Sky vs Zen vs Plusnet for Fibre Broadband

[V_R]

I might be another Zen customer in the not too distant future......

 

[Ian]

I might be another Zen customer in the not too distant future......

Plusnet done anything wrong, or just fancy a change?

I've only got good things to say about Zen so far.

 

[V_R]

Well, long story short something is slowing me down and I've pretty much ruled out everything bar their network itself.

Its like something is capping my download to 'only' 68Mb. I know it doesn't sound like much of an issue/first world problems etc, but I've always had max sync, I'm only 150m from the cab and my IP Profile has always been >75Mb.

They said there is an issue with my line, then there isn't, then there is again. OR says the line is fine... Etc. :/

Then everytime I need/want to talk to them I have to sit in a queue for at least 15 mins, you can double that in the evening.

The connections still rock solid, Huawei cab, low pings, no internleaving, no disconnects etc. If I reboot everything I get put on a new PN gateway and my speeds will be slightly better/worse but still not as fast as it should be seems to be anywhere around the 66-69Mb mark. Still with an IP profile of ~75Mb and PN telling me I'm synced at 75Mb.

I think I've run out of options now.... One thing left to try is I've just got a new TP-LINK TD-W9980 VDSL2 Modem Router from Amazon so I can 100% rule out my Huawei HG612 + Asus RT-N66U.

Thing is you only have to go on TBB, PN's forums etc to see I'm not the only one having these issues.... I think the Plusnet boat has sailed......


If you can think of anything I might have missed let me know!

Also, couple of questions for you, or any other Zen users...
1. What router are you using now, the ZyXel one they send you or your own?
2. Whats the control panel like? Can you see details of your connection etc?

Ta!

 

[Ian]

Worth a try then - Zen support have been really helpful and they provide lots of line stats info in their control panel. It'll show you things like your connection profile, sync speeds, DLM data, etc... They're redoing the customer portal to improve the look, but here's how it is at the moment:



I'm using a Draytek 2860 at the moment, as the ZyZel doesn't support some of the features I would like (VLANs, advanced firewall, VPN server, etc...). I seem to remember you can pay a bit extra and get a better one though. I was going to switch to using the ZyXel in modem only mode (or use the HG612) so that I can match cab and modem chipsets. I just need to wait to cable up our house from the outside so that I can place the modem downstairs near the master socket, but have Gigabit Ethernet up where the PCs are.

 

[floppybootstomp]

I'm using an Asus RT-N66U router with Zen, the one you recommended and now no longer seem to be using.... It's been fine for all the time I've used it, 2 or 3 years at a guess, except two of the aerial covers have fallen off.

 

[V_R]

Oh I'm still using it Flops. Its a good bit of kit. I'm just trying out the TP Link one to eliminate my modem and router from my enquiries..

Anyway, its not the HG612 or the N66U as I get the same speeds with the TP Link router too. Hmmm.

Its looking more and more like it might be Plusnet. Or maybe an issue with my line, but given that I'm syncing at 75Mbps and with an IP profile to match. 17070 option 2 is quiet as a mouse and BT says there's nothing wrong either.

Might just switch to Zen anyway for the fun.


Edit: That said about the router, it is nice to be able to see the line stats again, something I miss with my current setup.

 

[V_R]

Ok, so my activation date with Zen is the 23rd.

I'm honestly not sure if it will make a difference, but curiosity go the better of me and PN ain't getting any better by the looks of it.

 

[V_R]

Little update.....

- Have ruled out anything on my end. The TP Link router I 'borrowed' from Amazon produces the same speeds as my current config.
- There is no noise on the line.
- Speeds are still 'capped' (I use that word for lack of a better one, not sure if capped is 100% correct) at 69Mbps regardless of syncing at a stable 75Mbps.
- Plusnet are useless.
- I move to Zen this time next week. So will find out for sure if it is PN that are slowing down or not.

 

[bootneck02]

Good luck with the Zen when you get it next week VR

 

[Becky]

Hope it all goes well!

 

[V_R]

...and its slower than it was with Plusnet.. FML.

I'm now synced at 69 and downloading at 65. Max rate is also 69.
With PN I was synced at 75 with a max rate of 77 downloading at 69.

So now I'm paying more for a slower service. Great.

****.

 

[Ian]

Oh man, that's unexpected - I wonder why such a big difference?! Is that using the same hardware?

 

[bootneck02]

Sorry to hear that VR especially when you thought it was going to be faster

 

[V_R]

Yep same hardware as with PN. I literally just changed the username and password to what Zen sent me when the PN connection went off just after midnight last night.

I've not actually been using my usual HG612/N66U for the last week. as I wanted to keep an eye on my line stats so after 'borrowing' the W9980 from Amazon (it was ok, but not great - I had no intention of keeping it), I sent it back and bought the bigger and better VR600. This is how I can see my max rate etc.

i know I could have just unlocked the HG612 but frankly I cba with that and this is actually a very good router. Not as customizable as the N66U with the Merlin FW though.

Anyway. Now what do I do?

Need to run the BTW test to check my IP profile, but typically the site isn't working at the moment and I'm doing it remotely from work so might not be 100% accurate, will try again when I'm home....

I did phone Zen this morning to chat with them, and tbh the girl on the end of the phone sounded very disinterested and just kept saying, 'well it will fluctuate a little' - Not what I was expecting....

Problem is, even though I know it should be faster, its within the 'acceptable range' so no one gives a ****. If it drops below 59Mb then its an issue.


I'm frankly a bit ****ed off at the moment.

 

[Becky]

Oh no! Sorry to hear that

 

[Ian]

I'd give someone else a try at Zen - they were really good when I dealt with them.

IIRC, there's a cooling off period for broadband if you wanted to go back to PN - but it seems very odd that you're getting such different speeds.

Does the Zen site show any line management stats? Could all of the modem swapping have triggered a downgrade? I suppose that wouldn't affect the max. attainable rate shown in stats though.

 

[V_R]

I'm actually already considering going back. WTF is the point in paying any more for what seems to be my new normal speed. Right now I just wish I hadn't bothered...

No my Zen stats aren't working/live yet, thats something else I alerted them too. I click General and there's nothing there.

 

[Ian]

Now that I think on it I had to wait until the day after activation for things to start working normally in the panel. Hopefully it'll normalise tomorrow.

 

[V_R]

Ok, the Portal is all up and running now as it should be so that is something.

Still can't run a test on the BTW site to check my IP Profile.

Spoke to Zen again this morning, this time to a guy who was much better than the woman I spoke to yesterday, he was very helpful and understanding. He confirmed a lot of my questions and was generally just happy to chat which is nice. He said give it a few days as it might have gone back to another 10 day training period, but he did say it shouldn't have. Time will tell I guess.

I checked on the 14 cooling off period, he said its from the day the service goes live so I am within that.

 

[Becky]

Well that's good to hear Looks like you're going to have to sit back and be patient...! Hope it sorts itself out