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ShawnTN
EVDO Newbie
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 6
Location: Mountians of East Tennessee
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 Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2007 10:03 pm Post subject: EVDO Signal, but cannot connect |
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I live in rural East Tennessee, 37880 zip to be exact. I can easily pick up the RX1TT signal (94dbm), and only detect a faint EVDO signal (115dbm). I purchased a Omni antenna and have it mounted above roofline, and now I am able to get better signal for both, my R1XTT went up to 80dbm, and my EVDO went up to 90 to 100 dbm range and fluctuates.
I was really extremely happy to get the results in signal, but unfortunately I still cannot connect to the EVDO siganl. I'm not sure if I'm just too far from the tower, but I would think that if I was too far I wouldn't get that great a signal. When I try to connect I get "Remote Computer did not respond" Generic Verizon error. I have a PC5750 I can connect with no problem to the RX1TT signal, but when forced to only EVDO it will not. Curious is maybe an Amplifier will help in my situation or if I should give up. |
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CraigCraig
EVDO Heavy User
Joined: 15 May 2007
Posts: 141
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 9:43 am Post subject: Re: EVDO Signal, but cannot connect |
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| ShawnTN wrote: | | . . . maybe an Amplifier will help in my situation or if I should give up. |
My semi-experienced guess is that an amp would work for you. Call up the 3G store and get the Wilson 3 watt, dual band, bi-directional amp they sell. That is the one I have and am very happy with its performance in fringe areas. I think the 3G store has a 15 day return policy but talk to them about your specific situation and you could be on EVDO in a few days. |
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Victor
Site Admin
Joined: 14 Jul 2006
Posts: 69
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:41 am Post subject: A tower Knows... |
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A tower knows how far away you are from it...
Hypothetically, if you are getting a -90 dB RSSI when using the antenna, even if you went and added an amplifier to the equation which would get the signal down to about a -78 to -80 dB you still would be too far away and will not be able to connect.
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- Victor |
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CraigCraig
EVDO Heavy User
Joined: 15 May 2007
Posts: 141
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:13 pm Post subject: Re: A tower Knows... |
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| Victor wrote: | A tower knows how far away you are from it...
Hypothetically, if you are getting a -90 dB RSSI when using the antenna, even if you went and added an amplifier to the equation which would get the signal down to about a -78 to -80 dB you still would be too far away and will not be able to connect. |
Victor if the bi-directional amp is being used wouldn't that compensate for the equipment distance from the tower, provided however that there is a signal to amplify?
This has my curiosity peaked...I already have the Wilson 3 watt, dual band, bi-directional, direct connect amp the 3G store sells and have had great results with it but might try some experimenting as well. Do you think that if I drove to an area where I had say a 90 to 100db (with antenna attached) area that I wouldn't be able to connect to EVDO? Not trying to start an argument here but just wondering if I understand the challenges correctly.  |
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n6gn
EVDO Junkie
Joined: 22 Aug 2006
Posts: 347
Location: Northern California
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:28 pm Post subject: Re: EVDO Signal, but cannot connect |
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| ShawnTN wrote: | | Curious is maybe an Amplifier will help in my situation or if I should give up. |
If the furthest tower (the EVDO source, perhaps) is less than about 19 miles from you, there is a reasonably good chance that you are not too far away based on the protocol. Improving C/N ratio could improve things. However, it seems surprising that with the levels you report you haven't been successful in getting *some* kind of positive connection.
Is it possible to get closer to the candidate tower and see if you are allowed to connect? Until you eliminate the administrative element, there is no assurance that the problem is due to technical issues like signal level rather than carrier issues.
n6gn |
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ShawnTN
EVDO Newbie
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 6
Location: Mountians of East Tennessee
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:32 pm Post subject: Connection |
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| My inclination, albeit not professional, was maybe I'm getting the signal, but my TX isn't strong enough to reach the tower, hints the "remote computer not responding" error. I also wasn't sure if there was a distance limitation on the towers that would keep me from connecting. So still not sure if an amp will help in my situation or not. |
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Michael
Site Admin
Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 5045
Location: Cary, IL
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:26 pm Post subject: |
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Each tower has a maximum limit that it will allow users to connect (and each tower may have a different limit). If you are beyond the maximum distance for the tower, nothing you can do will allow you to authenticate. The tower will "still know" how far away you are. There are a lot of factors involved like: terrain, obstructions, trees and number of users connected. When you start having a tower that gets overloaded, you might experience "shrinkage". The distance that the tower allows you to connect, gets smaller.
