Going to Sonic Fusion - What modem to get?

[Muse]

I've been with Pacbell DSL (now AT&T) for over 12 years but am about to make the leap to Sonic.net Fusion. It's about the same price (~$50/month), but includes free domestic long distance, and my impression is that I'll be getting much better download speeds (I'm only getting about 2.66 mbps now). Pacbell supplied me with an Alcatel 1000 ADSL modem early in 1999, and I'm still using it. Talking to a Sonic.net technician a couple of weeks ago about switching he said I'm 6100 feet from the AT&T central office (where Sonic.net has their own equipment) and I should expect Sonic Fusion speeds close to 7 mbps using my Alcatel 1000 but 12-15 mbps if I get an ADSL 2+ modem. His perspective was that my first priority on another modem is just to make sure it's ADSL 2+ and go for the cheapest one I can get (e.g. "$20 off craigslist" if I encounter that). He said for ~$53 I can get a modem directly from Sonic.net, a ZTE281 IIRC.

I did some searching online and see that some people say that the ADSL 2+ modems (may?) require a better filter than the ADSL modems. What I believe I have with my Alcatel 1000 is an unorthodox arrangement. A Pacbell installer in 1999, when I had problems after installation, put a second filter in series next to the box outside the building, so that the incoming signal was filtered twice!

Posts I saw recently suggest that most ADSL 2+ modems I will buy come without a filter, and indicated that the ones supplied by Sonic.net came with a filter. Posts I saw from when the ZTE281 came out (around the beginning of 2010?) suggest that there were some problems at the time, and several people had to get replacements from Sonic. Not seeing any posts more recent, though. So, the question is, should I get that ZTE281 from Sonic.net? I do see ADSL 2+ modems quite a bit cheaper here and there. What would be a good way for me to go?

 

[danejasper]

I'd strongly suggest you simply go with the kit that we offer with the service. This gets you not just a modem, but also splitter and filters, key components. By the time you add in costs of splitters and filters, a modem purchased elsewhere costs about the same.

We fulfill the warranty on the modems we sell, plus we know it well, can support it, offer loaners, and they're on every truck in the field. There are many reasons this makes things quicker and easier for you.

In your particular case, you've likely got a home run and a MPOE filter - which based upon it's vintage will not be compatible with ADSL2+. Unless you're comfortable with telephone wiring, I would suggest opting for a full technician install so they can sort it out.

At your distance, you're likely to see some really great speed, plus of course land line, so it's a great move to make.

--
Dane Jasper
Sonic.net

 

[Muse]

Thanks, Dane. I'll go with the kit.

What I have is what Pacbell provided me in April or so of 1999. They put in a box where the phone line arrives at the outside/back of the house and right there installed a filter. From there, a cable comes to my bedroom, goes inside and attaches to the splitter they gave me, which has DSL and phone output. I run the DSL into the attic and from there into my computer room where it goes to the Alcatel 1000 modem they gave me. That attaches to my Buffalo WHR-HP-G54 wireless router.

There was a problem initially with the filter and a Pacbell installer came by and put in a second filter (AFAIK, identical to the first) in series with the first filter and that seemed to fix the problem. He said it wasn't standard, but a little trick that would probably work and I guess it did. You are suggesting that the filtering wouldn't work for ADSL 2+? The splitter either?

 

[danejasper]

The older NID filter/splitter configuration from the late 1990's may be workable, but may require a newer filter on each phone device. Our support team can help sort it out - and can dispatch an installer to assist if you get stuck!

-Dane

 

[Muse]

The older NID filter/splitter configuration from the late 1990's may be workable, but may require a newer filter on each phone device. Our support team can help sort it out - and can dispatch an installer to assist if you get stuck!

-Dane

Thanks. I signed up and yesterday received the ZTE831II modem along with a splitter and 3 filters. The changeover is scheduled for Monday Aug. 15 ~ 11AM, 4 days from now. I suppose I might try just leaving things as they are but swapping out the Alcatel 1000 ADSL modem for the ZTE, and see how things are working (presumably there will be some configuring to do, in any case). I guess I can put those filters in line with phone devices if the phones don't seem to work OK. I can switch out the splitters (the one just sent me for the 10+ year old one I got from Pacbell), again if things aren't working OK. Over the weekend I'm going to try to sleuth out my phone system in this 101 year old house that's seen a lot of stuff come and go. There's wires all over the place, some used, some not! Next week will probably be an adventure.

 

[MISIR ARABASI]

thank you nice sharing

 

[Muse]

thank you nice sharing

Sharing is wonderful stuff. Welcome to Anandtech Forums! :thumbsup:

 

[drebo]

Let us know what speeds you get.

Where are you located, also? I've been considering moving to Sonic from AT&T as well.

 

[Muse]

Let us know what speeds you get.

Where are you located, also? I've been considering moving to Sonic from AT&T as well.

I'm in south Berkeley.

My speeds after sorting things out considerably are around 5.2 mbps down, 0.87 mbps up. A technician told me that the DL translates to an actual speed of around 6, don't know if this is true. I'm 6150' from the CO, but ATT records indicate 6828' in terms of actual copper line runs (if I understand this correctly) but a Sonic person said it could really be more, you can't trust the ATT records. I was hoping for more speed, something in double digits, but this is an improvement over what I was getting. On my desktop I got speed tests around 4.2 mbps, but sometimes less, around 3.7 a few days before the switchover. On my wirelessly connected laptops, closer to 3. Now all machines seem to be around 5.1-5.2, so it's better, not a giant improvement, but an improvement. AFAIK, I would have gotten the same improvement just installing the home run I ran shortly after the switchover to Sonic. Sonic.net support is there for me. ATT, well, trying to get a human on the phone is an obstacle course right there.

Before the switch to Sonic I had a regular (but very long!) interior phone cable from a DSL/phone splitter inside the house, which ran up through the ceiling of an upstairs room, through the attic and down into my dedicated computer/media room where I have my DSL modem and wireless router. I was actually getting substantially lower speeds after switching out the old ADSL modem (Alcatel 1000) for the ADSL 2+ modem Sonic.net provided me with, a ZTE831II. I ditched the wiring I had been using (described above) and ran a Cat5e homerun from the ATT box outside the building to the ADSL2+ modem, and with some tweaking am getting the 5.2 mbps speed DL now. Don't know if this is really the best I can do now, but that's where it stands. The guy they sent out said at some time in the future (maybe not long, but they won't promise anything, it's up in the air, very unsettled) Sonic and Google in a joint project may install fiber optic in the area and I can get way faster speeds.