# Networking HR20-100



## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

Quick question, possibly a dumb question. If I networked my HR20 by a CAT5 cable from the back of a wireless router, would the speed be the same as the wireless speed? Or would it be as fast as my DSL can do? I am assuming the wireless speed is slower than the DSL speed.


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## F1 Fan (Aug 28, 2007)

Randino said:


> Quick question, possibly a dumb question. If I networked my HR20 by a CAT5 cable from the back of a wireless router, would the speed be the same as the wireless speed? Or would it be as fast as my DSL can do? I am assuming the wireless speed is slower than the DSL speed.


The wireless speed is faster than DSL speed (there are exceptions to that but for the majority it is true).

Also if you are using a wireless router with a hub/switch in it you are connecting at (usually) 100M which again is faster than (most) wireless speeds.

But to answer the question you didnt directly ask  Connect it up that way and you will be fine with downloads.


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## F1 Fan (Aug 28, 2007)

PS: Welcome to the forums.

:welcome_s


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

Thanks for the welcome. Right now I have my HR20 connected via wireless router and a buffalo wireless ethernet converter. My wireless is connected at 54Mbps, and I'm pretty sure the DSL is coming in faster than that. If not, that would mean the router is speeding up what DSL is giving me, correct?


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## dbmaven (May 29, 2004)

Randino said:


> Thanks for the welcome. Right now I have my HR20 connected via wireless router and a buffalo wireless ethernet converter. My wireless is connected at 54Mbps, and I'm pretty sure the DSL is coming in faster than that. If not, that would mean the router is speeding up what DSL is giving me, correct?


No. The total throughput speed is that of the slowest link - a router can't "speed up" a slower WAN (internet) connection - the best it can do is pass on 100% of the available WAN speed - and in reality it won't do that because of the overhead inherent in the routing process.


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

So which is going to be faster, wired or wireless, or will they be the same? Sorry for the confusion. Right now it is taking me about 1 hour to download a 30 min show. Seems like I can get that faster.


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## dbmaven (May 29, 2004)

Randino said:


> So which is going to be faster, wired or wireless, or will they be the same? Sorry for the confusion


There's no set answer.

If you have no other wireless products (laptops, etc.) - or if they are not frequently in use, then given a strong link between your bridge and the router, wired and wireless performance will be about the same.

A fast dsl service might be provisioned at 7 to 10 Mbps.
Your wireless G network can push a maximum of 54 Mbps.
Wired connections with modern wireless routers run at 100 Mbps - some now are featuring 'gigabit' wired speeds = 1000 mbps.

What that means - your internal "LAN" is always faster than the outside/internet "WAN".

For DOD - the constricting point is the DSL connection - and so far it seems that D* is not pushing enough data out to saturate a 3mbps connection.

The short answer - if the wireless set up works - it won't hurt you.

If you have the ability to do it - delete the show you just downloaded, remove the wireless connection, and run an ethernet cable - then download the same show again. The difference will probably be negliible - but it's a real world comparison test.


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## phat78boy (Sep 12, 2007)

The one thing a direct wired connection might buy you over wireless is no dropped packets. With all the wireless now being used everywhere, out of the box setups usually result in constant dropped packets. This is why a wired connection seems to download faster then a wireless connection on the same internet hookup. 

That being said, a wireless connection can definitely be tweaked to much more reliable then it is out of box.


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

Cool, thanks for the help guys, It's nice to be able to get quick answers, especially from a few knowledgable "Godfathers" haha


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## dbmaven (May 29, 2004)

Randino said:


> Cool, thanks for the help guys, It's nice to be able to get quick answers, especially from a few knowledgable "Godfathers" haha


You're welcome.

What speed is your DSL line and who's the provider?

For more detailed information, the Broadband Reports website is a great resource. Check out the forums there - they probably have a discussion forum for your ISP.


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

I have AT&T/Bellsouth...DSL Ultra...at 1.5MBps, hmmmm so I'm not even pushing the routers capability at all am I?


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## phat78boy (Sep 12, 2007)

Randino said:


> I have AT&T/Bellsouth...DSL Ultra...at 1.5MBps, hmmmm so I'm not even pushing the routers capability at all am I?


Not for internet access. If you share media internally it could be a possiblity, but doubt that too.


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

So I should see a gain in download times if I upped my DSL to 6.0 Mbps.


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## Mike728 (Oct 29, 2007)

Randino said:


> So I should see a gain in download times if I upped my DSL to 6.0 Mbps.


Just the opposite. Also, that speed is only available to you if you're within a very close range of the CO.


