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Post by dasfuchs on Apr 28, 2009 8:41:45 GMT -5
Since the hot weather came back this way, I've noticed the cable here is getting fuzzy and internet connections often slow to 3 or 4kbs if not drop signal completely till around 6pm or so when things cool down.
Some searching leaves be to believe the place needs a booster.
I have Charter for service, I've called them to ask their opinion and prices to solve the issue. Every time i either get a busy signal or get the run around.
Does anyone know how much it even costs (because I don't have alot of money to throw at this) or even if the booster is the issue?
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shrike
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Post by shrike on Apr 28, 2009 10:04:44 GMT -5
Strange.
I've worked in cable for a bit over a year about 3 years ago, and this is opposite of what I would expect. Cool/cold weather increases the noise ceiling on cable (the baseline noise level that always exists on the line) which, by itself doesn't cause problems in a well designed and maintained system, but can allow existing problems to reveal themselves. Cold weather can also cause contraction of metal in lines and connectors and cause them to lose contact. As a result, seasonal problems are normally winter associated.
One problem to watch out for with a booster is that you are going to amplify the noise along with the signal. As a result, your SNR (signal to noise ratio) will probably not improve. If you are losing signal because the signal is simply not strong enough, a booster might help, but if you are losing it because of too much noise, a booster will make no difference.
The best course of action is to ride Charter's ass until they do something about it. Once you have it reported, keep a record of when you aren't getting service, call billing, and demand to be reimbursed for the time you are off. Do that enough, and they will get it fixed for you before they lose too much money.
Edit: One more thing to note about boosters is some of them, especially cheaper one, are one-way and will not even let the return path pass through. Most of them that are two-way only amplify in the forward direction and not on the return path. That is generally a good thing, because the return patch is quite susceptible to noise, but it's something to be aware of.
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Post by dasfuchs on Apr 28, 2009 10:55:57 GMT -5
Yeah, i'm not sure what's up, I had no problems during the cold days, and it's a bit cooler today by about 20-30 degrees and it's strong as it used to be, it only seems to weaken during the warm days
It did the same last year, but I paid no mind since I had little time to use it anyways
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shrike
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Posts: 56
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Post by shrike on Apr 28, 2009 16:41:40 GMT -5
Do you know if any of your neighbors are experiencing problems? The main problem I could think of that would be heat related would be a node, amplifier, or line extender overheating. Otherwise, it may be something being affected by metal expansion in the daytime heat.
I still think your best bet is with Charter. If it is a heat expansion issue, it may be in your wiring, but it could still be with them as well. Either way, a booster is a band-aid at best, and useless at worst.
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Post by dasfuchs on Apr 28, 2009 17:48:05 GMT -5
Everyone here in this building has the same issue. i talked to the owner earlier, the cable is spliced for 10 rooms, and there's no booster she knows of.
Today it stayed cool and i've had no problems with it. Called charter earlier and got a hindu guy or something, couldn't understand a word. the rest of the time it was a busy signal...so I'll try callin' later tonight
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Post by dantesvirgil on Apr 28, 2009 17:49:42 GMT -5
Weird -- we have the same problem.
I really hope correlation doesn't imply causation in this case.
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Post by dasfuchs on Apr 28, 2009 17:51:35 GMT -5
Like i said, I was checking on it online and that seems to be what the majority said, cable techs thought they were major issues, but most of the time it was just weakened signals
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shrike
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Polyamorous Atheist
Posts: 56
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Post by shrike on Apr 28, 2009 18:09:26 GMT -5
10 rooms is a minimum of 10.5 dB loss on 6 jacks and 14 dB on the other 4 if they only have one drop. It may be worse depending on how the building is wired. Ideally, you'd want at least 2 drops for that building each feeding 5 jacks. A booster isn't goi g to help you individually, but it might help on the main inbound drop. I'm now thinking that you need to bug both Charter and the building management. If the building does have a booster, it may be bad or overheating, if not, there may need to be more drops run.
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Post by m52nickerson on Apr 29, 2009 15:37:15 GMT -5
Yeah, i'm not sure what's up, I had no problems during the cold days, and it's a bit cooler today by about 20-30 degrees and it's strong as it used to be, it only seems to weaken during the warm days It did the same last year, but I paid no mind since I had little time to use it anyways As temperature increases the resistance in the cable lines will also increase. This will cause the loss in signal strength. A booster may work, the only problem is that on colder days the booster may cause the signal strength to be to high.
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Post by dasfuchs on Apr 29, 2009 15:45:06 GMT -5
Alright, charter's slated to be out here next Friday, so i'll make sure i post whatever they deem the issue is
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