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amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
| [IA] Connection drops Anyone else in the Des Moines metro (esp. out west) experiencing random drops of their HSI? For the past couple weeks this has been happening near nightly, and is sometime accompanied by either the modem being remotely rebooted, or just re-establishing a connection. | |
|  Service Tech
join:2008-01-25 Des Moines, IA | Re: [IA] Connection drops We will need your signal levels posted...192.168.100.1 Also it is helpful if you let us know what kind of modem you have. | |
|  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
| Sorry about not posting this from the start. I should know better. This is on the RCA DCM425.
FWIW, I experienced another few drops again last night. | |
|  Service Tech
join:2008-01-25 Des Moines, IA | Levels look pretty good, have you tried to P.M. BAINCH? | |
|  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
| Re: [IA] Connection drops said by Service Tech :Levels look pretty good, have you tried to P.M. BAINCH? Thanks for taking a look at the levels and giving feedback. I haven't yet imposed upon BAINCH.
Things have been good the past couple nights again, so I'll keep observing. The lack of anyone else here reporting a similar experience leads me to believe this is a fairly localized (geographically) issue. | |
|  rick89
join:2003-12-10 Franklin, NC
| I would keep an eye out for drops...when you see one check your stats then and see if they change much....If your stats dont change then it could be your UP SNR or a few other things...If you want to pm me your modem log i can glance through it and see if it saids anything...most of the time they dont help but its worth a shot. | |
|  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
1 edit | Re: [IA] Connection drops said by rick89 :I would keep an eye out for drops...when you see one check your stats then and see if they change much....If your stats dont change then it could be your UP SNR or a few other things...If you want to pm me your modem log i can glance through it and see if it saids anything...most of the time they dont help but its worth a shot. I had a few more connection drops this weekend. The modem signal status page never has any indication of a problem.
The modem log reports these events only during an outage:
Fri Jun 12 05:34:36 2009 Critical (3) DHCP WARNING - Non-critical field invalid in response. Fri Jun 12 05:34:23 2009 Critical (3) Received Response to Broadcast Maintenance Request, But no Un... Fri Jun 12 05:33:50 2009 Critical (3) Started Unicast Maintenance Ranging - No Response received - ... Fri Jun 12 05:22:06 2009 Critical (3) DHCP WARNING - Non-critical field invalid in response. Fri Jun 12 05:21:54 2009 Critical (3) Received Response to Broadcast Maintenance Request, But no Un... | |
|  rick89
join:2003-12-10 Franklin, NC | ya none of those indicate anything. next time you drop call tech support and have them chk your UP SNR just to see. If its above 25dB then you could have a modem and or power problem | |
|  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
| Re: [IA] Connection drops said by rick89 :ya none of those indicate anything. next time you drop call tech support and have them chk your UP SNR just to see. If its above 25dB then you could have a modem and or power problem Thanks for taking a look at the logs. If it's believed to be a potential modem issue, I'll take it into the local office and have them switch it out. I can confidently rule out a power problem (the equipment is on a voltage-regulating and monitor-able UPS).
I'd call tech. support if I felt it would do anything beyond trigger an on-site visit from a tech. I really feel for those folks, and I don't want to waste their time anymore than I want to waste mine.
My home has the most absurdly simple setup possible. I have one device (cable modem). It is connected as directly as possible (by a previous Mediacom on-site tech. visit) to the outside drop. I only subscribe to HSI service. I've also checked the outside drop, and the connections are as secure as they were when the tech. last visited.
I ended up canceling my Mediacom HSI at my office due to connection drops like this (that was just a few months ago). I don't believe the issues are related, but I don't think that the response times are real hot for fixing these types of issues either.
As I had more random drops last night, perhaps I'll get around to imposing upon BAINCH via PM.
In the meantime, if anyone else is reading this thread, is in my general area (West Des Moines, IA), and is having drops too...share your experiences.  | |
|  |  |   Anonymous Premium join:2004-06-01 IA
·Mediacom
| Re: [IA] Connection drops I like simple setups . BTW make sure the cable is not going through the UPS/surge protector. Call tech support and have them check your modem signal history and if needed they will dispatch a tech. | |
|  |  |  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
| Re: [IA] Connection drops said by Anonymous :I like simple setups  . BTW make sure the cable is not going through the UPS/surge protector. Call tech support and have them check your modem signal history and if needed they will dispatch a tech. The coax doesn't run through a UPS. Modem is different for the weekend (or at least through tomorrow). A lightning strike 30ft. from the cable drop last night (hit my neighbors tree) has smoked the RCA modem. It will no longer power on. I have a feeling that some collateral arcing off the lightning strike sent a good buzz up the line. The catch 22 of using a surge suppressor with coax...it might have saved the modem, but you and I know what they do to signal quality. 
