pcouturier
join:2007-03-14
Saint-Jacques, NB | Best DSL modem
What is the best DSL modem possible?
Is the Efficient Speedstream 5200 a good modem? |
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Happyrat
Google Is Your Best Friend
Premium
join:2002-07-01
Disneyland | Cisco... If you have very deep pockets...
As for the 5200, opinions vary, but personally I see nothing wrong with it... |
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pcouturier
join:2007-03-14
Saint-Jacques, NB | reply to pcouturier
What about Netopia DSL modems? |
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Happyrat
Google Is Your Best Friend
Premium
join:2002-07-01
Disneyland | Not even in the same league as Cisco... |
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Bicephale
join:2005-09-24
 ·TekSavvy Solutions..
| reply to pcouturier
Hi PCouturier,
I'm not sure i even have pockets at times but what
i can tell is your "Best DSL MoDem" can be defined
in many ways. One other thing i know is that i've
never seen systematic comparisons between brands &
models under controlled conditions on a real test-
bench!... The best we can do, as customers, is to
publish our stories (with 'DMT', 'STMT' and OrbMT'
captures whenever possible) so that the people who
come after us have more evidence than we ever got.
Are you a P2P abuser, a week-end surfer or are you
in between? Your use define which MoDem you need,
meaning that when someone argues they've found the
"Best DSL MoDem" around you'd be very well advised
to ask them what they use it for. I know a person
who likes to play cards on a system which was paid
3000 dollars, on her special days she looks at her
pictures when she's not simply browsing... Do you
think it was right for her to buy this kind of PC? |
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pcouturier
join:2007-03-14
Saint-Jacques, NB | I'm far from the CO, and I want the best possible modem to have the maximum speed possible... |
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Scoop
join:2006-08-05
Ottawa, ON | The speedtouch modems work well. |
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pcouturier
join:2007-03-14
Saint-Jacques, NB | I do have a SpeedStream 5200....but I'm pretty I can have better |
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maxfield
join:2007-09-01
Lasalle, QC
| Hi pcouturier,
Different modems behave differently, even on the same line condition.
For example, I had a Bell-issued Speedstream 5200 E240, it performs better than my new Speedtouch 516v6 on uTorrent seeding upload speed, while the Speedtouch 516v6 has a slightly faster top download speed in uTorrent than the Speedstream 5200 E240.
I've learned from this forum that the 2wire modem can extract a better speed from a poor line than the Speedtouch.
However, one fact is certain, the Speedtouch 516v6 is one of the most popular modem on this forum. The other is the 2wire 2700 ADSL2+ modem.
Very hard to say which is "The Best DSL Modem" unless you test them all on your line. I would rather buy a DSL modem based on features.
For example: the D-Link DSL-2320B has an official support for ADSL2+ Annex M (3.5 mbps upload) and is advertised as such.
Right now I own a new ST516v6, but I am a bit disappointed with regards to its uTorrent seeding speed, but it is a cheap modem (depends on where you buy it). But if I were to buy another DSL modem again, the D-Link DSL-2320B would be my choice. |
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Bicephale
join:2005-09-24
·TekSavvy Solutions..
2 edits | reply to pcouturier
Hi,
Then you want sensitivity, reliability, efficiency
customizability and availability but at the lowest
possible cost... Sure, no problem! I suggest you
petition so that the major ISPs become involved in
some cross-verified comparisons project but i wish
you good luck because you'll need a lot!!! I seen
good comments about the Westell 6100, for example;
quite a few relatively to refurbished 2Wire units,
then some convincing ones with 'DMT' captures that
mentioned the Siemens 4x00/5x00 SpeedStream types.
I see you already got an SS5200, get a 24 h record
of your error rate which in fact reflects noise...
This may provide some clues about what's going on.
There are just too many brands/models for ordinary
customers to evaluate and we don't have the means;
the 3rd-party ISPs themselves just can't afford to
get a suitable test-bench to investigate that many
parameters so i'm sorry to write all you can do by
now is to search for "DMT" on DSL Reports, looking
to find cases which may to be equivalent to yours.
In any case, before you gamble, and/or throw money
at it... you'll do yourself a favour by verifying
that your wiring has been "cleaned up" to the max.
I own a GNet and a SpeedTouch, the later was meant
to replace my old GNet while it actually forces me
to remove it often enough. I believe it's not too
tolerant to noise but i've reduced the error level
tenfold on the good days, its late (11th) FirmWare
gave me some hope when it came out so, be wise and
try to borrow a couple units if you have a chance!
--
Thomson's SpeedTouch: FirmWare created by Europeans to
meet the requirements of ISPs doing business in Europe! |
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maxfield
join:2007-09-01
Lasalle, QC
| You know what Bicephale?
I would wish that ISPs (3rd parties of course, I don't expect Sympatico to do that)...
...reveal their stats about the different modems used on their network and make some suggestions about which modems do best according to the user's distance to the CO.
For example:
W brand of DSL modem would do best between 0 to 1000 meters from the CO.
X brand of DSL modem would do best between 1001 to 2000 meters from the CO.
Y brand of DSL modem would do best between 2001 to 3000 meters from the CO.
Z brand of DSL modem would do best between 3001 to 4000 meters from the CO.
The reason I ask for this is that different modems behave differently when the line condition is different, there can't be a "one brand fits all" solution. ISPs should suggest to their customers which brand of DSL modems to purchase according to the distance from the CO and the resulting line condition, so that customers can have a choice to have a modem that can extract the most from their lines.
Lets say, someone has a poor line condition, I would suggest the customer to get a 2wire modem, because it can take a poor line better than a Speedtouch.
