New Cable Modem

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Greetings All –

I finally made the switch.  I have been living (suffering) with DSL for ages and finally made the switch to Xfinity to include VOIP.  Everything is working nicely, and my download speeds have gone from 4.2 to 115.  Hmmm.  The new equipment includes an ARRIS  TG1682G Gateway (combination modem & router).  To eliminate the rental fee, I want to replace the Gateway with a standalone cable modem (compatible with Xfinity), and then connect it to my Linksys EA3500 router.  Does anyone have any recommendations for said modem.  It does need to come with a RJ-11 port to accommodate my phone.  Thanks as always.

Casey H.

 

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Oh–and Merry Christmas!

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On your ISP’s website (somewhere), there is a list of the modems that are compatible with their service. Usually you have to select one from that recommended list.

Merry Christmas!

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Casey H

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Thanks PK.  I have seen the list, and it’s pretty big.  I was just wondering if anyone out there in the Xfinity system has some particularly good things to say about a device.  I have also seen some strings debating the merits of 3.0 vs 3.1 protocol, and I’m wondering if that should sway me.  My purchase plan is for 100 mbs download.  At some point in time, I suspect I would want to increase it.  I can’t really see a future need for anything greater than about 500 mbs.  So I’d want to pick up a unit that could at least manage that much capacity.

Casey H.

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My ISP is moving everyone to DOCSIS 3.1

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Casey H

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I’ve been using a Motorola MG7550 DOCSIS 3.0 16×4 Cable Modem with built-in Arris AC1900 four-port gigabit Ethernet and Wireless Router (2.4GHz & 5.0GHz) for over two years, and I have no complaints.  I had a Netgear N750 DSL router that I flashed with DD-WRT firmware to give me four more gigabit ports.

My MG7550 doesn’t have a RJ-11 jack, but Motorola makes those, too.  I’m paying for 75 Mbps but have been upgraded for free a couple of times, and I’m now at 150 Mbps but I’m regularly getting over 160 Mbps.  Still paying the same 75 Mbps price that I signed up for.

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Casey H

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To avoid headaches and customer support brushoffs, stick to Xfinity’s approved modem list. Since you need RJ11, you’ll note the VoIP column shows relatively few are telephony compatible. That whittles the list down quite a lot.

For a bit of future-proofing I generally recommend DOCSIS 3.1 if you’re buying something of your own, but that will whittle the list down to only 3 choices. If you don’t like those choices for one reason or another, you’ll have to forego the future-proofing and settle for DOCSIS 3.0.

In my case, I wasn’t happy with the limited selection, so I dropped the telephone bundle and got internet only so I had a broader range of modem choices, and ported my land-line number over to a third-party VoIP service (ala Vonage, Ooma, and others). You only need a VoIP/telephony modem if you get your phone service from your ISP.

 

 

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Casey H

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Thanks everyone.  I’m thinking the simplest is to go with the ARRIS SBV3202.  It has the 3.1 protocol and can handle up to 940 mps.  The reviews on it are interesting–either 5s or 1s, with not much in the middle.  Apparently a few folks have had some issues with their units dying within a couple of months.  Other complaints are difficulties in working with Xfinity to get the setup complete.  Others give rave reviews.  This appears to be the only unit with voice capability that can handle much more than a couple hundred mps.

Casey H.

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According to the list, however, the Arris SBV3202 has two problems, one is a big deal the other one is an inconvenience.

The first problem is that, according to the list linked to earlier in this thread, that modem has a problem with a defective Intel Puma Chipset and it’s not recommended you buy that one. There’s a black diamond next to its model number indicating this problem.

♦ Indicates an Intel Puma Chipset Defect – Do Not Buy

 

The other “gotcha” is that, according to that same list, it isn’t WiFi capable, so you’re going to have to put a router behind it if you wish to do so.

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Casey H

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A better choice, according to that list, would be the Netgear CM1150V which not only has DOCSIS 3.1, but also has higher speeds (capable of 2 gigs) than the Arris (topping out at 1.4 gigs) plus no problems with a chipset defect!

