Virgin 20Mbps Service Speeds fluctuate hugely

[Moo0z0r]

Hi all,

I've recently purchased Virgin 20Mbps broadband, however, the speeds fluctuate hugely. Based on speedtest.net results, the connection seems to average at around 8Mbps. The highest speed I've ever achieved is 15Mbps. Right now it is the worst it has ever been, averaging at around 1Mbps or slower. :td:

https://www.cableforum.co.uk/images/local/2007/09/3.png (http://www.speedtest.net)

Downstream Status
Operational
Channel ID
1
Downstream Frequency
339000000 Hz
Modulation
256QAM
Bit Rate
20480000 bits/sec
Power Level
15.5 dBmV
Signal to Noise Ratio
39.8 dB

Upstream Status
Operational
Channel ID
3
Upstream Frequency
25800000 Hz
Modulation
16QAM
Bit Rate
768000 bits/sec
Power Level
31.5 dBmV

Tried ringing Virgin customer service but the guy literally could not understand a word I was saying. I could barely understand him either. And he was rather rude and abrupt with his constant "What!??".

Anyway, anyone have any ideas? Thanks. :)

[Chris W]

:welcome:

The downstream power level is at the very upper limit of what is acceptable- the only way to get this resolved is a VM engineer paying you a visit and either making adjustments at the cabinet or with the cable modem and connections into your property.

[what?]

yeah, ds power level is higher than it should be
make sure its sitting at that level when u call in tho so they can see it, as if its sitting fine when they say it they'll b reluctant to book a tech.
i'd also recommend not using speedtest.net to test ur speeds
all speedtests can b unreliable.

best bet normally is to download 2 files from gamefiles.virginmedia.com
and check the transfer rate, in general, it gives u a truer indication of ur actual speeds.

[Pedro1]

yeah, ds power level is higher than it should be
make sure its sitting at that level when u call in tho so they can see it, as if its sitting fine when they say it they'll b reluctant to book a tech.
i'd also recommend not using speedtest.net to test ur speeds
all speedtests can b unreliable.

best bet normally is to download 2 files from gamefiles.virginmedia.com
and check the transfer rate, in general, it gives u a truer indication of ur actual speeds.

Very true that's what i use when testing mine and other peoples.
It's very accurate.

I have the 20MB service and when using gamfiles.virginmedia.com i get around 1750kbps but using other speed testers i get around 1240kbps.

[deckmonkey]

Wouldn't it be better to download large files from an independant source? I imagine VM make damn sure that downloads from their own sites are pretty speedy. That said, I can't think of anywhere off the top of my head.

[what?]

the point is that virgin can only gaurentee speeds from some servers
not all servers allow people to download at 20meg

so you can use any server you want
the reason we use that one is if you can dl off that at full service, then we are providing you with full service

virgin cant be held responsible for other servers not giving you full speed