Setop Box Replaced & Now No Broadband

[RussellS]

Hi everyone, I'm new here and hoping someone can help me out.

My father has Virgin TV, Phone & Broadband and has had it since it was installed by NTL quite a few years ago. The broadband setup is an ethernet cable from the settop box (original NTL box) to a cable router that I sourced and installed for him. The PC is then connected to the router and everything has worked fine since it was installed.

Anyway, the week before last the setop box packed up and a Virgin engineer arrived and said that the box was faulty and fitted a new one which is a Samsung SMT-2110C. However, my dad checked the internet on the PC and found that there was no internet connection. The Virgin engineer said that this would need a separate modem box to connect to the settop box and that one was on order and would take up to 5 days to arrive.

Now, this sounds to me like absolute rubbish, although I am more than happy to be corrected on this. There is an ethernet port on the back of the new box which the Virgin engineer connected the original ethernet cable to. The WAN light on the cable router is lit up indicating a modem is connected and talking to the Internet. If I disconnect the ethernet cable then the WAN light on the router goes out.

So, in view of this, am I correct in assuming that all that is required is the software setup on the PC or is there more to it than that. I originally setup the system for my father but, as I said, it was quite a few years ago so I can't quite remember what was required. Personally, I am a BT Broadband user which is obviously completely different.

Any helpful advice would be very welcome.


Russell

[Ben B]

:welcome:,

Broadband via Set Top Box is no longer supported and everyone now requires a separate modem. One of the reasons for this being that 2mb is being upgraded to 10mb and the set top box is not capable of the higher speeds.

Hope this helps.
Ben :)

[RussellS]

Thanks for the reply Ben (and the welcome).

Where does the modem connect to then as the co-ax cable coming into the house currently goes into the settop box. Also, will I still be able to use the cable router as before.

Just one more thing, can I use the settop box for the internet connection as before until the new modem arrives.

Many thanks


Russell

[Ben B]

Thanks for the reply Ben (and the welcome).

Where does the modem connect to then as the co-ax cable coming into the house currently goes into the settop box. Also, will I still be able to use the cable router as before.

Just one more thing, can I use the settop box for the internet connection as before until the new modem arrives.

Many thanks


Russell

The coaxial cable coming in for the tv will have a splitter attached with one wire coming out for the modem and one for the set top box and then the ethernet cable that was in the set top box will plug into the modem. You will still be able to use the cable router as before with the modem but you can't use the box for the connection until the modem arrives as the box wont have been provisioned for internet access as it's no longer supported.

Ben :)

[Peter_]

The Virgin engineer said that this would need a separate modem box to connect to the settop box and that one was on order and would take up to 5 days to arrive.

Now, this sounds to me like absolute rubbish, although I am more than happy to be corrected on this.
l
As Ben has said Broadband through a STB is no longer supported by Virginmedia and all replacement boxes have the internal modems disabled.

This is because they are no longer capable of the 10Mb minimum package that Virginmedia now provide.

You should have rang up on the day the STB was replaced as you will require a manned installation for the modem because if they just send out a modem it will not have all the parts required to install it correctly.

You will need to call Customer Services on 150 from a Virgin phone or 0845 454 1111 from any other phone to book a installation, probably best to wait till Monday to ensure you get the best people to deal with this issue.

The is also the question of being credited for loss of service up till the day of install so remember to ask about that as well.

---------- Post added at 22:53 ---------- Previous post was at 22:51 ----------



Just one more thing, can I use the settop box for the internet connection as before until the new modem arrives.


Not possible as they can no longer be provisioned for broadband.

When you call up ask about getting a router as well for all the hassle you have been put through.

[MovedGoalPosts]

Hopefully, when the separate modem arrives, it will also have the splitter kit so you can do a self install. TBH I would have expected the engineer, being aware that this was a combined STB with internet setup, to have done the STB and modem swap out there and then. After all if engineers turn up with a broadband fault they usually have a spare modem available for replacement.

It will be worth contacting faults to check the replacement modem is on it's way to you with a self install kit.

edit: corrected by Moldovia's post - do contact Virgin Media to sort out this debacle ;)

[RussellS]

Thanks again Ben, I stand corrected and take back everything (well nearly) I said and muttered about the Virgin engineer.

Having said that though, I'm not particularly happy that they didn't supply & fit the modem at the same time and have left my father without his broadband for two weeks. Also they are not coming back to fit the modem but instead are expecting an 87 year old man to fit the modem himself. Obviously, I will get him to call me when it arrives and I'll fit it but that isn't really the point. As my father often says, what do other people do who havn't got a "Russell" to call on when the PC doesn't do what he is trying to tell it to do.

Anyway, many thanks for clearing that up for me. Just a final note, when the modem does arrive and is fitted, will it just be a case of connecting it and everything should work, or will the online registration process need completing again.


Regards

Russell

[Peter_]

Thanks again Ben, I stand corrected and take back everything (well nearly) I said and muttered about the Virgin engineer.

