^ the maintenance window for us is between 12AM and 6AM. this basically means that whenever work needs to be done on the network, they do it then as it effects the least amount of customers. It sounds like that's what you are going through. i can only speak for Greensboro on this, but we haven't had to do a whole lot of maintenance the past couple months, and our network has been up 99.96% of the time.

You are in Greensboro, right? You could always bring it here to the store and let me take a look at it if you think it might be equipment issues.

6/1/2010 11:19:15 AM

Alright, bump:

I just (finally) set up my clear box in my house and speed tested it.

I got 66ms ping and 6.3Mb/s down at 1pm.

Thankyou djeternal

6/30/2010 1:00:36 PM

^ no problem, happy to help!

if you have any friends interested, send them my way and I will give you a $25 bill credit for every one I sign up.

6/30/2010 1:38:08 PM

I am bumping this thread because I'm having some trouble with my modem placement (and ping through my wireless router).

I haven't unplugged the wireless router yet to see if it's the main issue, but I am getting a ping of like 210ms now that I've got it plugged into the modem (versus my computer directly). Is that type of performance hit typical in this situation? The download speeds are still ok. close to 6 Mb/s.

Also, I am having a super hard time finding places in my house where my signal is any good. There is a 2x2' square on my kitchen counter where I can get 3 out of 4 lights, but nowhere else seems to work (especially near the rest of my electronics, where I need to plug in my xbox and stuff).

DJ, is there a secret to the way I set up the modem in order to get a better signal, and how do I increase performance through the wireless router?

Gracias

7/6/2010 1:10:13 PM

I got the ping down to 92 ms by stopping my router from bridging. Any other hints on how to stop the modem from NATting would be helpful.

7/7/2010 12:10:01 AM

Quote :

"You are in Greensboro, right? You could always bring it here to the store and let me take a look at it if you think it might be equipment issues."

Yep. Sadly, the unit isn't mine so I can't just up and take it in on his behalf since most of the time there is someone utilizing it. Thanks for the heads up about the downtime though. It's been fairly decent for a few weeks now.

7/7/2010 1:00:38 AM

^^ that one went over my head. but my coworker is a real techie guy so I will ask him. I know he has logged into the modem and made changes to it (disabling the firewall, etc) that enhanced it's performance. What exactly is NATting?

7/7/2010 4:02:59 PM

So, typicaly, a wireless router takes one IP address, filters all the traffic from the devices attached to it through that IP, and then receives the returning information and passes it back to the device that it belongs to. To keep track of which devices need what, it uses a Network Address Table. These addresses are usually in the 192.168.0.* block (I think my apple airport puts them in the 10.0.0.* block, but I digress).

The Clear modem in my house is giving a private address to my wireless router (meaning the modem is using it's own NAT table, which is strange as hell to me because it only has one ethernet port on the back and no wireless capabilities). the modem using NAT and my router using NAT at the same time are bad for performance. I changed the router to bridged mode (based on it's suggestion) but I got HORRIBLE performance from it when I did that. Now I am dealing with the double NAT problem, but I believe the performance would further increase if I could make the Clear modem give a public IP address to my router, instead of a private one.

Is there a Clear tech support number with people that can handle problems like this?

[Edited on July 7, 2010 at 4:14 PM. Reason : Ha, by no wireless capabilities I mean to user devices... Not its connection to Clear]

7/7/2010 4:13:01 PM

You could try the tech support number, but it's a crap shoot to be quite honest with you. Some of them are awesome, but some of them have no clue outside of basic stuff. But if you want to give it a try, it's 888-888-3113, option 3.

Either way, I will run it by my coworker tomorrow when I see him. If there is a way, I am sure he knows it.

7/7/2010 4:20:10 PM

At first I thought Clear was handing you a private address on the WAN interface, but it looks to be more of an issue with the modem's firmware. Apparently there is no way to bridge that modem. Your best bet on getting anywhere with tech support and solving 'performance' or 'latency' issues is to pull the VoIP card (if it's allowed in TOS). Most ISPs will more or less end the call and close the ticket if you even attempt to mention CoD headshots.

