NTL Connection really that bad?

BravoGolf

Am considering getting the NTL Broadband or Max product since I can then hook up my Xbox/Xbox 360 to the network without running cables all over the floor (at the moment I'm sharing an Esat BT connection via a wireless adapter but that means running a cross over cable to the 360 everytime I want to connect). Is the NTL connection (in county Waterford by the way) contention ratio ok? I don't want to pay for 3mb and find it drops to 1mb sporadically. Also, is the ping rate sufficient for gaming?

BravoGolf

*Bump*

Anybody :rolleyes: ?

jimmycrackcorm

Can't say anything about waterford but it is excellent in dublin now that the upgrades (and downgrades from 10 mb to 6) have settled down.

BravoGolf

Hey dude, thanks for the reply. Think I'll order it then

BravoGolf

For the benefit of the archives (:D ) I got a pretty good deal off them! I've ordered the 6mb connection and pay 5 yoyos extra for the Digital packages which jumps up to 10 yoyos extra after 6 months. Am receiving the Broadband connection free for the first 3 months and can downgrade/change package at any point. No installation fee and a Netgear modem (but no router). All in all, I'm happy with that!

bindybandy

They are excellent value for money and when the connection works it is absolutely fantastic. The only snag people have with them is that when it breaks down it is very hard to get through to them on the phone and it can take a long time to get certain issues resolved. Took me 3 days to get through to cancel mine last month at 20 mins a go each time.

Hopefully you'll have no trouble with them though and it helps if you are not a gamer

po0k

In galway, on NTL BB Max (6Meg).
We're being routed through .nl (UPC)
Pings are too high for 'good' gaming.
Packet loss and/or ping spikes makes BF2 nigh-on unplayable during 'sociable' hours.
Waiting till 5am for a steady bit of access is not an option when you are working.

I commend UPC/NTL for clamping down on the folks taking the piss with the cap (100Gigs or more on the 6meg package), but they really really really need to improve the routing situation, and perhaps host/offer some boxes for gameservers on their network inside Ireland.

I'll be moving house shortly and probably won't be reconnecting to NTL unless the routing (and latency) situation improves.

BravoGolf

Wow, pings really that bad? When each of you mention poor ping rates, how bad is poor?

SyxPak, on BF2, what ping rate do you get during peak times?

This would bug the hell out of me too since I'll be using it for gaming a lot

Frolk

I have exactly the same in finglas in peak time definatly not possible to play any games ...ping is jumping from 30 up to 200...hope they will sort it out soon or i will just change it for something else:cool:

Korsam

Yer right Frolk - i get horrible pings (avg about 150) in Finglas too at peak - i reckon its contention thats the main problem here - barring the game issue,its a great service

PixelTrawler

Im also in Galway on the 6 meg line. I used to play BF2 a lot on my old dsl line but with NTL its unplayable due to ping spikes

To be honest its the worst affected game, some are still playable and 360 games so far seem ok. But no more BF2, I gave up months ago

bernardo

same here ping between 90-150 ... impossible to play online gaming anymore ... I remember the old good days where my ping was around 20-40 on some UK server .... I will move away from NTL as well if they don't do something

el diablo

the connection has been pretty poor for me recently.(South-west Dublin) I'm on Imb but recently it is up and down like a nun's knickers. and customer service is pretty poor...

miju

head on adrian kennedy last night that the outages are being caused by NTL upgrading their system so they can offer a phone service , load of balls if you ask me i want my net connection to work when i come straight away not have to wait for an hour or so of trying

po0k

BravoGolf wrote:

Wow, pings really that bad? When each of you mention poor ping rates, how bad is poor?

SyxPak, on BF2, what ping rate do you get during peak times?

This would bug the hell out of me too since I'll be using it for gaming a lot

It's not just the latency (80-150 avg, sometimes riding around 120) - that can be adjusted to somewhat. It's the packetloss. Running/driving/*flying* forward and suddenly you go to change direction/bring up the scope and nothing responds, you keep ploughing along, still in the game but without control.
It is the single most frustrating and rage-inducing side-effects of online gaming - mainly because it's pretty random, tears you from the immersive womb of the game and removes any control over your in-game actions for a split-second too long. That, and the jerky-snap-snap looking around making it impossible to place a shot at point-blank never mind sniping.
It needn't be at peak times either.

Our connection is gone now, moved out, and I didn't get a chance to see what the routing situation is like. Someone mentioned that they'd 'fixed' it a week or two ago, but I haven't seen it verified yet.

I'm considering going back to them because of cost and healthy cap (housemates like youtube and sh1t), but right now I'm pricing up Smart, Digiweb and one or two others.

If NTL 3Meg package ("Broadband", not "BB MAX") offers stable low-latency with a nice bit of a cap, I'll go back to them.

Every single ISP that includes an acceptable usage allowance/traffic cap should provide the customer with accurate, reliable and up-to-date usage statistics and graphing. This is rather easily done in a few ways, scaling it for all customers is the only major obstacle. Until then, no ISP can expect customers to pay a flat-rate fee without flat-rate access.
If you make a rule, enforce it and have transparent accounts. User Ignorance is rife with respect to quantifying amounts of data. They get a pretty good grasp of 'speed' but couldn't tell you how many Google Videos fill a Gigabyte.

And the upload speed sucks across the board - particularly for gaming.
Gamer-specific packages might be an idea, could allow for a testbed for QoS-esque traffic shaping with a responsive, verbose and willing source of feedback.