Forum Discussion

turnitup's avatar
turnitup
Joining in
2 days ago

Bandwidth being restricted

For several months i have had a problem with my Broadband speed.

I have contacted Virgin Customer service many times,but it is so frustrating.

Each time i have to go all through the same routine,checking connections,cables etc and resetting the hub 3 when the fact is what is happening is clearly being actioned by Virgin.I just want to know why.

I am paying for 170 mbps + i get an extra 100 mbps as an 02 mobile user bonus(called Volt benefit)So 270 mbps in total.I understand that at peak times etc i might get a slightly lower speed,but what is happening is very different to that.Each time i reboot the hub when the speed drops,the speed test indicates i am getting approx 270 which is great.Every time though, in under 10 minutes this drops to 44 mbps.It doesn't deviate from 44,it is always that speed.It is obvious to me that if i had a bad connection the speed would be all over the place and produce many different speed test results,but no,it is always 270 or 44,nothing else in-between,and it will stay on 44 forever if i don't reboot,when it will be ok for a few minutes and then go slow again.

While the low speed doesn't affect working with my laptop(in the same room as hub)it does sometimes affect streaming on my tv by "hanging" in the middle of watching something,and the fact is,i am paying for 270 mbps.

I have been told there is nothing wrong with my connection or hub,and the signal when using the laptop is the same when wi-fi as it is when using ethernet.

It is so frustrating trying to sort this out,but of course Virgin are not going to admit to restricting the bandwidth,so what can i do.Why do they do this,and at such a low speed compared to what i am paying for.

Has anyone had the same problem as this,or know why this is happening.I am just going around in circles and don't know what to do next.Several times they have said they will monitor my connection,but nothing is ever relayed back to me,and it stays exactly the same.

I would be really grateful if someone could help. 

15 Replies

  • Client62's avatar
    Client62
    Alessandro Volta

    Speed test the VM  service to the VM Hub using the link below :

    https://www.samknows.com/realspeed/

    Once the test begins click on: Run full test to include: Latency, Jitter, Packet loss & Upload speed

    Post a screen shot of the full test so we can see what is occurring.

  • jbrennand's avatar
    jbrennand
    Very Insightful Person

    Sounds like your devices are getting stuck on the slower 2.4 GHz band and should be on the 5 5GHz one.

    Have a read through this old post of mine have a look to see if thats the case

    \_____________________________


    If you haven't done this already - try it first - it helps sort some Hub3/4/5 wifi issues for some devices.
    Go into the Hub’s settings.  Type in  http://192.168.0.1  into your web browser’s url box and login with settings password on the Hub's base sticker (or your own if you changed it).  Then in Advanced>wireless signal >smart wifi - tick the disable “channel optimisation” box or the“Smart Wifi” box and save settings.  May be different pathways and wording on the 3 Hub types

    Then, go to advanced>wireless signal>security, rename the 2.4 & 5 GHz network ssid's.  Just type over to change 'em to whatever you like and something that will differentiate them (e.g - Billybob_2 & Billybob_5)   Try to avoid spaces and periods in the SSID names as they can cause issues with certain devices.  Use the same password for simplicity,  Then, apply settings and restart the Hub.  Your 2 wifi networks will now be clearly separated - and you can then select the network you want each device to connect to… individually from the "available networks" list on each of your devices. 
                                                                                                                   
    Note all your wifi devices will need re-connecting to the new SSID's and passwords.
    All things being equal, 5 GHz is always better/faster and subject to less congestion/interference (and is better for iDevice speeds  than the 2.4 one - although the 2.4 one has the better "range" and will be needed when the 5 GHz drops out of range  and some older/cheaper/dumber or “specialised” devices can only use this one.  

    You should also use a wifi analyser App (or Airport Utility on iOS) to check which 2.4 channels are being heavily used around you and move yours to one of numbers 1,6,11 that is least so, but it wont help if there is other interference.
    See if these changes help - you will lose any “seamless roaming” benefits but it may not matter and you can always change the settings back by doing a " pinhole factory reset " if you prefer the way it was - or it doesn’t help.   
        The final solution. that many of us on here adopted many years ago, is to stick the Hub3 into modem only mode and get your own higher quality wireless router - decent ones start at ~£40. 

     

    • turnitup's avatar
      turnitup
      Joining in

      Hi

      The problem happens on both the 2.4 and 5 exactly the same.

  • Client62's avatar
    Client62
    Alessandro Volta

    Good to see the Realspeed test.  We can now see the service problem to the VM Hub. 
    On M250 we would expect to see at least 250Mb/s at the Hub & we do not we see only 43.8Mb/s perhaps we can figure out why that is the case..


    1) This can mean a fault in a local street cabinet, check for this via both of : 

    Call the local fault line: 0800 561 0061 – this is an automated number.

    https://www.virginmedia.com/help/check/status/identification/identify


    2) Cables

    It can be a loose cable, check cables are secure at the Wall / VM Hub / VM TV Boxes.


    3) This could also mean a fault on your connection.

    In the VM Hub menu : http://192.168.0.1/    just below the Password, follow the link
    > Check router status

    If you can copy & paste the text of the Downstream tab and the Upstream tab so we can review the signal levels. 

  • Client62's avatar
    Client62
    Alessandro Volta

    There is an error problem on the 3.1 Downstream channel.

    Seeing the 3.0 Downstream channels look better it looks like a VM service fault.

     

    • turnitup's avatar
      turnitup
      Joining in

      Thanks very much for that.Is this something that Virgin will understand and take action on if i tell them about it.Should i speak to Customer Service or someone else.

      Regards 

  • legacy1's avatar
    legacy1
    Alessandro Volta

    44Mb looks suspect to me as the hub might be faulty in some way and limiting you to one downstream channel?