I think you basically have to put your actual router or airport (ie. 10.10.10.1) into the DMZ of clear's modem (192.168.1.x) so everything is passed through. Something tells me it's not going to work for what you need it to though.

http://www.broadbandreports.com/forum/r23490438-Equipment-Disable-NAT-in-Clearwire-modem
http://forums.clear.com/clearcom/topics/push_motorola_to_have_their_firmware_include_bridged_mode?from_gsfn=true

Quote :

" Chris M, Official Rep, replied 14 days ago Thank you everyone for your posts. We are aware of the modems not being able to be bridged. We are looking into it but this process can't be pushed any faster. I apologize for the inconvenience this may be causing everyone. Thanks again for your posts. I’m confident "

http://austexvoip.com/clear-wimax/clear-wimax-modem-semi-bridge-setup


Back in the day we rolled out broadband to something like 200 users over this Motorola canopy network. The customer's actual WAN address was 172. and eventually led back to our bonded T1s with like only like 5-10 publics. Pretty much the only complaints we ever got in that market were from employees using the service at home. Anyone else was such a small percentage they were kind of given a 'tough shit, go back 2 dialup' spill. Even when the backbone was upgraded to 10meg the internal network stayed the same. I have no idea how it they do it now, as I'm sure the network has grown exponentially.

[Edited on July 7, 2010 at 4:55 PM. Reason : links]

7/7/2010 4:47:59 PM

It is giving me a private address on the WAN interface (or that's what my router is saying). I'll try the DMZ trick and see what happens

7/7/2010 6:53:53 PM

I meant the WAN interface on your Clear router/modem. Imagine going to whatismyip or checkip.dyndns and getting a public that was shared by hundreds of other shmucks.

7/7/2010 7:01:50 PM

Making my router the DMZ didn't work

7/7/2010 8:43:52 PM

Too many variables to try and diagnose. If your issues are just related to latency and not weird services and ports needing to be ran/open behind the airport then bridging the modem probably isn't going to help much. You pretty much have to eliminate shit. Once you can get your 90ms consistently plugged straight into clear's modem then add the airport -- or try clear's 802.11. I don't know what the average latency for 3/4 bars of 4g is, but it can't be much less than 100ms?

ping -t airport.ip
ping -t clear.ip
ping -t google.com
ping -t 4.2.2.2

7/7/2010 9:06:03 PM

I can get 60 plugged in to the modem directly. I get anywhere between 90 and 150 with the router. I expect a little increase when I go to the router, but not that much

7/7/2010 9:26:49 PM

We got in the embedded 4G and 4G/3G personal hot spots yesterday. I have been playing with one off and on today and it's pretty fucking sweet. Plus they are the same monthly price as the standard USB modem, which is even sweeter. Almost makes me want to become a customer even though I don't live in 4G or 3G coverage, lol.



[Edited on July 8, 2010 at 2:00 PM. Reason : a]

7/8/2010 1:52:48 PM

God Damnit, DJ... How much is that gonna cost me?

7/8/2010 2:24:19 PM

I can probably swap your USB modem to it for free. let me check on it tomorrow

7/8/2010 6:23:06 PM

for the record

NAT = network address translation, not whatever fucked up words you came up with earlier

7/8/2010 6:57:38 PM

you right... I called it a network address table. In my defense, it uses a table, but

I fucked that up

[Edited on July 8, 2010 at 9:11 PM. Reason : PS - That would be fantastic, DJ. Let me know]

7/8/2010 9:10:19 PM

bump clearwire hotspot?

7/10/2010 10:42:27 AM

Since you purchased your equipment you would have to pay the difference, which is $20. I think there is also a $40 upgrade fee, but I am pretty sure I can get that waived since you aren't on a contract.

7/10/2010 11:09:57 AM

Sweet. Can we do it over the phone and get the hotspot delivered?