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According to the defective chipset list of modems, your current one from Comcast, the TG1682G also has the defective chipset. More info about this can be found here.

Your model is listed towards the bottom of the list under “Xfinity” as the “Xfinity XB3”, which lists a few other models as well that have been used/maybe are still being used by Concast.

The page explains what happens with a defective chipset and exactly which models are affected by it.

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I’ve lived in an area of the northeastern US and have had Comcast (just as they were rolling out the Xfinity moniker around late 2010) for cable, internet and VoIP. We had a combination modem and voice gateway that we were NEVER charged a separate fee for. This is for the time period of late 2010 (when we went to VoIP after Farpoint took over a mess that Verizon dumped on them for landline phone service) until we moved out of the region in early 2012.

Fast forward to today and we live in a vastly different area of the country with a different cable provider (Comcast/Xfinity not available where we live) and we STILL aren’t being charged a fee for our modem/VoIP gateway. We have the same bundle we had back east…cable/internet/VoIP.

We had our own router back then and we still have the same router today.

Neither the modem/gateway we had back east with Comcast nor the one we have today with our current provider had/has any kind of WiFi capability, so that’s maybe why you’re paying a fee for it whereas we never have had to pay a fee with either provider.

Best way to save yourself some $$ would be to get a DOCSIS 3.1 modem from the Comcast-approved list that has the RJ-11 jack AND WiFi capability. You’ll have to put out some $$ now, but it will pay for itself within a couple of years with the savings from the monthly rental fee you won’t be paying any more.

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What is the breakeven point for replacing the rental?

cheers, Paul

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dg1261 wrote:

In my case, I wasn’t happy with the limited selection, so I dropped the telephone bundle and got internet only so I had a broader range of modem choices, and ported my land-line number over to a third-party VoIP service (ala Vonage, Ooma, and others). You only need a VoIP/telephony modem if you get your phone service from your ISP.

I can vouch for Ooma for voice. Have been using it for about 10 years. Very reliable on a high speed network. Plus the little Ooma box is portable, so you could take it (and your phone number) to a different location if necessary, and just plug it into another network and you are good to go. So not tied to ISP at all for your number. Plus their voicemail and calling features are also now available from a smartphone app. I had to temporarily move my home office for 6 weeks recently, and just used the app. Simple.

So all I am paying my ISP for is internet and their modem. My router. No phone or TV.

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Thanks everybody for weighing in.  I went with the Netgear CM1100V.  It was a little more than I wanted to spend, but Newegg has a year end sale going on that took $50 off.  It’s definitely more than I need right now, but if the unit lasts, I think I’ll be future proof.  Thanks again.

Casey H.

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Change of plans.  I went back to the Newegg and Amazon sites to take a look at some of the comments on the Netgear CM1150V.  There were a lot of complaints about the unit only lasting for 2 or 3 months, so I canceled the order. I think I’ll investigate the Ooma option for voice.  That opens several modem options if I don’t need an RJ11 port. I don’t know if this is the best place to change gears or not; I’ve heard of Ooma, but I don’t know how it works.  I see that there’s a free option, and a $10/month option, which is what I’m subscribing for with Xfinity. I’m guessing it comes with some kind of device that has an RJ11 to connect with a phone, and an ethernet port that connects to the router.

Casey H.

 

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4 1/2 stars on amazon w/~20k reviews? Gonna be a lot of folk with dead units. Look for the % s.

🍻

Just because you don't know where you are going doesn't mean any road will get you there.

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Amazon lists the model as CM1150V.  Newegg lists a model that says CM1150V-100NAS that includes a $50 year end sale.  I can’t find anything that explains the 100NAS.  Are these different models or does the description just differ in detail? I don’t think I want to pay $250, but $200 is probably OK.

Casey H.

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I didn’t see any difference on the Netgear site.
The difference may only be one is last year’s model, or you just found a good sale.

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Casey H

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Hmmph. Usually, something such as “100NAS” is used with a router, not a modem, and suggests that you can attach an external hard drive to it (NAS-Network Attached Storage) that will communicate with the router at up to 100Mbps (the “100” part of the “100NAS”).

