zul1
@i-55.com
| I found these nice modems, which to buy?
I was searching the internet and came across these modems on my list I'm narrowing down to which I'm going to buy.
»www.zoom.com/products/dial_up_ex···ial.html
»us.creative.com/products/product···duct=258
»cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi···T&ih=007
Ok, all of these modems look and sound really nice but I want one that will work (in general and with Windows XP Home) and not make me have to replace it for atleast a few years. Most of my online activity is spent playing games, like World of Warcraft so a good modem is needed.
Which one should I buy? I know its better to buy them all and compare but I don't want to spend hundreds of dollars just to pick one I like. Out of all of these, which one would you say is the one to buy? |
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zul1
@i-55.com
| it would be nice if someone would reply to topics in this forum. i know dial up is at the bottom of the internet chart but there is still thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people that can only get dial up and we would like input on atleast the hardware that could help. |
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tribby20
join:2000-11-06
Las Vegas, NV
edit:
August 23rd, @09:19AM
| reply to zul1
I used to run a BBS in the 90's and always trusted USRobotics modems to do the job. They're a little more expensive, but they never gave me any problems.
»www.usr.com/products/home/home-p···USR5686E
I personally cannot recommend any external Creative ModemBlasters because my dad had two of them and they both exhibited weird issues (had to continuously cycle power until the lights came on properly, or else it would not connect, low training threshholds, and drivers that did not always properly detect the modem in WinXP)
I've also used a Zoom external modem and had good luck with it (although a 28.8 model, not a V.90/V.92).
Joe |
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Fox McCloud
Ron Paul Enthusiast
join:2006-07-23
 ·Embarq
 ·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Verizon BroadbandA..
| reply to zul1
said by zul1 :I was searching the internet and came across these modems on my list I'm narrowing down to which I'm going to buy. » www.zoom.com/products/dial_up_ex···ial.html» us.creative.com/products/product···duct=258» cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi···T&ih=007Ok, all of these modems look and sound really nice but I want one that will work (in general and with Windows XP Home) and not make me have to replace it for atleast a few years. Most of my online activity is spent playing games, like World of Warcraft so a good modem is needed. Which one should I buy? I know its better to buy them all and compare but I don't want to spend hundreds of dollars just to pick one I like. Out of all of these, which one would you say is the one to buy? there is an individual that I know that owned a top of the line Lucent modem that went for about $200...it was well worth it though (at least, if you know you're going to have dial-up for a while); she could REAL world speeds of 51k down and around 30-34k up; that's quite fast for 56k. (normally, if you can get 45k down and around 22-24k up you're doing marvelously).
I'm not sure which Lucent modem it is, and, of course, I can't guarantee the same results as what she got, but it was definitely a top-shelf modem. |
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zul1
@i-55.com
| I read in the link below that the v.everything USR modem (number 3 on the list of top 10 best modems in the world) actually out-performed every other modem on the list even though its v.everything up to v.90. Thats why I'm considering buying it.
I'm currently using a SupraMax Pro 56k v.92 internal modem that I got for $30 at an office store. Nothing fancy other than the onboard DSP chip that makes downloading a little better. My question is, will be getting a v.90 modem be good or bad considering I already have a v.92 although the v.92 one is just a basic modem found on every office store shelf. |
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zul1
@i-55.com | Forgot the link...
»www.pcworld.com/article/id,3890-···cle.html |
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benc
Premium
join:2007-06-17
Glen Carbon, IL
 ·Charter Pipeline
 ·Future Nine Corpor..
·Callcentric
·AT&T Midwest
edit:
August 25th, @11:28PM
| reply to zul1
I see no one mentioned this, so I feel a need.
Make sure you have a "controller-based" modem, not a "controller-less" modem, sometimes called "WinModems."
You want a "controller-based" modem because they don't rely on the CPU to do their tasks, which improve performance. Another advantage is compatibility with every operating system because of standards.
Characteristics include:
- Better computer performance (because the CPU isn't doing the modem's tasks).
- Higher cost (due to more chips and such on the modem).
