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Connection Issues
We have been long time Cox internet customers and had historically received reliable solid data performance. Within the last six months I upgraded to the Premier Service and a new SB6121 modem. Following this change the service appeared to become less reliable. I believe connection resets started occurring and occasionally I had to power cycle the modem to regain connectivity. This was a minor issue until recently, and the increase in loss of connection seems to have coincided with the increase in heat. Several weeks back I had to start power cycling the modem on a daily basis, every night sometime around midnight the modem would drop the connection and would not reconnect until I cycled the power. During this period I had called tech support, but the connection was working after power cycle and they could not identify what was causing the resets. I passed on having a tech come out since they would charge me if the problem was on my end.
I then learned about the optimal signal specs, and checked my system for issues. First, there is a small ground flush cable box in my yard with no connections, just a cable pass through. Then the cable goes into a small box in the side of my house where the Cox cable connects to a new grounding block. The house wiring appears to be RG-6 single shield, and I replaced the original crimp connector with a compression connector. The cable then goes directly to the cable modem location where the end is also terminated with a compression connector, then barrel connector, then quad shield full copper conductor cable with compression connector to the cable modem. I checked and cleaned all the connections with DeoxIT and Progold.
When the issues started I had a three way splitter in-line with the cable modem which was no longer necessary and I replaced it with a barrel connector. This increased the downstream power by about 4 db, and had minimal impact on upstream. Also, cleaning the connectors resulted in a minor improvement in up and down stream power levels. After making the changes the connection appeared to remain stable for about a week.
Initially when the reset problems started the downstream power level was approximately 5-7 db, with about 36 db SN ratio on all four channels. Upstream was around 46 db power on all three channels.
The resets and connection failures appear to be primarily caused by the T3 Time-Out errors discussed in other posts. The connection loss became more frequent and when the outside temps rose to 110 plus degrees we began experiences periods where the modem could not reconnect due to the T3 time-out. Also I noticed the downstream signal strength started to drop from the +5 - +7 db range to -3 - -4 db range, while the SN ratio remained consistent. I tried the automated tech support a few times without success and escalated to a human. They wanted to send out a tech, but I explained I could see the degradation in the downstream signal and thought the issue was on their side. The tech indicated he could see that my upstream feed was noisy, but did not elaborate. I asked what the onsite tech could do to resolve that issue and he could not provide a specific answer, but I agreed to setup an appointment. In the interim I replaced the ground block and barrel connectors, and swapped what cables I could to see if there was an improvement, with no impact. Keep in mind this setup worked for months even with a splitter in place.
Additionally, I purchased a Zoom 5143J modem in effort to determine if the 6121 modem was faulty. The modem does not appear to be the issue, but the Zoom modem when connected and online shows the upstream power to be 51db. Coupled with the info from the phone tech this indicates to me that my return path is not clean. The 6121 upstream power remained in the mid to high 40s prior to replacement. Also, I have noticed that I tend to lose the upstream lock/bond when the downstream signal power drops below 0db. Over this last weekend I regularly monitored the downstream signal when the connections was down, which was most of the time, and noticed it is getting worse. The power level is regularly below 0db, and the SN ratio is randomly dropping below 30db on all channels.
My conclusion, considering the setup worked until recently, the downstream signal is degrading, my physical connections appears clean, and a new modem did not result in improvement, I think it is likely there is something wrong with the signal pathway before my house. I canceled my tech visit since I don’t want to go through several tech visits as others have to only be told it’s my problem.
If Cox is reading I have a proposal, confirm that the signal path is clean, up to the closest distribution point to my house. If you give it a clean bill of health during the hottest time of the day then I will submit to a tech service appointment, but you only get one try to diagnose and fix the problem. If my system is at fault I would then gladly pay the service fee. If this is not acceptable then I can switch providers, and if you can’t fix it in one visit then I will switch providers.
I would prefer to stay with Cox, I have received excellent customer service, and ultimately believe Cox can provide superior data services. However, I don’t want to be subjected to a long drawn out process, get the right people involved upfront and skip the low level techs.
Also, if anyone has advice please feel free to post.