7/10/2010 4:22:52 PM

PM Sent

7/14/2010 9:57:43 AM

how do the hotspots work? like wireless routers that connect to clearwire rather than a hardwired WAN port?

7/14/2010 10:45:20 AM

i love my clear so far, wish i knew about the hotspot joints though

7/14/2010 10:47:28 AM

^^ yes.

they are completely mobile WiFi hotspots. Battery powered, can connect 5 computers at a time, small enough to fit in your pocket.

[Edited on July 14, 2010 at 10:53 AM. Reason : a]

7/14/2010 10:52:38 AM

^ can you plug them in, too, in case you want to use it as a permanent device?

a stupid question - does this utilize any 3g/4g network worldwide, or only in the US?

7/14/2010 12:51:41 PM

^ yes, you can plug them into a USB, which also charges them

It utilizes the Clear 4G network and the Sprint 3G network.

7/15/2010 1:19:32 PM

He means are there ethernet ports on the hotspot for wired connections.

And the add up there says 8, so which is it?

7/15/2010 2:17:39 PM

no ethernet connection, just a USB connection.

If you have 1 computer hardwired via USB to the 4G hotspot, you can still connect 8 devices wirelessly. In other words, you can actually connect up to 9 devices at a time to the 4G hotspot.

The 4G+ hotspot allows for up to 5 wireless connections. As with the 4G hotspot, you can connect 1 device to it using the USB, to allow for a total of 6 connections.

7/15/2010 2:32:23 PM

DJ, this clear thing is beginning to frustrate me

7/15/2010 3:49:54 PM

I haven't done anything to my modem and I have been at one bar of signal all day

7/15/2010 5:44:35 PM

Is there some number I can call to find out if this damn service is broken, because this is quite possibly the most infuriating thing EVER

7/15/2010 6:18:24 PM

How many lights did you have when you were getting the 6Mbps DL speeds? It is possible that your tower is down or going down. Are you having the same issue with the USB? I will be at the office at 11 tomorrow morning if you want to call me. If you lost my card, PM me and I will give you my number.

7/15/2010 11:24:47 PM

I had 4 lights. I reset the modem and got 4 again today, I went through 4 levels of tech support. The fourth level of tech support

WANTED TO DO THE SAME GOD DAMN THING AS THE FIRST LEVEL OF TECH SUPPORT

and now I have to wait 5-7 business days for tech support level 5 to do 45 minutes worth of wire sharking

7/15/2010 11:34:36 PM

i have high hopes for clearwire-type service, but i think it's not quite to the level of stability that i'd like

i think i might give it another couple of years

7/16/2010 10:32:08 AM

I wish I could make this next set of text bigger:

Quote :

"CLEAR FUCKING SUCKS"

Don't let DJ tell you otherwise. Don't ever order it. I have had nothing but problems since day 2. Can't get more than 4.5 Mbs down, 150+ ms ping. I have consistently lost service for more than an hour every evening and there is nothing that can be done to make it come back. I have been on the phone with clear EVERY DAY for the last week and a half with issues. Clear service SUCKS BALLS at tech support. They sent a guy to my place today and his effort to fix my problem was TO MOVE MY ROUTER SOMEWHERE ELSE, REGARDLESS OF THE FACT THAT I CAN'T PLUG IT IN TO MY OTHER ELECTRONICS IN THE PLACE IT WORKS BEST, which still only provides 4.5 Mbs down and 150+ms ping.

I AM CURRENTLY SITTING IN THE ONLY CORNER OF MY HOUSE WHERE I CAN GET CONNECTION RIGHT NOW WITH MY LAPPY DIRECTLY PLUGGED INTO THE MODEM ATTEMPTING TO MOVE UP MY ROAD RUNNER INSTALLATION SO THAT I CAN CALL AND HAVE THIS HORRIBLE SERVICE CANCELED ASAP. I WILL SMASH THIS MODEM WITH A HAMMER AS SOON AS I DON'T HAVE TO USE IT ANY MORE. THE ONLY GOOD THING TO COME OF THIS CLEAR SERVICE HAS BEEN THAT I DIDN'T SIGN A CONTRACT AND SO CAN QUIT WITHOUT ANY HEADACHE.

