What is limiting my internet speed?

[FritzDaCat]

Okay, network experts, I need your help. I recently upgraded from 85Mbps internet to 150Mbps (Comcast). My cable modem is the Motorola Arris Model SB6141 (DOCSIS 3.0; 8 download channels; up to 343Mbps download speeds). My router is an Apple Airport Express. I have my iMac connected via ethernet-- directly through the Airport Express. I'm only getting about 92-94Mbps speeds. Is the Airport Express choking the speed? Do I need the Airport Extreme?

 

[pigoo3]

Two things:

1. Check with your ISP to make sure your getting what your paying for (proper signal strength).
2. Cable modem setups can be effected by other users on the system (bandwidth in your neighborhood is not exclusive to you) . If a lot of your neighbors are doing heavy duty web surfing (such as streaming video)…this will effect speed. It's probably best to check your speeds at off peak times (like 3am) for max speed.

If you look at the fine print for Comcast (Xfinity)…it says this:

"Actual speeds vary and are not guaranteed."

- Nick

 

[lclev]

Could be. How old is your Airport Express? Does it have a 10/100 or 10/100/1000 Mbps ethernet ports?

Also with fiber optic service the speed you will actually get depends on how many are also on the line you are using. So they can sell you 150Mbps but if there are others on the line using the service the speed will drop. I would be interested to see if the speed changes during the day or night time when less are on.

Lisa

 

[pigoo3]

Also wanted to mentioned that I pay for 50Mbps cable modem internet. And when I check my speeds…sometimes I get 55-57Mbps…and sometimes around 35Mbps.

Just checked…and I got 49Mbps download. So it's good at the moment. But it does vary.

- Nick

 

[FritzDaCat]

Lisa- The Airport Express is only about a year old. Doesn't say anywhere if it's 10/100/1000 but I assume that it is. Any way to be sure?
Nick- I'll try different times but I've checked it 5 times in the last week and it's always about the same: 92-94 Mbps. My previous Comcast experience is that I got everything they promised, and sometimes more (speed-wise anyway, lol). How do I check with my ISP for proper signal strength?

 

[bobtomay]

And verify all your cables are at least CAT5e - not one you pulled out of the old storage drawer from the 90s - I've done it and spent days troubleshooting the issue.

 

[pigoo3]

I'll try different times but I've checked it 5 times in the last week and it's always about the same: 92-94 Mbps. My previous Comcast experience is that I got everything they promised, and sometimes more (speed-wise anyway, lol). How do I check with my ISP for proper signal strength?

Sounds like you've done adequate testing. Like you mentioned. Check with your ISP to see if you're getting good signal strength. They can check this on their end.

By the way. Some cable modems cable companies supply have builtin WiFi routers. If this is what you have…you could test your speeds directly just using the cable companies equipment (and take the Apple hardware out of the equation). This can narrow things down from a hardware perspective.

- Nick

 

[FritzDaCat]

And verify all your cables are at least CAT5e - not one you pulled out of the old storage drawer from the 90s - I've done it and spent days troubleshooting the issue.

Hmmmm.... good point, hadn't even thought of that

 

[FritzDaCat]

Sounds like you've done adequate testing. Like you mentioned. Check with your ISP to see if you're getting good signal strength. They can check this on their end.

By the way. Some cable modems cable companies supply have builtin WiFi routers. If this is what you have…you could test your speeds directly just using the cable companies equipment (and take the Apple hardware out of the equation). This can narrow things down from a hardware perspective.

- Nick

Okay, I'll call them. The modem is mine, not the cable company's. Thank you!

 

[ManoaHi]

Lisa and Nick have valid points. Keep in mind that any non-dedicated lines are always "best effort". As Lisa said, the age of your Airport Express is also important. The older ones max out at 100Mbps in which case 92-94MBps is actually pretty good. However, there are so many factors that affect your speed.

Have you tried direct wired to the modem (modem to computer, sans router)? If off of peak times, you'll get a baseline of your maximum speed. Just don't leave it like that for too long. Next, if you have a 10/100 Mbps Ethernet port, you need a new router, you're simply not going to get over 100Mbps which is what you are getting now. If you have the 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet port then there are other factors, see Nick's reply for some.