In looking at another modem from Netgear, the CM1000, Amazon has appended NAS to its base model number as well (1AZNAS to be specific).

I’ve looked at the product datasheet for the 1150V and there’s no indication of anything else to the model number except the core one of CM1150V.

These “extended” (my term) model numbers might be present on the exterior of the boxes the modems come in from Netgear, so Amazon might be getting them from there.

As long as you have Comcast/Xfinity voice, you should be good to go with buying a Netgear CM1150V modem, regardless of what comes after the “CM1150V”.

By the way, it’s also available directly from Netgear’s site for the same price as Amazon and they offer free shipping and free returns just like Amazon. They also offer paid tech support programs as well which run directly through them, from the sounds of it. Netgear’s page for the modem is here.

One final note: The CM1150V is only a modem, it isn’t a router, so you’ll definitely need to put one “behind it” to help shield your computer from the “nasties” out there. Doing so is easy, simply plug the Ethernet cable from the “WAN” port on the back of the router to port number 1 on the back of the modem. The other ports are for a specific use to enable the modem to increase the speed it’s capable of delivering in conjunction with a router that will support that technology.

OK, enough, as this is starting to sound like an infomercial, and I didn’t get permission to post one! 😳

I hope this helps with your decision!

 

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Casey H

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Casey H wrote:

I’ve heard of Ooma, but I don’t know how it works. I see that there’s a free option, and a $10/month option, which is what I’m subscribing for with Xfinity. I’m guessing it comes with some kind of device that has an RJ11 to connect with a phone, and an ethernet port that connects to the router.

I use the Ooma Telo device, with the free plan. Have had it for many years. Paid about $149 in 2011 for mine, but it’s currently $69 at Amazon. I have saved over $4,500 since then based on my prior AT&T bill.

The Ooma Telo basically connects to an RJ45 Ethernet LAN port on your router, and provides an RJ11 jack for your home phones. It has a power cord with transformer. When powered on it connects via IP to the Ooma server over the network and registers the device to your Ooma account.

You can setup your proper physical street address for emergency services in your Ooma account. You can either use a random new phone number that they assign to you, or you can port an existing line. I moved my AT&T number.

The unit comes with a “free” plan for the life of the device, which is basic one-line service and voice mail. The optional paid plan has two lines and a premium feature package.

• The “free” plan still passes thru any applicable regulated communication taxes and fees. In my case that is about $5.80 (USD) monthly. There are no usage charges applied by Ooma to the “free” account, although Ooma handles the billing.

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Casey H

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Thanks again everybody.  I ended up buying the CM1150V unit from Newegg, as they had an end of year sale that took fifty bucks off.  I was happy with my Linksys EA3500 router that I was using with my DSL modem.  Hopefully it will connect up just fine without having to do a reset. Modem is supposed to arrive between the 5th & 7th of January.  Already glad I made the DSL/Cable switch.

Casey H.

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Special thanks Bob99.  You really supplied me a ton of information.  I downloaded the files from Netgear that were included in your message.  Now to see if it all works.

Casey H.

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@Casey-H –

You’re Very Welcome! I’ve been a customer of Comcast when I lived back east and during that time I don’t recall having much trouble with them, aside from occasionally going into their local office to finagle a new deal on the bundle we had to keep the price in check. But, hey, I still do that now with my current provider!  😉

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I thought this was all put to bed, but now, a procedural question.  It looks like in order for all of the phone  jacks in my house to work, I’ll need an RJ11 splitter.  The Xfinity tech person wasn’t very keen on the idea (products cheaply made), but  I don’t really see a way around it, as only one of the modem’s phone jacks will be active.  I can put a splitter downstream of the modem, with one line going to our cordless phone station, and the other going into the wall jack.  The other would be to put the splitter into the wall jack (split end or single end?) and hook things up that way.  Somehow I don’t think that way would work.  If push comes to shove, I suppose we could get along with just the one phone (cordless so it can move around), but I’m sure my wife would be happier if I can find a way for all of the phones to work. Perhaps there’s other ways to make this work as well.

Casey H.

