Apple V90 modem connecting at 33,6 Kbps: Why ?

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Stegozor - 19 Jul 2005 23:55 GMT

Hi again,

Another question, this time concerning the internal modem of a PowerMac
G4 400 Mhz : It never connects at a higher "speed" than 33600 bps. I
tried two different providers, but the result is always the same. On the
same line, using the same phone-to-Mac cable, a PowerBook G4 1,33 Ghz
V92 modem (both OS X 10.3.9 768 Mb RAM) connects regularly at 50667
bps, so I think that the suspect is the modem. I also tried optimized
scripts that I found at http://www.taniwha.org.uk, but nothing changed.

What should I do to finally get a true V90 connection? Should I update
the firmware of the modem? Is there something else to do? Here's what
the system profiler tells:

Modem Information:

Firmware Version:    APPLE VERSION 0004, 5/21/1999
Driver:    com.apple.driver.AppleSCCSerial (v1.2.6)
Modem Model:    Spring
Modulation:    V.90
Country:    5 (France)

Thanks in advance.

PS: Crosspost to news:comp.sys.mac.hardware , follow-up to
news:comp.sys.mac.comm .

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Help science with your Mac's idle time: http://boinc.berkeley.edu.

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Fred McKenzie - 20 Jul 2005 17:29 GMT

> .....On the
> same line, using the same phone-to-Mac cable, a PowerBook G4 1,33 Ghz
> V92 modem (both OS X 10.3.9 768 Mb RAM) connects regularly at 50667
> bps, so I think that the suspect is the modem.

Stegozor-

Your modem is lying to you. The trouble is that you don't know which
modem or if both! Some modems want to impress you with how fast they can
go, and connect at the highest possible speed. What you can't see, is
that the speed drops back to something slower almost immediately, but you
are left with the impression that you have a great modem.

I have an old Supra modem that continuously displays the current transmit
and receive speeds. It seems that as conditions change, the speed
changes. Conditions include noise and bandwidth limitations on your phone
line as well as the line between the phone company and your ISP. Since
two different ISPs are involved, it is most likely your local phone line
that doesn't support higher speeds on both modems. My line seems to be
limited to about 31 KB, although the new PB appears to connect a little
higher than that.

Since your two modems act differently, it is possible that one is in need
of a firmware upgrade. It also might be that one is a V.90 and the other
is a V.92 modem. I experienced a similar situation between an older iBook
and a newer PowerBook. Both show up as V.92 modems in the Apple System
Profiler but the new PowerBook always connects at a little faster speed,
even at another location with a better phone line.

Fred

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Stegozor - 21 Jul 2005 03:02 GMT

> Your modem is lying to you. The trouble is that you don't know which
> modem or if both! Some modems want to impress you with how fast they can
> go, and connect at the highest possible speed. What you can't see, is
> that the speed drops back to something slower almost immediately, but you
> are left with the impression that you have a great modem.

That's possible, but when I download 100 Mb of data, the PowerBook does
it faster. I gained nearly two hours using the PB, so I think the PM's
modem has a problem.

> Since your two modems act differently, it is possible that one is in need
> of a firmware upgrade.

Seems that that's the only remaining solution. I just gotta find the
file. Thanks for your answer.

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Mac Forum / General / Networking / July 2005

Apple V90 modem connecting at 33,6 Kbps: Why ?