Austin K
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KipK
Former Moderator
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606 Messages
By the notes on the verify order, they either removed or replaced the TV trap, an inline filter used on internet-only lines to filter out the video service. It's a passive component, but fairly intricate, and if it went bad it would explain the line noise. It's also something we couldn't read without getting a tech out to put a meter on it.
I'm optimistic that this was the issue.
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KipK
Former Moderator
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606 Messages
I'm not sure what the hottest time of day is, but pulling a snapshot at this moment, I can see that on your street 4 active houses are running off your tap, and the TX levels are 44.0, 49.2, 44.7, and 54.0, with yours being the 54.0. That certainly makes it look like an individual issue.
While no one can ever say with 100% certainty that a service call will resolve any issue with any provider, I think there's a very good chance in this case.
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Modem_upstream_
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13 Messages
As I indicated the zoom modem runs hotter on the upstream for whatever reason but the 6121 ran around 46. Can you explain why my downstream signal fluctuates significantly or why I keep loosing my upstream link with either modem.
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Modem_upstream_
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13 Messages
The modem was down when I made the last post, back up now at 51 dB upstream three channels, where I had two channels at 54 dB when I came home.
Just noticed the downstream dropped from 4-5 dB t0 -2 - -4 dB, this can not be normal?
Can you confirm the three other modems are not dropping their connection like mine?
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Joe_M
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5 Messages
I am experiencing the very same issue. The reset routine was less frequently but lately it has become daily. I had an older modem and replaced with SB6121. I was advised by Cox a while back it was the router. I have a new router and have not experienced any improvement in service. Now I have a new router and modem and it can no longer be my equipment.
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KipK
Former Moderator
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606 Messages
Their recorded reset and lost sync numbers aren't incrementing like yours are, but that admittedly doesn't always mean they're not resetting, they're just not reporting any resets back or missing any check-ins.
What really concerns me is that last time I posted it wasn't showing any kind of forward-error-correction rate, but now your FEC reading is way out of spec. The other three on your tap aren't anywhere near it. That may mean there's some kind of ingress problem going on.
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Modem_upstream_
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What you describe seems to follow with what I have observed that the signal quality fluctuates degrading and then recovering somewhat. This does not seem indicative of a passive cause, meaning I fail to see how a bad physical connection or cable could cause this issue. I would expect a consistent signal loss if a physical connection issue. The fluctuations seem more in-line with failing active equipment, and I have replaced the only active device on my side which is the cable modem. If the other three people I share a connection with are not experiencing the same issues, and we share a completely common path otherwise, is there a chance the the port I am connected to on the final device that spits the signal four ways is faulty or failing? Can you make this determination?
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Modem_upstream_
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Bang up job COX. No response to my last post. I also submitted this post to the help e-mail, and within 24hrs only received a notice the message was forwarded to someone, nothing additional through day 2. I don’t consider the forward notice a response. Internet and phone tech support is useless. All they can seem to do is reset or re-provision the modem, they do not appear to have a method to review, monitor, or diagnose intermittent issues. This forum has not provided any additional help.
After further review of my system for potential causes I moved my modem away from an adjacent WiFi and Z-Wave access point, and investigated if my appliances could cause interference, but neither seemed to be the cause. I switched back to the SB6121 and upstream power levels, when online, returned to normal. I am now 90% confident the issue is on the provider side. Additionally, in all instances where I lost my ability to lock the upstream signal, which prevented me from establishing a reliable connection, I noticed the downstream signal power decreased significantly consistent with what I noted above. The power drop sometimes coincided with a drop in downstream SN ratio. This suggests to me there is something on the provider side that is intermittently degrading the signal path.
This morning when I called in to report the latest loss of signal I received an automated response that there was an outage in my area. I hope this is somehow related to my issue and will resolve it. Otherwise I will call the next time the signal fails and schedule a tech to come out and I will submit to one visit to attempt to fix the issue. If either of these actions don’t fully correct the issue I will switch to a competitors service, which I really don’t want to do, but I am tired of fighting this issue and the lack of sophisticated technical support.
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KipK
Former Moderator
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606 Messages
Our ability to interpret signal data is sometimes as much an art as a science, and I have to admit that our technicians aren't always good at handling people who resist placing service calls.
