download speed do not understand

ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 5632 kbps 448 kbps
Line Attenuation 44 db 13.5 db
Noise Margin 6 db 17 db


thinkbroadband speed test

down 3.8 up0.4

can some one tell me why there is a difference in the down load speed . These were done at the same time . Other speed tests give approximately the same figures

 

You'll never get the same answer twice. Depending on servers you are using to check the speed against & the route the packets take each time & network traffic in general.

 

thanks for putting a reply but I think you mis understood my question . the top set of numbers are my router stats giving me 5.6 mps download this is constant with very little variation but my speed tests are showing 3.8 mps download. How am I losing nearly 2 mps? More to the point where am I losing it?

 

Not sure of the kind of test you took, but the difference could be what speed your service is rated at (sync rate) vs. what it is actually achieving (true maximum link capacity). This loss is called "protocol overhead," I think . . .

My DSL is rated at 6.0mps download, but I usually only get around 5.2 . . . the upload also falls a bit below what I'm rated, but the difference is not as great as that of the download speed.

Also with DSL, the distance you are from your telephone exchange effects your speed ratings. The farther away, the less speed you can expect. Also, interference on your line and at the modems location can degrade performance. I made sure I had a dedicated line straight from the phone box right to my modem just for the DSL line that avoided crossing electrical lines or sources, and situated the modem so there would be little or no chance of interference from other devices.

Also, computer settings can have an effect on speed, as can traffic policies used by your ISP.

 

Correction - that should be 6.0 Mbps, not Mps . . . :-o

 

Do you know that one is not an average or do you know that both samples are for they same amout of time & the same end point?

I can run a test at speedtest.net and get lower than my cable providers 'local' speedtest site because they are going 2 different places. So I am losing some speed on the Internet.

The measurements are calculated by sending a know amout of data a know distance. So if you send one test 2 hops & the other goes 5 hops, then distance changes and the speed result will vary.

So the top numbers are you router, maybe hittng you ISP constant - same distance - same result. The bottom speedtest goes to another sever hence the longer time and lower speed - the loss speed.

This is also why the service providers never definativley say you'll get 6Mbps or 30Mbps, because there are too many factors to count.
* Unless your paying for T1, then you'll get what they tell you.

 

"So the top numbers are you router, maybe hittng you ISP constant - same distance - same result. The bottom speedtest goes to another sever hence the longer time and lower speed - the loss speed."

The bottom speed test even if it goes to another server further away might take longer but the speed should be the same.

 

Your forgetting the traffic factor which changes the speed = time / distance. Your not the only person on the Internet sending packets on you own "tube" it is all shared.
Traffic slows down time, which in the formula change the outcome of speed.
Speed is not a constant, like I said the ISP will not tell you your speed is X, they say your get up to X in speed.

If we sent a packet 100 miles in 10 seconds the speed would be 10miles/second
If we sent the same packet 10 miles in 5 seconds the speed is 2 miles/second.

So is our speed 10 or 2... depends on the time it takes to travel the distance.

 

You can test your speed 10 times a day and get 10 different results.

At the moment the kids are off school here and my internet speed is less than half what i normally get.

 

thank you everyone for your replies most informative