Using the BT Smarthub 6 on a Plusnet Account

[#1]

Hi @Baldrick1

happy new year!

I’m having very frustrating issues with homehub connection to my TV and I’m wondering if it’s to do with the split bands?

I have a Samsung Smart TV connected via older AV plugs (14mps?) to a BT Homehub 6 on which I’m connected to Plusnet (not fibre). I’ve split the bands so I have separate 2.4 and 5 ghz bands (this is recommended when using the BT Hub on Plusnet). The TV seems to connect to 2.4ghz.
My issue is that the TV frequently loses the broadband connection. Either the apps aren’t available at all, or it goes down during watching something on catchup or when watching terrestrial I see “broadband connection restored” messages on the screen.
I’ve tested it with the Plusnet supplied router (2.4ghz only) but it’s no better.
The funny thing is that when it goes down, I still have a broadband and wireless connection to my iPad in the same room and I can cast the same programme on say iplayer via Chromecast to the TV.
The problem is seen most often in the evenings but this may be coincidental as that’s when we are mostly watching! 

If I unseperate the bands will that effect signal range through the house? I’m having to use a 2.4 netgrear range extender plug to get a connection upstairs (thick chimney breasts etc)

Any advice please?

thanks

david

[#2]

I should have added that the broadband Ethernet connection to TV is via a BT essential YouView puck.

[#3]

@Prologica 

Separating the bands will not be the cause of your problem but there’s nothing stopping you from trying in order to satisfy yourself that this is not the cause.

My money would be on problems with you Powerline devices. See here for some tests that I conducted after having buffering problems.  https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Powerline-Unit-Performance/m-p/1607450...

Can you not run an Ethernet cable?

[#4]

I'm an enthusiast for the HH6 with PN but I encountered the same problems on our Sony TV although other devices work fine. It could receive our five-bar wifi signal but frequently dropped out as you say in evenings and reconnecting was a drag. Concluding that the TV could be connected in the same way that an elephant could be taught to dance, I ran an ethernet cable under the carpet and have perfect reception ever since.

[#5]

Thanks @Baldrick1  and @Longliner 

The two AV Plugs are on seperate circuits on the consumer unit. But I didn’t have this issue when with BT?

running Ethernet cable wouldn’t be easy as there’s a chimney breast and fireplace in the way. There’s a second fireplace in the way if I moved my router to an alternative socket which will hinder the wireless signal to the rest of the house (and the extender upstairs). The master socket is upstairs and that too has one of the chimney breasts close-by.

So it might be a case of AV plug upgrades (to what?)

or a Heath Robinson idea...additionally install the Plusnet router (setup with same network name as 2.4 on HH6) with the old AV plugs on the same electrical circuit as the TV but with plug timers on each router so that they are never on at the same time! (I stand ready for incredulous comments on that one! and perhaps on/off buttons on routers may scupper anyway)

regards

david

[#6]

My consumer unit by the way has one, seperate circuit breaker for the whole unit I.e. call circuits

[#7]

@Prologica 

I have no idea what a BT puck is. Is it wireless? If so how is it connecting to the router? Do you have a wireless AV plug?

Your router should be connected at the BT master socket, not an extension.

Your use of the Hub One is a non starter. If this puck thing is wireless then you could try converting the Hub One into a Wireless Access Point and connect that to the Ethernet socket on the remote AV unit, assuming of course that it has a Ethernet socket? See https://community.plus.net/t5/My-Router/Using-a-2nd-Plusnet-Hub1-as-a-Wireless-Access-point/m-p/1385...

Is there any help here https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Distributing-Data-around-Larger-Proper...

You could buy a long Ethernet cable for a few pounds and just try it. This will confirme whether your problem is indeed associated with the AV units.

The problem with powerline transmission is the amount of background noise on the mains cable. Since you were with BT it's possible that you've plugged more devices in that use switched mode power supplies, each of which increase this noise.

[#8]

@Baldrick1 

Thanks.

By puck I meant the basic BTTV essential Youview box which is connected to the router by Ethernet via the AV plugs. 

I can try the router in the master socket upstairs but it still won’t be practical to run an Ethernet cable direct, so the two AV plugs will still be on two different electrical circuits plus the router will be further away from where wireless is mostly used in the house. 

David

[#9]

Thanks so much for getting me up and running!!!

[#10]

Thank you Baldrick 1. I printed out and followed your instructions. A couple of hiccups due to my misunderstanding of things. A few tense moments that can happen when out of my comfort zone. It is now working well. Difficult to say if the bt router is better than the Plusnet, time will tell, but i am hopefull that having the 2 bandwidths will bring an improvement. I do appreciate you taking the time to help others.

[#11]

hi all,

I switched to a HH6 just over a year ago because of the .263 firmware issue with the hub-one.

It is mostly good news as the performance is very good - but it does seem to periodically go through a routine of orange and purple flashing lights for 10 minutes or so. I have not noticed a definite pattern but it is approximately every two weeks.

Is that something I have to put up with? I am tempted to buy a new third party router but everything else with this router is very good.

regards,

James

[#12]

The rebooting every 14 days is normal for the Bt Hubs

What you could do is switch the router off at a time that is less of an inconvenience, like just before bed time, wait a few minutes then switch back on, that may tame it . Until a system firmware update or other cause to stop the power occurs.

[#13]

Ok.... I had suspected as much.
It works well apart from that, I just wanted to be sure it wasn't me!

I don't really want to walk the minefield of choosing another third party new one. They all seem to be 50/50 negative and positive in the reviews.
I suppose that is the nature of these devices... There are so many factors influencing performance... Not always the routers fault.

Thanks for the reply,
James

[#14]

I've just installed a Smart Hub 6 after getting frustrated with dropped connections on the PlusNet hub that we got with our recent upgrade, and seeing the advice on the forums here. Absolutely no problems configuring it, took moments. However, one motivation was to be able to set my own choice of DNS servers, which I couldn't on the PlusNet one, to try whether OpenDNS would be more reliable. And I still can't with this one!

What is it with BT/PlusNet and DNS? Some kind of fixation?

[#15]

@dplusr 

You bought the wrong Smarthub. If you read the instructions at the top of this thread you may deduce that this option is only available on the Business versions.