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Slow speeds during peak evening hours (overloaded tower?)
dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
‎11-02-2011 02:24 AM

Is anyone else experiencing slow download speeds during peak evening hours?  Has been happening the last 3-4 weeks.

 

Here's what I get during the day:

 

 

Here's what I get on many (not all) nights during the last 3-4 weeks:

 

 

 

 

The UL speeds take only a minor hit. DL speeds are 1/4 of what they normally are during the day. Ping times triple. RSSI is unaffected. 

 

Same results on both my Thunderbolt and Pantech UML290, so I know it's not a device issue.

 

Tech support told me that the tower may be near its capacity. Really? Is the backhaul on a 4G tower really not enough to handle a relatively small town?

 

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Tigon
Newbie
In response to dmc271
‎11-11-2011 12:34 AM

I've been tempted to try an external yagi with a Wilson LTE (~700Mhz) amplifier plugged into my 4510L.

 

My old 2200 didn't have the port for connecting an external antenna and I felt a wireless repeater would work better supplying my entire household (two dumbphones, one iPhone, and one Mifi).

 

My EVDO RSSI went from -90 to -60 using the amplifier with an omnidirectional external antenna in a heavily wooded area.

 

 

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dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
In response to Tigon
‎11-11-2011 01:58 AM

I've been eyeing the package on sale at SolidSignal here ($299).  I think if I were in your shoes, I'd risk the shipping fees and give it a shot.

 

My 4G connection, OTOH, is limited by an oversubscriped tower:

 

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dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
In response to dmc271
‎11-11-2011 02:23 AM

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Tigon
Newbie
In response to dmc271
‎11-12-2011 03:09 PM

dmc271: Have you considered using a Yagi to isolate and connect to individual towers?  A few users on EVDO Forums recommended trying that when their devices would only pick congested towers.

 

I've had a trouble ticket open for over a month now with no official response from Verizon. 

 

Verizon should offer more transparency regarding available bandwidth at these towers if they're going to use "congestion" as an excuse for providing substandard service. /pipedream

 

 

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dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
In response to Tigon
‎11-12-2011 04:30 PM
Tigon wrote:

dmc271: Have you considered using a Yagi to isolate and connect to individual towers?  A few users on EVDO Forums recommended trying that when their devices would only pick congested towers.

 

Good suggestion, which I've actually considered.  But, when I asked the VZW rep about which towers had 4G, I was told that they don't release that information. I suspect that there's only one 4G tower in my area.  I totally agree with you about the need for more transparency.

 

About a week ago, I left a very negative review at the following VZW survey site:

 

https://survey.verizonwireless.com/vzwsurvey/

 

The local VZW store manager called me back within 48 hours, and he said he'd send a local tech to look at my setup. (Still waiting for this person to show up.)

 

Maybe you should do the same?  It can't hurt at this point.

 

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dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
‎11-16-2011 01:52 AM

 

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Tigon
Newbie
In response to dmc271
‎11-20-2011 12:02 AM

After 39 days, Verizon has finally offered a resolution to my service ticket.  They say I'm "too far from their local towers to provide minimum data service."

 

Here I thought ~300ft towers had to be anchored to the ground.  Little did I know they must get up and walk around since my 3G service worked just fine for over a year and a half leading up to the 4G launch.

 

 

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dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
In response to Tigon
‎11-22-2011 08:32 AM

I received another call today from the manager of my local VZW store. He said that he sent a local tech to correct the tower issues. Apparently, something was wrong with the "10G pipe" and it has now been corrected. My speeds are back to normal.

 

I'm very thankful to the local VZW manager, and at the same time very upset with VZW's online and phone support, which was very quick to dismiss the problem to my location's supposedly poor signal and/or limited cell capacity. Clearly, this wasn't the case, and the problem was quickly correctable. It just needed someone who actually cared to make things right.

 

Tigon and others: Maybe try visiting your nearest VZW store to voice your complaints. At least leave feedback at the link I provided on the previous post.

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Tigon
Newbie
In response to dmc271
‎11-25-2011 02:07 PM

dmc271: I don't suppose Verizon offered any additional technical information regarding what they fixed?

 

I submitted a review through Verizon's survey site and a store representitive called me the next day.  While he was nice and apologetic, he couldn't offer any additional information outside of their official tech support channels.

 

 

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dmc271
Enthusiast - Level 3
In response to Tigon
‎11-29-2011 08:54 PM

Tigon: Sorry to hear that your manager was unwilling to help.  Maybe worth an in-person visit, demonstrating the poor performance?

 

The local manager here couldn't provide further details about what was fixed--I think he doesn't know. Just said that there was something wrong with the 10 Gigabit feed to the tower.

 

BTW, have you tried taking your Mifi onto your roof to see if it can lock onto a 4G signal?

 

 

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