I have TWC 300Mbps download / 20 Mbps upload. My modem is the Netgear CM500 and I have Airport Extreme. I get the 300/20 (actually just a bit higher at the modem, not much change at the router, and drop to 300/20 over WiFi (802.11 ac). I don't have the Moto modem, but how is it bonding? I have 16 down, and 4 up bonded channels. I had a modem that was 8 down and 4 up and my speed was just above 100Mbps. To get the full 300 that I'm paying for, I needed 16 down bonded channels. Swapped out the modem to the one I have now, I got full spec. So, contact Comcast and see if they set you up correctly.

 

[FritzDaCat]

Let me ask this: is the Airport Express capable of passing greater than 100Mbps signals through it (via ethernet connection)? Can I eliminate the AE as the problem?
Also, can it transmit greater than 100Mbps via wireless?

 

[lclev]

With your Airport Express about a year old it should have 1000GB speed Ethernet speed. As for wireless - the AE has Wireless-N speed which is capable of 600 Mbps (2.4GHz and 5 GHz) - 150Mbps typical for network adapters, 300Mbps, 450Mbps, and 600Mbps speeds when bonding channels with some routers. And this is all contingent on local interference issues - like wireless phones, building walls, and any other wireless devices that are competing in the same 2.4 MHz range - 5 MHz is less crowded.

I suggest you try the wireless just to see what happens.

Lisa

 

[FritzDaCat]

Have you tried direct wired to the modem (modem to computer, sans router)? If off of peak times, you'll get a baseline of your maximum speed. Just don't leave it like that for too long. Next, if you have a 10/100 Mbps Ethernet port, you need a new router, you're simply not going to get over 100Mbps which is what you are getting now. If you have the 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet port then there are other factors, see Nick's reply for some.

I was wondering if this was possible. This is what I'm going to try tomorrow to see if I can narrow the problem down to the router. Also going to try and find a way to determine if the modem is 10/100/1000. Maybe I can find out by serial number cuz the box and modem itself don't seem to say

 

[FritzDaCat]

From a Macworld article: "The Time Capsule and Extreme each have a built-in three-port gigabit ethernet (10/100/1000 Mbps) switch, while the Express continues to use 10/100 Mbps ethernet on both its WAN and LAN ports."
Also... "Only two particular situations require an Extreme or Time Capsule because of the ethernet limitation: if you have a broadband connection of faster than 100 Mbps, which is uncommon, but becoming more widely available; or you are determined to have the maximum possible throughput between ethernet and Wi-Fi devices on the same network."
This article is from 2012 but I believe it still pertains to the Airport Express.

Apple specs page for Airport Express confirms this:
10/100BASE-T Ethernet WAN port for connecting a DSL modem, cable modem, or Ethernet network
10/100BASE-T Ethernet LAN port for connecting a computer, Ethernet hub, or networked printer

I'm pretty sure the Airport Express is the bottleneck but I'm going to continue to investigate.

 

[lclev]

Oh wow! I just checked the MacTracker app and the Airport Express (newest - 2nd Gen - 2012) does NOT have a 1000GB ethernet speed. It does have Wireless-N which is up to 300Mbps.

Lisa

 

[Gary Brackins]

I know this is a silly question, have you rebooted your modem and router? I recently upgraded my internet through Comcast and was not getting the speed I was told I should have and finally realized I had not rebooted my equipment. once I did that it came right up to speed (even faster than the plan I was upgraded to).

 

[FritzDaCat]

I know this is a silly question, have you rebooted your modem and router? I recently upgraded my internet through Comcast and was not getting the speed I was told I should have and finally realized I had not rebooted my equipment. once I did that it came right up to speed (even faster than the plan I was upgraded to).

Not a silly question. But yes, I installed a new modem soon after I got the new speed upgrade and then rebooted router.

 

[lclev]

Yes, you needed to reboot. I know they should have told you that but well... you figured it out. Most modems need to be rebooted every once an awhile anyway. It helps clear out all the old stuff and forces them to phone home to the mothership for a renewed connection. Glad that got your speed issues fixed. ;D

Lisa

 

[FritzDaCat]

Yes, you needed to reboot. I know they should have told you that but well... you figured it out. Most modems need to be rebooted every once an awhile anyway. It helps clear out all the old stuff and forces them to phone home to the mothership for a renewed connection. Glad that got your speed issues fixed. ;D

Lisa

Well, not fixed yet, Lisa, but I'm 95% certain the Airport Express is the bottle neck. I'll get the Extreme in the next couple of weeks and report back.

 

[lclev]

Yeah, it could be the extreme. Let us know.

Lisa