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[toulouse]

Ok guys, here we go.

I plugged the corded phone into the extension socket, and did a 17070. It is indeed the line which is associated with Plusnet. I did a quiet line test while there - again absolute silence. I also undid the screws on the extension socket faceplate to find that all six wires are connected to the terminals. While fannying around (or putting it more politely - doing this bit of research), I decided to reinstall my old filtered faceplate which I previously mentioned. Everything is now back running again, but nothing much appears to have changed significantly. Some figures for your perusal :

Before ANY fannying around by me

        Down                           Up
       11216 Connection Speed  440
         36.0    Attenuation       17.3
          6.3    Noise Margin       28.1

After installing filtered faceplate

        Down                           Up
       11461 Connection Speed  440
         36.0    Attenuation        17.2
           6.2  Noise Margin         30.3

After all the above and a router reboot
 
        Down                           Up
       11378 Connection Speed  440
         36.0     Attenuation       17.3
           6.2   Noise Margin        30.0

I guess it's now time to try and work out where that extension wiring runs and whereabouts it connects into the circuit. There is a REALLY old junction box type 'thingy' involved, and from my non-expert visual inspection I think the extension wiring runs from there, so I probably need to be a bit careful. But I will also check the terminals in the Linebox, just to make sure.

In the words of the Great Arnie, I'll be back later

TTFN

toulouse
 

[guest]

I also undid the screws on the extension socket faceplate to find that all six wires are connected to the terminals.

Bloody hell it is old. BT phased out 6 core cable ages ago, likewise DIY extension kits have had 4 wires for ages.

6 wires means the bell wire is connected.

[HPsauce]

Old, or put in "later" by the likes of an electrician or Sky installer..... 
(depends on the colour coding probably)
Are the cores solid colours (if so which) or "banded" such as blue on white, white on blue etc?

It won't necessarily affect speed much but will almost certainly affect stability. 

[guest]

What's irritating is that the BTO guys quite obviously never checked the socket. I know you're pushed for time on jobs but that's no excuse when its such a quick check.

[toulouse]

Ok, I'm back - the old junction box type 'thingy' (sorry, but I don't know if it's got a techie name), has 8 screw terminals inside. It looks as if 3 of the wires running to the extension socket are NOT connected at the junction box. Those NOT connected at the junction box are GREEN/WHITE, WHITE/ORANGE and WHITE/GREEN. Does any of this make sense to you guys ?

I suppose it follows, that the remaining wires in that cable, should also be disconnected from the junction box, thereby making absolutely sure that the extension socket 'is no more'. I definitely have no plans to use a corded phone at that socket, as like most people these days I have a central base station and a number of phones in various rooms around the flat.

Anyone fancy a trip to the seaside ?

[HPsauce]

the remaining wires in that cable, should also be disconnected from the junction box

Absolutely. You know it makes sense. 
So, modernish (PABX-type?) cable, not old-school stuff, wonder who put it in?

[toulouse]

Not sure who put it in. I've been here a little over 5 years now, and it was all in place then. The guy that lived here before told me he had ADSL speeds of 16Mbps, which I have been trying to get too. Unfortunately, quite a few things that they told me, were  somewhere between a 'figment of somebody's imagination' and 'not quite true'. They were heavily into 'networking' by which I don't mean using CAT5/CAT6 cable, but 'you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours' type of thing. You live and learn, I guess.


Thanks for sticking with me through this little 'problemette' to both HPSauce and rizla, and anyone else who would like to chip in.

I'm now gonna look for an illuminated magnifying glass type 'thingy', so I hopefully don't disconnect the wrong wires. May see you all later, but if not you know what's happened   

 

[guest]

Where does the cable go from the junction box? Presumably it makes its way into the back of the NTE? ie the BT side of the NTE

Just to be clear :

NTE<->"old junction box"<->extension socket

<-> is wiring

How does it get to the junction box from the NTE?

[toulouse]

Ok, I think I'm getting somewhere at last.

                *----------------------------- My Flat (Ground Floor) ------------------------------------------*

 D.P.     -----> J.B. ------> LineBox -----> Filtered Faceplate -------> Router ------> Windows Computer
                      |
                      |
                      +--------> Extension socket
                 *---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------*

As I'm sure you'll understand     D.P. - distribution point for the building (looks like it came out of  Noahs Ark)
                                           J.B. junction box (circa 1960ish I would guess). Turns out to be 4 terminals on closer exam.
                                           Linebox (looks relatively recent - has the BT 'trumpeter' from 80''s)
                                           Extension socket (as above marked with BT 'trumpeter' and 'PCS' )
                                           Faceplate (purchased from Clarity prior to 2007 when I moved here)
                                           Router - Netgear DG834G v4 (current firmware)
                                           ......

 the rest as they say.....

Anyway, I guess I need to bite the bullet and disconnect those remaining wires to the extension socket. Am I allowed top do that based upon the above (rather shoddy) diagram, or should I make arrangements for an engineer ?


toulouse

[roseway]

You're not really allowed to touch those wires connecting to the junction box (but you're not going to end up in jail if you do ). Depending on what sort of terminals it uses, it should be straighforward enough to disconnect the wires going to the extension, or just snip them off close to the terminals.

[guest]

I think I'd just snip them rather than anything else.

[toulouse]

I've snipped the remaining 3 wires to the extension, and everything is as it was, that is to say I haven't broken anything - weehee. I just have a bit of wiring removal to attend to now, and will have to wait and see what happens on Monday when the Upstream becomes uncapped.


Thanks guys for your guidance

[guest]

I don't know how the BT DLM system works - lets say (for example) that the work toulouse has done will improve both d/s and u/s. Will the BT DLM/profiling system react to that or does it need a prod in the right direction so to speak? I know it will drop stable lines to 3dB but I'm not sure what it does about INP/etc.

I know that on Sky you'd need to get support to do a manual reconfigure on the line profile (very easy to get this done) or restart DLM training. On Sky DLM only ever decreases after the training period; it won't increase even if the line improves a lot.

Assuming BT work much the same way as Sky then maybe worth getting DLM training restarted? It doesn't take 10 days like on Sky so you should see if its helped pretty fast.

[toulouse]

No, I don't know either how BTs Dastardly/Devious/Delirious/Delinquent Line Manager works. To be honest in my previous dabblings with said entity it seemed to me that NOONE, not even BT know how it works. That would certainly answer a lot of questions for many people. I think since I went onto ADSL2+, I have only ever seen it (if indeed it was DLM) decrease my speed, and in most cases a router reboot usually gets back some of the connection speed, but not necessarily all of it. It also seems to depend on what time of the day you reboot, but I'm sure we all knew that.

Of course, now that I have eliminated the 'disconnected' extension socket from the equation it will be interesting to see what happens on Monday.

 

[burakkucat]

I promise not to start caterwauling . . . but just a query from an inquisitive feline. 

The junction-box, between the DP and the NTE5/A, did it have three cables entering it? One coming from the DP, one going to the NTE5/A and one going to the "disconnected" extension?

If that last mentioned cable now "just-so-happens" not to have any of its wires connected within the junction box, application of a cat's claw (or other suitable implement) could remove it all. Then when the property owner next redecorates, there will be no evidence that it ever existed!