| reply to Splitpair
Re: Am I getting the run around by Earthlink on Covad lines? After EL fixed their configuration problem of having my service set to 6M, the fluctuations and instability went away. I don't see a correlation to rain and storms any more.
EL TS closes a record after 14 days. After 21 days, the DSL dropped and wouldn't resync. Since EL TS said they would blame the modem if I had the problem again, I replaced their Netopia with a D-Link ADSL2/2+ modem on the lark that it would deal better with a low SNR situation. I also put on a Belkin High Speed Modem cable. That modem reports different stats (see attached) and the Attenuation reported has not once been below 60. SNR typically is 9-11 but I notice that it tends to slowly degrade over a couple hours and the modem eventually resyncs. When that happens, the SNR is high again. Rinse and repeat.
Does this still smell of a loop problem? Do I call AT&T or EL?
TIA |
| EPILOG:
Short answer. I get only lies and excuses from EL TS and their english is universally poor. Their DSL service is unreliable and tech support is powerless.
It's over. EL went down last Sunday night for two hours. Using dialup, I checked and no outages were reported. When I called EL TS, they once again did nothing but take all my information again. After 20 minutes of that, I asked them if there was a network problem because I had DSL sync but the ATM tests failed. After being on hold a couple minute, EL TS said there was a problem in my area and that their top network technicians were working on it. End of story. DSL was up in the morning and I researched new service.
What I learned in the course of researching DSL providers in my area is that Earthlink uses Covad's Central office equipment and network infrastructure but they all use the same lines to the house (I assume DSLAM included). Earthlink is low on the totem pole and it takes a long time before Covad and AT&T will get to EL's trouble tickets. Case in point, before I got my AT&T, EL went down on a Wednesday, wouldn't open a ticket until it was down 24 hours. EL TS does not know what's going on and they have to work through too many middlemen.
In contrast, every call to Covad and AT&T was a person with excellent english and competent in their answers. In the end I ordered AT&T. Thanks to everyone who jumped in to help me understand what was what in the network. |