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You will need to disconnect the incoming service line from the phone company and then make sure the wires from all the phone jacks inside your place are connected together. Then the output from the modem will go to the nearest jack and spread to all of the other phone jacks in the place.

There’s a certain place (like a metal box of some sort) where the phone line from your local phone company ties into your place and gives service to all of your phone jacks. That’s where you need to disconnect the incoming phone line from the phone company and make sure your phone jacks are connected together.

That way, when you plug the RJ-11 phone cable into the back of the modem and into the nearest phone jack, the signal (dial tone, if you will) will travel from the modem, out to the jack and into the remaining phone wiring in your place to the other phone jacks, giving them a dial tone.

The above statements are based upon what was done for us by a Comcast tech way back in 2010 when they began offering telephone service in our area.

Disconnecting the phone company’s incoming service is necessary because they won’t be giving you your dial tone any more, the cable company will. You don’t want to be sending the dial tone from the modem out to the rest of the phone company’s customers by mistake.

If you don’t feel comfortable doing the wiring changes yourself, Comcast may offer this service for you, but there will possibly be a fee for it. If there is a fee, it may very well be competitive with what a telecommunications specialist would also charge you for the same job. The job itself shouldn’t take much longer than about a half hour if everything’s decently accessible.

I hope this helps!

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JohnW

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Casey H wrote:

put the splitter into the wall jack

Do not do this.
The wall jack is connected to the cable in the street and then to other things owned by the telco. Your router will then be fighting the telco’s equipment and your router will probably lose.

cheers, Paul

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Casey H

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Thanks Paul.  I didn’t really think the circuitry would work correctly by that method anyway.  I have disconnected the phone line entering the house by unplugging the rj11 plug inside Century Link’s box, which is attached to the house.  The dial tone which was formerly present is now silent, so I think CL’s stuff is now out of the picture.  I chose it rather than disconnecting the wires at the first point of juncture in the basement.  Once everything is working and I cancel CL, I suspect I’ll disconnect the wires in the basement as well.

Casey

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Bob99 wrote:

If you don’t feel comfortable doing the wiring changes yourself, Comcast may offer this service for you, but there will possibly be a fee for it. If there is a fee, it may very well be competitive with what a telecommunications specialist would also charge you for the same job. The job itself shouldn’t take much longer than about a half hour if everything’s decently accessible.

You summed it up very well!

Even though I spent years in the IT and telecommunications fields, I must have gotten lazy in my old age. I just plug a Panasonic cordless base station into my network VoIP jack and call it a day. You can place the cordless remote units anywhere you like! Have nothing plugged into my residential phone jacks anymore! 🙂

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Here in Sweden most are offered voip free of charge with the fiberline but no one really use landlines or voip here anymore.  Still i get the impression you are willing spend time and $$ to be able to keep phone jacks usable in your homes in US, but i cannot figure out why, anyone care to elaborate ?

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I think at least part of it is trying to keep access to our cell phone numbers to only those folks we really want to have them.  Our land line is where the vast majority of crank/nuisance calls come in.  The land line also comes in handy for a couple other things, so we’d like to keep that capability.  None of my kids use anything but their cell phones, but we’re just dinosaurs, I guess.  Xfinity is only charging me ten bucks a month for the voice service, so I thought, why not.

Here’s the specific connection issue I have.  The location of the modem, the phone base station, and the connection on the wall are all in close proximity.  The  wall jack is the only one in the room.  I can either plug, the voice output of the modem into the base station or into the wall jack.  My thoughts regarding a splitter were attempts to accomplish both.  Moving the base station into another room and using its jack is not an acceptable solution.  Everything needs to stay where it is.  I can see that it would be easy if we could move the base station into the kitchen, for example.  Having remote units would also certainly work, but I don’t want to spend the money.  We’ve got “princess” phones all over the house and would like to continue using them. Am I stuck?

Casey H.

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Has Comcast been successful in being able to port your number over to them from your local phone company yet? Just because you’ve requested voice service from them doesn’t mean they’ve been able to port your number over.

If they didn’t even ask you during the application process for a voice line if you’d like to keep your current landline phone number, then they will probably assign a completely new phone number to it, different than the landline number you’ve had all these years.

