain with line of sight to get over, it, it had some draw backs, trees growing up faster than expected,. and blocking them, etc...

Here is more info on what it actually is
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microwave_transmission

It was never intended to be used inside cities and what not originally, it was a way to get over mountains or large bodies of water and not have to build plant through them.
 
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indy2878

Member
Apr 9, 2013
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@Cabletek... that's actually 300 Meters for the G.fast.....

Also, since you mentioned you work for comcast I have 2 questions....

1.) Am I allowed to have > 1 comcast cable modem in one household?
I read I'm allowed to have only 1 modem per outlet. But I also heard
stories of people hooking up 2 cable modems?

2.) If so, then I take it I HAVE to pay for the second cable modem?
The reason I ask is because I'm thinking of getting a second line just for myself
since I share the account right now with the one I"m living with.


3.) Also, what is the sustained connection rate AFTER the powerboost
(that first 10MB download thingy) for my 50 Mbps connection?
Will upgrading to the extreme 105 increase this rate?

Thanks for your input btw!
 
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ImDonly1

Platinum Member
Dec 17, 2004
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FYI, comcast recently upgraded speeds and with that they no longer offer powerboost.
 

Cabletek

Member
Sep 30, 2011
176
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FYI, comcast recently upgraded speeds and with that they no longer offer powerboost.

That's actually area dependent, I work for the company and my free speed was 12, then 25, got upgraded to blast which is now 50, and my speedtest pops 60/11 right now, but the 105 was always area dependent and we NEVER had blast with it. Truth me known the head end techs set the cmts up wrong on the ones that were getting it. Same as it is now I suspect eventually my HE tech will get caught and be told, put the right config on it. Not that I care, I hardly ever download anything I stream once in awhile but the only other user here is my wife and my 5 year old and we can all three stream at the same time just fine, and its rare we do that, if one is streaming usually we act like a family and watch it together or wait until after her bed time if its not appropriate.
 

Cabletek

Member
Sep 30, 2011
176
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@Cabletek... that's actually 300 Meters for the G.fast.....

Also, since you mentioned you work for comcast I have 2 questions....

1.) Am I allowed to have > 1 comcast cable modem in one household?
I read I'm allowed to have only 1 modem per outlet. But I also heard
stories of people hooking up 2 cable modems?

2.) If so, then I take it I HAVE to pay for the second cable modem?
The reason I ask is because I'm thinking of getting a second line just for myself
since I share the account right now with the one I"m living with.


3.) Also, what is the sustained connection rate AFTER the powerboost
(that first 10MB download thingy) for my 50 Mbps connection?
Will upgrading to the extreme 105 increase this rate?

Thanks for your input btw!

So there are 3 cases where you have more than one cable modem


1. Multiple accounts in the same residence, usually you must change the address slightly like 123 1/2 a street or 123 a street, ofc, somecity, somestate

this is usually done when running residential and business to the same address though, but I have seen it done for all residential.

2. Case 2 you just pay for two internet accounts on one bill, this is done by people who usually are not paying attention to their bills and do not realize they are paying for two separate internet accounts but THINK they are cheating the system and only paying for one, when they find out they are usually beat red in the face and start screaming at which time I leave and tell them they cannot talk to me like that.

3. Two modems on one account with only one charge, this I am not sure how it happened, I suspect account codes from old entities they bought a long time ago never got cleared off and somehow they have two modems with separate mac address linked to one account bill. Now getting them both to have above basic default boot files is the real trick I have never seen this work out they all have a basic [read slowest] boot file on the secondary modem, most do not care, and eventually a script may catch this and disable a modem but. they do it as long as they can. Most of the time this seems to happen when an old modem is no longer supported has a signal problem and the reps tell them they have an EOL modem they must get a new one so they get a new one, then find their old one working when they get home and have them provision the second one, but the first one never deprovisions. It is NOT intentional and they will not do it on purpose.

Sustained download is what you were sold, but watch the wording they got into this habit of using powerboost speeds a while ago so if it says UP TO 50 then you may only be on 25M speed and that may be your sustained, if it says 50 without the UP TO, then your base speed is 50 and that should be your speed, keep in mind routers, firewalls, wireless etc may eat up some of that bandwidth with overhead or their own problems though, Comcast will test on an Ethernet cable straight out of the modem if its good the problem is your space and eq, and they do not that, you do..
 
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John Connor

Lifer
Nov 30, 2012
22,840
617
121
I don't see how having a faster Internet connection really makes a difference. 30 Mbps should be plenty. You are at the mercy of the download server so the fastest Internet connection means nothing.
 

indy2878

Member
Apr 9, 2013
130
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You have a good point there! Also, there's added latency
if the server your connecting to is far away and the routing
is horrible....
 

alkemyst

No Lifer
Feb 13, 2001
83,967
19
81
I don't see how having a faster Internet connection really makes a difference. 30 Mbps should be plenty. You are at the mercy of the download server so the fastest Internet connection means nothing.

Some servers are serving very fast now.

I was pegged at 20-30MB, requested COMCAST send me a DOCSIS 3.0 rated Arris modem (they sent a gateway so I had to have them turn off the wireless and set it to be just a bridge).

I get 50-60MB now.
 

indy2878

Member
Apr 9, 2013
130
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question? Does comcast allow the use of load balancing hw and/or sw?
For instance:

TP LINK dual wan load balancer (350Mbps throughput)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833704123


That's why I asked earlier about having 2 cable modem accounts to combine
2 connections into 1 high speed connection. Say 1 account is 50Mbps (currently have) and I pay for a 2nd internet only account say the extreme 105....
With the load balancer and 2 cable modems hooked up to it I'm hoping
for around 150Mbps down and maybe 25 up...
But of course Cabletek mentioned something about a boot file on the modem that
limits the internet speeds...

Otherwise, if not, then a load balancer is only good as a "failover" mechanism
where if one connection goes down the other takes over...