It is quite possible it's an outside issue, and I've put in for the tap to be checked prior to the service call, though I could only get it in the day before. That's not the usual procedure, but in this case I think the data supports it. You won't need to be there for them to check it up to the point of demarcation, but I'd recommend keeping the scheduled service call in place unless we find out something specifically indicating there's an outside problem, since we don't want you to have to reschedule if they don't find anything.
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Modem_upstream_
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My resistance to placing a service call was rooted in my concern for taking time off of work when it was possible that the signal would be normal when the tech arrived, and no one could explain to me how they were going to address an intermittent issue if the problem was not present during the service appointment. Additionally, most cable companies have a reputation of sending out techs with limited abilities that blindly replace items which in many cases fail to correct the issue. I was trying to gain some assurance my appointment would be productive. Also, I am off the rest of the week eliminating the time off concern. I understand ultimately you need to rule out any possible issues on my side.
I appreciate that you are checking your side of the signal path before mine; I recognize that you are making an effort to address some of my concerns. With intermittent issues I just don't understand why you don't open a case, monitor the stats, and perform diagnostic procedures before you send out techs, which might resolve the issue or at least better focus the service appointment. If this is being done it has not been disclosed to me. I understand that rolling a truck for anything that can’t be fixed by a modem power cycle and re-provision resolves most issues, but you can't treat all issues the same. Most of the frustrated posts I have read stem from this one size fit all strategy.
In any case I am hopeful the issue can be resolved, and I will keep the appointment unless I hear otherwise. Funny note, I received one of those automated reminders for the first appointment which I wasn't expecting, and I called assuming it was an error, but was pleasantly surprised to the learn the purpose.
Update: the SB6121 was offline when I arrived home, I decided to switch to my old SB5101 DOCSIS-2 modem and it was able to stay online barely hanging on at 54 dB upstream power. Then later the downstream power stared to increase as the upstream started to drop. Although the problem is not consistent the symptoms remain the same.
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Modem_upstream_
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I noticed that a tech came out this morning and checked the distribution point across the street, this morning prior to his work the downstream signal was -3 dBmv, and the upstream was pegged at 54. This was with the DOCSIS 2 modem because the DOCSIS 3 modem could not establish the upstream bonding needed to maintain a stable connection.
After the tech left I found the downstream power and SN ratio to be +9 dBmv, and 39 db, respectively. Also the upstream power was around 38 dBmv. This is best I have seen since I started monitoring the signal and very much in the optimal range. I switched back to the DOCSIS 3 modem and it was able to go online with similar stats. I am excited to say it looks like the issue may have been resolved, I am reserving calling it fixed until it is stable for a few days. If it is stable the rest of today I will cancel my appointment for tomorrow.
I am curious what was done to correct the issue, please let me know if possible.
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Modem_upstream_
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Thanks for the update. I am wondering if this component is defective or inherently fails over time and could be causing the similar issues experienced by others? Not to say I told you so but I will, based on my troubleshooting and the info you provided I had specifically identified that the issue was likely isolated to my port at the last distribution point.
My connection has been solid since the Thursday morning repair. However, I would encourage COX to consider their method of handling these intermittent issues, and setup a troubleshooting process on a case basis that is followed through to resolution. Further, not to force people to general inspection without some sort of diagnostic process.
I am happy to have my service back and pleased to stay with COX. I declare this issue resolved.
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PhxAzCC
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39 Messages
Maybe this is the issue I am having? The tech that came out on the 2nd of this month replaced a filter, cord, splitter, and the cable outlet. I have the same problem still, could it possibly be the trap?
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PhxAzCC
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39 Messages
@TiffanyR
The Tech came out and checked he said that it had something to do with the main line, I guess he put in for maintenance to come out and fix it. Others in my neighbor hood seem to have the same issue is what it appears.
When he checked to the modem he said it was clear although he said if I'm still having issues on Tuesday to call him and they might have to do a drop line or something like that. Thank you to everyone that is helping with this. I must of got lucky that it occurred when he was checking at the box. The cox tech seemed very confident in what he was talking about.
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