Using the BT Smarthub 6 on a Plusnet Account

[#1]

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@dvorak wrote:
@Butternut what are you looking for in the router that the new hub2 won't give you?

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I was told I could separate the the 2.4ghz and 5ghz and give them different names, also I would like the most stable connection etc. I might be wrong though! 😉

[#2]

Split makes sense, as that can't be done with the hub2.
The hub2 will have a more recent chipset and is solid for connections.

[#3]

You could separate the Bands on the Old style BT Business Hub and the BT Smart Hub  but presently unsure about the New Business  Smart Hub. You can not presently with the BT Smart Hub 2

[#4]

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@dvorak wrote:
Split makes sense, as that can't be done with the hub2.
The hub2 will have a more recent chipset and is solid for connections.

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Thank you all for your replies/help, it's probably best to wait till I get connected first, then go from there, cheers.

[#5]

@Butternut 

As stated, this will work. There are pros an cons whem compared with the Business version of a Smarthub 6.

Business Smarthub 6 advantages.

1. You can split the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands.

2. This particular version is designed for FTTC (as used by Plusnet) and has 4 LAN (Ethernet)  ports

Business Smarthub 6 Disadvantages

1. Will probably be a couple of years old with no guarantee, despite being unused.

2. Has to be tweeked to work on a Plusnet service.

Plusnet Hub 2 advantages.

1 New with guarantee.

2. Wil automatically configure to work on your Plusnet service.

Plusnet Hub 2 disadvantages.

1. The 2.4 and 5GHz wireless bands are synchronised and can't be split.

2. Has only 3 LAN ports.

Personally I prefer the black BT to the off white Plusnet case but that's down to individual choice.

Most but not all devices work with synchronised bands. This is a hot topic over on the BT forum as the bands on the Smarthub 2 are also locked together..

[#6]

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@Butternut wrote:

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@dvorak wrote:
@Butternut what are you looking for in the router that the new hub2 won't give you?

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I was told I could separate the the 2.4ghz and 5ghz and give them different names, also I would like the most stable connection etc. I might be wrong though! 😉

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See this two posts as they may be helpful.  https://community.plus.net/t5/Tech-Help-Software-Hardware-etc/Separate-Bands-with-a-Smarthub-2-or-Pl...

[#7]

Thank you very much.

Moderator's note by Dick (Strat): Full quote of preceding post removed as per Forum rules.

[#8]

I’ve bought a BT SmartHub from eBay to try and improve our WiFi performance at home and now trying to set that up to connect to my John Lewis account. Firstly, thanks for the guide, really useful to know what I should be doing. Initially I started with the adsl line connected so having read that I’ve started again and worked through as far as step 8. At that point though there’s no save option and every time I leave that page or select connect from there it reverts to the BT option.having talked through this on the phone with someone from JL they couldn’t work out what the problem is so any help that avoids me spending more hours trying to work it out much appreciated!

[#9]

I'm fairly sure that the Smarthub is locked to BT group username domains. Although Johnlewis BB is provided by PlsuNet , I dont belive its classed as a BT group domain and so you cant set that on the Smarthub

[#10]

Be interesting to see whether that’s right. The reason I got the BT SmartHub was because that was one of the three alternative routers that John Lewis tech support told me would work…

[#11]

The limitation of the BT Hibs is the number of characters in the username and password boxes - hence why the don't work on EE (although recent changes to the network have changed this).

Try simplifying the password if possible.

[#12]

BT Smart Hubs and Home Hubs  work with BT and plusnet .

Ensure you do not plug in the dsl cable until you are ready to connect and have entered the correct details for your account.

which for plusnet is  yourusername@plusdsl.net  then your password you use to connect to your member centre.

Some BT hubs originally did not accept passwords with odd characters like &^%$£@)*&  until the firmware had updated so you had to change your  password first to a basic one to connect and update.

see this link by Baldrick1 a forum member

https://community.plus.net/t5/My-Router/Using-A-BT-Smarthub-An-Update/m-p/1795292#M24601

[#13]

I’m using my username@john-lewis.com and the right password so all seems ok and as confirmed by JL tech support in that respect. The original password had a non alphanumeric character in so I took that out on their advice and shortened the password as much as possible but same outcome. I did also originally start it up with the dsl cable in but after reading baldrick1’s post did a factory reset and then connected it up after putting my JL details in. Still got the same error message though.

[#14]

I have only known BT Hubs to work with BT and plusnet

Not ee or John Lewis as Mustrum has said  the reason may be the username which is different to plusnets which is yourusername@plusdsl.net   and   BT  which is bthomehub@btbroadband.com       if the firmware has changed and now allows ee and John Lewis  to use them then you will need to get a friend on BT  or plusnet to use it for the firmware to update.

[#15]

Thanks, sounds like the original advice I got from JL tech support was wrong then and I’ve wasted my time and money relying on it.