The connection is dropping left and right tonight. I assume it has something to do with the outage in my area that the phone system was referring to. I had to call to complete my stroll through the walled garden...thankfully, this time I remembered to make note of my #s. | |
|  postmortem
join:2006-04-28 Cedar Rapids, IA | Cedar Rapids here, connection has been dropping whole night, and still is. | |
|   dark1
@mchsi.com
| Yea, it's been the cable co I think. I'm in carroll and it's the same all over. We had a 5-6 hour outage last night. I have not had any drops after talking to mediacom and then fixing the issues from the outage last night. So we shall see how long it stays. Maybe the areas with the drops and outage last night are prepping for the jump from 1.0 to 3.0. | |
|  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
3 edits | Last night and today (with the new modem) I've had many drops, and the speed continues to be really slow. A trace to mail.uu.net shows really low latency (~25ms). I'm downloading ATI's latest video driver @ 935kb/s right now...
Anyone else seeing slow browsing speed? All the signals from my info in the above paragraph lean towards a wonky proxy (what does they call it...webboost?).
Update: Using the excellent line quality test here @ DSLreports.com, I was able to determine that the slow speeds I've been having the past two days were due to my router. It likely took damage in my recent electrical event. My trusty old $5 spare wifi router is in-service now, and I'll keep an eye open for drops with this new modem. | |
|  Zoomer30
join:2003-05-01 Mason City, IA
| Mines been doing that off and on since December....best of luck getting that one fixed (I have had loads of luck in that area)
Just crashed again about 5 mins, after a few weeks of it working fine. Go figure. Makes no sense how a modem can go from +5 power to -18 in the blink of an eye.
Frequency 111000000 Hz Signal to Noise Ratio 31 dB QAM 256 Network Access Control Object ON Power Level -5 dBmV
Upstream Value Channel ID 1 Frequency 32000000 Hz Ranging Service ID 6195 Symbol Rate 2.560 Msym/s Power Level 58 dBmV | |
|  Zoomer30
join:2003-05-01 Mason City, IA | And during the 8+ hour TV outage due to the fiber cut a few days ago, my HSI did not even slip once........all I can say is 0-o | |
|  |  daveinpoway Premium join:2006-07-03 Poway, CA
| Re: [IA] Connection drops With an upstream power level of 58 dBmv, it is not surprising that you are having problems. Make sure there is no more than one splitter between where the cable enters the house and the modem's input and verify that all connections are tight. If the upstream power remains above 50 dBmv after these steps, a tech will have to come out. | |
|  |  |  CappinHoff
join:2007-01-05 Des Moines, IA
| Re: [IA] Connection drops said by daveinpoway :With an upstream power level of 58 dBmv, it is not surprising that you are having problems. Make sure there is no more than one splitter between where the cable enters the house and the modem's input and verify that all connections are tight. If the upstream power remains above 50 dBmv after these steps, a tech will have to come out. Upstream power can be over 50. 55/56 is the limit before it causes issues. | |
|  |  |  |  rick89
join:2003-12-10 Franklin, NC
| Re: [IA] Connection drops Yep. I've had a modem at 57 with little issue because it never moved from 57. Only reason was the customer was way out in the woods and we had to extend our feeder another ~600-700ft underground and we put the tap on the side of his house....luckly he only wanted internet so there were no splitters and he paid a good bit for the install....Im just glad we use 875 cable for our feeder as well. | |
|  |  |  |  daveinpoway Premium join:2006-07-03 Poway, CA | Running close to the limit doesn't provide a margin of safety for fluctuations that will occur due to temperature and other factors. | |
|  |  |  |  |   Anonymous Premium join:2004-06-01 IA | Re: [IA] Connection drops True but with 26 value taps your chance of having a 50- upstream are low. Mine is at 52-53 all year long and my tap is 26. | |
|  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
1 edit | I experienced a couple more drops last night with the spare D-Link modem I was using. That modem is known good equipment, so I believe it's good science to exclude the modem hardware from being the problem (RCA behaved the same before it was killed by a nearby lightning strike).