This is something to think about. When we signed up for voice through Comcast, I specifically mentioned that we wanted to keep our current phone number and Comcast was able to quickly (within a week if I recall correctly) transfer it over from our local telco.

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Casey H

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Yup.  All that has been taken care of.  I tested the phone connected to the router, and it makes & receives calls with the old number.

Casey H.

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So, if you hook a phone up to one of the RJ-11 wall jacks, either you won’t have a dial tone or you will have one but be unable to make a local call.

If you do have a dial tone but can’t make a local call, you should still be able to call 911 in a pinch, but that’s just a guess.

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One additional small test. You’ve already said that with a phone plugged into your current modem that it rings if you call it using the old number (your landline number).

Now, disconnect the phone line from the back of the modem and plug it into one of the RJ-11 wall jacks in the house as I tried to describe in the post just above this one. Do not connect your modem to the wall jack, leave it completely disconnected from any phone line for the moment.

If you have a dial tone at that wall jack, try calling your landline with your cell phone and see if the phone connected to the wall jack rings. If you’ve already done this, please let us know.

Obviously, when you’ve completed this test reconnect your phone to the modem.

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I still have a landline but the ringer is silent and I never answer it. It is sometimes more convenient if I need to ring my telco – 40 minutes later….

cheers, Paul

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[JohnW]

anonymous wrote:

Still i get the impression you are willing spend time and $$ to be able to keep phone jacks usable in your homes in US, but i cannot figure out why, anyone care to elaborate ?

Well first thing I would say is that with a landline here in the US, the E-911 service would pinpoint your exact street address/unit more quickly in an emergency.

By comparison, calling E-911 services from a mobile device would only provide your approximate location, based on cell tower info.

And as mentioned elsewhere, the landline is the number I use for all account registrations that require a phone number. And the ringer stays off unless I am expecting a call, as these numbers are harvested by telemarketers.

When I call a business from the caller ID that my account is registered with, it speeds up the account identification. Of course I could have used my mobile number, but then all the spammers would have it too.

Finally, sometimes I get a clearer voice signal from home with a landline vs. using a mobile indoors. That used to be more of a problem, but is now relatively minor with 4G. With 5G coming, we can probably remove this from the list in many places. But in some remote areas of the US, there is no Wi-Fi, and spotty cell service. So sometimes a pair of wires on a pole is the only good option.

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• This reply was modified 4 years, 4 months ago by JohnW.

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Everything’s working.  I suppose there might be some further evaluation necessary, but the whole house appears to be in order.  I bought a splitter and connected one of the splits to the cordless phone’s docking station and the other to the wall jack.  Dialing the old number from my cell phone, all of the phones rang.  I was also able to call my cell phone from both the wireless phone connected to the docking station, and from one of other phones on the connected home circuit.  The splitter seems a bit on the flimsy side, so I’ll probably try to find one that’s a bit beefier.  All this with the existing Xfinity modem.  I’m assuming it will work the same with the arrival of its replacement.

Casey H.

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I forgot to mention in the previous, that prior to making said connections, I disconnected the old land line where it entered the house.

I’m wondering: I now have a whole slug of DSL modem filters.  The outlets of course: one for phone and one for the DSL connection are the same size.  Question: will the DSL outlet pass a phone signal adequately, or does it have some additional circuitry in it that makes it unsuitable for phone use.  If there are no issues, it would be perfect.  One, they’re free, as I have several; and two, they are very sturdy

Casey H.

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A DSL filter should be used only when there is a gateway or modem attached. If there is no DSL in use, remove all filters. The DSL-side of a filter doesn’t transmit the ‘phone’ frequencies. A regular phone splitter, even a ‘cheap’-appearing one, is adequate. A DSL filter has components; a splitter just wires all connections in parallel.

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Casey H, JohnW

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Thanks much.  I was hoping that the unit might work, but it makes sense that it wouldn’t.  I’ll probably pick up another splitter as a spare–just in case.  It just sits there though, so it shouldn’t be subject to much (if any) wear & tear.  I’ve sure learned a lot about all of this.