However, the higher cost is worth it. Especially because of the standards. Do you want a device that requires a certain driver, and then when you get a different OS you discover you can't get a driver for it?
I too think that US Robotics is a good brand for modems. I have a US Robotics controller based modem which I have to dial-up, although I use it for a back-up (my primary ISP is Charter, which sucks but is the only choice I have that's less than $100/mo.).
I'd expect the cost to be between $55 and $75. Mine was $80 when I got it, and it's internal PCI. External will probably cost more, but might be worth it if you want to see the status lights.
One more thing: External modems are generally controller based, and you need a free serial port on the back.
Thankfully, due to the increased use of USB, serial ports are less likely to be used nowadays. Nowadays it's most likely to be used for external modems and as a serial console (if you don't know what that is you probably don't use it). |
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zul1
@i-55.com
| Thank you for the information. People usually say to avoid USB modems. I'm not sure why but they say if you want an external modem get a serial one.
Ok, I need a new modem so here is what it comes down to. I want a modem thats as good (or better) than the USR 56k Performance Pro Internal gaming modem. Like I said I used this modem in the past but it stopped staying connected so I replaced it. It appears no matter how good a v.90 modem is I should still get a v.92 modem. I am currently using a SupraMax v.92 high performance interal modem. It has an onboard DSP chip which is good but my old USR modem did too and it was alot faster. I don't want to buy another USR modem because I was never able to figure out why it stopped working. I don't want to spend $50 on another just to have the same problem.
Does anyone have any suggestions? Should I get a serial v.92 USR modem or is the v.everything (v.90) external serial modem better? |
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zul1
@i-55.com
| Ok, take a look at these. Which one would you pick for performance?
»www.usr.com/products/home/home-p···USR5686E
»www.usr.com/products/business/bu···=USR0839
»www.usr.com/products/business/bu···USR3453c
»cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi···IF:US:12 |
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benc
Premium
join:2007-06-17
Glen Carbon, IL
·Charter Pipeline
·Future Nine Corpor..
·Callcentric
·AT&T Midwest
| reply to zul1
That's curious. I personally have never had a problem with USR modems. Actually, I've never had a modem that wasn't USR. Once I even told a fellow I used to know to get a USR modem, and it's worked out well for him. Unfortunately, it's been awhile so I cannot remember what model number I had him buy.
I was reading those links, and it would seem that the first one seems good. The one that's model number USR5686E.
I'd recommend shopping around a little, since $95 on the USR site sounds like a bit. In fact:
»www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a···25104135
You *might* find a cheaper price, but NewEgg usually wins. Occasionally, another place may have a better price. Look at S&H costs as well.
I also noticed a comment on the NewEgg site that says one user discovered that it doesn't include a serial cable. Looking at the pictures you also don't see one, so you might need one if you don't have one already. You'd need a DB-25 to DB-9 cable. Most PCs have a DB9 serial port, yet the modem as a DB-25 port on the back.
What type of modem do you have now? Perhaps you have the cable already? I don't know how much knowledge you have about this sort of thing, so I don't know if you know what type of cable you need. But if you don't, you should buy locally if you can, so you can see the cable and make sure you got the right one.
Whether you accept my recommendation or not is up to you, of course. But even if you don't decide to take it, don't ever consider an ISA modem, unless it's for a PC that's so old that it only has ISA slots. ISA is dead. New motherboards don't have ISA slots, with a couple very small exceptions, which I doubt will last much longer. Plus, do you know if you PC even has ISA? The great majority of PCs today don't have ISA.
Stick with PCI, or better yet external serial. I don't see the serial port going away anytime soon. |
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zul1
@i-55.com
| Someone on another forum gave me a link to this modem. All of the reviews are good and its cheap! Less than $7 and its controller-based.
»www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a···25164001
My only concern is it looks like any other basic v.92 modem you would find for that price but it does say its Windows Vista compatable so I know the modem is new and wasn't made years ago. Do you think it would do as good or better as the USR modems that look way more advanced than this one?
