Dead HN7000S - 2+ Week Wait for new

[Cold Irons]

Long story short, 2 years of Hughsnet, HN7000S wouldn't come back on after a power outage. Have a replacement "on the way" - 5 to 7 days. Got email from Hughesnet - modem backordered - appears will be at least 2 weeks before I can get it.

Question - is this normal? Cannot believe they don't have enough modems to get me one sooner. Do I have any other options (other than trying someone else).

Another question - Wireless ISPs. Now have one in our county - any experience? Faster/slower/about the same as satellite? Better or worse service? Any opinions out there....?

 

[grohgreg]

You are not the first person who's mentioned this back-order. Replacements are typically reconditioned modems. The fact that yours is on back-order may have mixed blessings. Since it suggests that they don't have enough reconditioned modems in stock, you may be getting a new one instead. The downside is that they may simply be waiting for another batch of reconditioned modems to arrive at the depot.

Are you sure it's actually the modem? and not just the power adapter? That's the rectangular box in the center of the modem's power cord. Have you also disconnected both coaxial cables to see if that will let the modem power up?

WRT wireless; just like anything else, you get what you pay for. Wireless is almost guaranteed to deliver lower latency than satellite. But speed and service? Too many local variables to be able to answer that question from a distance.

//greg//

 

[Cold Irons]

Thanks for the reply. All I really know is I get no power on the modem - could easily be the power brick vs. the modem. Didn't think to ask if they could ship it by itself.

And, yeah, had done all the trouble shooting (unplug/plug, take off all cables, move to different outlet, etc.) prior to calling Hughes....of course, then had to repeat all these steps with the Hughes rep.

The wireless provider here (Virginia Broadband) claims max of 1.5 Mbps (vs. my Hughes plan of 1.2 Mbps) 0- realize this is all smoke & mirrors until I actually get a hook up. FAP is about equivalent. I'm out of my 2 year Hughes contract (so assumed they'd try a little harder to keep me), so I'm about ready to just give it a try. Appears that VA Broadband only wants a one-year contract, so that's a plus.

 

[grohgreg]

If you have access to a multimeter, I recommend you check the output voltages on the multi-pin connector (the one that actually plugs into the back of the modem). There should be a pin diagram printed right on the power brick, along with what voltages to expect in what hole. If all four are good - and removing the cables didn't restore power - then odds favor a bad modem. But if correct pin voltages aren't present, the modem is getting bad (or no) input. This is important, because replacement modems don't come with power adapters. Some folks have eagerly plugged in replacement modems, only to find out they don't energize either - the problem having been in the power adapter all along.

//greg//

 

[Cold Irons]

Cool - I can check this out this evening. I my case, they are explicitly sending both the modem and the power cable/brick. I quizzed them about this possibility - once I found out it was 7 days, insisted on both - course, now at 2+ weeks, it may be a moot point.

But if I can verify the source is the power supply, might be able to get it earlier....

 

[wad]

not making excuses, but heres usually what it boils down to...

with everyone putting in 9000's nowadays, techs really dont have many 7000 repair modems floating around. the main reason is that installation companies must actually buy, and stock repair equipment. so if a company covers every county in the state, having 20-40 techs, 1-2 repair modems a piece, a hundred or so bucks each.....do the math. then add the fact that its the same with transmitters. thats a TON of cash just tied up, not turning a profit.

nowadays, techs should have a decent supply or access to 9000 repair equipment. 2 weeks sounds crappy, but its not unheard of unfortunately. sorry.

 

[Cold Irons]

Except in my case, no tech is involved. They are shipping directly to me for me to install.

Did put the meter on the power cord. All the DC voltages are AOK. Modem dead.

Think I'm gonna bail out wireless & give it a shot. Simply not willing to wait 2-3 weeks for Hughes to get their act together.

 

[bradleys]

Cold Irons,

In your original post you asked about a "wireless ISP".

As with most things, the answer is "it depends".

I had one which used the standard, farmer, unlicensed frequencies (like every cheap WAP uses). It was terrible. Even with a dish antenna pointing directly at the company's antenna, I couldn't get decent throughput. My problem was that there are over 100 WAPs within a block of my place in Seattle. So, the interference was too much. (And yes, 40 of them were called "linksys" and 40 were called "netgear").

Right now, I have Clearwire in Seattle. It rocks. They use licensed frequencies, so they're able to do some management. I rarely have a disconnect.

I've been trying to connect to a wireless ISP in Blaine. Unfortunately, it's just as sensitive to trees as satellite. When you add the fact that the look angle is about "1", that's a problem. They're telling me that I need a 100 foot tower to see their tower.

So, that's one wireless ISP that's useable out of three that I tried. Hopefully you'll have better luck.

The speed will depend on their offerings. The latency delay that you endure with satellite will disappear.

 

[Cold Irons]

Well - at least I won't have to worry about your scenario .

In my case I'm in what I'd call a semi-rural area. There is a Cable Co. in the county, but doesn't wire the whole county. DSL is not available, and certainly don't have numerous WISPs to worry about. Have one county wide, licensed Wireless company that is slowly doing the whole county. I'm less that 1/2 mile from a couple different antennas (they're using cell towers in the county).

Guess I'll find out when they come to the house & meaure the signal strength. If I can get it, I'm jumping ship with Hughes. Just p*****s me off that they seem to have no interest in restoring my connection in any reasonable amount of time. I could see the attitude (wouldn't like it) if I were still in the 2-year contract, but I assumed they'd work a little harder to keep me given I can leave at any time.

