Look how old this is! I post at SearchCommander.com now, and this post was published 18 years 7 months 8 days ago. This industry changes FAST, so blindly following the advice here *may not* be a good idea! If you're at all unsure, feel free to hit me up on Twitter and ask.
I had Comcast problems all summer that didn’t get fully resolved for nearly 5 months.
In the spring of 2005, Comcast had a national DNS problem that lasted for a couple of days.
A couple of weeks after that , my own Comcast started disconnecting and reconnecting all by itself. I’d be on one minute and off the next. Sure it would work 90% of the time, but only about 9 out of every 10 minutes.
The outages would be 3 or 4 seconds, or up to a minute or more. working remotely or working on a server became impossible. A constant internet connection for me is just as important as speed. Here’s a sustained ping to Comcast…
Over a week or more, I did everything I could think of doing, replacing cables, network cards and my router. I verified that the problem was present on different computers. I purchased another brand new router.
Whether I was trying wired or wireless, with a laptop or desktop, with or without a router at all, it didn’t matter. Some days were nearly fine, but others were much worse, being unable to stay on for more than a minute. Although they assured me they were not having problems, I had them come out for a service call.
Over the summer, I eventually had Comcast installers, supervisors, or networking subcontractors here a total of 9 times. They’ve given me 3 new modems, each time leaving saying it was fine now. Within an hour, the problems came back each time. At their suggestion, I moved cordless phones and unplugged electric items from near the router, but they swore it was me.
During their visits, I got all new splitters and other in my house, at my box, and at the main box on the block. Finally, I got one guy to stay 10 extra minutes, and he saw me prove the problem. He reported it as an escalated line issue, and I finally got new cable to the street. Well…that didn’t work either!
Believe it or not, I started testing the connection at a few neighbors homes and it was bad too! That average person though wouldn’t notice, because they don’t use a “constant” connection while surfing and downloading.
The problem was not mine, it was definitely Comcasts. A quick check of the forums onlyine showed me tons of cases just like mine. The solution for some seemed to be changing their own DNS servers, but when I tried in one router I lost all connection, and got fed up.
At this point, I concluded that the only thing I could do was pay Comcast a $200 installation fee, and I’d buy a router/modem combo from Comcast. In doing so, I’d then have to pay $15 more a month for their “home networking” support, but the issue would then be in their laps, making it their problem.
Well…after THREE trips in four days, even they could not make my problem go away so it went back to the line department as a “DNS resolution problem” which it what I’ve been saying all along.
They said it would be fixed in 72 hours, which it never was. Each time I called I got the runaround, with my ticket number finally disappearing! They said they had no record of a “DNS problem”, and couldn’t send anyone without charging me.
They (Comcast) told me that I must have had four, (yes four) bad routers, and the problem was not theirs, and would I like to just quit the service? Well, now my plan was to just research satelite access, so I put back on my original router and decided to live with it a little longer. That was about 3 weeks ago…
After reading an email from someone regarding their problem, it dawned on me that I haven’t noticed it cutting out for over a week! Sure enough – IT’S FIXED! Running a “ping -t www.comcast.net” confirms that my connection is staying on!
I can also see, much to my surprise, that www.comcast.net now resolves to 204.127.195.15. Completely different IP than I was getting all summer. Obviously, someone somewhere fixed this major snafu that they would never admit existed.
Don’t you feel lucky that your outage was only a week?
*update 7/2007 –
Comcast is now blocking port 25, in selective markets around the country. If you find yourself unable to send mail with Comcast this might be your answer.
Hi
am i relieved to find your comment!
pls advise what i should do to get help- get to 4th tier support(which I asked for but denied)as adviced by a friend,get comcast tech to come over?
i am a new subsciber to comcast hi speed internet for 6 days. My consistent problem is intermittent syncing requiring power cycling, about 4-7 times a day. I have an excellent new modem motorola 5210,no router, brand new house w cable outlet in room of my computer, brand new coaxial cable,no animals to chew on lines etc. I have spoken w comcast tech support over 20 times. essentially, they tell me my signal to modem is weak, and advise sending technician out. I am leary as I have also heard many folks end up paying the $50 service fee as most times comcast tell them the problem lies with the customer ,not comcast, not to mention the time spent waiting and during the service, and from your experience, may not actually solve the problems.
what else can i do before getting technician to come out (my last resort)
thanks
Jim
I never was able to get a 4th tier person on the phone. The “belief” for them came when I demonstrated the problem in front of the technician.
If they’re telling you it’s a weak signal on the phone, then by all means have someone come out. You won’t pay the $50 because it really is weak! They have to say “if it’s really your computer, you’ll have to pay $50…” but there’s no way your computer can cause that!
