2006-12-20 15:59:32 · 5 answers · asked by ngdemocrats 1 in Consumer Electronics ➔ Land Phones
It has to do with the length of your copper line and also the width, or gauge of cable that is delivering your service. The longer & thinner the cable is, the more resistance it has and the slower your data speed.
As far as 'how old' the cable is, that shouldn't have anything at all to do with it, providing the integrity of the cable is good. If your 'pair' of wires is bad, that will also slow you down. You could always just call up your phone company & ask them to test your line for you. Can't hurt.
So, long story short, your modem & ISP are only secondary to the 'pipe' that carries the data.
I've been in this business for 27 years, and I've never heard of cable having a 'bandwidth' of only 20k. It's a copper pipe, it doesn't have a 'speed'. I've also never heard of this 'quality' issue.
Length & gauge. Period.
Polly
p.s. There are a couple of other things, like mixed-gauge cable and SLC facilities, but I won't go into that.
pps--Dan, are you an outside tech? Can you use a POTS splitter for dial-up? I've only heard of it being used for DSL
2006-12-21 04:08:28 · answer #1 · answered by Polly 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sweet Polly is right. Gauge and how far from the CO, an unbalanced pair, all sorts of stuff can cause it. If you are a long way or you pass though an unmanned CO you cannot get DSL. It may also be that the cable in your house sucks too. Check it from the Network Interface Device on the side of the house, just open it with a screwdriver and plug the modem in directly(hopefully you have a laptop). When you get phone service we are not responsible for baud rate only that you line has no power influence and that sort of thing.
2006-12-21 17:56:12 · answer #2 · answered by Dan H 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Age of the telephone lines and quality of the lines used makes a huge difference. Also location plays a huge role in this. I would say, if DSL or Cable was available, go that route - you'll be much happier.
2006-12-21 11:18:24 · answer #3 · answered by Jared L 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your location and phone line topology matters a lot. If you live way out in the boonies... 28k might be the best you can get.
2006-12-21 00:02:45 · answer #4 · answered by DrRocco 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
how old are the phone lines? most old phone lines have a bandwidth of 20k.
2006-12-21 00:03:33 · answer #5 · answered by oldguy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