I went down to the local office today and swapped out my dead RCA. I was given a used Ambit. Thankfully, I keep the cable modem behind other equipment...as the Ambit is big and ugly.  | |
|  |  daveinpoway Premium join:2006-07-03 Poway, CA | Re: [IA] Connection drops If your Ambit is big, it must be an old model. I saw a recent-model Ambit at a swapmeet last year- tiny little thing, considerably smaller than a Motorola Surfboard. | |
|  |  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
1 edit | Re: [IA] Connection drops said by daveinpoway :If your Ambit is big, it must be an old model. I saw a recent-model Ambit at a swapmeet last year- tiny little thing, considerably smaller than a Motorola Surfboard. I have to admit to feeling less than impressed by my customer service experience...especially if I was given equipment more outdated than what you found at a swapmeet a year ago.
Still, as long as it works, I guess... 
@oldsyd: I understand how you feel completely. I said in an earlier post of this thread that I felt sorry for the techs, and that is the reason why. I feel bad for anyone that has to spend time on their job being asked to explain and fix other peoples problems...which is impossible to do when the problems isn't CP-related, but infrastructure. | |
|  |  |  |   Anonymous Premium join:2004-06-01 IA | Re: [IA] Connection drops Post your signal levels. BTW both Ambit modems are somewhat outdated, the big one even more so. | |
|   oldsyd
@mchsi.com
| Major outage in SE Cedar Rapids from around 2pm-5:30pm. Still seeing blips on cable modem lights (RX, TX, Online) and poor speedtests ranging from 3mbps-5mbps.
Just called support and got the "we can schedule a tech visit" junk. For the last time, it's not the wiring in my house, it's related to YOUR outage today. | |
|   oldsyd
@mchsi.com
| Just in case anyone is interested, here are the stats from my Motorola SB5120.
LOG
Configuration Manager Status Signal Addresses Configuration Logs Help This page displays detailed information intended for use by an authorized Motorola Corporation Cable Modem technician.
Time Priority Code Message 090622213606 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622213300 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622212528 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622212513 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622212411 5-Warning US: WatchDog: BD 0 stuck for 20 Sec (TxTime=1938C2B Info:0005) 090622212351 5-Warning US: WatchDog: BD 0 stuck for 20 Sec (TxTime=1938C2B Info:0005) 090622212331 5-Warning US: WatchDog: BD 0 stuck for 20 Sec (TxTime=1938C2B Info:0005) 090622211845 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211536 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211534 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211508 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211318 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622211036 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211031 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211028 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211004 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622211001 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210946 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210940 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210929 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210926 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210924 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210820 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210817 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210752 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210725 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210653 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210651 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210645 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210641 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622210546 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210526 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210521 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210517 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210430 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210423 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210403 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210400 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210329 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210324 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210254 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210249 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210245 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210239 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622210235 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210231 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210229 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210227 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210113 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210100 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210056 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210044 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210040 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622210011 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205959 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205956 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205945 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205943 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205928 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205909 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205905 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205902 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205854 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622205850 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205845 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205843 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205839 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205828 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205723 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205715 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622205659 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205651 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622205648 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205647 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205638 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205622 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205609 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205604 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205600 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205556 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205547 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205531 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205436 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205422 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205421 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205418 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205412 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205347 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205344 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205341 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205337 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205335 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205330 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205246 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205244 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205153 3-Critical R02.0 No Ranging Response received - T3 time-out 090622205148 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205135 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205103 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS 090622205102 4-Error SYNC: Hardware didn't detect SYNC msg for 600ms - Disable Upstream and trying to lock on DS Event Log has reached maximum size. Older log entries are lost.
| |
|  rick89
join:2003-12-10 Franklin, NC
| What you need to find out now is what your Upstream SNR is doing.... Ask them to look at the UP SNR graph and see how much it changes....it should be 28-33+dB....If its below 25dB you start getting flaps (packetloss) and if you drop below 18dB it will be very hard for your modem to hold on (Will still show its synced because the channel is still there, just alot of noise on it) If your up snr is in the green then it could be a cmts card or the cmts itself. It also could be the fiber laser but if it was that it would affect people with TV as well.
