Company Forums » Companies beginning with A » Atlantic Broadband > Atlantic Broadband Support Options

reply to robry

Re: Atlantic Broadband Support Options

reply to NetLarry
In the West End section of Johnstown, PA, the Internet has been really fluctuating.

The 5mb plan would normally get 620-640kb/s when downloading a file, it has been this way since the 8mb plan was introduced in Johnstown and years before, it went the full 3MB, when that's what the plan was. It's only now, the full speed is not experience basically ever.

Now for some reason, the Internet speed is anywhere from 200kb/s to 440kb/s, during most of the day except very late night, till 6AM, you may get 500-520kb/s.

A friend down the street is having the exact same issue.

Hello
My name is Lisa, and I work for Atlantic Broadband as well. I would like to assist you with the issue you are having. Have you run any speed tests recently? If not, could you run about 3 speed tests from our website? »speedtest.atlanticbb.net/
Please paste the results here so I can see what type of speeds you are getting.

For a faster resolution of your issues, so that we can take a look at your modem and run tests, you may contact us more directly. We have two options for this. You can live chat with a representative by going to »www.atlanticbb.com/ , clicking on Customer Care, and then on High Speed Internet. There will be a link on the right to Chat With Us Online. You may also call in at 1-888-536-9600, and speak with someone by phone.

If you would like to ask for me, just message me privately and I will give you the times I am available on Chat and by phone.

reply to robry
to robry

I see your test from yesterday 7/8/2010 looks very good. If you don't mind can you do at least 3 more tests so I can update your ticket and verify your speed issues.

reply to ABBCust
thanks for posting, everyone who ACTUALLY knows what to expect, has told me the same thing. those who just pay the bill and use the internet for email\news never noticed the slowness. I hope ABB is able to correct these issues.

reply to abbTim
Tim,

I will speed test tomorrow a few times throughout the day and contact you and lisa via PM when I do. I just ran a test now, but I have my router connected, only saw mid 5mbit speeds. I did also switch the modem from a dlink to a motorola surfboard 6120. I'll be in touch tomorrow.

Ryan

reply to NetLarry
Ok, here goes, I have had atlanticbb tech support here at my house numerous times, cable going out, tech says it is in the outside line, actually 2 techs told us this, not documented (apparently) Different channels going out on both tv's, no problem with inside wiring (yes atlanticbb, I KNOW your spiel about charging and no you are NOT charging me for your problems) Again called today, told them tv channel out and internet connection is on and off, and speed even when it works is not as advertised and what I pay for. tried to send me to a troubleshooter for the internet connection, Keep sayin I know what I an doing (reset etc) It's in the LINE OUTSIDE, so fix it. My husband and I have had enough, IF we have to complain to the FCC and that's the way to go I WILL do it.

Hello As I was replying to this post .. I noticed the message you sent me. I want you to get the services that you pay for and would like to help. I will reply to the message that you sent me with my availability and how I would like to help you.

Lisa

reply to NetLarry
The "Manage my account" webpage does not offer a way to reduce services. I finally got satellite and do not wish to keep my cable TV service, but wish to keep my cable internet. I did manage to finally call and get through to them this morning. Still it would have been much easier to have done this online if it was offered. Thank you.

reply to midnythr
Hello, my name is Dana, and I am also a technical support representative from Atlantic Broadband. If you like, you can message me with more information, and I can check into whether or not a maintenance repair on your lines has been scheduled for you. In most cases this is usually put in by a field technician, but if this has been missed we would like to correct this for you. I am available Tuesday through Saturday, and I log into dslreports at least once a day. I hope that I can help you. Have a great day!

reply to NetLarry
Can any of the support techs that log on here from ABB tell me why you have a 'chat' option and no one is home to chat? Are they on bathroom breaks or smoke breaks? I've tried it three times, and every time it tells me to come back in 30 minutes or so.

