Go about investigating how I can get faster internet speeds

Hi guys,

I'm currently in a pickle.

I recently upgraded to Redstones Broadband Max up to 8meg service. However, i'm only acheiving speeds of just under 2meg. I've contacted them and they say it must be due to the quality of the copper and the distance from the exchange etc, however a parent that lives just down the road gets over 6 meg. So annoying! So Edugeeks, what are my options? We are an independant school so aren't linked up to the LGFL or anything like that. How can I get faster speeds?

Thanks in advance guys.

Can you get cable where you are? NTL may be a better choice if you can't get good DSL speeds.

Bonded ADSL lines are an option. With your MAX adsl it does take time to train up to the 8mb, how long has it been, it seemed to take about 3 months for ours at work but were getting 700k downloads from MS now rather than 170k previous. Training should take 10 days but does seem in the real world to take longer.

Bear in mind with any DSL solution goes through the BT exchange, so contention ratios can play a part. An advertised 8Mb/s can be significantly less if the local exchange is under load. With dialup asking BT for a 'fixed gain' (upping the voltage on the line) helped with longer distances, but I'm not so sure about whether this is a technical solution for DSL. Bonded DSL is definitely the way forward with cheap lines if a leased line isn't an option.

If Be, or any other ADSL2+ provider is in your area you will get better performance from them.

Meanwhile try shortening the distance between your phone socket and your modem, or increasing the quality of the wire. Also try a different modem if yu can.

Finally, consider bandwidth management and user access controls - reducing wasting bandwidth. Penny saved, etc. ;)

We are just looking into this, We have 2x ADSL Lines - 8MB Each

We are looking at a FORTIGATE 100a to balance the lines into one connection - this seems really logical - and cheap

Not sure on options on upload, but download certainly good. I think with /VLE options coming in upload will play a vital role so must be considered - not sure of others views

with adsl it can be so many things but..........
just to make sure its not the wires you can try some of the following

try different routers and usb adsl modems to see if you get higher speeds.
try different firmware - some firmware is designed for poor quality or long lines.
make sure microfilters are installed.
make sure you try the adsl on the master socket
if possible get a new line installed you wouldnt belive how often this makes things better (dont know why :) )
try your router at the house that gets 6meg.
moan to BT
Moan to your ISP.

Also - some routers will tell you what they're getting relative to the capacity of the wire. This would be an interesting figure, as it takes into account any noise.