(For oldsyd)
You may have a modem problem...I would try a different modem | |
|  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
1 edit | Downstream
Downstream Lock : Locked Downstream Frequency : 111000000 Hz Downstream Modulation: QAM256 Downstream Interleave Depth: 32 Downstream Receive Power Level: 12.9 dBmV Downstream SNR: 29.8 dB
Upstream
Upstream Channel ID: 3 Upstream Transmit Power Level: 37.5 dBmV Upstream Symbol Rate: 2560 Ksym/sec Upstream Frequency: 25000000 Hz Upstream Mini-Slot Size : 2
The modem is apparently very old. I have events in the event log from 2004. I had to power cycle it to get the http daemon to fire.
I appreciate the insight that it could be one of many components of the network (i.e. CMTS, etc.). However, aren't those items supposed to be maintained by Mediacom? It thought that's what I pay $60.95/month for... Please don't take offense to this comment, it's not directed at you, and as I said...I really do appreciate the insight. | |
|  |   Anonymous Premium join:2004-06-01 IA | Re: [IA] Connection drops Your downstream power level is too high, your upstream power level is too low. Your Down SNR reading is incorrect. | |
|  |  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
| Re: [IA] Connection drops I still experienced connection drops last weekend with a known good D-Link modem. I also put in a different router. I don't doubt that the outdated POS modem I've been provided with is giving incorrect readings, and cannot maintain desirable power levels.
FWIW, that's $200.90/month of revenue they've lost due to these connection drops (I dropped my Business HSI account @ the office due to the same unresolvable issue).
Thanks to you all, and good luck...I'm done with Mediacom. | |
|  |  |  |  Turbocpe Premium join:2001-12-22 IA
| Re: [IA] Connection drops said by amgqmp1 :I still experienced connection drops last weekend with a known good D-Link modem. I also put in a different router. I don't doubt that the outdated POS modem I've been provided with is giving incorrect readings, and cannot maintain desirable power levels. FWIW, that's $200.90/month of revenue they've lost due to these connection drops (I dropped my Business HSI account @ the office due to the same unresolvable issue). Thanks to you all, and good luck...I'm done with Mediacom. I have a few questions. You said your RCA 425 got smoked during an lightning strike. Are you sure it didn't cause damage beyond your modem, like Mediacom's plant? Maybe that explains why your signal levels are out of range, although Anonymous is probably right that it's due to an outdated modem.
My other question is, what are you using to determine there are interruptions? Are you seeing the modem lights show sync loss? Are you getting disconnected from active connections/streams (AIM, video, audio streams, etc.), or are you seeing connection issues when access websites?
Your RCA 425 shown great signal levels. Either it goes to trash in a matter of seconds (I know this is possible), or it could be as simple as a DNS issue?
Have you tried contacting BAINCH ? If he's not in a mood, he should be able to run some checks to see the issue. I don't think anyone here would deny that regular support has known, and can, fail, which is why contacting BAINCH may be in your interest. | |
|  |  |  |  |   Anonymous Premium join:2004-06-01 IA | Re: [IA] Connection drops Ambits show correct up and down signal levels but their SNR reading is usually around 29-30 for some reason. | |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
3 edits | said by Turbocpe :I have a few questions. You said your RCA 425 got smoked during an lightning strike. Are you sure it didn't cause damage beyond your modem, like Mediacom's plant? Maybe that explains why your signal levels are out of range, although Anonymous is probably right that it's due to an outdated modem. My other question is, what are you using to determine there are interruptions? Are you seeing the modem lights show sync loss? Are you getting disconnected from active connections/streams (AIM, video, audio streams, etc.), or are you seeing connection issues when access websites? Your RCA 425 shown great signal levels. Either it goes to trash in a matter of seconds (I know this is possible), or it could be as simple as a DNS issue? Have you tried contacting BAINCH  ? If he's not in a mood, he should be able to run some checks to see the issue. I don't think anyone here would deny that regular support has known, and can, fail, which is why contacting BAINCH  may be in your interest. Please don't take offense to my comments, they may sound harsh but that harshness isn't directed at you. :)
I have no way of knowing the state of Mediacom's equipment, nor if anything upstream was damaged as a result of my neighbors tree being struck by lightning. I think it's more than a bit germane to point out that I've been experiencing these connection drops before the event. I've replaced the only splitter that exists in the wiring in my config. I have no reason to suspect the coax to have been affected, nor do I have any evidence of wiring damage.