By the way, this is the modem I am currently using:
»www.tigerdirect.com/applications···EGRABBER |
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Dialup User
@propel.com
| reply to zul1
You know I don't think It matters much which modem you choose, the only way to tell how a modem will perform on YOUR phone lines is to buy it and test it. I had a $300 courier v.everything and it connected at about 45k maximum. Im now using a $5 conexant modem and connect at 52k everytime and average about 5.7 KB/s downloads ( blazing speed there )  |
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zul1
@i-55.com
| ok, i just bought a Rosewill v.92 internal modem for $6 and I'm either having problems or the "more you pay the better performance you get" theory with modems is true. I installed this modem and loaded the CD and installed the driver from the CD. I tested the modem out. The first thing I noticed was a decrease in my connect speed from my usual 49.2Kbps to 45.2Kbps. The first thing I alwats do when comparing a new modem to my old one is I log into World of Warcraft and look at the latency bar then I run around for a bit and see how it handles the game. Well from the very start I noticed about a 150-200MS increase in latency compared to my other modem. I figured since the modem is new I would give it a few hours and a system reboot to break in. Well I did and the latency only got worse. It went up an additional 300MS making my average latency in the game 550-800MS compared to my other modem which gave me 290-375MS. Both of these comparisons were done simply running around in game in a very open area with few players.
Ok, so I decide to check the driver and try updating it. It turns out that it had an updated driver from Windows Update so I installed this driver and now I am connecting at an even LOWER speed of 42.6Kbps to 44.0 Kbps and I dare not even try logging into World of Warcraft...
So what is the deal here. I read nothing but good on this modem. I order it, get it the next day which was awesome considering it said it would take a week for the whole process but I got it in a day but then it performs worse than my previous modem. This is very depressing. I have spent enough money on dial up modems to have covered a DSL or cable bill for 2 years. All I know left to do is buy a serial modem that costs atleast $30. Does anyone have any recommedations? Oh and please don't reccomend Conexant as the DSP chip on my new modem is from them and it obviously can't handle what I need. |
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NetBoot
I Don't Suffer From Insanity, I Enjoy It
join:2003-04-21
Hazleton, PA
| reply to zul1
I've tried them all and I found that they all suck. I've pick up a Smartlink modem and never bought anything else since then. It works with anything. I've also found that Smartlink is the only retail modem that works with the AS/400 dialup connect. So, I always put in Smartlink modems in all pc's that I build for clients.
Just make sure you get the controller based cards they have and the ISA modems are the way to go if you have a ISA slot available.
Just my two cents.
Net....
--
They're not bugs in the program, they're just undocumented features... |
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blueco
join:2007-08-26
Richland, WA | reply to zul1
I've used mostly USR an' Zoom. BOth are great. anything earlier, i don't remember what kind they were...HAYES? lol, i dunno... |
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TravisB
Premium,Mod
join:2000-02-22
Springfield, MO
clubs:
Host:
Dialup
Southeast Asian Br..
| reply to zul1
Modems are almost impossible to review accurately. There are so many determining factors on how well the modem is going to do, that your best bet is to try one out and if it doesn't work - take it back. Shop some local retail stores if you can.. that way you don't have to pay to ship it back if it doesn't work like you want it to. |
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Lowtarget
Premium
join:2003-12-22
Alger, OH
clubs:
·RoadRunner Cable
·magicjack.com
edit:
October 7th, @08:37PM
| When I was on a dialup connection. This is the kind of modem I used back then. But the one I had was a older model and was white in color. But basicly its the same modem just newer model then I had.
»www.usr.com/products/home/home-p···USR5686E
It worked very well for me back then. I used that modem to play half-life online. If I remember right I got pings around 250. On the servers I played on the most.
I'm no longer on a dialup anymore. I'm on roadrunner broadband now. |
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fsmartin1
join:2002-09-06
Clearwater, FL
| reply to zul1
I purchases a 3Com Office Connect, 56K Business Modem in 1998. 3CP3294. USB and Serial port compatable. I still use this modem. I prefer to pay the difference for an external modem for the on/off feature when not in use.
Be careful, three of the 4 winmodems on the ebay site were ISA modems. |
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