[harps]

My problem is with BT and their provision of my internet.

I live 330 metres from the NIWT exchange (Waringstown), my house is only 5 years old (therefore the wiring is new), I currently sync at 8128 with the exchange.

Where my problem lies is that BT insist that I have a profile of only 1750, thus reducing my speed to <1mb most of the time. To put this into context, my neighbours either side of me both enjoy speeds >6mb and approaching 7mb. Up until the first quarter of last year I also enjoyed these speeds and maintained a profile of 7150 constantly. However somewhere along the line this changed, and I noticed a variance in my speeds, although the 7150 stayed. At the time I was with my ISP for 3 years and never had an issue. They however changed their supplier from Entanet to Murphx at around the same time. For a while I played a wait and see game thinking it maybe something to do with the changeover and it would take time to settle. However, by last July at time my speeds were reducing to less than 1mb at times so I contacted them. They investigated and after 3 months of to and for no progress was made and I made a decision to move to another ISP, based upon their reviews and an assurance that they could sort this out.
Today however it is no further on as you can see from my intro. I would like to point out that this ISP have given everything they can to resolve this issue since last September and their CS reviews were accurate.
So what has happened in the intervening months?

For a long time my profile was arbritarily changing every few days at the exchange, jumping from 6878 to 2500 and back up and this went on for months up until December when it suddenly shot back up to 7150. This only lasted for a few days and then it went back to 2500. After some persistence in February BT sent an engineer to resolve this, and his estimation was the problem lay at the exchange and not my home setup. He wanted to swap out the card but the help desk told him no and they would reset my profile to 7150, which they did. For a few days my speeds were good and >6000mb, then overnight after 5 days it went back to 2500. Since then it has bumped along between 2000 and 2500, changing overnight at the exchange always at 00.15.
3 weeks ago in response from mails from my ISP they reset my profile to 7150 and once again my speeds rose accordingly, then out of the blue it reset to 1750 where it has stayed ever since. However in all this time my sync rate on my router is 8128, although if I looked at my max ratings it varies according to the profile stated there. For example it states my sync is currently 2018 with a profile of 1750, but my router shows at 8128. If I do a speed test at any ISP it shows my connection as 8mb with a download of 7-8mb and whilst I understand these are only estimates they are an indication of my line potential.
My current router stats are as follows:
Data rate 8128
Noise margin 8.4
Output power 9.8
Attenuation 6.0
I have tried everything here I can do. I have
changed filters
tested a different router
plugged into the master socket directly
changed my ehternet cable
run all tests with the wireless turned off
disabled all un-necessary windows services
I am at my wits end with this and do not know where to turn to.
If anybody has any suggestions I would gladly listen

[mrstevenrogers]

this is not of much help
but i had similar problems with BT some years ago my answer was i moved to a new ISP Be* part of the O2 group and that sorted all my speed/connection problems

BT are just Bloody Terrible ...

[Burn_IT]

It sounds as though the cabling to your house is very noisy and probably faulty. The problem is getting BT to admit/test it as they very cleverly guarantee only very low speeds (if any) and voice.
I got them to do mine by ringing and complaining about crackling on the line when making phone calls. They then have to test the line for noise and often will find some sort of fault. Mine was a main junction box full of water which also affected the whole street as it happened.

[RatsNest]

Harps, your story feels familiar. The data in your additional posts on the BTCare community forum are also informative (http://community.bt.com/t5/BB-Speed-Connection-Issues/high-sync-poor-speeds/td-p/188981). The ADSL line/connection report table shows that the problem is intermittent but persistent, so multiple tests may be required to isolate the fault. As you will have discovered, there is a massive Catch 22 in that multiple disconnections causes your IP Profile to be set lower and you have wait days for it to recover. Do tell whoever is handling the case at your ISP when you cause disconnection(s) yourself. You sound pretty thorough, but if you don't already, I suggest keeping a record of each test with date & time.

The only new suggestion I have is to try the BT Quiet line test http://www.the-scream.co.uk/forums/t181.html. The info in the link is 10 years old and details may have changed. Given that your problem is (or was) intermittent, I'd suggest repeating the test at different times and over successive days. If you can contrive to do it when your ADSL connection speed is slow and again when fast(er), that would be ideal. It's probably best to use the master socket, and you need to eliminate background noise from radio, tv, traffic, etc., as much as possible. The results are subjective, but I suggest writing it down anyway. If there is noise such as fuzz, crackling or whatever, make sure you have unplugged any phone extensions and repeat. Noise on your phone line should be reported directly to BT as per Burn_IT's post.