Casey H.

 

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If there is no DSL in use, remove all filters

I hope you’ve done that everywhere, since you no longer have DSL.

Now, from the sounds of it, your other phone outlets work. With that in mind, you might not need the splitter at all!

Quick way to find out is to remove the splitter from the phone jack on the back of the modem and hook a regular phone cable from the phone jack on the back of the modem into the nearest phone jack in the wall. Now hook a regular phone into a wall jack in another room and see if it rings when you call it from your cell phone. Do this for each wall jack you’d probably use for a landline phone. If they all work, then you don’t need a splitter!

When we had Comcast for phone service, the installation tech said that splitters can sometimes cause issues due to being poorly made, so he made sure that we weren’t going to need a splitter by making sure we had a dial tone from the modem at each outlet we were going to use for phone service, leaving the rest disconnected.

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If I’m understanding you correctly, Bob, that leaves no connection to the cordless phone base station.  Moving the base station to another outlet in a different room isn’t acceptable.  That’s why I got the splitter, one line for the base station, and the other to the wall jack to connect the rest of the house.  The poorly made piece is also why I was hopeful that both outlets of the DSL splitter would pass phone signals, as they seem to be very well made.  I found a splitter online that “looks” like it might be built a bit better.  It was a couple grams heavier than others I was viewing.

Casey

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If push comes to shove, I’ll just get a new cordless system that comes with four phones.

Casey

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Ok, NOW  I get it! 😳 Yes, if you want to definitely have the base station for the cordless phone where it currently is, then you do indeed need to use a splitter. Only way to avoid using a splitter would be to move the base station for the cordless phone to another phone jack.

In our current place, we’re fortunate enough to have a second outlet on a stairway landing that’s made to be a “cubby” for a small desk. This is very near the phone jack we’re using for the modem’s phone output line. The builder very nicely not only put a phone jack there but also put a cat 5e RJ-45 jack there as well as an outlet for plugging stuff into! Imagine that…a thoughtful designer and home builder!  😉

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One final thought: How stable is the power grid in your area? The reason I ask is because without a back-up battery in the voice modem, you’ll lose your landline phone service if you lose power. Remember, the modem’s plugged into the nearest electrical outlet in the wall.

From what I recall, when we had Comcast we went down to the local office of theirs and purchased a battery right after our service was installed. Back then, it was the easiest thing to do since nobody else like Best Buy carried them back then.

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I hadn’t thought of that.  I have the modem and router plugged into a separate power strip,  which is plugged into the non battery back up section (surge protection only) of my UPS. The PC and monitor are the only things plugged into the UPS side right now.  There’s one additional plugin available on the battery side; I suppose I could move the power strip plug over to it.  Power outages are pretty rare here.  My UPS is an APC ES 750.  I can’t find anything that suggests how long the battery might run things–too many variables, I suppose.  If the power did fail, I would have everything shutoff except the modem and phone.  I wonder how long backup power would last.  I see I last replaced the battery at the end of August 2017.  It’s probably time to get a replacement.

Casey H.

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[Bob99]

A UPS  like yours is only designed to give you enough time to immediately save any work you have open on the computer and then immediately shut the computer down, usually about 15 minutes or so from what I’ve seen advertised and claimed on web pages in the past. At least with a UPS, you’re not swearing at the computer or the power company when the lights go out because of being able to save your work in progress. One key concept with UPSes: The less that’s plugged into the battery side, the longer it will last so the longer you have to save your work and shut down the computer. So, best thing is to have the computer and the monitor as the only things plugged into the battery side as far as I’m concerned.

The battery that Comcast mentions on their support site for the modem you might have right now co$t$ (are you sitting down?) $165 plus tax for certain Comcast-provided modems. Check out this page for more info directly from Comcast’s support page for voice. WOW.

Although it’s been 9 years since we had our service disconnected because of moving out of their area, I don’t remember our battery costing that much. If we paid for it, it wasn’t probably more than $30 or $40.

