kytomk
join:2012-12-11
Independence, KY | Not Happy with Cincinnati Bell Fioptics Just signed up yesterday for Cincinnati Bell Fioptics. Not happy at all. Among my complaints are:
-Freezing of the picture, probably happened 7 to 8 times during a football game.
-Lost my internet connection.
-Horrible remote with difficult to read buttons. I think I need glasses.
-Not so hot channel guide compared to Insight/TW.
-Difficulty with DVR.
Tried to talk to someone with customer support but got someone from the Philippines that I had trouble understanding.
Maybe its just me and change don't get along. Just wanted to share my 2cents worth on CB Fioptics. Thinking seriously about going back to Insight/TW. |
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| If you can describe the model numbers of the set top box & modem it will be easier to be sure which version of Fioptics you have.
The menus are not great but have been improving. Losing your internet connection and having that many picture freezes sounds like the connection isn't what it should be. If you have the FTTN version maybe they can find another copper pair for the VDSL line - or check the stats to see if the look good or bad. |
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| reply to kytomk
Hi kytomk,
My name is Katie and I work for Cincinnati Bell. Sorry to hear you're unhappy with your service. Can you email me your account # and a convenient contact # so I can have someone from our Fioptics Team reach out to you? Send me an email to cincinnati.bell@fuse.net with the subject line "Fioptics service, Attention Katie"
Thanks!
Katie
Cincinnati Bell
Social Media Team |
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kytomk
join:2012-12-11
Independence, KY | reply to CelticComms
I have the ZyXel Model modem and an HDMI Dolby Digital Plus B703V3A DVR. Freezing of the picture and losing my internet connection are my main issues. I specifically asked the guy at the Cincinnati Bell store where we purchased Fioptics if there would be any issues with freezing of the picture or loss of internet connection (loss of internet had been happening with my old zoomtown connection). He assured us we wouldn't have these issues. |
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| If you can access the ZyXel modem (usually at 192.168.200.1) and post the xDSL stats that would give us something to comment on. Maybe Katie@CB get somebody to check the stats from their end since the Calix gear should be able to tell them the line conditions from that end.
If they provisioned you for FTTN then that implies that the expectation is that you are within range of the CO or a remote fiber node - but maybe that last 100' to your house has been scraped by too many squirrels.... |
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kytomk
join:2012-12-11
Independence, KY | reply to kytomk
Well, the wife lasted just a little over 24 hours with CB Fioptics. She pulled the plug on CB Fioptics this morning. Oh well, I was willing to give it a chance but she couldn't stand the freezing of the picture. Thanks for your help folks. |
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| I signed up last week too, they just started offering fioptics in union, ky. I'm having the exact same issue. The service keeps freezing every minute or so and then says loss of signal. It has also disrupted the Internet signal(good thing for smart phones). Even when the service is working "normal" it lags and it will freeze every hour. I called one of the customer service techs too and he said it must be something I'm doing and that the service wouldn't freeze. He offered to send someone out but was lazy with troubleshooting. Im using the same zyxel modem so that could be the problem. If any other consumers are reading this be warned. The silver lining is that we have the ability to negotiate price with insight as they'll gladly take us back. |
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| reply to kytomk
yes this system is terrible somebody needs to say it cincinnati bell sucks |
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I have Fioptics Internet over copper. Upgraded to 20mb download and 2mb upload. Have not been able to get any faster uploads than 1.2mb. Have been talking to support for 3 months and was told that upload speed of .768mb was acceptable by CB standards. Seems like a very low standard. Terrible customer service, and sadly I have been a CB customer since 1983.
Anyone know of a good VOIP that offers distinctive ring? Once I find a good VOIP provider, I am going back to TW for internet. Bundling was a nice idea, but not all ideas are good! |
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| How many numbers do you have that need distinctive ringing? Distinctive ringing has been poorly supported by VOIP providers possibly due to a lack of good standards/interworking, but if you have only 2 numbers needing distinctive patterns you could port the numbers to Google Voice and use an OBI adaptor (www.obihai.com) .
CB numbers need to be ported via a mobile provider - PM me if you need details.
Have you look at the xDSL stats on your VDSL modem? On clean lines the 20/2 service will usually provide very close to 2 Mbps upload on a test to speedtest.zoomtown.com . |
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| I have 3 numbers of which 2 are distinctive ring numbers.
As for the modem - since I have put it in bridge mode, I can no longer access it unless I reset it. The main issue for me is distance - as from the CB distribution point to the box in front of my house(on the other side of the street) the distance is 3400 feet, then to the modem you can add close to 200 more feet.
I liked what VoicePulse is offering but they can not port my CB numbers.
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| The router is still available on 192.168.200.1 even in bridge mode - you just need to have a corresponding IP/subnet setting on the device accessing it.
