Poll: What is the best dialup modem you have used?

[Vyle]

Actually, my best modem has been my Lucent winmodem. Never had connection problems. I use DSL now but it's been rock solid. Only cost $13 too.

 

[Adar]

After several years of trying out/maintaining a dozen or so different types of modems (I WANT ADSL...sigh), I've seen three stand out:

-USR ISA internal Courier v.Everything v.90 (the ones the other poster talked about.) These *are* the ultimate modems; they're rock solid even with lousy phone lines and have ping times as good as a modem can get in my experience. The external ones might be better, but you can't find those on E*ay for 30 bucks apiece in massive quantities This is actually the reason my new motherboard is a KT7A- I wanted the ISA slot so I could keep mine...

-Diamond SupraExpress 56k Internal. The only one I used was extremely stable and had no problem whatsoever with bad phone lines or anything else.

-Lucent Winmodems. Included here because, if you have to have a Winmodem, it's probably the best choice; they don't break down much and the drivers are updated often. A couple of years ago, I ran one on a P133 that also had a 28.8 hardware modem installed; downloads notwithstanding, ping times were about equal, and there were no noticeable slowdowns (any more than usual ;P) while gaming.

Avoid:
-Diamond Supramax. Worst Winmodem, or any modem, I've ever heard of. Exception to the rule below...

-No-names. I'd rather have a USR Winmodem than an (insert third tier company here) hardware modem. Quality makes a difference.

 

[HellRaven]

<< I work at an ISP and I am always wondering what is the best one for our customers. We use V.90 modem >>


Just jumpin in here to add my opinion. I do tech support for a major ISP so I talk to alot of people with alot of different modems.

For the most part, I have found no one brand to stand out head and shoulders above the rest. 90% or more of the people I talk to have a prebuilt Dell, Gateway, eMachine, etc computer that comes with a Lucent LT or Rockwell chipset winmodem. I find that winmodems do a pretty good job. There are exceptions like the HSP micromodem and some other obscure ones that sometimes have problems. Just a month or two ago we got tons of calls from people with HP systems using ESS modems because, get this, the modem driver expired on a certain date

Anyway, at home I personally use a USR 56k V.90 ISA hardware modem. I bought this almost two years ago when it was the best out there compared to the (at the time mind you) crappy winmodems I heard so much about. It cost me abot $100 too.

Depending on the problem, init strings can help. I usually put one in if the customer is having problems with random disconnects or is not able to connect after checking out the usual stuff.

 

[esung]

for your customer: USR ISA modem or external ones. I doubt people will want v.everything model,(*sigh*, in the old days, you HAVE to have one for BBS if you want Elite )

 

[marcio]

The best analog dial-up modem I've ever owned was a USR Courier 56K v.everything external. Damn expensive though--paid $110 used.

For comparison purposes, I've also owned (56K modems only) a Diamond Supra internal, a Zoom 56K external, a Lucent winmodem that comes with my Thinkpad, and a Boca Research winmodem. Each of these modems had its faults. The only fault the USR Courier had was its high price.

 

[networkman]

It was a LONG time ago, but the modem that I had the best experience with was a Practical Peripherals 28.8k external modem.

 

[TravisBickle]

oh look, you woke modus up guys!
external modems are a fuss with wires and plugs, but i never had one crash my internet explorer. with a diamond internal it would do that when I got cut off sometimes. my recommendation is that you get a modem from a reputable company and check out it has a full set of driver compatibility.

 

[Dennis Travis]

Best Dialup modem I have ever used would probably be a USR Sportster 33.6 External. I also have a 56K USR Internal that has given me no problems either but the old 33.6 External USR connected to everything I ever called and connected better than any other modem I tried at my place. I ran my dialup BBS on USR's for years and had the best luck with the USR's. I tried a few other brands back then but the USR's got the best connects overall with all my 1500 users.

