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Rant: Stupid cable internet guys....

T

TJN23

Golden Member
So we order Adelphia cable internet 3 weeks ago, have has 3 tech visits so far just to determine the problem...i've taken time off from work just to be home when they come....now the 4th time they come down they need to install an amplifier and wanna charge us 50 bucks for that....noooooo thanks DSL here I come...:disgust::frown:
rolleye.gif
:|

tried to keep the cliff notes version here....
 
right now i'm trying to pull the old "no thanks I think I will cancel the service and go with DSL" in the hopes they will waive the $50.00 charge for the amp.
 
Do you have like an excessive number of tvs in the house or something? Maybe call and speak to a supervisor and see if you can get them to get it done for free.
 
Originally posted by: Soybomb
Do you have like an excessive number of tvs in the house or something? .
Click to expand...

shouldent matter. im my house we have 4 comps on teh cable line adn 5 tvs that also use it. works fine no amp needed
 
problem is weak transmit (upstream) signal...we can split it so the cable modem works fine, but the TV picture suffers, or split everything evenly where the TVs are fine, but the cable modem signal is weak...
 
you can go to radio shack and pick up an amp for almost nothing... and they just screw in. Tell the guy you don't need or want his overpriced amp.
 
Originally posted by: stonecold3169
you can go to radio shack and pick up an amp for almost nothing... and they just screw in. Tell the guy you don't need or want his overpriced amp.
Click to expand...

while i agree with u in a way, the fact that THREE techs have come out on 3 dif occasions makes me mad...these guys should be qualified people and should identify/fix the problem at a minimum 2 visits..
 
get this... month and a half ago my mom buys a house. calls up the phone company to get service hooked up. the guy comes over, messes around a bit, says theres a line break so he'll have to call in and get someone else out. next day, another guy comes out. he looks in there, determines, yet again, that there was a line break somewhere. the then starts walking to the nearest switch. takes him a good 30 minutes to get there and come back. he then says a crew will have to come out to find the break. a week later, a crew comes out, starts digging up the neighbor's yard, cutting the line there. they leave. 3 days later the crew is back out there again, fixing it. still no service though. finally the next day it gets hooked up. and its the crappiest quality line ever. modem won't connect at faster than 26 something.
 
Sounds like progress. 🙁
Originally posted by: ElFenix
get this... month and a half ago my mom buys a house. calls up the phone company to get service hooked up. the guy comes over, messes around a bit, says theres a line break so he'll have to call in and get someone else out. next day, another guy comes out. he looks in there, determines, yet again, that there was a line break somewhere. the then starts walking to the nearest switch. takes him a good 30 minutes to get there and come back. he then says a crew will have to come out to find the break. a week later, a crew comes out, starts digging up the neighbor's yard, cutting the line there. they leave. 3 days later the crew is back out there again, fixing it. still no service though. finally the next day it gets hooked up. and its the crappiest quality line ever. modem won't connect at faster than 26 something.
Click to expand...

 
Originally posted by: TheEvil1
Originally posted by: Soybomb
Do you have like an excessive number of tvs in the house or something? .
Click to expand...

shouldent matter. im my house we have 4 comps on teh cable line adn 5 tvs that also use it. works fine no amp needed
Click to expand...


Every home/drop is differnt. The signal to your modem will depend on the length of your drop, quality of cable used (RG-6, RG-11, etc), number of outlets in your home, etc.

What you describe with the upstream signal level being weak is kinda misleading. The upstrem is rated by how much power the modem needs to inject for the signal to properly make it back to the CMTS at the headend. The modem is not injecting enough power to get above the "noise floor" on the cable plant, by splitting the signal the modem needs to inject more power and makes it above the noise floor.

Depending on your configuration they may be able to put the modem on a higher loss port of a splitter. If I read correctly when split the modem works fine and the TV signal is poor - that leads me to believe the amp they are refferring to is just a forward signal level amp.

In our systems the customer is not charged for a house amp, but it remains our property. Only in extreme cases of a very long drop or a house with a very large number of outlets should the amp be needed. A well designed cable plant should have restrictions in place for length of drop, etc - this will in most cases prevent the need for a house amp.

Nicholaus
 
originally the main line came into a 3 way splitter, the leg with the least amount of signal loss went to a 2 way splitter (TV and modem on it)...then they ran a dedicated line...

dedicated line and main line went to a 2 way splitter, one leg to cable modem, other to the orginal 3 way splitter...this caused great cable modem signals but poor TV reception

THEN they just put a 5 way splitter, main line coming in, then 3 legs to TVs and 1 leg to modem...this causes fine TV reception and "borderline" modem signals... (-9 downstream when it used to be -4 and 61 upstream when it used to be 50)

does this sound like a need for an amp?
 
Originally posted by: stonecold3169
you can go to radio shack and pick up an amp for almost nothing... and they just screw in. Tell the guy you don't need or want his overpriced amp.
Click to expand...

don't buy any Radio Crap garbage.

If you're using a cablemodem on the splits, you want a good quality Broadband Amp which filters noise out of the Returns path.

Most Amps DO NOT filter noise from the returns, and instead actually AMPLIFY noise, making your cablemodem problem worse!

Motorola sells a good broadband amp, which will filter noise... but it will cost ya alot more than the $50.... best bet is to let the cablecompany install the amp.

Make sure the amp goes on the leg of the TVs, and not before.

----splitter------ modem
+---------amp-------tvs


do it that way, and you should have no problems.




-----amp------splitter-----modem
+----------tvs
do it that way, and you will have LOTS of problems


 
Originally posted by: stonecold3169
you can go to radio shack and pick up an amp for almost nothing... and they just screw in. Tell the guy you don't need or want his overpriced amp.
Click to expand...
How much do they help and can anyone recommend a particular amp?