Today, we had the power go out briefly at my house. The computer, television, and router were all fine. But, the cable modem (Motorola SURFBoard provided by the company) appeared to be crapped out. I contacted the company to find out what was going on. I am told I have two options, either return the modem to the office in Grasonville (30 miles away from me) or have a technician come out. I decide to make the trip to the office because I need internet service. When I get back to my house about 90 minutes later, I set it up. ONLY TO FIND THE MODEM'S POWER LIGHT DOESN'T EVEN COME ON. Yes. I was given a COMPLETELY DEAD MODEM. Do you know how pi$$ed I was?

I call customer service, spitting bullets because I wasted two hours on a day off (which I rarely get) spending my gas money to pick up a defective piece of their equipment. Fortunately, the young lady I got on the phone was as helpful as she could be. Could someone come out this afternoon? No, afraid not, but they can be there tomorrow afternoon. Thank God my neighbor has an unprotected wireless network.

Then (here's the big kicker) I am told that I will be charged $30 for this visit. WTF. I explained that I drove 90 minutes round trip to pick up a modem that was broken, and then further explained that I was not going to be paying for this service call. And, this is the second service call I've had about a problem related to HSI within a month. My previous location, I had DSL for four years without a hitch.

I have not been impressed with this company thus far. I will update you tomorrow on how the tech visit goes. The ONLY advantage thus far was that I only had to sign a 12 month contract with these guys.

Foycur,

I am so sorry that you are having trouble with the chat service What time are you trying to chat? It should be available anytime from 8 am to 11 pm. I am personally on the chat service from 8 am to 12 noon every day I work. We are only given one chat at a time, but I will pull them out of the service line if there are more. We always have more than one agent on chat, and you should not have to wait. If you let me know what time(s) you are experiencing issues, I will be sure to let the chat supervisor know what time you are unable to chat so that he can investigate as to why this is.

In regards to your issue yesterday, I deeply apologize on behalf of myself and Atlantic Broadband that you were given a bad modem. I was actually the young lady that you spoke when you called back in. I really tried to get someone out to you same day. Because of what happened, I spoke with a supervisor early this morning on your behalf. I credited your account for $20 for your trouble. Again, I am sorry.

I think we may have had a misunderstanding regarding the trouble call fee. I was sure that I explained this to you in detail, but perhaps I did not do a good job. The $30 does go on automatically, but it is immediately removed by the technician if it is a problem on our end. So, if it is an issue with the modem itself, or the signal / lines coming into the residence, the fee is removed and you will not be charged. If for some reason, the technician forgets to remove this fee, then just let us know and we will remove it for you. However, if it a problem with internal coaxial cables or splitters, the fee would remain on the account.

This policy may seem as silly to most as it did to me when the company first enacted this policy. But, then it was explained to me, and I understand the economics of the policy. There are so many people out there who have cable service. Many people are not educated on proper procedures / equipment to use. When things go wrong, (which can happen even with quality installations and service,) people think they can save a time and / or money by doing it themselves. They may buy poor quality equipment to add to their existing lines, change things incorrectly, or accidentally damage equipment when working on them or other things in the house.

It costs money to send technicians (much more than $30): gas, equipment, wages for techs, insurance for vehicles, etc. The company has to balance their budget just like everyone else. So, what was happening in the past is that we were sending technicians to redo things that were done by customers incorrectly or damaged and not charging anything. It was adding to costs, which eventually equates to raises in cable rates. None of us wants that. We needed a way to control the costs better in order to keep cable rates from rising too high. I know for a fact that many other companies charge hourly work for internal wiring issues. We only charge a flat fee $30.

We do offer a wire maintenance package (around $5 per month) that covers all internal wiring and prevents this charge from going on the account. It is not required, but is preferred by some customers for peace of mind knowing that they are always covered.

Also, I am not sure who told you that you have a contract with us. We only have contracts with business account. Residential accounts are not under contract. You may be in a bundle package with special pricing for a certain amount of time, but it is not a contract. It just a special price for so long. I apologize for the misinformation.

