cable modems (1 Viewer)

[BradleyS.]

My internet service provider says on there website that they have 2 different types of modems they give out, a 128 and a 512, they said that the 512 would offer greater speed. Is this true? I have a toshiba pcx 2500, is this a 128? I couldnt find anything about this medems speed.

 

[JunoVazquez]

I'm getting an impression that you are inquiring about DSL modem. I believe CABLE MODEM pumps out 10MB speed of data.

 

[Chad Ellinger]

Who is your ISP? AFAIK the differences in speed between cable modem brands is negligible. ISPs may offer different speed plans for cable modem service, however (e.g. Comcast offers standard service, 3 MB down / 256 KB up, and "pro" service, 4 MB down / 384 up).

 

[Jason_Els]

Modems are modems are modems. The modem will go the speed which the .bin file tells it to. During the modem initialization process it downloads a confgiuration file supplied to it by a server. That configuration file is written by the cable company. IF your ISP caps download (usually) and upload (almost always) speeds, then your modem will only go (roughly) up to the speed which the configuration file specifies. Differing levels of service require your MAC address (the unique hardware identifier) of the modem to be bound to a service level code. The only way to change the speed of the modem is to get a configuration file that allows increased speed. In other words, you have to get upgraded service to get your modem to go faster. It doesn't matter what modem you have. All DOCSIS-compliant modems work this way and all cable modem providers use DOCSIS-spec modems.

That said, some modems are more sensitive to poor line conditions, particularly extraneous noise, than others. The Toshibas are very good modems and usually very tolerant of poor conditions. If you want to be sure you're getting the most out of your modem, ask the cable company technicians to look and see if your signal is what it should be. Be sure to ask them to look at a real-time plot of your return path signal to be sure there aren't any sudden drops which could affect your browsing speed but make it appear as though there has been no loss of connection.

So don't worry so much about the modem. They all do exactly the same thing and all are dependent on the configuration file to do what they're told.

 

[BradleyS.]

I have classic cable which is the only high speed provider in my area. I usually run about 400k which isnt that great for a cable service.