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All Forums > Tech Talk > Tech Talk Forum Page 13 > Connection (modem) problems, advise
AuthorPost
BigBoy
Senior Member


3359 Posts
1/03
Posted - Dec 19 2012 : 9:41PM
Here is the deal, I have DSL service through the phone company as my connection to the outside world. Had used the company supplied modem - a Motorola 2210 - but after blowing through about three of them, decided that the 2210 is crap.
Didn't want to mess too much with configuring issues between my modem and ISP so I found an old ADSL modem that has worked pretty good for some time now. This is Siemens Speed Stream 4100. Lately this is dropping my connection quite regularly and seems generally slower than it used to.
Looked to update its firmware to see if that would help my issue(s). Can't find anything - not surprised it is old. And I don't want to use a program such as Easy Driver Pro or Driver Detective or Driver Whiz to scan and recommend or update my drivers/firmware. Have read bad things about all three of above. Nothing available on Siemens web site.
So I guess I have a question. Will a new modem rectify my issues Any recommendations out there? I don't have a really fast downstream speed from my ISP. Should I stick with DSL? I just remember that DSL was so much better than dial-up. Thanks all.

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Flash All-Star Supporter
Golden Age Classic

11018 Posts
5/01
Posted - Dec 19 2012 : 10:44PM
I haven't ever had DSL service, so I don't know if any of this applies, but my old cable modem started slowing down after a while and it was just a splitter the signal was going through was ceasing to properly work, replacing that fixed the whole problem.
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Goldstein All-Star Supporter
All-Star Member

"You have sacrificed nothing and no one."
3689 Posts
8/10
Posted - Dec 19 2012 : 10:58PM
Find out which modem(s) your ISP supports.
Standards have changed, and older modems now exhibit the kinds of issues you have described.
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ninja1
Senior Member

2939 Posts
1/08
Posted - Dec 20 2012 : 6:45PM
Customer reviews at amazon.com pretty much confirm OP's reliability problems with that Motorola model. My ISP uses ZyXEL modems. I have a ZYXEL P-660M which has worked reliably for 5+ years.
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RandomPrecision
Senior Member

Enjoy!
8175 Posts
3/06
Posted - Dec 20 2012 : 9:35PM
I heard there was some kind of a change coming that would affect a lot of older modems but I'm not entirely sure what it was about. It was in an email my ISP sent me but I can't find it now.
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BYOB_Kenobi
Senior Member

“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” - Kierkegaard
2684 Posts
8/09
Posted - Dec 22 2012 : 12:12AM
When I had a DSL connection with Verizon, I had a ZyXEL too and it worked good.
But if I were you and possible, get cable. Most cable providers have improved (at least Comcast has for speed).
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ninja1
Senior Member

2939 Posts
1/08
Posted - Dec 22 2012 : 1:03AM
^I'm satisfied with the ~10Mbps download I'm getting with DSL. If the only advantage of cable is faster speed, for my usage patterns, it's not worth the extra cost compared to what I'm paying for DSL.
Edited by - ninja1 on 12/22/2012 1:03:53 AM
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Goldstein All-Star Supporter
All-Star Member

"You have sacrificed nothing and no one."
3689 Posts
8/10
Posted - Dec 22 2012 : 9:42AM
Comcast throttles my connection (for over a year now), and I'm paying about $50/month for their "better" Internet speed.
Fucking assholes.
If I had another cable option..., but I don't (as our homeowners' association has us bound with Comcast).
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RandomPrecision
Senior Member

Enjoy!
8175 Posts
3/06
Posted - Dec 22 2012 : 11:56AM
By the way, I've had the Speedstream model mentioned by the OP since 2005 and I have very rarely been without connectivity. I don't think it was ever caused by the modem. It seemed to be on the ISP's end. A couple of times, it went out at something like 4 AM and nothing I did would get me back online until about 9 AM. But I probably didn't lose connectivity more than 6 times in all those years. So I think the Speedstream is a pretty good modem for such a basic unit.
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BigBoy
Senior Member

3359 Posts
1/03
Posted - Dec 22 2012 : 9:06PM
Thank you for the replies. And, yes, the Speed Stream has worked well for me. But I am going to try a new modem. Sometimes the 'activity' light just stays off like it is getting nothing.
I'll follow-up here.
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RandomPrecision
Senior Member

Enjoy!
8175 Posts
3/06
Posted - Dec 23 2012 : 1:19AM
This is probably a stupid question but have you tried different cables? I think one of the cables is fiber so it may not react too well if it gets kinked or squished or something.
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ninja1
Senior Member

2939 Posts
1/08
Posted - Dec 23 2012 : 1:55PM
How is your DSL wiring inside your house? Do you have a dedicated DSL line, or is it combined/shared with your landline telephone service? Do you have a 'home run' wiring connection? I initially had lots of annoying problems when I first got DSL, and went through several modems in the quest for a fix. It all cleared up after I installed a filter inside the telco box and ran a dedicated DSL line from the telco box to the DSL jack in my computer room.
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BYOB_Kenobi
Senior Member

“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” - Kierkegaard
2684 Posts
8/09
Posted - Dec 23 2012 : 4:02PM
It's more likely your modem is bad than your DSL provider is causing lots of network drops.
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RandomPrecision
Senior Member

Enjoy!
8175 Posts
3/06
Posted - Dec 24 2012 : 12:55AM
I forgot about the filters. If you have filters on your phones, a bad one can fuck up your service. I had that happen one time I think. Just about drove myself crazy. I put a new filter on my phone line and boom.
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All Forums > Tech Talk > Tech Talk Forum Page 13Connection (modem) problems, advise

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