Download Speed of 4.7 Mbps

[#1]

Hi,

My download speed is currently peaking at 4.7 Mbps via Ethernet and/or Wifi across all my computer systems, as opposed to the 34 - 37 Mbps it should be. Plusnet have checked the line and it is apparently fine, so I am at a loss how to solve this issue. I have just received a Hub 2 router after renewing my contract and have tried reverting to my Hub 1, but with no effect. I have tried the router in all 3 phone sockets that I have available, again with no effect. I have ADSL filters on all the sockets that I am have using and have tried different filters, again with no affect. I have 2 PCs, one of which is connected directly to the router and one of which is connected to a TP-Link ethernet extender (both have the same download speed). We have two TVs and a YouView box that are all connected via TP-Link ethernet extenders. We have a couple of Alexas and some mobile phones that use the wi-fi. The wi-fi signal strength is fine. The only thing that concerns me is that the old network (associated with my Hub 1) is still discoverable and I can still connect to it (again with no effect on download speed). I don't think my new contract officially starts for a few more days. Could this be causing the issue? If so, is there anything I can do to fix it? If not, do you have any suggestions on how else I might be able to fix this issue? Thanks in advance.

[#2]

Its important to know whether its the linespeed reported by the router thats slow or something in your home network

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The router is best connected to the master socket using a filter if the socket isnt a new one with dual outputs - rather than extensions around the house. For testing there is a test socket within the master socket.

Is the router linespeed slow or matching what PN or the BT site says it should be?

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Although the advice will always be to connect a PC by Ethernet to the router, if its close enough then even WiFi is able to connect at a speed higher than VDSL - Windows will tell you the connection speed so that can be verified before running a speed test 

[#3]

Thanks for your response. If I run a line speed test from my PC, I get approximately 37 Mpbs as the result, which is the same as what Plusnet tell me it should be, but that is not the reality of my actual download speed (4.7 Mbps). I have tried all 3 phone sockets (including the master, but not the test socket), but there was no difference to the speed. I only left the router connected to the other sockets for 10-15 mins and then reverted to the socket in my study when I saw no change. I don't know if I needed to leave the router connected to other sockets for a longer to see any benefit or whether the immediate results reflect the truth. I'm not sure how I check my wi-fi speed, but when I disconnected my ethernet and tried wi-fi only, the download speed did not change. Any other advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

[#4 · Accepted solution]

Where are you getting the 4.7Mbps from?

The reason I ask is 4.7 * 8 = 37.6

Is the download speed actually 4.7MBps which equals 37.6Mbps?

[#5]

The poster above has proabably clarified the confusion 

But linespeed is what the router reports if you log in and is decided just between the router when it boots up and the cabinet and is affected by the line outside the house

There is another limit set by the cabinet called IP profile - that will be a certain %age bellow the linespeed and is visible running the BT speed test additional info page

A speed test on a PC measures throughput - rather than linespeed to avoid confusing the terms - and is affected by every single link in the chain from the server then plusnet then the phoneline then the home network and finally the PC - but usually its just a small %age less than the IP profile

If the throughput measured by a couple of different speedtests is a lot less than the line should allow then its easy to check the WiFi connection speed in Windows settings - back in the day WiFi would be a bottleneck but these days close to the router with a modern laptop it'll likely connect at 10x what VDSL can manage and only becomes an issue with full fibre 

[#6]

Browni - I feel dumb now! Yes, the confusion has been caused by the difference between a capital 'B' and a lower case 'b' and I now understand your maths. I have recently bought a new gaming computer and downloading my games again. It just seemed really slow when downloading the larger games, i.e. it took a lot longer than I remember. I guess it was just a case of me not being patient (and not understanding the terminology). Thanks for you help, even if I do feel stupid now! lol

[#7]

jwsg - Thanks for your help