 
Originally posted by: TJN23
originally the main line came into a 3 way splitter, the leg with the least amount of signal loss went to a 2 way splitter (TV and modem on it)...then they ran a dedicated line...

dedicated line and main line went to a 2 way splitter, one leg to cable modem, other to the orginal 3 way splitter...this caused great cable modem signals but poor TV reception

THEN they just put a 5 way splitter, main line coming in, then 3 legs to TVs and 1 leg to modem...this causes fine TV reception and "borderline" modem signals... (-9 downstream when it used to be -4 and 61 upstream when it used to be 50)

does this sound like a need for an amp?
Click to expand...


too many splitters = need for amp


try it this way.

two way.... -3.5 dB leg goes to modem
-3.5 db leg goes to a 3 way splitter

before the 3-way splitter... put your amp
then you should be able to split the 3 way to the TVs.

the problem is that one leg of the 3-way is a -3.5 dB loss... but the other two are -7dB loss..
 
Originally posted by: guyver01
Originally posted by: stonecold3169
----splitter------ modem
+---------amp-------tvs


do it that way, and you should have no problems.




-----amp------splitter-----modem
+----------tvs
do it that way, and you will have LOTS of problems
Click to expand...

Can you explain this a little more?

 
I believe an amp is needed/justifioed in your case.

Kudos for the great information! Most people don't know/care anything about the splitter config and/or power levels. That greatly helps in remote diagnosis
 
Originally posted by: guyver01
Originally posted by: TJN23
originally the main line came into a 3 way splitter, the leg with the least amount of signal loss went to a 2 way splitter (TV and modem on it)...then they ran a dedicated line...

dedicated line and main line went to a 2 way splitter, one leg to cable modem, other to the orginal 3 way splitter...this caused great cable modem signals but poor TV reception

THEN they just put a 5 way splitter, main line coming in, then 3 legs to TVs and 1 leg to modem...this causes fine TV reception and "borderline" modem signals... (-9 downstream when it used to be -4 and 61 upstream when it used to be 50)

does this sound like a need for an amp?
Click to expand...


too many splitters = need for amp


try it this way.

two way.... -3.5 dB leg goes to modem
-3.5 db leg goes to a 3 way splitter

before the 3-way splitter... put your amp
then you should be able to split the 3 way to the TVs.

the problem is that one leg of the 3-way is a -3.5 dB loss... but the other two are -7dB loss..
Click to expand...

agree, this would be your best configuration. Keep the amp off of the cable modem - use it only to improve your TV signals.

I would call and speak with a supervisor regarding a charge for the amp, personally I think the cable co should pay for it (assuming the wiring in you home is up to spec).

 
Originally posted by: guyver01
Originally posted by: TJN23
originally the main line came into a 3 way splitter, the leg with the least amount of signal loss went to a 2 way splitter (TV and modem on it)...then they ran a dedicated line...

dedicated line and main line went to a 2 way splitter, one leg to cable modem, other to the orginal 3 way splitter...this caused great cable modem signals but poor TV reception

THEN they just put a 5 way splitter, main line coming in, then 3 legs to TVs and 1 leg to modem...this causes fine TV reception and "borderline" modem signals... (-9 downstream when it used to be -4 and 61 upstream when it used to be 50)

does this sound like a need for an amp?
Click to expand...


too many splitters = need for amp


try it this way.

two way.... -3.5 dB leg goes to modem
-3.5 db leg goes to a 3 way splitter

before the 3-way splitter... put your amp
then you should be able to split the 3 way to the TVs.

the problem is that one leg of the 3-way is a -3.5 dB loss... but the other two are -7dB loss..
Click to expand...


Here's a picture of what i'm talking about
2.JPG
 
Thanks for the informative diagrams... the thing is though that these splitters are sitting on the side of the house....how would i safely house an amp there and power it up to make this functional?
 
Originally posted by: TJN23
Thanks for the informative diagrams... the thing is though that these splitters are sitting on the side of the house....how would i safely house an amp there and power it up to make this functional?
Click to expand...

ultimately... something like THIS is what you want.

If your splitters are outside, you're better off letting your cablecompany do the work... i dont think you want to start drilling holes thru your wall, because any passive amp MUST be plugged into a power supply... and it's a coax-grounded plug connection. It doesnt look like your regular power supply for a monitor or computer or anything.

You'll also need to mount it to the side of the house...

Let the cable company run it.
Trust me... it's cheaper and easier.

If you install it, and it causes problems, (ie: too much return and they'll cut your line for causing ingress) you'd be on your own. If it breaks, you have to replace it.

In the long run, with the cable company installing the amp, it will be done right, and if it goes bad, or causes problems, they have to fix it.

 
Originally posted by: TJN23
originally the main line came into a 3 way splitter, the leg with the least amount of signal loss went to a 2 way splitter (TV and modem on it)...then they ran a dedicated line...

dedicated line and main line went to a 2 way splitter, one leg to cable modem, other to the orginal 3 way splitter...this caused great cable modem signals but poor TV reception

THEN they just put a 5 way splitter, main line coming in, then 3 legs to TVs and 1 leg to modem...this causes fine TV reception and "borderline" modem signals... (-9 downstream when it used to be -4 and 61 upstream when it used to be 50)

does this sound like a need for an amp?
Click to expand...
We had a setup similar to that and the amp didn't seem to help much at all.
I really don't remember exactly where in the system the amp was, though, because my son actually ran the wires to the downstairs.
Our cable company (Optimum On Line/Cablevision) actually ran a separate line to our house for no charge.

((In 3 years I have never had a problem with them on installation, service calls, telephone assistance, etc.
The billing got a little confusing for a while because we added two extra modems at different points in the billing cycle, but it got straightened out shortly thereafter.))

 
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