TiVo works....DSL service runs slow

davenay67 · 01-26-2005, 04:53 PM

I tried searching the FAQ section, along with searching other forum entries, but I could not find any similar problems to mine.

The TiVo service works perfectly, but our DSL internet connection runs super slow when TiVo is plugged into the phone socket on the wall. The moment the TiVo phone cord is unplugged, then the internet runs just fine.

Help..!!

Thanks,
Dave.

TwiceOver · 01-26-2005, 05:10 PM

Did you make sure to put a line filter on the TiVo?

davenay67 · 01-26-2005, 05:23 PM

No, there is no filter on the phone line from the TiVo box. I left this off because there was no interference from the DSL, and the TiVo service worked just fine without it.

I will install one and see if it remedies the problem.

Thanks,
Dave.

dtremain · 01-26-2005, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by davenay67
No, there is no filter on the phone line from the TiVo box. I left this off because there was no interference from the DSL, and the TiVo service worked just fine without it.

I will install one and see if it remedies the problem.

That should do it. Every phone or modem line other than the DSL line needs a digital filter.

TwiceOver · 01-26-2005, 08:10 PM

Yeah, there needs to be a filter for anything connected to the phone line. A customer called for service the other day with a similar problem. He had a Life Alert system installed for his mother and they didn't put a filter on there. Same problem as you are/were having.

davejay · 03-02-2005, 12:28 PM

Just wanted to share my recent experience:

My TiVo has been plugged into the same phone line as my DSL modem for two years now. Suddenly, two days ago, my DSL download speed dropped dramatically, from 2400kbps to 41kbps! All of my phone lines/jacks go through a patch panel, so I was able to rearrange phone lines for troubleshooting.

Well, the end result was this: out of nowhere, the TiVo phone connection is causing the delay on my DSL. It has a filter on the line, the same one it has had for two years, and no phones/lines have been added or changed.

I'm lucky, in that I can simply repatch the TiVo over to the non-DSL phone line (which is what I have done); however, I can't imagine this is a normal condition, seeing as how no interference has been caused up to this point. I suspect something internal with the TiVo has changed, and am considering this a harbinger of future problems with the unit.

trinitycsi · 03-02-2005, 06:33 PM

I'm not trying to say people are wrong, but I actually have a problem with the idea that not filtering a phone line is causing this problem.

The only reason that a filter is placed on a telephone is so that a person on the phone will not get annoyed with the sound of the DSL. The Filter is a low pass filter which only allows frequencies below a certain point to go through. In the case of a DSL filter that would be around 4000 Hz. DSL uses the frequency range from 8000 Hz and above. A typical person can "hear" frequencies up to around 20,000 Hz. The overlap of where DSL starts and human hearing ends is the reason that the filters are in place. There would have to be a bigger issue at hand for the slow down in speed.

If a filter would work to correct this problem, then the modem in the Tivo unit would not work correctly because some of the data (that would be transfering above the filters pass through range) would be filtered out and would give corrupted results.

Maybe it is the filter, but in my 7 years experience with computer networking and DSL implementations, I would be suprised if that solves the problem.

MEHRHIT · 03-11-2006, 07:09 AM

I work from home via my DSL connection and have also been experiencing excruciatingly slow speeds during the day. I get up early and work from 4-6 a.m. and my speed is lightning fast.

When I get back on at 9 a.m., my speed is dramatically slower and gets slower still as the day goes on. I did suspect TIVO as the culprit at the very start, but when I checked my TIVO's to see the most recent update, it didn't seem to be at a time that would affect me.

However, I did just remember to check my oldest (not a Series 1) TIVO in the basement and that unit is getting it's update during the day. I'm relieved to see other users are having this problem, as it gives me hope for solving my slow speed problem.

Does anyone else who is having this problem have their TIVO's networked? I have an old TIVO in the basement, independent of my other TIVO's and I have one TIVO Series 1 on the 1st floor networked with the Series 2 on the 2nd floor.

Short of disconnecting all my TIVO's, does anyone know if there is another way to shut down all TIVO activity during the day so that I can test my speed without it?

Jim in the Valle · 08-31-2006, 12:39 PM

So, I know, it's late 2006 and I FINALLY got DSL this week. But it creeps along slower than dial-up. I have the OLD TiVo (Series I - DirectTV box and TiVo Combo) plugged into a line filter and then the phone line. When I unplug the TiVo, my DSL speeds along swimmingly....when I plug the TiVo back in, my DSL drowns.

Any suggestions for a fix? Or will I have to just get a second phone line for my old TiVo?

usnret · 08-31-2006, 01:20 PM

I have DSL and the tech installed a "whole house" filter on the box outside. I have 3 tivos networked (for the past couple of yrs), and everything works fine. DSL is just as fast as it was before getting the tivo's and networking them.
The network is hardwired.

JimSpence · 08-31-2006, 01:35 PM

Not all DSL filters are created equal. I'd try another one and then look into the whole house filter. This way you don't have to worry about whether you have a filter on whatever appliance needs a phone line.