32" omni antenna & EVDO Direct Connect amp Problems

Woodsey1

I live in a rural area. I have a UM175 USB modem with Verizon Wireless Service. There is only one spot in the house where the UM175 will get a signal. It is marginal there and I only get National Access which is 135kbs download at best. Therefore, the UM175 is actually mounted on the wall where the signal exists. And inch either side and the signal is gone.

I purchased the Wilson 32" Dual Band Omni and the Wilson EVDO Direct Connect (3watt) Amp from 3gstore. When installed the setup increases my signal from marginal to full bars on National Access and Broadband Access (Rev-A) increases from no bars to 2.

But, with the full signal, the EVDO UM175 will not get an internet connection. Using the VZAccess Manager from Verizon, the program shows the UM175 flipping back and forth between National Access and Broadband Access, never making a connection. If it does happen to connect, when it flops to Broadband again, it loses the internet and I have to wait until it flops back to National Access before the internet is restored. The modem connection to the tower is not lost, only the internet connection.

Verizon said they will not help since they do not support 3 party equipment connected to their devices. I bought their antenna first and it did not work. They said, "sorry, we cannot help you with that." I agree, they are sorry!

Do any of you have a solution to this problem or have you also seen this problem. My closest cell tower is 7.6 miles SW of my house. Will a yagi help or will it be more wasted money? Maybe the yagi would only pick up the one tower instead of other weaker towers that could be causing the problem. I cannot use what I just purchased because with it all connected, the UM175 will not connect with the internet.
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Woodsey!

Jim_in_VA · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 9:12 am Post subject:

With the connection manager open - but not connected online. Press CTRL-D and enter diagvzw as the password. Select the settings button and then enable HDR only. Save, backout, and reconnect. See if that solves your problem.
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Woodsey1 · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 4:26 pm Post subject:

Jim_in_VA · Posted: Wed Aug 05, 2009 5:01 pm Post subject:

using the same procedure, but being connected this time, click on the "Field Test" button. Then scroll down to the bottom set of numbers - there is where you find all the data that reflects what is going on with your connection.
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Woodsey1 · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 3:57 pm Post subject:

Not wanting to buy another antenna without knowing the appropriate signal is present, I did some testing first.

I went to the cell sight that Verizon says is theirs, and also where they claim they have Broadband Rev-A available. With the UM175 set to HDR Only I was able to connect to the cell site and get a Rev-A signal.

"Field Test" done by the Access Manager shows that I was connected on channel 775 on 1.9GHz. The RSSI was 62.

While connected I ran the test at speakeasy.net. I measured a download speed of 1.5Mbps and upload speed of 450Mbps.

From home I cannot connect to that cell tower with the Wilson Trucker 32" Omni antenna, mounted outside and the Wilson Direct Connect 3watt bi-amp connected. The tower is 7.6 miles straight line from my home with only a small hill in the way and of course, trees.

What are the chances of getting this signal with the Dual Band Yagi at 3GStore? I sure hate to throw another bunch of money for a yagi and coax if it will only serve to stimulate the economy!
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Woodsey!

Jim_in_VA · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 4:06 pm Post subject:

The chances are MUCH better with a directional antenna. All of the RF energy is focused in one direction - toward the tower. I would certainly use the Yagi with the amp. Great combination. Use the field test when aiming it.

You do have a window of returning it and will certainly be superior to the omni.
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Woodsey1 · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 5:22 pm Post subject:

Looking at the TOPO profile for line of sight from my house to the cell tower, what do you think about the obstructing hills? The profile can be seen at,

nwlink.com/~fletchek/HouseToCellTower%20Profile.jpg

Running the field test I can see that channel 775 does appear in the list of the channels it can hear but, it never connects to it.

I wonder if the roaming update has anything to do with it? With a phone we do *228 and the phone loads tower database. Is this true also for the UM175? I do the "Activate" occasionally. But, since it can only connect at to National Access, maybe it is not picking up the info for Broadband.[/url]
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Woodsey!

Jim_in_VA · Posted: Thu Aug 06, 2009 6:00 pm Post subject:

get the directional antenna - most, if not all, of the issues will go away
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