Review by midiman32 
member for 1.4 years, 46 visits, last login: 7 days ago
updated 12 days ago
 Donahue,Scott,IA
 $52 per month- (12 month contract)
 "Reliable service, low pings, speed for distance" "Copper lines, speeds could be faster" "Great ISP besides the physical limitations that every copper line has"
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UPDATE 5/12/2013:
After my modem, router and two computers fried from a thunderstorm, I was forced to get new equipment. CST now has an option to rent the modem as well as buy. I chose to buy (New modem model: BEC 5200SRD). As for the router, I bought an Asus RT-N16 which had really good reviews. Long story short I ended up returning it due to poor performance (QoS and slow upload speed through it). I now run on a pfSense box and love it.
Getting back to the review, I spoke with Don again and asked about a point-to-point wireless system from the CO as it is a two mile line of sight. I would be using two of these:
»www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004MY···F8&psc=1
They haven't really ruled out the idea. Don said he would like to have the Chief Operating Officer (fairly small company) call me about my issues.
The next day, Butch called me and mentioned they have an Remote Terminal going in northwest of me and they would be willing to move it around to get it closer to me. This would cut the distance in at least half and allow bonding if I wanted. He wanted to move the install date of the RT to this year if I understood right. So now I am awaiting a call back on more info about the RT install details. That's all for now.
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UPDATE 1/31/2013:
Spoke with Don from CST about my issues of bonding and they have been experimenting with a bonded modem and equipment in the DSLAM. He said that they don't want to bond two lines at my distance (which is 14,500 ft) due to the stability of the connection (or the lack thereof in my case). He stated that bonding is for customers much closer (like 8,000 ft or under) to bond two lines for customers who want IPTV along with an internet connection of 20/2 because apparently TV takes alot of juice. He said SD channels take about 3Mbit while HD channels take 9Mbit.
I would like to know more about bonding limitations if anyone has any info (if distance is a factor and what not). He said they're installing many remotes but not one in this direction this year. I'll check back with them next year on their upgrade routes.
If anyone has any thoughts on how to get line stats and also bonding information, I would like to hear them.
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ORIGINAL REVIEW:
I signed up with Central Scott Telephone (a NetINS company) in October 2011. Their service has been 100% reliable in terms of speed and uptime. I am about 14,500 ft from the fibre fed CO. At original activation of my account, they recommended the 3/0.5 plan due to distance.
When I signed up, they gave me the modem and it was a plug and play install, simple as it can get. The modem is a BEC 5200S. When I plugged in my laptop directly to the modem, I was happy to see the speedtest was maxing the connection at about 3.2/0.55. I asked them to upgrade the connection to the next tier which was 12/1. They alerted me that I wouldn't see the full speed of the tier due to distance. After replacing all the internal wiring from the NID to the phone jack with Cat5e, I am now achieving speeds of 6.5/0.9.
From what I've read on this site, it sounds like I am really fast for the distance, so for that I am pleased. However, I am itching to go faster and achieve more upload, so I have inquired about bonding two lines and they can do it, but only under business plans. I am currently waiting for their callback on the business plan prices. If I hop on to a business plan, I will update this review with a reflection based on my experiences.
Overall, the best ISP around (and my only wired choice), a very honest company, I would recommend them to anyone in this area (Iowa side).
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