If you are not using the ZyXel as a router which router are you using? Does it support IGMP proxying? If the IGMP proxying is not working then the STB will play a short period of a channel after the channel change but will eventually give up (freeze) if it fails to switch to the multicast feed.
Is the box across the road an old style wiring box or larger and something new? |
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| said by CelticComms:The router is still available on 192.168.200.1 even in bridge mode - you just need to have a corresponding IP/subnet setting on the device accessing it.
If you are not using the ZyXel as a router which router are you using? Does it support IGMP proxying? If the IGMP proxying is not working then the STB will play a short period of a channel after the channel change but will eventually give up (freeze) if it fails to switch to the multicast feed.
Is the box across the road an old style wiring box or larger and something new?
The modem is a Zytel and even directly plug into the modem I can no longer access it via a browser.
The not sure how to tell about the box across the street. My house was built in 2005, so I would assume the box may be a year or two older. Since I have only live in this house for a year I do not know it CB has ever replaced it. I do know that is a copper run to the box from the main box for the subdivision - The subdivision goes back to @1990.
FYI - mid November a CB tech came out and stated the issue is that the box at the subdivision is 3,400 ft from the one that goes to my house - and the signal at the box was barely 20mb/1.5mb up/down and that this box was beyond the recommended length (3,000 ft) not to mention adding about another 200 ft to the modem. |
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 DeathKPremium
join:2002-06-16
Cincinnati, OH | reply to kytomk
Given that information there should be no surprise about the performance. They shouldn't have allowed you to get the 20Mb tier.
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Photos By Greg Strong |
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2 edits | reply to Barry Z
To see the ZyXel unit when in bridge mode you need to manually add an appropriate IP to your Ethernet interface such as 192.168.200.20, subnet 255.255.255.0 . The unit should then be visible on its old address - 192.168.200.1 assuming that it has not been changed.
The loop length is fairly long but 20 Mbps down would be possible if crosstalk is not excessive. However the maximum attainable download is possibly in the 20-30 Mbps area depending on which profile is being used, so there isn't much extra left for IPTV etc.
It sounds as if the tech has already identified line length as the main issue, but crosstalk over that distance could also be significant. Did he say if they had already tried a different pair on the main run to your sub-division? If you can access the xDSL stats page it may give further insight. |
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| said by CelticComms:To see the ZyXel unit when in bridge mode you need to manually add an appropriate IP to your Ethernet interface such as 192.168.200.20, subnet 255.255.255.0 . The unit should then be visible on its old address - 192.168.200.1 assuming that it has not been changed.
The loop length is fairly long but 20 Mbps down would be possible if crosstalk is not excessive. However the maximum attainable download is possibly in the 20-30 Mbps area depending on which profile is being used, so there isn't much extra left for IPTV etc.
It sounds as if the tech has already identified line length as the main issue, but crosstalk over that distance could also be significant. Did he say if they had already tried a different pair on the main run to your sub-division? If you can access the xDSL stats page it may give further insight.
CB Tech came out yesterday - They removed a couple of splices and found a better pair at the subdivision to use. My download is at 18mb and upload is at 1.6mb. This tech stated the actual distance is more like 5,000 ft from the box feeding the subdivision and was surprised to get those speeds. Seems CB does not care about delivering a good quality product. I had TW for years before moving and never had speed issues.
All things said, I will investigate my options with TW.
Thanks for the help! |
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| Glad to hear that things have improved. Given the line length it sounds as if CB have come close the limits if the capabilities of current generation VDSL on real-world plant. I would not be surprised if they install a remote DSLAM location nearer you at some point in which case you should see better service options.
TWC do manage to crank decent speeds out of their DOCSIS 3 enabled nodes but do remember that they tend not to provide protected power to those nodes - important if you want VOIP phone coverage during power outages.
Competition is good for us in the local market. At the moment CB are hurting a bit because they have chosen to deploy a native IP system throughout and the technologies aren't always were they (or we) might want them to be. However, it is also worth bearing in mind that without CB the local market would probably have seen DOCSIS 3 from TWC a lot later than it did.........  |
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DeathKPremium
join:2002-06-16
Cincinnati, OH | reply to Barry Z
said by Barry Z :My download is at 18mb and upload is at 1.6mb. Those speeds look about right for a "20/2" DSL connection. They never provision at a higher speed to account for the overhead. It's good that the tech was able to find a better pair so you could get the maximum speed possible.
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Photos By Greg Strong |
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| reply to kytomk
We've had the Fioptics for 2 weeks and we have had nothing but trouble. Repair people have been out 4 times without success. This technology obviously does not work!! Internet continually goes out and the tv picture continues to freeze! |
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| reply to BarryZ
I have used VoIPo for a year now and have been very happy with the service, quality, and lack of any problems. The only issue I have is that the message light does not always clear after I have picked it up. Not a biggie. |
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