Notice I emphasized certain modems, which is exactly what they say on their support page. This gives me hope that the battery for other Comcast-supplied modems may be much cheaper. BTW, the battery we have in our current provider-supplied modem was only $30, but also only lasts 1/4 the time that Comcast claims their battery can last.

Ii is good to hear that power outages in your area are pretty rare, as they are where I currently live. For now, think of it as the power company saving you the money for a back up battery with their good, reliable service!  🙂

By the way, I honestly don’t remember what happens if someone calls you when you have no phone service with a power outage because it’s been so long. I would honestly hope the call would wind up going to voicemail so the caller could at least leave a message for you.

Nowadays with cell phones, I can see why it’s somewhat easy to overlook a battery backup for a landline phone. As far as I know, the cell towers have backup power supplies of their own so that if the power goes out in the area surrounding a tower, the tower remains active in the system instead of producing a “dead spot”, as they used to be called.

• This reply was modified 4 years, 4 months ago by Bob99.

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The battery that Comcast mentions on their support site for the modem you might have right now co$t$ (are you sitting down?) $165 plus tax for certain Comcast-provided modems. Check out this page for more info directly from Comcast’s support page for voice. WOW.

That Comcast page is one that’s accessible to anyone, not just a Comcast customer. To see if a battery for your voice modem would cost anything different (i.e. be a LOT le$$) log into the site as a customer and see if that page looks any different. Or, try contacting the nearest Comcast office to your place and ask them how to get a backup battery for your voice modem. They should at least tell you how to get it and how much (if anything) it costs.

I say this because it dawned on me that perhaps some municipalities may restrict how much a cable company charges for a backup battery, as well as they may restrict the rental fee that’s charged for a voice modem in their area. In some areas, for example, there may be no fee at all for a voice modem and no fee at all for the backup battery.

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Interesting stuff–gives me some things to think about!

Adding consideration for the UPS has raised an additional question.  With my DSL setup, I ran the phone line from the wall through the UPS surge protector connections, then to the modem.  Looking the unit over last night, I noticed it also has in/out surge connections for cable.  I have no idea whether cable signals might even need this protection.  Additionally, the UPS is roughly 6 or 7 years old.  I’ve replaced the battery once.  It’s never had to rescue me, as the power has never failed while the computer was on.  I also don’t know if there have been any changes in that time to the cable standard, where an older surge protection device might not be able to pass the signal properly.  Associated with that would be the need for an additional length of cable for the extra connection.  I have a short section, but again, I don’t know how old it is and if it would work properly in today’s world.  The questions seem never-ending.

Casey H.

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I’ve never put coax cable through a surge protector and we’ve never had issues during thunderstorms. But, then again, when we had thunderstorms going on, we took the extra measure of turning off our computers and a couple of times I went so far as to unplug the surge protectors that fed the computers until the lightning and thunder had moved out of the area. Because of that, we never needed to take advantage of the “insurance” that many surge protector manufacturers claim on the box the protector comes in when you buy it.

I’ve also never put our phone line(s) through a surge protector and we’ve never had any equipment damaged during thunderstorms as a result.

As far as any cable “standards” go, the one thing I know for sure is that if you ever do have to put a splitter into the coax cable line that feeds your modem from the coax outlet in the wall, make sure it says specifically on the splitter itself that it covers the frequency range of up to or over 1000MHz. I’ve seen this make a difference for me in the past twice. I had to install a splitter in the line feeding the modem and didn’t use one that went up 1000 MHz, I just used the first one I found. Sure enough, I then had speed and connection issues with the internet side of the modem. From what I recall seeing, the splitters that go that high will say something like “5-1000MHz” on either them or the packaging they come in. By the way, I was told about this by a cable TV tech that came out the first time we had internet connection and speed problems just after we moved from one place to another when we were living back east. He took one look at the splitter I had installed that fed our cable box and the modem and immediately replaced it with one that covered 1000MHz, and problem solved in 5 minutes!

OK, enough of this post because I feel it’s starting to get off-topic.  😳

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Casey H

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Thanks Bob –

Fabulous advice.  I suspect I never would have thought of it.  The trick will be to remember it when I at some point in the future, drop voice from my Xfinity account and go with Ooma.

Casey

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