For my case, I think I am somewhere like 3000 meters (line distance, not geographical distance) from the CO, so I need a modem that performs best at that distance. I purchase the Speedtouch because simply it is one of the most popular DSL modems on this forum. But unfortunately, I don't think the Speedtouch is the ideal modem for my line.
So what I wish the ISPs would do is to put a simple guideline about which brand of modems would do best according to the distance from the CO, so that the customer can have a judicious choice about the modem purchase. |
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twizlar
I dont think so.
Premium
join:2003-12-24
Brantford, ON
 ·Mountain Cable
| The problem with that, is that different modems perform differently on everyone's lines. What works for me at 3000 feet probably won't work best for you at 3000 feet. There are alot of things that come into play than just distance to the CO. It would be stupid for ISPs to try and tell users that certain modems work better in certain conditions because simply, they dont always. Giving a "better all around" modem is the way to go as it gives the most people a better connection, rather then a very few with different modems. On top of all that, its not that hard to check for yourself, just borrow a bunch of modems and test them all. I've used GNET, Speedtouch and 2wire modems, and they all worked differently (mind you the GNET was terrible). Its all personal preference, and individual line conditioning.
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Intel Q6600 | 8800GTX | Ipods suck |
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DKS
Damn Kidney Stones
Premium,ExMod 2002
join:2001-03-22
Owen Sound, ON
clubs:
·Bell Sympatico
| said by twizlar  :Its all personal preference, and individual line conditioning. Exactly. In my case, the 2Wire isn't as good as the Speedtouch 5x6v6.
--
Need-based health care not greed-based health care. |
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maxfield
join:2007-09-01
Lasalle, QC
| Ok...criticisms accepted.
But I still believe that a "one brand fits all" approach will eventually leave some customers very happy, while others less so.
How about instead of basing my suggestion on distance from the CO, I use line condition quality for modem choice, for example:
W brand modem works best with an excellent line.
X brand modem works best with a good line.
Y brand modem works best with a marginal line.
Z brand modem works best with a poor line.
I am sure ISPs have this kind of statistics.
Will this approach work to cater to the customers vis-à-vis their modem choice based on their line condition?
DKS, you even said that the 2wire modem doesn't work as well for you as the ST5x6v6, I can understand that different modems behave differently even on the same line, and for your case, the ST5x6v6 works best. But if your ISP had the "one brand fits all" approach and sells you a 2wire modem, would you be satisfied? |
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DKS
Damn Kidney Stones
Premium,ExMod 2002
join:2001-03-22
Owen Sound, ON
clubs:
·Bell Sympatico
| said by maxfield :DKS, you even said that the 2wire modem doesn't work as well for you as the ST5x6v6, I can understand that different modems behave differently even on the same line, and for your case, the ST5x6v6 works best. But if your ISP had the "one brand fits all" approach and sells you a 2wire modem, would you be satisfied? Given the lack of availability of DSL modems in my community, I'd be quite content with what the ISP provides. But as I'm aware of options, I know differently.
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Need-based health care not greed-based health care. |
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HiVolt
Premium
join:2000-12-28
Toronto, ON
clubs:
·TekSavvy Solutions..
·Bell Sympatico
| reply to pcouturier
said by pcouturier :What is the best DSL modem possible? Is the Efficient Speedstream 5200 a good modem? There isn't a "best dsl modem". One modem that works great for me, might suck for you, due to line conditions, or the features might be better on one than the other.
I have played with a lot of modems over the years, SS5200 included. There are two popular revisions of the SS5200, one is E240 (older) and E242 (newer). The E242 has a newer ARM7 chipset vs ARM5 in the E240, and it's generally better on marginal lines. Key is to find one with uncrippled firmware.
Picking a modem also depends what degree of tweaking and line diagnostics you want to be able to do. SpeedTouch 516v6 modems are pretty good with that, with the correct firmware and DMT software you can see a lot of info and tweak options without going into the CLI (command line interface) of the modem via telnet.
The 2Wire 2700HG modems are a great deal, they are sold for around $20 refurbished from several retailers, and if you happen to get a working one, they are pretty good on crappy lines, among the best I've seen. They provide decent decent line stats from the web interface, however no DMT capability.
SpeedStream 4200/5200/6520 are ok, provided you obtain one with uncrippled firmware.
I would recommend you stay away from older types, such as Alcatel SpeedTouch Home/Pro, SpeedStream 5260/5360/5660, they use older chipsets from the early days of ADSL, and while they work fine on good lines, they arent great on marginal lines. General rule of thumb, if a modem does not support the newer ADSL2/ADSL2+, don't buy it.
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GO LEAFS GO! |
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macedon
Jazz me baby
Premium
join:2006-02-12
Canada
clubs:
| reply to maxfield
said by maxfield :Hi pcouturier, the D-Link DSL-2320B would be my choice. how much is this one and where to get it? |
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maxfield
join:2007-09-01
Lasalle, QC
| said by macedon :said by maxfield : how much is this one and where to get it? The cheapest around is about 78$.
It varies between 78$ to a high of 90$
NCIX sells it too. |
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macedon
Jazz me baby
Premium
join:2006-02-12
Canada
clubs: | how would you rate this one in comparison to SpeedTouch 516 v6? |
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maxfield
join:2007-09-01
Lasalle, QC
| said by macedon :how would you rate this one in comparison to SpeedTouch 516 v6? Hard to say, I haven't personally used the Dlink DSL-2320B.
However, the DSL-2320B has official support for ADSL2+ Annex M which increase the upstream from 1 mbps to 3.5 mbps, while the ST516v6 doesn't have official support for Annex M, but which can be enabled through telnet command line. ST516v6 uses Broadcom BCM6338 chip, and this chip supports ADSL2+ Annex M, but this feature is not automatically enabled by default in ST516v6.
ST516v6 should be a good little cheap modem. Can be found for around 60$ online. |
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