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

If it's coming in at 1.5 Mbps right now, and the wireless router isn't slowing it down, then if I go up to 6.0 Mbps on my DSL, then I should be able to download DOD at their max rate of 3.0 Mbps. Correct??


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## Mike728 (Oct 29, 2007)

Randino said:


> If it's coming in at 1.5 Mbps right now, and the wireless router isn't slowing it down, then if I go up to 6.0 Mbps on my DSL, then I should be able to download DOD at their max rate of 3.0 Mbps. Correct??


Why do you say they have a max rate of 3Mbps?


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## dbmaven (May 29, 2004)

Randino said:


> If it's coming in at 1.5 Mbps right now, and the wireless router isn't slowing it down, then if I go up to 6.0 Mbps on my DSL, then I should be able to download DOD at their max rate of 3.0 Mbps. Correct??


If a faster tier of service is available to you, then the answer is a resounding "YES" - you will see faster download times.

As stated above - DSL is very sensitive to distance from the CO. And even if it is available (i.e. you're 'close enough to the CO') - there's the cost factor ....


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

I was thinking DBmaven had said that earlier in this thread, but not sure he meant that, I'm probably wrong, He said _" For DOD - the constricting point is the DSL connection - and so far it seems that D* is not pushing enough data out to saturate a 3mbps connection."_ Either way, right now I'm only receiving at 1.5 which is the slowest rate.


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## Randino (Oct 12, 2007)

not sure what CO is but, the AT&T building is about a block from my house


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## FUCCO (Oct 6, 2007)

the on demand download is capped by directv a about 2 megs. I have a 10 meg cable with my wireless laptop downloading at 9.5 megs. The directv is downloading at 2 megs on mine. I was told directv caps it by othere on the forum


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## MikeR (Oct 6, 2006)

That 2Mbps would contradict what funhouse has confirmed multiple times. 7Mbps is his measurement.

http://www.dbstalk.com/showpost.php?p=1243131&postcount=10


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## BkwSoft (Oct 18, 2007)

I have no dought that there will be a wide variety of experiences out there on download speeds. I think your ISP will have the most influence in the equation. 

How agressivly is your ISP shaping there trafic? Is your ISP purposfully slowing down your download in favor of keeping other traffic flowing? How is the VOD functioning? Is this a straight HTTP GET? Perhaps its a FTP or a Bittourrent download? Could your ISP be doing some local caching of the files allowing faster downloads without saturating other parts of their network? 

There are many variables to this equation that go far beyond the bandwidth of local connection.


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

Randino said:


> Quick question, possibly a dumb question. If I networked my HR20 by a CAT5 cable from the back of a wireless router, would the speed be the same as the wireless speed? Or would it be as fast as my DSL can do? I am assuming the wireless speed is slower than the DSL speed.


The speed on the internet would be the DSL. The speed within your house's network would be based on the router which is far faster than your DSL if your wireless is G.

No the wireless will not be slower. It operates at 54MB what does your DSL do?


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

Randino said:


> Thanks for the welcome. Right now I have my HR20 connected via wireless router and a buffalo wireless ethernet converter. My wireless is connected at 54Mbps, and I'm pretty sure the DSL is coming in faster than that. If not, that would mean the router is speeding up what DSL is giving me, correct?


I have never heard of a 54MB DSL line...


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

Randino said:


> So I should see a gain in download times if I upped my DSL to 6.0 Mbps.


If by "gain" you mean quicker downloads. YES unless ondemand downloads slower than 1.5MB per sec.


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

Randino said:


> not sure what CO is but, the AT&T building is about a block from my house


CO is the phone company communication office where all the lines from houses are connected to the system. If you are close you get a good speed. If you are far you get slow or nothing. I think it is something like 15,000ft. I was at 13K+ and was getting 300K DSL speed. So comcast broadband cable @4.7MB was a no brainer for me.


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## jdspencer (Nov 8, 2003)

What's your upload speed? This doesn't seem relevant, but I believe it can affect the download speed if the acknowledgment of received packets is slow.


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## gcisko (Sep 27, 2006)

jdspencer said:


> What's your upload speed? This doesn't seem relevant, but I believe it can affect the download speed if the acknowledgment of received packets is slow.


~384k and I do not think it impacts in my case anyway.


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## jdspencer (Nov 8, 2003)

dbmaven said:


> ...
> For more detailed information, the Broadband Reports website is a great resource. Check out the forums there - they probably have a discussion forum for your ISP.


Run the Tweak test on that site.
http://www.dslreports.com/tweaks


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