Having said that though, I'm not particularly happy that they didn't supply & fit the modem at the same time and have left my father without his broadband for two weeks. Also they are not coming back to fit the modem but instead are expecting an 87 year old man to fit the modem himself. Obviously, I will get him to call me when it arrives and I'll fit it but that isn't really the point. As my father often says, what do other people do who havn't got a "Russell" to call on when the PC doesn't do what he is trying to tell it to do.

Anyway, many thanks for clearing that up for me. Just a final note, when the modem does arrive and is fitted, will it just be a case of connecting it and everything should work, or will the online registration process need completing again.


Regards

Russell
Read my post above Russell you will need a manned installation and need to call Customer Services.

Read my signature below;)

[Ben B]

Anyway, many thanks for clearing that up for me. Just a final note, when the modem does arrive and is fitted, will it just be a case of connecting it and everything should work, or will the online registration process need completing again.

You will need to ring 150 and give the HFC Mac Address from the bottom of the modem and they will activate it. Though read Moldova's post as it looks like you will need to ring up and ask for a manned install.

EDIT: Haha Moldova beat me to it

[RussellS]

Thanks Moldova & Rob for your replies.

Sorry Moldova, you replied while I was replying to Ben so I didn't see it until after.

I'll give customer services a call on Monday and check it all out as you have suggested. I don't know if they will speak to me as it is my fathers account but we'll see.


Many thanks

Russell

[Peter_]

Thanks Moldova & Rob for your replies.

Sorry Moldova, you replied while I was replying to Ben so I didn't see it until after.

I'll give customer services a call on Monday and check it all out as you have suggested. I don't know if they will speak to me as it is my fathers account but we'll see.


Many thanks

Russell
If you go to your fathers house and call from there or bring him to yours whichever is easiest as you will need him to clear some Data Protection Act questions that they will ask, then you can continue with the call yourself and get this sorted out with an install as I cannot see that any modem has been ordered as it should have arrived by now.

[v0id]

If you know your fathers account password, they should discuss almost any details of the account with you.
Hell, from experience they'll even give you what seems like an infinite amount of guesses as to what the password could be too

[RussellS]

Thanks for that, I'll get on it Monday.

[TIDDER]

you can have your name linked with the account so you can talk for him it just needs your father's ok i have my sister linked with mine

[RussellS]

Well, you wouldn't believe how difficult that was (or maybe you would).

I didn't get a chance to call Virgin yesterday (Monday) but today my father called me to say that the modem had arrived but couldn't figure out how to connect it. So, I went round and found that they had just sent a modem but with no cables. The instructions were just about replacing an existing modem rather than replacing a settop box with a modem. So basically, without the required splitter cable, we were stuck.

I dialled 150 to speak to Virgin Media and just went round in circles. I must have recounted the sequence of events 10 times to different people and got transfered from pillar to post for over an hour. Now, I am normally the calmest of people on the phone and very patient and polite, but today Virgin customer services were really testing my patience. Eventually they came to the conclusion that an engineer would be required but they didn't have one available until 27th August. Well, at this point I just lost it and said that this was totally unacceptable. My father has been without broadband for two weeks and now they were saying it would be over another two weeks before anything was done. I demanded to speak to a supervisor who suggested that they would temporarily enable the new settop box for the broadband until the engineer comes out on the 27th to get the modem working. This compromise I was more than happy with but unfortunately the technical person I spoke to was unable to get the settop box to work, saying that the connection had allready been swapped over to the modem. So we were back to the 27th August again to which I said no way and demanded to speak to a manager. After being on hold for another 15 minutes I was put back through to the technical department, allbeit a different person, who went through the same procedure as the original guy. However, they could just not get the settop box to provide an IP address to the computer.

So, the situation is now that the second tech guy has arranged for a service call on Thursday (2 days time) to get the broadband working through the settop box and then an installation engineer on the 27th August to get the modem working.

Is it just me or does this seem completely ludicrous. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but all that is required is a "Y" splitter cable to get the modem working. Why can't the engineer coming Thursday fit this.

I thought BT customer services were bad but Virgin just take it to a new high (or low, depending how you look at it). I was on the phone for just under two hours and must have spoken to at least 12 different people. Could someone just please tell me that I am not being unreasonable in my expectations.


Well, I'm glad I've got that off my chest.


Russell

[Matt-08]

neil.berkett@virginmedia.co.uk

That's the CEO, e-mail him explaining everything and he will do his best to help - trust me he is good!

Remember to supply some contact details...

[Peter_]

I demanded to speak to a supervisor who suggested that they would temporarily enable the new settop box for the broadband until the engineer comes out on the 27th to get the modem working. This compromise I was more than happy with but unfortunately the technical person I spoke to was unable to get the settop box to work, saying that the connection had allready been swapped over to the modem. So we were back to the 27th August again to which I said no way and demanded to speak to a manager. After being on hold for another 15 minutes I was put back through to the technical department, allbeit a different person, who went through the same procedure as the original guy. However, they could just not get the settop box to provide an IP address to the computer.



