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Bdtgg's avatar
Bdtgg
New Contributor
5 years ago

High upstream power levels causing inconsistent lag spikes and "slow" internet

I've been noticing for the past 6 months that lag spikes are more prevalent at random times during the day.  This is seen during gaming sessions and regular streaming hours (youtube, netflix, etc.).  I didn't look into it until now.

Went into my Arris Surfboard sb6141 to check out the signal data and noticed a consistent 56-57 dBmV for the upstream power level.  Called Arris and they said anything below 51 dBmV is normal.  Downstream is 1-3 dBmV so that's not a problem.

I am connected directly from the coax box-≥modem->pc.  

Is there anything else that I should be checking out here?  Speed tests are normal so that doesn't really tell me much. 

I called Cox support as well and since I own my modem (not renting), they can't help me further unless I subscribe to their Complete Care for $10/month.  The reps also can't differentiate between up/downstream power levels versus up/download speeds.

  • Bdtgg's avatar
    Bdtgg
    New Contributor

    So the Cox tech came by and I showed him the issue and the signal data/charts.  Without looking any further, he just recommended buying a new modem since mine is 4 years old (Arris SB6141) to resolve the high upstream power level. 

    I just wanted to get some more opinions on here before dropping $180+ for a newer modem.

    • Bdtgg's avatar
      Bdtgg
      New Contributor
      Downstream Bonding Channel Value
      Channel ID
      Frequency 807000000 Hz  783000000 Hz  789000000 Hz  795000000 Hz  801000000 Hz  813000000 Hz  819000000 Hz  825000000 Hz 
      Signal to Noise Ratio 38 dB  37 dB  37 dB  37 dB  38 dB  39 dB  38 dB  38 dB 
      Downstream Modulation QAM256  QAM256  QAM256  QAM256  QAM256  QAM256  QAM256  QAM256 
      Power Level
      The Downstream Power Level reading is a snapshot taken at the time this page was requested. Please Reload/Refresh this Page for a new reading
      2 dBmV   2 dBmV   2 dBmV   3 dBmV   2 dBmV   2 dBmV   2 dBmV   2 dBmV  

      Upstream Bonding Channel Value
      Channel ID
      Frequency 24000000 Hz 
      Ranging Service ID 193 
      Symbol Rate 5.120 Msym/sec 
      Power Level 55 dBmV 
      Upstream Modulation [3] 16QAM
      [3] 64QAM
       
      Ranging Status Success 

      Signal Status (Codewords) Bonding Channel Value
      Channel ID
      Total Unerrored Codewords 165579082  165570983  165597775  165588191  165563957  165567364  165563754  165600643 
      Total Correctable Codewords 174  70  120  201  165  190  178  253 
      Total Uncorrectable Codewords 1568  611  1501  548  1447  613  1406  1523 

      My signal stats for reference.