Thanks for all the replies....I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[Cold Irons]

An Update;
Got the modem this week (only 7 days after all). Did all the setup & registration, etc. AOK. However, got to the final step of downloading SW updates, etc. and is having problems. Receive status is good, but is unable to transmit. Spent 45 minutes on the phone with Kevin (strange name for someone obviously from India...) going thru a number of troubleshooting steps. He finally figured out what I suspected - there is a transmitter/dish problem that requries an installer visit.

So...an installer will call me "within 5 days" to set up a visit. So could be this week or next, or later. Still not much of a response in my opinion.

But, the Wireless installer is coming at noon today. If I've got good signal, we'll give it a shot. It's bound to be faster internet than I currently have .

 

[grohgreg]

Sounds like a transmitter isolation problem. This happens to dishes that are not aligned properly. Specifically, the POL angle is weighted more towards one polarization than the opposite. A properly pointed dish balances isolation equally between horizontal and vertical, making isolation a non-problem when changing transponders.

So my guess is that the registration server wants to put you on a different transponder, and that the POL angle of the dish needs to be optimized before it will range properly and pass ACP. Hence the installer visit.

//greg//

 

[Cold Irons]

Well, one more (last) update. Good news & bad news

Bad news: Installer scheduled for 9am-11am (great, maybe can get 1/2 day of work in) calls at 11 & says will be late (at least got a call). Arrives around 1145, asks if I have a ladder he can use to reach the dish atop a one-story roof (....what would he have done if not?). Anyway - replaces the transmitter & LNB. Asked him about dish alignment - says they don't provide installers with a meter for these "old" systems (!!). Spent more time trying to sell me on upgrade to a 9000 series modem (new satellite, faster, etc.) than fixing my system. Of course, new modem etc. means new 2-year contract. In any event, the sytem "sort of" worked by 1230 or 1pm - could get to web pages, seemed a little slow, etc. Queried him some more about alignment and the fact that it was usually in the afternoon that I would completely lose connectivity. Installer left around 1pm, but gave me his cell number.

By 2:30 pm, had absolutely no connectivity - exactly the same symptoms as before. Called installer cell - told me he'd come back around 4pm when finished last install. That was Monday - still haven't heard back. Normally would have thrown a fit...but that leads me to....

Good news: A friend had loaned me a Verizon mobile broadband device. Turns out that I have a great verizon signal at the house. Was able to consistently get better speed (and much better latency) than satellite. With the Verizon device, got from 1.1 Mbps to 2.0 Mbps throughout the weekend. Most could ever get via Hughes was 1.0 Mbps. Upload was always much higer also. The device is a wireless hot-spot capable of connecting to 5 computers at once. About the size of deck of cards, secure wireless to PCs, cellular to outside world. At $60/month, was $10 cheaper than Hughes. Only slight concern is the 5Gb per month download limit. Looking back at Hughes usage, we never went over this - even the couple of times we triggered the Hughes FAP on a daily basis, the monthly stayed below 5Gb. Guess we'll see as we go.

But, back on line. Am terminating Hughes this afternoon.

 

[grohgreg]

Asked him about dish alignment - says they don't provide installers with a meter for these "old" systems (!!).

Incompetent. Far as I know, Hughes never provided Outdoor Pointing Interface (OPI) devices to installers. Hugues doesn't provide ladders either. Legitimate and competent installers buy their own OPIs and ladders. Me too, and I'm not even an installer. Last guy that was here asked to borrow my OPI, then asked me how to use it - I sent him packing and complained to Hughes.

The other tell is that your guy apparently only knew to contact the customer call center in India. A certified installer would have the number to installer tech support.

I'm pretty sure your problem are all related to either that specific guy - or the firm that employs him.

Glad you're back online - I'm sure you're happy to have HughesNet behind ya. You might want to advise friends and neighbors that still have no terrestrial alternative - to avoid that particular Hughes dealer/installer.

//greg//

 

[Cold Irons]

Thanks....and thanks to the folks that weighed in on this thread. I could tell just from the basic plan ("...do you have a ladder...") that I might have a problem....

And, I am happy to have Hughes net behind me, but I also realize that for a lot of folks in my situation, there's no real alternative to satellite. I wouldn't have believed a Verizon sales pitch on their service - so glad that a friend loaned me her's so I could see the results.

 

[apsc]

I don't know where you live but that is silly. The guy was not an installer he was a satellite hack. Those of us that are real installers do carry ladders and we have meters,laptops,dapt tools and all installation equipment and service equipment. I can even post what an installation should look like when done right.

 

[Cold Irons]

Dunno.....all I know is he was the repair guy that Hughes sent out to fix things. Obviously, he was a hack, the lack of a ladder (or other equipment) made that obvious. The original installer (2 yrs ago) was excellent. Did a nice, clean job of install & let me trench the coax around the house to save some $$. The original install lasted 2 years & worked OK 'til recently.

I just can't understand the Hughes attitude, especially given that I was free to leave after fullfilling my comittment. But actually thank them - I've got much better service now.

 

[HCI]

Was the guy from a company called Qualxserv?

 

[apsc]

Was the guy from a company called Qualxserv?

What is the deal with Qualxserv? I had to go behind one of their guys recently to fix a system.

 

[Cold Irons]

Company was "Sure Site Satellite". Apparently who Hughes uses in this area of Virginia. Don't know anything about them other than the impression that this particular installer made.

 

[Cold Irons]

One more "last" note, Hughes told me that "...the equipment is yours" when I asked if they would be coming to take it down. Seemed strange - guess I bought the dish, etc. over the last 2 years? I assumed they'd want the hardware back, especially the new (or refurb) HN7000S Modem they just sent.

No real problem with that - I'd just as soon remove the dish from the roof myself as letting someone else do it, but don't want to sell/give it away & then have to pay for it. Guess I need to read the fine print.....