Given that a BT engineer has already investigated and made a recommendation, but the problem was not resolved, I would be asking the ISP to pursue that with BT. In fact can you get the ISP to request BT to provide their own engineer's report (i.e. in writing)?. That might concentrate minds a bit. Resetting your IP Profile seems to be BT's equivalent of the IT Helpdesk "Reboot your computer and try again", i.e. a quick and easy way to make the problem and you go away for now.

If you have a phone extensions and a NTE 5 type master socket http://www.adslnation.com/support/extensions.php, you can try opening the lower-half faceplate and plugging in to the test socket inside. This disables any phone extensions and noise therefrom. The problem for you is that you may have to run any such test for days to know whether there is an effect or not. This is just to be sure that any line noise isn't from within your own premises.

You are not alone in getting problems like this and it would be very helpful to hear how it pans out. Good luck.

[harps]

@Burn_IT
I tried phoning and complaining about line noise but the BT operative tested the line and said there was no noise so that killed that notion. My ISP has suggested to mee in the past that he thinks BT have been working on my cabinet or at the exchange and somehow the pairing have gone wrong, thus suggesting to the exchange that one day I am 330 metres from it then switching to 6km away thus the swings in IP profile.

@RatsNest, I have tried using the master socket in an effort to rule other issues out as well as everything else you can possibly think of. My situation is not helped by the fact that Opal or BE do not operate in my exchange so moving to a different wholesale provider is out of the question. In fact, in a real twist to add to insult, there are 12 cabinets in Waringstown, #10 being mine. All of them are enabled for fibre except #10 and 6..........#10 is outside the exchange! There no current plans for it to be enabled for a minimum of 6 months. I heve tried everything I possibly can to get this resolved. As far as I can see my ISP has done the same, but I get a feeling he has reached the end of his interest in this problem and it has been downgraded.

[harps]

I should add BT are not my ISP only the wholesale pipe provider through an Entanet reseller

[Burn_IT]

You need to suck up to one of your local BT engineers in the pub!!!

[harps]

If I knew he would on free beer for a year if it sorted this out!

[RatsNest]

Does this come down to the absence of a publicly defined standard for ADSL line quality in provision of a landline by a telecoms provider in the UK ? Presumably all the smaller ISPs operating over BT lines are likely to be affected.

BT are likely to be in & out of cabinets all over the country as they roll out fibre-optic (FTTC).

If you've ruled out all practical steps you can take yourself, and are happy with what your ISP has done, then it comes down to formal complaints or stronger measures doesn't it ? You've probably been there already, but have you asked your ISP to make a formal, written complaint to BT and to copy you in ?

A complaint to OfCom wouldn't hurt, but their web site says they don't get involved in individual disputes with phone companies, so I wouldn't expect much. GB Phone companies must provide an Alternative Dispute Resolution, so the question is, can a complaint be made directly to the phone company about a broadband issue? Another question is "Are BT abusing their market dominance in failing to properly maintain the network being used by other providers ?". That, I think, is a question OfCom are obliged to address, even if it doesn't fix your line anytime soon.

If BT think that people with problems that are awkward to trace can be fobbed off and that they'll go away & give up, they will surely continue. Please don't give in! The frustration though!!!!

[harps]

one thing I do not do is give up. The letter of cpompalint has not been done so it is something to look into. I just wish I knew the email address of the CEO of BT in Northern Ireland, it is somebody called Sutherland.

[stokegabriel]

His name is Mr Graham Sutherland who was formerly with NTL.

http://www.btplc.com/Thegroup/BTUKandWo ... /index.htm

I can't find an email address either but you could also write him a letter, personally if I want to make sure my letters get the attention they deserve, I send them Recorded Delivery.

BTNI do seem to be committed to considerable investment in NI

http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/busine ... _1_2436375

If you could find a few more dissatisfied people connected to the same cabinet, you could send a small petition and also maybe get some local news coverage. PLC's in general don't like adverse publicity, as this is the sort of information that financial traders consider,

Get half a dozen or more people and wave a few placards outside their HQ would be even better, and probably quite satisfying!

Go and give them some pain.

[harps]

Hi guys,
came across this old post, so I thought an update was in order. I changed my ISP in June to Plusnet, where the problem continued. However the difference is they actually got it sorted out in around 4/5 weeks and my speeds went up to around 6.72. There from time to time a severe drop in speed but a quick note to their excellent CS and my speed is corrected. This has happened three times and each time they have it sorted. Better news is that my exchange, Waringstown, is going 21CN at the end of June according to Sam Knows, so PN will be able to offer me around 16/19mb connection. One quirk however is that although the exchange is enabled for fibre, my cabinet which sits on the doorstep of the exchange is NOT enabled for it and there are no immediate plans to do so!! WAHAAA!!! BT strikes again