As I indicated earlier in this thread, I've experienced both sync loss (as observed through the modem status lights), and loss of connectivity without sync loss. Packet loss jumps to 100%. Web pages don't load, any file transfers I have in progress cease, and I can't get packets beyond my router for trace routes. After a random amount of time, connectivity is restored and things keep going again. Identical behavior to what I was experiencing at my office.
Shortly after posting this message, I experienced a drop. Here are the trace route results to a very reliable host. When it reached hop 13, the connection seemed to be restored.
What would cause signal levels to go to trash in a matter of seconds?
As for contacting BAINCH...no, I'm really not interested at this point. It's not in my interest to pay for an unreliable service, then have to play games by seeking out a potentially moody (as you indicate, I don't know him) employee from the company, through non-standard channels.
This isn't my only issue I've had with quality of service issues. I had the same problems with a business account. I began complaining on this forum about performance problems late last year. They were finally solved, and things were well for many months. Then the drops started at work, and now home. Seriously, I'm done...that's my story. :-) | |
|  |  |  |  |  |  Turbocpe Premium join:2001-12-22 IA
3 edits | Re: [IA] Connection drops said by amgqmp1 :said by Turbocpe :I have a few questions. You said your RCA 425 got smoked during an lightning strike. Are you sure it didn't cause damage beyond your modem, like Mediacom's plant? Maybe that explains why your signal levels are out of range, although Anonymous is probably right that it's due to an outdated modem. My other question is, what are you using to determine there are interruptions? Are you seeing the modem lights show sync loss? Are you getting disconnected from active connections/streams (AIM, video, audio streams, etc.), or are you seeing connection issues when access websites? Your RCA 425 shown great signal levels. Either it goes to trash in a matter of seconds (I know this is possible), or it could be as simple as a DNS issue? Have you tried contacting BAINCH  ? If he's not in a mood, he should be able to run some checks to see the issue. I don't think anyone here would deny that regular support has known, and can, fail, which is why contacting BAINCH  may be in your interest. I have no way of knowing the state of Mediacom's equipment, nor if anything upstream was damaged as a result of my neighbors tree being struck by lightning. I think it's more than a bit germane to point out that I've been experiencing these connection drops before the event. I've replaced the only splitter that exists in the wiring in my config. I have no reason to suspect that coax to have been affected, nor do I have any evidence of wiring damage. As I indicated earlier in this thread, I've experienced both sync loss (as observed through the modem status lights), and loss of connectivity without sync loss. Packet loss jumps to 100%. Web pages don't load, any file transfers I have in progress cease, and I can't get packets beyond my router for trace routes. After a random amount of time, connectivity is restored and things keep going again. Identical behavior to what I was experiencing at my office. What would cause signal levels to go to trash in a matter of seconds? As for contacting BAINCH...no, I'm really not interested at this point. It's not in my interest to pay for an unreliable service, then have to play games by seeking out a potentially moody (as you indicate, I don't know him) employee from the company, through non-standard channels. This isn't my only issue I've had with quality of service issues. I had the same problems with a business account. I began complaining on this forum about performance problems late last year. They were finally solved, and things were well for many months. Then the drops started at work, and now home. Seriously, I'm done...that's my story. There are so many things that can cause the signal levels to go to trash in a matter of seconds. There's a lot to the network between Mediacom's CMTS and you. You may have to take matters in your own hands because Mediacom's polling is not frequent enough to possibly show intermittent issues. I will not get into specifics at this time, but I know some of this first hand that an intermittent signal issue lasted for months without Mediacom's awareness, resulting in HSD and telephony outages. Your neighbors, if also affected, may not be doing anything about it or even know it's beyond their own place.
BAINCH has helped dozens of customers. He has the power to help just about any technical situation. I would highly advise, before you give up, you contact him. You are right that you should not really have to "play" games by going through an unofficial channel, but most of us here know, and can say, that official support (even beyond Mediacom) can and does fail at times. It's probably why a place such as DSLReports.com exists in the first place and why, 10 years later, it still is a successful website.