 

[loveturtle]

best zoom 56k
worst was a usr 33.6 that something went wrong with it and it would only work at 19k from then on
had 2 diamond supra express the isa version fried the external serial is still working good
pci modems tried a lot of these and they are all crap

 

[gcy]

The best 56K modem I have is an Askey V.90 X2. Always hooks up 52^.

 

[Fisher999]

3Com/US Robotics Model 5687 ISA (hardware) data/fax modem. It was, and still is, in my brother's system (not one of mine, lol) a GREAT piece of hardware, even riding the old
16 bit 8.3MHz ISA bus.

 

[Fisher999]

By the way, last time I visited USR's site, the model 5687 was STILL listed as current (purchased mine back in 1999). It retailed for $99 and I got it at a half-off sale at a local retailer for $49 plus tax. Worth EVERY penny!

 

[HellRaven]

Yep, thats the same one I got Compgeek, been truckin along real nice. I got it new for $100 at a computer show.

I hope they release a free v.92 update for it though, so far they have only released the update for a few external models. Even when I get DSL I will probably have my modem in there in case the DSL goes down.

 

[Jiggz]

I've switched to about 5 brands of modems but so far the best I've seen is an ISA based modem of either Diamond, 3-Com or Creative. Althoug PCI do their jobs as advertised, they're no match to ISA based modem.

 

[GregMal]

My current modem is a Cardinal ISA internal upgraded to V90. It
uses the same TI chipset (X2) as USR internal hardware modems.
My connections are consistant at 48K+. Unfortunately not many
newer motherboards will have ISA slots and I'll probably have to
switch with my next upgrade.
I also have an older PC that I tried a Lucent Winmodem on and am
impressed with the cost/speed of it. It connects consistantly at
45K+. It only cost $21 (shipping included).
Greg

 

[Jwyatt]

USR 56k's isa or external have given me, and my customers the best service for speed and reliablity. Although i did install a viking 56k pcmcia card in my dads lappy. It connected faster on his line than his usr did. DL's seemed to be better by a slight margin as well.

 

[Pants]

I just want to say that my Netcomm InPlus56 (IN3424) modem works absolutely fine.
I know it's an old ISA modem but i've upgraded the firmware to v.90 and it runs great!!!

ALWAYS conect at 49333 (Which is pretty good I think, please correct me)


But Anyway i'm in FNQ so it doesn't really matter to you guys

 

[Ace69]

It looks like USR modems are pretty good, but pretty expensive. Also, I am seeing alot of Diamond Supra Expresss. Thanks for the replies. This has given me some ideas on what to look for when it comes to crap modems.

 

[RayH]

I second the USR Courier v.everything. I've got an external 25MHz model and it's been running almost 24/7 for the past 4 years. With a fast serial port and max compression on something like text files, I can max out at 230kbs throughput on a 49kbs connection.

Also almost forgot: Practical Peripherals PC288LCD
it was only v.34 but it had an lcd text display which showed live connection information

 

[AncientPC]

Hmm . . . I always end up with crap modems but hey, they work.

Outside of an ISA 33.6 modem, I've had a 56k USR Winmodem and another Motorola software modem. Yeah yeah, I know they suck.

 

[Biggs]

Gotta be my USR 56K Ext.

 

[NutBucket]

My nearly nameless Askey 56K ISA modem. 56K Flex, later updated to V.90. Had it since '97 I believe. Great modem, still use it since FreeDSL screwed me. One of the few remaning original pieces left in that P2 300 I bought back in the day. Hell, even the faceplate of the case has changed.

 

[Motero]

I love my USR hardware modem! (#2976)

 

[rANGER11]

I also work for an isp, any thing but an hsp/winmodem will do just fine but those things cause me more hours on the phone than anything

 

[thorin]

&quot;What is the best dialup modem you have used?&quot;

Is there another type?

USR/3COM OEM Models 2976 &amp; 2977.

(I suppose you could claim there are also Cable Modems and DSL Modems but they aren't even close to being modems in reality, they don't modulate/demodulate anything)

Thorin