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max indigo
EVDO User
Joined: 21 May 2007
Posts: 44
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 Posted: Mon May 21, 2007 8:30 pm Post subject: signal strength and d/l speed |
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Hi. Just purchased the sierra 595U on the sprint 2yr unlimited plan. Have found that I have a better signal with Alltel roaming. Can't keep a good connection with Sprint. My signal strength is ~68db and my d/l speed is from 55 to 180. I have 3 bars up and 3 down and 5 bars strength. Isn't that evdo? SCM says
Network service is EV-DO/1xRTT. Network device signal is EV-DO:
-68dbm. I have 2 Alltel towers within 3 miles of my house.
Using a desktop pc. Don't know why my d/l speed is lousy. Will an omni
antenna help me? I'm in rev 0 area.
Thanks for your advice.
max |
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magicjimmy
EVDO Heavy User
Joined: 20 Feb 2007
Posts: 123
Location: Tucson, AZ
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2007 11:59 pm Post subject: |
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Have you read the thread on supercharging your EVDO?
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Luka
EVDO User
Joined: 07 Mar 2007
Posts: 93
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 12:52 am Post subject: Re: signal strength and d/l speed |
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Max,
I live on the edge of the evdo revA coverage area.
I get signals that are consistantly -101 through -114 or worse.
This, using a U720, and a yagi antenna.
Yet I get pings of 220 or less. DL speeds of 250 to 550. And UL speeds of 40 to 70. All consistantly. Except when weather ruins the signal. (I live in a forested area.)
I was seeing 999+ pings and D/UL speeds worse than dialup... Until I set the connection manager to allow ONLY Sprint signal, and ONLY EVDO.
It SEEMS like the signal doesn't stay good with only evdo and no roaming allowed, but the real world results belie that idea.
I get better and more consistant results with the signal that seems less strong.
Real world download speed averages 2.4 megs per minute. That is good enough for me for now.
I followed all the instructions in the supercharging thread and it didn't make any difference for me.
One other thing that does make a difference for me is to use DNS servers other than Sprint's own.
The ones I use are 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220
Most here would kakk if they were getting only 250 to 550 DL speeds. But it is consistantly 10 times faster than my dialup, so I am happy for now. Eventually I'll buy an amplifier and lightning protector to add to the antenna. |
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max indigo
EVDO User
Joined: 21 May 2007
Posts: 44
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 4:16 am Post subject: |
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Yes I tried the supercharge suggestions. My SCM seems primitive compared to the the CM for say the 720's. Couldn't find where to do the HA thing in the ##data settings.
Luka will try the dns thing. Or antenna. Seems these guys give a 15 day trial.
Thanks
max |
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n6gn
EVDO Junkie
Joined: 22 Aug 2006
Posts: 439
Location: Northern California
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 7:38 am Post subject: |
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Luka
You might be an excellent candidate for a largish dish. Working as well as it does with a weak signal from a yagi, the additional 10-12 dB of improvement in both directions might eliminate your seasonal variations and even improve your throughputs both ways.
$50 for a three footer and the effort to swap mounts should answer the question - should you be interested.
OTOH, it's working and that may be enough. 
n6gn |
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magicjimmy
EVDO Heavy User
Joined: 20 Feb 2007
Posts: 123
Location: Tucson, AZ
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 9:49 am Post subject: |
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| max indigo wrote: | My SCM seems primitive compared to the the CM for say the 720's. Couldn't find where to do the HA thing in the ##data settings.
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If you haven't already, then you need to update your SCM to the latest availalble by going here...
http://www4.sprint.com/pcsbusiness/support/downloads/index.jsp?internalId=downloads
Once you've done that make sure you have the latest PRL also...
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max indigo
EVDO User
Joined: 21 May 2007
Posts: 44
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 3:13 pm Post subject: |
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Ha. They just released a new scm yesterday. Thanks Jimmy. Also it says for PRL 60607. I already updated to 60608. Do you think thats ok?
Thanks for all your help guys.
max |
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Luka
EVDO User
Joined: 07 Mar 2007
Posts: 93
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 11:42 pm Post subject: |
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| n6gn wrote: | Luka
You might be an excellent candidate for a largish dish. Working as well as it does with a weak signal from a yagi, the additional 10-12 dB of improvement in both directions might eliminate your seasonal variations and even improve your throughputs both ways.
$50 for a three footer and the effort to swap mounts should answer the question - should you be interested.
OTOH, it's working and that may be enough.
n6gn |
Largish dish ?
Sounds like you have something in particular in mind. What would that be ?
My situation right now... I am living in an RV trailer that has seen better days. This winter, we had MAJOR flooding, and major storms besides.
While the flood didn't quite reach me, this trailer has had the roof caved in in two places by falling branches. I've done the best I can to shore up the roof, and have covered it with tarps. But needless to say, I need to find something else to live in. LOL
I bought a 37 foot 5th wheel RV trailer. (The one I am in is also very short.) I call it a flood model trailer, because it actually went through the flood and survived. Well, mostly. That trailer filled with water very quickly because the guy who owned it had cut a hole in the wall and hadn't closed that up yet. That is all that saved it from floating away.
Needless to say the trailer was full of water, and whatever floated up out of the black tank... It has to be thoroughly cleaned, first. Then I will start at the nose, and will strip away all the walls, floor, and ceiling, one section at a time. I'll replace any framing that needs it, then seal it all back up again.
Ok, long story short... I am real busy. 
And on top of that, I am on a very small, fixed income. So I have to do all this, as I can afford it.
But... I have been offered an old primestar dish. I believe that is 3 feet across ?!?
Once I have the big trailer moved to where I want it, and have it set, and enough of it rebuilt, to be able to move into it... I intend to build a bi-quad and attach it to that primestar dish.
If that works as I suspect it will, then I will devise a very strong support for the dish so that it will withstand the weather we have here.
But for now... I can't afford to buy anything more, and I don't really have the time yet to follow my addiction and play with the antennas. LOL
Doesn't mean I wouldn't like to hear what you have in mind.
Oh, also... I am thinking that the big dish may well do a lot of good for the incoming signal. Because it gathers more signal from a wider area. But I am wondering if outgoing is cast TO a wider area as well ?
Kind of a funnel shape coming in, but also that same funnel shape, going out. The funnel concentrates the signal in only one direction. In the other, it would be scattered.
In other words, I can gather more signal coming in, but will my outgoing signal be scattered so badly that less of it makes it back to the tower ?
If so, I am wondering if I shouldn't try to figure out a way to use BOTH the dish, and the yagi. Since the yagi tends to cast that signal in a pretty narrow course...
One last... I cannot make use of the GPS function. I am assuming that is because I am using the yagi. It is very directional. And I would guess that for the GPS to function, my antenna would have to be able to communicate with more than just one tower... Make sense ?
EDIT: I found out that the reason GPS wasn't working is because you have to allow roaming, and you have to allow 1xRTT.
I allowed both and tried again, and wonder of wonders, it even gave me the correct longitude and latitude for my own location.
Now I just wish that in the list of options that you can look for, (You can find the nearest motel, gas station, etc...)... Was the nearest sprint/nextel tower, and/or the nearest sprint/nextel antenna. (along with their latitude and longitude.) So that we could get a more accurate picture of just what is between us and the nearest signal source... |
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