60mb - old modem
 

Sorry, yet another question(s) on the speed increase.

Currently, I enjoy a rock steady 20mbit connection, but dear ole Virgin is enticing me with it's free 60 meg upgrade and I'm reading posts on here around nightmares with the SHUB - repul's, amp etc. (much of which I can only just about understand!)

I have quite an old modem - the model number on the back looks like e08c007. I think I'm going to have to get this replaced with a SHUB, aren't I? I have a straight coax connection from the wall into the modem and an ethernet cable from that to the PC. No wifi, no router.

What's this "modem mode" I'm hearing about?

Can expect trouble if I get a SHUB?

Is it best to have an engineer do the setup?

Thanks for all and any info.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

The superhub is shocking at wifi, but pretty good at running as a modem, should be fine just activating the hub then turning off router mode

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

to cut a long story short a modem is a MODulator/DEmodulator which means your pc or some other device is connected to it, sends it some info/signal and the modem converts it to a different type of signal and bangs it off across the internet. This is ok if you have only got one device which you want to have internet access.

A router routes your traffic across a network (which it is creating). The router connects directly to the modem and any devices like pcs, games consoles, printers etc can connect to the router directly (cable) or laptops, printers, phones etc wirelessly if you want. The devices send the info to the router, the router changes it slightly (long story) and then send it to the modem which does its stuff.

Now, for many many years peeps have always had a seperate modem and router and they will continue to do so for donkeys years to come. The problem is that VM used to only supply modems and they very rarely break. People obviously have problems with their connections all the time and I don't know what the % is but as an example say 70% of the time there was nothing wrong with their connection and it was the router they had bought from PC World which was the problem and needed rebooting or something. VM cannot support every type of 3rd party router its customers are buying so they tried to come up with a combi modem/router (aka the shub) which they could give all customers so when they rang up moaning about their connection VM were in a position where they could say whether it was the connection which was the problem or the router, and be in a position to help with both.

The bummer is that VM rushed an untested shub out to customers a few years ago and the whole thing has been a disaster. There are many features which are common to all routers and you can go down to PC World and buy any branded router you want and it just works. There were many flaws with the shub from day 1 which caused all sorts of problems whether it was wireless (which has been the worse) or wired.

When they first started forcing the shubs on customers you had to use the router function even if you already had your own top of the range router. It supremely screwed you over because as it couldnt do the most basic of functions without crashing. After many many complaints they finally got round to releasing a version of firmware which allowed the user to switch it to "modem mode" which basically disabled the router part of it and made it a modem. This allowed you to reconnect your proper router.

VM have spent the last 2 years releasing numerous firmware updates and still havent got round to fixing everything. People will tell you that wireless performance has been greatly improved in the latest firmware revision and that may be true, but there is still much to be desired.

The best advice I can give you is to definitely put it in modem as soon as you get it. You can leave it as it is with your pc directly connected if you want to maintain that setup but if you ever want to let more devices connect to the internet you'll need a router and I strongly recommend you buy your own one. I have always been a Linksys fan but there are many good brands out there which you can get for very reasonable prices that will kick ass over the shub. If you ever think about getting one just come back here and there are plenty of people who will gladly recommend various models.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

If you don't use wireless and only have a PC connected then use Modem Mode (only one ethernet socket active). You also have the option of just disabling wireless and using it as a wired router (all 4 sockets active) with powerline adaptors etc.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

If you're not using a separate router, it's probably a good idea to keep it in router mode and just disable wireless. Reason being that the router has a firewall for added security which will get disabled if you put it in modem only mode.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

Sorry but wireless isn't bad at all. My Superhub works perfectly and so do most other customers.

Some people do have problems but there may be other aspects causing the issues. I live in a Glasgow Tenement flat with really thick solid walls and I still recieve a good signal even through two or three walls.

I know for a fact that this is not true and the Superhub was in testing for months before being released. However there were some bugs that were not caught. I still have my original Superhub from the beta tests and its still working perfectly without any problems at all.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

You dont want to be using the firewall on the shub at all

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

I already have a firewall. Wouldn't one on the router conflict with it?

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

maybe. It doesnt even need to conflict with a secondary firewall, it conflicts with itself :p Seriously though, it a waste of time and defo more hassel than it is worth. Pretty much anyone you talk to will tell you to turn it off.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

Blimey the long story must be really long :p:

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

it was, I forgot to explain about the 4 ports you use on the back in router mode and only 1 in modem mode :)

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

I am pleased to hear the wireless range is acceptable to you.
I have tried to use the shub before and after the upgrade to R36 . However, the range and speed using the shub alone is unacceptable to me as it will not reach the second floor bedrooms. I have found by using it in modem mode with my own router that the wifi is appreciably stronger.

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

A day doesn't go by without a customer asking why the superhub has poor wifi range, it was in testing before and I was a tester, on every survey I posted negative feedback about it constantly rebooting and poor wifi range

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

Those pesky First Class stamp sized blighters. Put the thimg in modem mode and buy a DIR 615 from Ebay, how many more people will ask? £10 and done. It's not really all that funny however, it will solve your wireless issues. :D

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

well done dude, it is nice to see someone different standing up

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

I'm really happy that I don't have your job jb, it seems to be awful ;)

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

I think it all boils down to the environment of the building. For the short period of time I was 'forced' to use a SH, the wireless was pretty bad and would not cover all of my property.
However the ASUS RT-N16 wireless coverage goes all over the property and into the garden as well.
I think the only thing we can say about the SH wireless is "you will not know how it will perform until it is installed in your property"

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

that doesnt go down well with customers, they dont want to pay to fix virgins wifi issues

Re: 60mb - old modem
 

I was in a similar position. Rock solid 20Mb connection for years, I was really wary of the upgrade. But I did it a month or two ago. Put the superhub into modem mode, into my existing dlink router, and all is well. I'm very happy now with the free upgrade.

A couple of issues initially. The puzzling thing was that speeds did fluctuate for a couple of days, but then they settled down. Also the engineer used the power supply from my old modem, and that caused problems. They sent out a new superhub with the power supply that is supposed to be used with it. No problems after that. So if you go for the upgrade, INSIST that the engineer uses the new power supply that is supplied with the superhub.