Is it just me or does this seem completely ludicrous. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but all that is required is a "Y" splitter cable to get the modem working.
As far as I am aware the is no way to reverse the deactivation process on the STB as the are no longer any means of provisioning a STB to receive broadband.

The modem if it was ordered correctly would have come with a Quickstart installation kit with a splitter and the correct cabling to get the modem connected and activated.

Any technician that comes on Thursday will be better of trying to get the modem connected and activated.

[Sir John Luke]

neil.berkett@virginmedia.co.uk

That's the CEO, e-mail him explaining everything and he will do his best to help - trust me he is good!

Remember to supply some contact details...

Don't actually think Neil sorts out problems himself :), but from other posts on here, contacting the CEO's office (via the above e-mail address) does get results!

[RussellS]

Thanks for the CEO's email address, I think I'll wait and see what happens Thursday and then contact him.

Moldova: I have to say that I did have my reservations as to whether the settop box option would work. The modem didn't have any installation kit with it. It was just the modem itself, power supply and instruction book that only described replacing an existing modem. As you say, hopefully the engineer on Thursday will just connect the modem up and away we go.


Thanks again guys

Russell

[Peter_]

Thanks for the CEO's email address, I think I'll wait and see what happens Thursday and then contact him.

Moldova: I have to say that I did have my reservations as to whether the settop box option would work. The modem didn't have any installation kit with it. It was just the modem itself, power supply and instruction book that only described replacing an existing modem. As you say, hopefully the engineer on Thursday will just connect the modem up and away we go.


Thanks again guys

Russell
All you have received is a modem swap kit which is just that, a Quickstart kit is what you really need but more than likely you will need an installation engineer.

[Matt-08]

Don't actually think Neil sorts out problems himself :), but from other posts on here, contacting the CEO's office (via the above e-mail address) does get results!

He does actually, he sorted my netbook ordeal by arranging for it to be delivered one Friday night.

[RussellS]

Ok, everything is resolved today. The engineer arrived at about 11.30, confirmed what we already thought that using the settop box was not an option and would not work, and then proceeded to connect up the modem for us. Job done.

All for the sake of a splitter and two short lengths of coax, why was it such a hard job to get this organised. If only they had sent the full installation kit instead of just a replacement modem I could have fitted it myself. The engineer did say that this happens all too often and spends half his time just fitting modems due to c0ckups (as today) instead of what he should be doing.

Anyway, all's well that ends well. My dad is now happy his broadband is now back on, my mum's happy because I mowed their lawn while I was waiting for the Virgin engineer to turn up (my dad never mows it properly because he can't see very well and leaves lots of uncut bits) and I'm happy because I don't have to speak to Virgin customer services again.


Thanks to everyone for your help & advice, it is much appreciated.

Russell

[Peter_]

Ok, everything is resolved today. The engineer arrived at about 11.30, confirmed what we already thought that using the settop box was not an option and would not work, and then proceeded to connect up the modem for us. Job done.

All for the sake of a splitter and two short lengths of coax, why was it such a hard job to get this organised. If only they had sent the full installation kit instead of just a replacement modem I could have fitted it myself. The engineer did say that this happens all too often and spends half his time just fitting modems due to c0ckups (as today) instead of what he should be doing.

Anyway, all's well that ends well. My dad is now happy his broadband is now back on, my mum's happy because I mowed their lawn while I was waiting for the Virgin engineer to turn up (my dad never mows it properly because he can't see very well and leaves lots of uncut bits) and I'm happy because I don't have to speak to Virgin customer services again.


Thanks to everyone for your help & advice, it is much appreciated.

Russell
Good to hear that it is all resolved now, thought that the engineer would do what he did as it is a 2 minute job and could have been avoided if a Quickstart kit had been ordered instead of a replacement modem.

[RussellS]

Well, just when I thought it was all resolved and has been working fine for two weeks suddenly more problems arise.

Bearing in mind that there was originally an installation engineer coming in on Aug 27th which I said was unacceptable and so a service engineer came on the 13th and sorted it for us, he said that the call for the 27th would automatically be canceled when he clears his call down and says that the problem is resolved. So anyway, everything is working fine until yesterday (26th Aug) when a Virgin representative calls my parents to make sure that it is still ok to call on the 27th to install the modem (even though the call was cancelled). My mother informed them that this was not necessary and that the call should have been cancelled etc. Then today (27th) suddenly my parents broadband ceases to work again and internet explorer just comes up with a message that the broadband requires activating. So tonight I've spent another hour (at least) talking to Virgin Media again trying to get the modem re-activated after they would appear to have de-activated it. It seems a bit too much of a coincidence that it becomes de-activated on the day that an installation engineer was due to visit to setup the modem (even though that call should have been canceled).

I have to say that after this episode neither me nor my parents have much faith in Virgin customer services. The actual broadband itself is fine when it works, which it does most of the time. However, it is Virgin's inability to sort out problems in a professional, efficient and timely manner that has left my father questioning whether he should stay with Virgin or go back to BT or other supplier using the BT network (SKY / Talk Talk etc).

Anyway, it's working again now so we'll see what happens.


Regards

Russell