Anyway, this is the first of a multi-part post to cover my venture into domestic ADSL bonding. exciting stuff potentially.
What we currently have
Where I live we're unlikely to get fibre broadband, and 4G may (or may not) reach us - even if it does I can imagine it'll be an expensive option for a primary home broadband package. My exchange does provide access to ADSL though with a maximum rate of 8Mbps. I'm not too far from the exchange either and as a result get a decent sync rate of ca. 7400 kbps at a SNR of 6.4db. This translates to a decent download performance in excess of 6000kbps. Upload is low as expected for ADSL1, with a rate usually around 344kbps.
My ISP is Zen, and over the years I've found them to be nothing short of excellent in delivering fast Broadband with no bandwidth shaping and realistic data caps (I'm allowed 500GB per month on my package, which is more than enough for a household). Their Tech Support are also great, and can help troubleshoot and optimise ADSL connections easily over the phone.
The modem I use is a tried and tested Netgear DG834G running DGTeam custom firmware (it's a router, but it's set to modem only mode). This feeds into my network via an Asus RT-N66U router.
Why the need for more bandwidth ?
You would think that with a download rate of over 6Meg it would be enough, however with video streaming becoming the norm these days we're finding that the internet connection gets pretty choked when all the kids are online consuming the bandwidth. The answer would be fibre if it was available, but as it's not I looked at alternatives:
- Satellite - initially looks attractive with high bandwidth options available, however the devil is in the detail with the current packages and data caps are very low unless you're willing to pay hundreds of pounds per month. There also seem to be issues with using internet streaming packages such as iPlayer and LoveFilm (though some ISP's do give you a UK based IP so the problem should be less of an issue). Latency is also an issue with sat, so no use if you enjoy a bit of fast online gaming. No comparison with an ADSL connection though.
- Load balanced ADSL - this uses 2 x data lines (e.g. 2 x ADSL or 1 x ADSL + 1 x satellite etc). Both data lines plug into a suitable router, such as the Draytek Vigour 2925, and the router does the work of balancing and prioritising data traffic down each of the broadband pipes. This method has the benefit of removing part of the internet congestion that we're currently seeing, but it doesn't give you a faster connection. There's also the price of the Vigour router to consider too, at around £220 incl VAT last time I looked, plus of course the cost of running 2 phone lines.
- Bonded ADSL - 2 or more ADSL connections are bonded into 1 which effectively delivers the sum of all the lines together (so a 6 Meg and a 4 Meg connection bonded gives you 10 Meg). this technology up until now has been the preserve of larger businesses due to cost, however there are now alternatives such as Sharedband. You still have the cost of running more than one phone line, however the equipment, initial set-up and monthly running costs over the firstyear aren't much different from a load balanced solution. More of this below, as this is the method I'm going to give a try.
Sharedband
Sharedband have been in existence for a few years now, however I only came across them recently when searching the web for user experiences with load balanced ADSL connections. Sharedband differs from other bonded solutions that I've seen in that the equipment required at the home or business is fairly simple and tried & tested, with Sharedband's data centre being used to 'split and recombine' your data traffic in conjunction with the modems that they supply you with. Despite this splitting and recombining, there appears to be very little overhead lost in the data stream, and the actual download and upload speeds seen look to be almost the sum of the 2 internet connections.
You can also use whatever ISP's you want to, so the service does provide failover - although if 1 out of 2 data lines go down you will no longer have a bonded connection; however at least will have a connection.
Rather than me spout on about what the company can offer etc, it would be better to go and take a look at their website. I'll link a video in here shortly.
What stage am I at now ?
Currently I have 1 ADSL connection active (with Zen). I'm waiting on BT OpenReach to install my second line, and after a missed visit on 10th February, I've been assured my 2nd line will be installed and active by 7th March. For this 2nd connection I'm going to try BT as my ISP - mainly because the line install cost is free if you opt for a broadband package with them. I'll see what the download speeds settle out at before I decide whether to stay with them or not. I've also been supplied with one of their Homehub 4 wireless routers - again I'll see how this performs, but I've already got a Netgear DG834GT updated and ready to go if I need to in order to test the max performance of the line.
So that's it for now. I'll post a video link shortly (now done), and will also make another post to highlight the info and clarifications I've received on Sharedband so far. I'll also give some further info on the prices and deals that I could find for this in the UK.
Sharedband have been in existence for a few years now, however I only came across them recently when searching the web for user experiences with load balanced ADSL connections. Sharedband differs from other bonded solutions that I've seen in that the equipment required at the home or business is fairly simple and tried & tested, with Sharedband's data centre being used to 'split and recombine' your data traffic in conjunction with the modems that they supply you with. Despite this splitting and recombining, there appears to be very little overhead lost in the data stream, and the actual download and upload speeds seen look to be almost the sum of the 2 internet connections.
You can also use whatever ISP's you want to, so the service does provide failover - although if 1 out of 2 data lines go down you will no longer have a bonded connection; however at least will have a connection.
Rather than me spout on about what the company can offer etc, it would be better to go and take a look at their website. I'll link a video in here shortly.
What stage am I at now ?
Currently I have 1 ADSL connection active (with Zen). I'm waiting on BT OpenReach to install my second line, and after a missed visit on 10th February, I've been assured my 2nd line will be installed and active by 7th March. For this 2nd connection I'm going to try BT as my ISP - mainly because the line install cost is free if you opt for a broadband package with them. I'll see what the download speeds settle out at before I decide whether to stay with them or not. I've also been supplied with one of their Homehub 4 wireless routers - again I'll see how this performs, but I've already got a Netgear DG834GT updated and ready to go if I need to in order to test the max performance of the line.
So that's it for now. I'll post a video link shortly (now done), and will also make another post to highlight the info and clarifications I've received on Sharedband so far. I'll also give some further info on the prices and deals that I could find for this in the UK.