It’s likely a bad modem or bad line from the box to your home.
Scott, I feel your pain.
I am a Kansas City Missouri resident and have the same exact problems as you did, I just do not have a stable freakin connection. I constantly search my internet for answers. And sometimes it cuts out so much I cannot SEEK my answers. I also have XBOX Live by microsoft and play games on the internet, I paid a 100 dollars a year to have this service and I cant even play the damn thing! These people are telling me stupid shit like ahh its probably spyware, and they dont say i have a weak signal, I supposively have a VERY good one BUT its not continuous. Im afraid to have a tech guy out myself, what should I do since youve been through the hell already…..it just started doing it Feb20 of 2006 its now March 1st and they just keep telling me everything looks fine. I am royally pissed at them right now and dont know how I can get my problem fixed I love my online gaming TOO MUCH. My connections works fast as hell when it is working which is RARELY. Every 5 minutes it will cut out on me and boot me out of a game. I have a Netgear Router with 2 ethernet PCs on it and a wireless, then my XBOX. Im dumbfounded these people are aggitating me, isnt this illegal! I mean I only pay 100 a month for their not so highspeed internet and their crappy cable. What shall I DOOOOO!
Casey
in Kansas City
Run from the command line
ping -t http://www.comcast.net
then you’ll have indisputable proof that the connection is flaking out and dropping, when you get “request timed out”
Then, once you have that proof to show them, you can have a tech come out, and they’ll escalate it after the tech sees the same problem on his laptop. with me, it lasted four months before Comcast finally fixed the errant dns problem.
Worse, they never officially admitted there had been a problem, and my trouble ticket mysteriously disappeared.
If I had to do it again, and I knew how bad it would be I’d cancel service and get DSL, but it’s not even an option for me on fiber in my neighborhood.
Eliminate the obvious, try different routers and different PC’s. I had that lixury in my business, you might not.
But you can run ping -t not only from your home, but from neighbors too. You need others to notice and complain. Most people that don’t game or work remotely won’t even notice a glitch now and themn, so it’s a battle.
good luck – and post back!
Hi Scott -reading about your experience gives me hope and relief that I am not alone. We made the HUGE mistake of swtich to Comasct in December of 06 from Verizon. Nothing has working properly since. The tech who showed up to switch our phones and the DSL managed to get the phones working (making a mess of the wiring in the house) but couln’t get the cable internet to work nor was the TV cable working propoerly (the “on-demand” signal was really bad). Since then, we have had SIX techs come out at different times. There have been weekends were we didn’t have any phone or internet service, or it would just cut out intermittently, etc. They replaced cables, lines, other gadgets, claimed our computer was the problem, etc. Finally, we just had enough and decided to switch back to Verizon.
To add insult to injury, we were charged an additonal $168 from Verizon to fix the wiring that Comcast had changed.
What a nightmare this has been. Every time I see one of those annoying comercials from Comcast now, I cringe with anger and frustration.
Scott
ahhhhhhh finnaly someone people who understand this damn problem. I game alot and people that i play with always yell at me cause comcast fucking stalls out and i cant move.
i thought it was my computer i did every scan possible for virus’s and spyware. i check online to see if anyone else had the stall out problems and fucking damn alot of people have this error.
thought comcast keeps telling me they are fixing the problems nothing every changes.
I would advise everyone to STAY AWAY from Comcast because once you’re wired……….it’s all HELL. I have been trying to have them correct THEIR wiring mistakes for months now and for the past WEEK have been on a mission to get to the bottom of this mess. I’ve logged hours of phone calls with them as well as having two ticket numbers (which supposedly gives the supervisor 24 hours to call but they never do) and now since Friday, I have a ladder (that they left)in my closet to the attic (with insulation all over the floor around it) I’ve missed three days of work (this round) waiting for repairmen. All this because Comcast wired our attic incorrectly and now they say that the attic’s HOT well DUH, it’s Florida, come in the morning! I’ve been answered rudely, disconnected, waited on hold for endless amounts of time……..have it all documented. My calls are never answered and there is NEVER a supervisor around to speak with. No one knows what the other department is doing. There is no FLOW to communication. They should be KICKED out of MIAMI or MADE to do what they get paid for. I have a call into Sorenson’s office as I need HELP to fix this inexcuseable mess.
The problem I have is that there is no competition locally here in my area of Portland.
I am unable to get DSL at my office, and even if I was, speed is nowhere near what Comcast offers when it’s working correctly, which admittedly is the majority of the time.
No company can please everyone all the time, and other than my four months of nightmare service, overall I do have to say I’ve been satisfied with Comcast.