If you are have any questions, issues, and / or concerns, please feel free to contact me. I would like to see you get the service you pay for and will help you if I can. Just ask for me, Lisa, when you call in or live chat. If you send me a private message, I will give you my availability by phone and chat. Of course, you can always respond to me here as well.:)

I hope the technician is able to resolve your issue today when he arrives and that this information was beneficial to you.

Thank you!

Please enjoy your day

Lisa
Atlantic Broadband Technician

Our service has been out since yesterday morning. I called yesterday after work and was informed that there were service problems in my area And that service would be up soon. I live 2 blocks from the abb building in Grasonville. As of right now, we still have no service what so ever cable, internet and phone. Good thing I have my iPad. Anyways, any idea as to when service should be back up again?

David Feifer
109 fox run

Never mind, seems someone mistakenly blocked my service with one of those spinner caps. Instead of one of my neighbors. We have two external service feeds to the building, one on each side servicing 5 units. The feed on my side only has one wire coming in to it from my unit. I can only guess that they presumed that it was the neighbors since my account is current.

I apologize for our mistake and for the delayed response. I am off work on Fridays and Saturdays. Is your service working now, correct?

Please let me know if you need anything.

Lisa

reply to NetLarry
I live in Altoona, PA and I have a couple questions about the Explorer 3000 cable box.

I've had the box for at least a handful of years, probably longer. My digital channels (Channel 001 and every channel from 100 and higher) always come in crystal clear, 24/7. However, the channels in between (channels 002 through 099) only seem to get a clear picture when the room temperature is below 75 degrees. Whenever the room temperature goes above 75, the channel picture screen always bounces up and down with wavy lines and shuts off and back on. Sometimes it gets so bad that the screen will even go black for 5 to 10 seconds at a time before the picture comes back on.

My question is are these boxes heat sensitive or is this just a malfunctioning box? I run into this problem every single summer. I even switched my box to a different TV in a different room but the same problem happened. Now that it's fall and the high temperatures are receding into the 60s, I pretty much (as long as it doesn't get warm outside) won't run into this problem again until May. But it's really annoying to have to go through this problem every single summer.

My other question is what is the correct current version of Channel 001 On Demand? Mine is currently displaying as Version 1.9.6. I was at my sister's house yesterday and she has a different cable provider (Verizon). Normally it seems like our On Demand options always link up in synch -- same available TV shows, same music videos, same available until dates, etc. But yesterday, I noticed that she had some NBC shows that weren't available on mine (for example the first two episodes of this season's Saturday Night Live). I did have access to Saturday Night Live on ABB On Demand last year. So, again, I'm just wondering if my box is bad (if I'm not on the right Version) or if this is actually correct at the moment for ABB On Demand.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Alex141..

I do apologize for the delayed response. I usually only do support for the phone and the internet. I had to speak with a video specialist regarding your issues. He said that there may be a few things that could be causing your problems. He would like to speak with you personally. Would you please private message me your contact information and availability so that I can have him contact you?

Thank you!!

Sincerely.

Lisa M Blanc
Atlantic Broadband Internet Technician

reply to NetLarry
Atlantic broadband is so oversubscribed its ridiculous. Performance is so poor its frustrating. I pay $60.00+ per month for 8Mbps service and I consistently get in the 8xx-9xx Kbps range. As others have stated this is dependent on which subnet I'm on. I am ready to scrap ABB's 8Mbps service for Verizon's 3Mbps. I hate this region and its a shame that these half ass companies can peddle their overpriced shitty service because of our lack of options.

Sorry to hear you're having trouble. If you like, I can check your equipment and be sure that your modem is functioning properly and that the signal to your modem is good. Please private message me with more information if you would like further assistance. Have a great weekend!

reply to NetLarry
Whats up with all the speed slowdowns in the mid to late afternoon, i can get full speed up until around 5pm, then the speed just fluctuates up and down and wont stay constant. Ive had this issue for a while now and have had 5 different techs to my house and they have even seen the speed slowdowns on there own laptops..
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Sometimes "The Majority" only means all the fools are on the same side.