Help me troubleshoot my DSL connection

[Pointedstick]

Just going on what you've already been able to do and try, I would guess that at your current level of knowledge, you are likely to know more than the person answering your call as well as the person they will send out to replace the modem.

[Mdraf]

There are various free troubleshooting tools at
http://www.dslreports.com/tools

[Tortoise]

I'm assuming this is a wireless modem? If so, a number of factors can potentially degrade performance (speed), such as your proximity to the modem (determines signal strength), interference from your neighbors' wireless modems, etc.

To determine whether the limiting factor is the wireless signal or the DSL signal itself, I'd try plugging directly into the modem with an Ethernet cable and do the speed test.

[whatchamacallit]

When I had DSL some 15 years ago,  I think I remember having to run a dedicated phone line to the outside phone box and split it there between the modem and the phones outside. Maybe it was a problem with my filters.

After going cable, I could never go back.

If you have a long enough phone line to get your DSL modem plugged directly into the outside phone box bypassing the current wiring, you can determine if it is your inside wiring or not.

[AgAuMoney]

If you have a long enough phone line to get your DSL modem plugged directly into the outside phone box bypassing the current wiring, you can determine if it is your inside wiring or not.

Instead of a long phone line, I'd recommend a long extension cord and put the router outside by the phone network interface while testing.

Long phone cables are suspect in and of themselves.  Better to put the long wires on the power (and digital (ethernet) connections if needed) rather than the phone line.

[MediumTex]

Go to Best Buy and buy another modem and see what that does to your speed. 

If it does nothing you can return it, but if it works you might keep it, or if your ISP provides the modem you could hang onto the one you bought yourself until you get the new one from your ISP and then hang onto it for the next time this happens.

I have never really understood why, but after 1-2 years I usually start having trouble with my modem and router.  I used to seek answers for why this happened and get very frustrated when I did everything I was supposed to do but still had problems, and then I finally just accepted it and moved on.  My ISP will replace my modem for free, so it's not a big deal really.

[Tortoise]

I have never really understood why, but after 1-2 years I usually start having trouble with my modem and router.  I used to seek answers for why this happened and get very frustrated when I did everything I was supposed to do but still had problems, and then I finally just accepted it and moved on.  My ISP will replace my modem for free, so it's not a big deal really.

+1

Coincidentally, I had to have my wireless modem/router replaced just two days ago because it suddenly crapped out (was randomly resetting its connection every few seconds). The ISP replaced it for free, no questions asked.

Most consumer electronics these days are just cheap junk, not built to last more than a couple of years. Sometimes it does, but it's not designed to.

[Pointedstick]

Most consumer electronics these days are just cheap junk, not built to last more than a couple of years. Sometimes it does, but it's not designed to.

It's pretty much true, but you can find exceptions. My general rules for buying electronics are:

1. Never buy all-in-one devices. They're less reliable, and when one function dies, you have to throw the whole thing out.
2. Never buy anything that requires proprietary drivers or software that comes from only a single vendor. One day they drop support and you're SOL.
3. Never buy the cheapest crappiest thing, but don't fall for the shiny expensive thing, either. Go with the boring, reliable one that doesn't have as many features or the sexy case. Think cast iron skillet vs telfon-coated sintered aluminum-magnesium oxide frying pan.

My favorite piece of electronics ever is my now more than a decade old HP LaserJet 1200 printer. It's big, beige, boring, noisy when printing, and requires a direct USB connection, but damn if the toner doesn't last forever and it never, ever, ever breaks. 10 years from now when it finally gives up the ghost, I'm going to scour flea markets for another one.

[Tyler]

Most consumer electronics these days are just cheap junk, not built to last more than a couple of years.

Actually, expensive junk. 

I work in product design and have direct experience designing consumer electronics for retail.  You'd be surprised how little effort is put into quality.  So many things are bought at markets in China directly by the retailer and stuffed in a box under a made up in-house brand name.  In some categories, maybe only 10% of the things you see are actually designed and built by the brand you see on the box.  And in others, even the name-brand manufacturers often build their products at the exact same factories, with price set not by noticeable differences in quality but by pure marketing budget. 

In other news, I found this humorous:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-575 ... ss-gadget/

[MediumTex]

I've had my Apple AirPort Extreme for a little over a year and so far so good.

I'm anxious to see how long it lasts.  My hope is that it will surprise me.

[notsheigetz]

Most consumer electronics these days are just cheap junk, not built to last more than a couple of years. Sometimes it does, but it's not designed to.

Maybe true but getting a couple of years out of a piece of cheap junk might not be such a bad thing, especially when you consider how fast things become obsolete nowadays.

[Pointedstick]

So many things are bought at markets in China directly by the retailer and stuffed in a box under a made up in-house brand name.  In some categories, maybe only 10% of the things you see are actually designed and built by the brand you see on the box.  And in others, even the name-brand manufacturers often build their products at the exact same factories, with price set not by noticeable differences in quality but by pure marketing budget. 

Chinese stuff is interesting. What I've found is that most of it is definitely inferior to American, European, or Japanese-made alternatives, but at 1/2 to 1/10 the price. And as long as you know the ways in which they are inferior, you can design around this and still wind up with a quality product.

For example, I can get Chinese linear bearings for less than $1 each, but they require hardened chromed rods to slide along or else they will destroy the rods because the balls will scratch and score the surface. However, the American-made bearings are more precise so you don't need to use as high-quality of a rod, but they cost 10-20x more. So it's cheaper for me to use worse Chinese bearings on better rods, and I achieve the same result as if I used the better American bearings on worse rods.