DJ YOU'RE A NICE GUY BUT I IRRATIONALLY HATE YOU A LITTLE NOW.

[Edited on July 27, 2010 at 11:30 PM. Reason : more than a little]

7/27/2010 11:29:47 PM

If the service isn't what you expected, you have a 14 day trial period in which you can cancel and receive a full refund.

7/28/2010 12:55:19 PM

I have a question on the iSpot thing. It says the service is $25/mo. on a month to month, no-contract plan. Does that mean I can choose on a month to month basis whether or not I want to carry service? so if I decide that I want to use this month, I can just pay the $25 and if I decide I don't want it the next I just don't pay.

Want to be clear (pun) on how the plan works before spending any money.

8/4/2010 10:29:06 AM

What kinds of coverage and speeds are you guys getting? I'm so tempted by the $25/month deal but I can get around 6mbit down and 1.4mbit up tethering with my iPhone on AT&T so it's probably not worth it to pay extra for something else.

8/4/2010 11:09:23 AM

^^ The iSpot must be purchased for $99.99, so there is no lease option. And yes, the service is $25 per month, with no contract whatsoever. The only catch is that it can only be used with an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. That, and it will only work where 4G is available.

^ if you are truly getting those speeds, then stick with what you have.

[Edited on August 4, 2010 at 3:37 PM. Reason : a]

8/4/2010 3:30:00 PM

^Yeah in Charlotte. AT&T rolled out HSDPA 7.2mbit a while ago. Get pretty good speeds with it. I just saw this guy get 12+ mbit with a wireless clearwire card in his laptop.

8/4/2010 3:39:16 PM

Yeah, it has the potential to burst to that speed, but won't run there consistently. Especially as you get farther away from a tower. I would say a good conservative expectation for a Clear USB Modem CONSISTENTLY would be 4.0-6.0, with higher speeds possible depending on the network.

As an example, I have run a speed test on our demo USB in the morning and gotten 13Mbps, then run a test on the same unit in the afternoon and gotten 4Mbps.

[Edited on August 4, 2010 at 3:44 PM. Reason : a]

8/4/2010 3:43:35 PM

So what's the deal with these blobs they have on their coverage maps. Shouldn't the coverage areas be roughly roundish? Like I can't fathom how their coverage area could ever produce a shape that looks like this:



What's the deal with that?

8/26/2010 10:14:44 PM

Raleigh and Charlotte is much more rounded than Greensboro. That's the big joke around here. It looks like they took a paintbrush and just splattered a map when they designed the network. The colors basically mean that someone has drive-tested it and got a signal, but that still doesn't mean it will work. Especially this time of year when all the leaves are on the trees. Hence the 14 day return policy. If you get it home and it doesn't work, you get a refund.

8/27/2010 12:25:18 PM

Well, the odds of me getting Clear just went from low to non-existent.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/29/clearwire-throttling-at-home-wimax-users/

Throttling people that use more than 10GB in a month? I do that on a slow day. Superlame.

9/29/2010 11:30:07 AM

Damn is TWC really that bad in Raleigh? I'm covering a buddy's mortage+utilities for a couple of months until I find a suitable place to live and I'm trying to decide between an extra 15/month for 15/1.5 or 75/month + cost of docsis 3 surfboard for 50/3.

Suuuudenlink weeeeeeeee're connected.

9/29/2010 11:59:56 AM

Had a Clear Spot, was decent not amazing but comparable to Lite DSL.

Worked fine on my iPad / iPhone 4 but speeds would vary greatly while sitting outside in Downtown Raleigh.

10/7/2010 12:29:17 PM

^ I've heard Raleigh and Charlotte have been having a lot of backhaul issues, Raleigh especially. Fortunately for me, Greensboro has the most stable network in NC. We consistently get 6 down and 1 up here at the office, with frequent tests of 8-10 down throughout the day.

10/7/2010 12:47:57 PM