US Cable Support → Comcast HSI > [Install] Do I need professional install for new internet?

[Install] Do I need professional install for new internet?

I've been thinking of switching to Comcast. I have a neighbor that has their Comcast Performance Internet plan and loves it!

Quick question for you guys; I've had AT&T DSL wired up since I moved into my home 5yrs ago. Does the Comcast professional install needed? I guess so since they have to run cable from the street and into my house?

Do they have to dig up my front yard for that installation?!

Thanks!
Nick

If there no cable Installed then they will need to install. It depend on how the cable is ran If the are underground then they will need to buried it under ground. Now this is different each area on how they bury the cable. They could just go just 4 inches down just using a shovel or using a trencher to go to 12 or more inches down For I prefer they go down 12 or more inches down. If they are any good after it done you will not even notice it.
--
Caddy

If you have no Comcast services at your house then they have to connect the line at the pole.

O/k, either a pole or a ped bud

What I meant for the OP is at the tap (which is either at the pole or the ped). I know around here Comcast will disconnect a non-subscriber premises at the tap for several reasons, one is signal leakage/ingress another is theft of service.

If you have a house full of open cable ports/cut wires , then you'll have leakage and ingress.

A couple of years ago, I was having problems with my modem going offline and the culprit was ingress and it was causing issues on the whole node and knocking modems offline for multiple customers on the entire node (including businesses) so I think the Comcast division around here likes to err on the side of caution and physically disconnect non-subscriber premises from the plant.

That ingress fiasco ended up getting the attention of the Comcast corporate offices in Philly according to one tech. Probably costed them a lot of money as well too.

Finding a source of ingress can be like finding a needle in a haystack.

For the OP: I think having a professional install is worth the cost as it will allow them to clean up the wiring, remove/reconfigure splitters, and so forth. Also if it's an older home, your house probably has older wiring. HSI needs RG 6.
--
I've experienced ImOn (when they were McLeod USA), Mediacom, Comcast, and Time Warner and I currently have DirecTV. They are much better than broadcast TV.

I have not and will not cut the cord.

HSI does NOT need RG6, though it is better to have it then not. I am running Performance 50/10 behind two splitters for at least a -7db loss on 30 year old RG59 (new connectors), and have no problems. Getting 57/11 according to the tests. Also 2 DVRs and a DTA.

My point is that is has to take more time & is costly to bury a line then it is to go from pole to dwelling.

Mine is buried too.

And they don't bury them in the winter months in colder climates due to frozen ground. Mine went bad I think around January or February of 2009 and I had to wait until spring for them to run a new line so I had to put up with dropped connections and poor signals for several months.

Thanks for all the info guys!

I'm in a relatively new subdivision, about 5 yrs old, and I bought in here about that time. So there are no poles around, which means I assume they would have to dig underground to get the cable signal into our house? We have 3 green boxes in between us and our neighbor, I know one is at least the AT&T phone and other maybe cable box?

Another question. Since I currently have AT&T DSL and want to switch to Comcast internet only, I assume I shouldn't cancel AT&T service until the Comcast install is all finished and working good?

Thanks so much everyone for your help I can't wait to ditch this crappy DSL and get some "real" surfing done!

Oh yes, definitely looking to get better speeds for downloading files, streaming videos/shows, etc.

However, I don't get how my DSL/Cable difference may not be that noticeable? Speedtest rates my DSL at 1-2kbps while my neighbor with Comcast has the 50 package and gets 45-48kbps all the down. Watching shows on his computer is like night/day compared to mine. Its barely watchable for me. Seems like the AT&T DSL speeds/connection, for me, has gotten worse this last year or so.

You need to change your speed notation. What you are using now, 1-2kbps for example is customarily read as 1-2 kilo bits per second. You really mean 1-2 kilo bytes per second. The way to say that is 1-2 kBps