I understand your situation, and you will do whatever you wish to do. But I do believe that BAINCH has a good possibility of finding and fixing your issue, if you contact him.
PS - I probably should not have used the word mood, but we're all human. | |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |   Anonymous Premium join:2004-06-01 IA 1 edit | Re: [IA] Connection drops Also I would assume BAINCH is probably busy and not moody and that's why it takes time to get a reply sometimes. If you decided to move on, that's fine but I think BAINCH is probably your best bet to get your issue resolved. | |
|  rick89
join:2003-12-10 Franklin, NC
| I believe you maybe having a Upstream SNR issue...The only way you can get your up snr value without some expensive tools is to call in and ask..(make sure its up and not down....lol....they read it wrong sometimes) If your up SNR is below 20dB....then thats your problem for sure...20-25dB can still cause problems just not as bad as yours on the trace but is still an issue... | |
|  iowaboy Premium join:2004-02-28 Kalona, IA
| I will vote 3rd as for Bainch at getting things fix in a big way. I usually always had fairly good luck with field techs but got to the point where all I could get was the tv techs and not the phone techs I needed. It didn't matter what the modem said I was getting modem reboots and lost connections and the phone just had to much static to even use it. I did im Bainch and to this day I do not know what he did but he did see that there was a lot of noise on my line. In a matter of a week everything was fixed till another part went bad somewhere down the line and we started over. But in the long run he did get the problems fixed and I have never had so good of connection as I have now. Do im him.. It is in your best interests to do it. | |
|   IowaStudent Premium join:2008-08-21 Grinnell, IA | I agree with everyone else IM BAINCH | |
|   dsmdiscer
@ia.us
| Unfortunately I'm not very tech savy when it comes to internet service/networking stuff, but I'm in Des Moines and experiencing the same issues as amgqmp1. My connection keeps dropping then returning, but it seems to be getting worse. I have been experiencing this since this weekend, and Mediacom is just telling me there is an outage in my area, but are not very specific. They also said I should not be getting cable tv either, but my cable tv is coming in just fine. They suggested I remove my splitter and run the modem directly to the wall mount, which at first seemed to work, but the connectivity drops quickly returned. I have tried to get an extra modem to work, and no luck with that either. I have a service call scheduled for Tuesday. I would consider pm'ing BAINCH, but the only "reliable" internet connection I have at the time being is at work. I know I didn't offer any solutions, but just wanted to post b/c I'm having the same troubles. | |
|  |  Turbocpe Premium join:2001-12-22 IA
| Re: [IA] Connection drops said by dsmdiscer :
Unfortunately I'm not very tech savy when it comes to internet service/networking stuff, but I'm in Des Moines and experiencing the same issues as amgqmp1. My connection keeps dropping then returning, but it seems to be getting worse. I have been experiencing this since this weekend, and Mediacom is just telling me there is an outage in my area, but are not very specific. They also said I should not be getting cable tv either, but my cable tv is coming in just fine. They suggested I remove my splitter and run the modem directly to the wall mount, which at first seemed to work, but the connectivity drops quickly returned. I have tried to get an extra modem to work, and no luck with that either. I have a service call scheduled for Tuesday. I would consider pm'ing BAINCH, but the only "reliable" internet connection I have at the time being is at work. I know I didn't offer any solutions, but just wanted to post b/c I'm having the same troubles. You might try starting your own thread and providing information such as signal levels that your cable modem is reporting, normally found by typing in the following in your browser: »192.168.100.1
Look for Downstream SNR, Downstream Power Level and Upstream Power level. Depending on the modem/modek, it may use the words Transmit and Receive instead.
Also, you might want to review this: »Connection issue? Information you need before posting.
And provide the relevant information in a new thread | |
|  amgqmp1
join:2008-11-10 West Des Moines, IA
·Mediacom
1 edit | I appreciate the advice on this thread. It helped me understand some things that I did not before (e.g. the scope of quality of service monitoring that goes on).
It turns out that the month old router I thought was bad...was not (I had edited a post I made on page one with some bold text...turns out I merely found a red herring). I really do dig the line test tool here though...very valuable in getting that sorted.
Good luck, folks! | |
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