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WhyADuck
Premium Member
join:2003-03-05

WhyADuck

Premium Member

Ultra in W. Michigan - advice on best non-Puma modem please

A family member that lives in West Michigan (Allendale headend, I think) has broadband service only (no TV or phone) and is wanting to upgrade to the Ultra plan to get the higher speeds, but he plans to go to the Charter store and ask for a new modem there. He specifically wants to get a non-Puma modem that does NOT include a built-in router (he has his own router), and he specifically wants one that is reliable, in other words one that never spontaneously reboots or that freezes up and has to be power cycled. Reliability is the most important thing, and he asked if I could find out which broadband cable modem currently offered by Charter is the best.

In reading some of the other comments (such as the thread at »[HSI] are there any new non-puma modems being given out?) I think I should probably also mention that his local network is in the 192.168.0.XXX range and that it would be a pain in the butt for him to change that. I only mention that because I saw some comments that one of the non-Puma modems can only be logged into on 192.168.0.10, although some then said that is no longer the case and that now it can't be logged into at all. Still, I am concerned that if the modem's network port is handing out an address in the 192.168.0.X range, that's going to cause a problem for him because it would mean both the WAN and LAN sides of the router would be trying to use the same address space. He has several devices on his local network that have static IP addresses in that range. His present cable modem communicates on 192.168.100.1, and that works fine.

So what I am asking is what would be the best modem offered by Charter in W. Michigan that would meet his requirements, and also hopefully not cause him any issues with the IP address it wants to communicate on. I'm kind of assuming that Charter has pretty much the same modem selection nationwide but I don't know that. Also if anyone has any hints for saving money when doing this type of upgrade I'd like to hear them and will pass them along with the other information. Thanks!

terabitz
join:2016-10-16
Thonotosassa, FL

terabitz

Member

Spectrum gives out pretty much the same modems in their entire footprint. Right now they seem to be handing out the EN2251, ET2251, or the EU2251.

WhyADuck
Premium Member
join:2003-03-05

WhyADuck

Premium Member

said by terabitz:

Spectrum gives out pretty much the same modems in their entire footprint. Right now they seem to be handing out the EN2251, ET2251, or the EU2251.

Thanks. So, does that seem to be a good, reliable modem? And also do you happen to know what IP address it uses on its Ethernet port?

Also that does NOT have a built in router, does it?

terabitz
join:2016-10-16
Thonotosassa, FL
·Frontier Communi..
ARRIS NVG468MQ
Greenwave FiOS-G1100
Cisco 7941/7961

terabitz to WhyADuck

Member

to WhyADuck
They're three modems, not one. Technically the same but from three separate vendors. The former has the Puma 7 chipset, the latter two Broadcom chipset.

Yes they are reliable and good.

You can't use an IP address to access the diagnostics. Spectrum has locked down their branded modems. Is that what you mean? Otherwise, the IP out of it would be whatever the WAN IP is if you connected directly to it.

WhyADuck
Premium Member
join:2003-03-05

1 edit

WhyADuck

Premium Member

said by terabitz:

They're three modems, not one. Technically the same but from three separate vendors. The former has the Puma 7 chipset, the latter two Broadcom chipset.

Okay, I'm confused. You say "Technically the same but from three separate vendors" which I take to mean is that the device is probably manufactured by one company in China or wherever and then sold under different brand names worldwide. But where I'm lost is that you then say "The former has the Puma 7 chipset, the latter two Broadcom chipset" and the only way I can interpret that is that the EN2251 has the Puma 7 chipset but the ET2251 and the EU2251 have the Broadcom chipset. Is that what you mean? If so that seems strange but if that's really the case it means he'll want to avoid the EN2251, because he doesn't want anything with a Puma chipset.

EDIT: After looking at this page again »Spectrum Equipment Guide (Worldbox, Modems, Routers) it looks like that is indeed the case - both Hitron models have asterisks next to them indicating they have the PUMA7 chipset. I am surprised Charter would even still be using those after all the issues people have had with the Puma chipsets.
said by terabitz:

Yes they are reliable and good.

You can't use an IP address to access the diagnostics. Spectrum has locked down their branded modems. Is that what you mean? Otherwise, the IP out of it would be whatever the WAN IP is if you connected directly to it.

Thanks. I think I was confused by the posts that said you had to use 192.168.0.10 to access the web interface and diagnostics, but if you can't do that anymore then I suppose it's irrelevant. I'm not exactly a networking expert (far from it) so I tend to get a little confused sometimes about how all the parts fit together.

stxrmfxl
join:2019-05-30
Stanfield, NC
·T-Mobile

2 recommendations

stxrmfxl

Member

The E31U2V1 used to be able to be accessed by manually setting the IP of whatever device was on its WAN port to what was described. I found that out. Now it has been disabled on all of their branded modems. The technicolor had a small workaround but the password was never found. The Hitron always has been a complete black box.
xpxp2002
join:2014-08-29
NEO

1 recommendation

xpxp2002 to WhyADuck

Member

to WhyADuck
said by WhyADuck:

the only way I can interpret that is that the EN2251 has the Puma 7 chipset but the ET2251 and the EU2251 have the Broadcom chipset. Is that what you mean?

It is this. Charter contracts three different manufacturers to make the same-specification modem. The manufacturer makes some choices like chipset vendor, as long as they comply with Charter's specs (must support certain DOCSIS version, channel configurations, etc).

The end result is that Hitron chose to make a Puma7 modem, while Ubee and Technicolor made a Broadcom modem. They all have the same capabilities and are all tested and approved for use on Charter's network. Charter uses them interchangeably when issuing them to customers. Some markets tend to get more of certain models sometimes, but I suspect that's more of a consequence of logistics than some deliberate effort to seed certain modems in certain areas.
shoek
join:2021-01-18
Hudsonville, MI

1 recommendation

shoek to WhyADuck

Member

to WhyADuck
I live in Hudsonville and have had Spectrum Ultra 600 for the last year. I have a static IP so they gave me a modem/router combo, where the router's only purpose is to do 1:1 NAT on the static IP to my own router.

in mid-December, I started to have internet drops lasting about 5 minutes, first weekly, then daily, then a few times a day. In mid-January, I had several tech visits, and one of them mentioned that my street was split from the Allendale head-end to the one in Holland in about mid-December. He told this to his supervisor, and that guy called me and explained that a few customers who were part of this split have had issues since, and a modem swap is what fixed it.

So, I now have the Technicolor (Cisco) modem, replacing my Hitron. They look exactly the same except for the model numbers and fine print on the back. No issues since the modem swap.

TL;DR: I recommend your family member ask for the Technicolor modem.

StevenB
Premium Member
join:2000-10-27
New York, NY
·Charter

StevenB to WhyADuck

Premium Member

to WhyADuck
Stay away from the hitron EN2551 at all cost. I've used 2 sadly and both l9cked up and rebooted every 48hrs give or take. Using an ubee eu2551 and no issues for 5 days so far.

But if want or family member wants to see the signal page. Then any broadcom modem docsis 3.1. Mb8600, mb8611, sb8200, netgear 1000, 2000, cax80, s33 and others.
reds91185
join:2016-10-31
Royse City, TX
ARRIS S33
TP-Link Archer AX6000

1 recommendation

reds91185 to WhyADuck

Member

to WhyADuck
said by WhyADuck:

...
I am surprised Charter would even still be using those after all the issues people have had with the Puma chipsets.

...

99% of customers have no issues with the Puma modems, never heard of it, and don't care. I'm sure they're a bit cheaper too so business-wise it makes sense.