So, it isn't JUST about signal.
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n6gn
EVDO Junkie
Joined: 22 Aug 2006
Posts: 347
Location: Northern California
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:48 pm Post subject: Re: Connection |
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| ShawnTN wrote: | My inclination, albeit not professional, was maybe I'm getting the signal, but my TX isn't strong enough to reach the tower,
...
I also wasn't sure if there was a distance limitation on the towers that would keep me from connecting. So still not sure if an amp will help in my situation or not. |
The incoming signal strength will be a good indication of whether your transmitter will be receivable. Signal levels and gains are carefully maintained and arranged so that you can be confident of this. Thus if you are seeing a [pilot carrier] signal strength reported of -80 dBm, say, it is possible for the site to hear you in a similarly good manner.
The distance limitation, commonly set to be about 19 miles for CDMA, has to do with internal system settings. Only if you are physically beyond that limit from the tower will you be prohibited from making a connection.
Thus the best way to isolate these two issues is to get close to the tower in question and see if you can connect properly. If you can but still find that things are no good at distance less than 19 miles (common setting of PILOT_INC =4, if I remember correctly) then it may be a signal strength issue, though you should have a good hint as to this cause by reading the RSSI level on your phone/device. This issue may be affected/improved by antenna type, location, cable and in some situations, an amplifier.
If upi can't connect at all under any circumstance it may also be a carrier issue - wrong carrier and you aren't allowed to roam there etc.
If you find that you can't connect to anything under any circumstances you could even have faulty hardware.
How far away do you think the tower is? Have you been able to use your device under any circumstances? Does it work when you are quite close to the candidate tower?
n6gn |
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sctrt
EVDO Fledgling
Joined: 06 Oct 2007
Posts: 19
Location: Hot Springs, AR.
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 7:13 pm Post subject: |
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More questions
[1] Is there any way for an end user to find out what the max connect limit is?
[2] How can I find out who [Sprint, Alltel, etc] sends an evdo signal from a 1.5 mile line of sight tower.
[3] How can I find out who owns the tower? Private contractor, AT&T, etc?
Thanks.
sctrt |
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ShawnTN
EVDO Newbie
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 6
Location: Mountians of East Tennessee
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| Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:58 pm Post subject: Distance |
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Well my connection is stationary, so not really able to try closer to the tower, but I estimate that I am probably about 15 to 20 miles from that tower, so distance is probably an issue. I think the reason I'm able to get the signal so good from that source, is the fact that I have fairly open horizon with Tennessee River running nearly in a straight line between me and that tower. Yes I can connect to the local Rx1TT tower.
Next bet, gonna try Sprint. I have a Sprint EVDO tower 13 miles away, and I'm about 1.5 - 2 miles outside of "Official Coverage area", in an area deemed "Signal Strength Unverified". Will give that a try, and will post results.
If still unable to get EVDO, honestly I will still be happy, as CDMA is better than dial up, and the Omni did improve my connection to it. |
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childsj27
EVDO User
Joined: 18 Aug 2007
Posts: 36
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| Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2007 11:11 am Post subject: |
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| sctrt wrote: | More questions
[1] Is there any way for an end user to find out what the max connect limit is?
[2] How can I find out who [Sprint, Alltel, etc] sends an evdo signal from a 1.5 mile line of sight tower.
[3] How can I find out who owns the tower? Private contractor, AT&T, etc?
Thanks.
sctrt |
Who owns it.
Try cellrecptions.com/towers and enter the city and state.You will
get a google map. |
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ShawnTN
EVDO Newbie
Joined: 08 Oct 2007
Posts: 6
Location: Mountians of East Tennessee
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| Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 12:40 pm Post subject: Sprint |
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| Tried Sprint today, and bingo. Plugged the card in, and for a second I was worried, because it automatically connected to the Rx1tt signal. I forced to EVDO, and connected with a signal strength between 87 and 93. Very Very happy. Down speeds around 900Kbps, Up at 141 Kbps. Still wouldn't be possible without the Omni Antenna. Without the Omni, my EVDO signal was non-existent with sprint. Thanks to everyone who helped out, and the 3gstore for the great service, and product. |
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xrayman
EVDO Junkie
Joined: 23 Feb 2007
Posts: 259
Location: Kansas City
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| Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 1:08 pm Post subject: Re: Sprint |
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| ShawnTN wrote: | | Tried Sprint today, and bingo. Very Very happy. |
Your EVDO experience would make a good posting under the topic: "Your EVDO Success Story". |
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