I’ve had the exact same problems here in Houston. I’m getting ready to go back to dial up until AT&T or Verizon comes in with fiber optic.
Comcast has real customer service and delivery problems. We have waited over 3 weeks to just transfer our existing Comcast/TIme Warner phone service to a new home. Installation day came and went and no one showed up. Four phone calls later with hold rates averaging 20 minutes each finally confirmed that NO ONE WAS GOING TO COME, “Sorry!”. Now we had to reschedule installation and we will have to wait another two weeks. I am starting to question why should I bother? I am investigating going back to Ma Bell, ATT. TIME-WARNER was much better than COMCAST.
I am totally aggravated with comcast. I have had so many problems with their cable and internet services. From paying for channels and never getting them and never receiving promised refunds to orders showing up on my bill that were not mine. It is so much worse then I can explain. I ordered a cartoon a few times and an x-rated movie showed up on several occasions. Finally I got so fed up with the overpriced crappy cable service i cancelled that. Then my internet modem had this problem where suddenly it goes on a resetting spree. Now lately supposedly someone other then comcast came and opened up the cable box that is located outside and 5 floors down from me and disconnected my service. I asked them would there be a fee for them to come out and fix my connection of course they said no if it is not my fault. Well guess what comcast once again takes money out of my pocket. 29 dollars to fix a problem I did not cause. They will always find a way to charge extra money for something. I would not be surprised if some of the contractors or someone that works for them makes the rounds disconnecting wires just so we have to pay them for coming out. They are completely over priced. I am seriously very close to cancelling my internet service with them.
I just moved and transfered Comcast service to new home. It’s been only one and a half month, and there have been already 5 times service outage! Sometimes, the signal was on and off. I have a home office, and can’t afford to have single minute of losing connection during day time. I finally called for refund, and they said there was only 2 records shows that I called to report for the service outage. What the hack! Where are the other 3 records??
Funny thing is that, they had the outage scheduled in prior. But why can’t they just inform the people who will be affected in the neighborhood? Is that really so hard? I am also getting close to cancel the service and switch to ATT – that is one more months when I receive my $175 rebate.
Same problems, Intermittent Internet outages. Has been going on 2 months. 4 technicians calls, comes up and works a day and then goes out just when I need it the most. I have heard everything from they are upgrading cables in my neighborhood to the was my house is situated that the calble has to run a long way, to all the high tempture. I work from home one day a week and wouldn’t you know it is out again. I am at my wit’s end. I can’t get Bell South DSL in my neighbor hood either. I know it is the lines, because if the PC is off completely the Cable Light on the modem just flashes but it should be a solid light.
Miami, FL. We switched to Comcast from Bellsouth DSL because we had problems with BellSouth for a long time and got fed-up. It’s been now 4 months of ongoing problems with comcast. A couple of times it was problems in the area(they said). On 2 ocassions we schedduled appointments and the tech guy never showed up. I switched the modem already and nothing. My internet keeps coming and going, sometimes lasting a few minutes. The modem goes on a rebooting loop, as if it was beeing reset remotely. I work from home as a remote support computer technitian and it is impossible to work when you keep getting disconnected. Also, we have 2 Vonage phone lines and it’s frustrating when we can’t use our phone beause internet outtage. Here the choice is either Bellsouth (now ATT) or Comcast. I will be switching ISP as soon as something new comes up(fiber-optic).
FORGET ABOUT COMCAST!!
Hi Gonzalo, same problem I have had for the last 3 weeks here in Miami. Have you been able to get them to fix it?
I called Comcast again and talked to a vert nice lady who said that if you scheddule and appointment and the tech doesn’t show up, you are entitled to a $20 refund. Now I have to wait for the bill and check if I realy got the refund. Internet still sporadic though.
I had a similar series of events. I chronicle the tale on my own blog. I even got Line Techs and Supervisors sending E-mails throughout the state. Permalink: http://blog.damnednice.com/?Req=Post&PID=134
Man, I feel for you, Kevin. Nice blog by the way… Damned Nice 😉
Ok. Everyone that has commented here. You have 100% completely summed up what is happening to me. But, I’m sorry Scott, I topped you. My internet has been like yours was for OVER A YEAR AND A HALF. I eventually gave up and lost all hope until I found this blog. Well, I still don’t know how to fix my internet because you said it was just fixed by someone. I don’t like talking to Comcast because all they do is blame your problems on other people/products. So, I don’t understand the ping thing so will somebody please email me at [email protected] with the solution. I once gave up all hope, but now I have a little bit left because of this blog.
Thanks, Scott. Actually, the saga may have concluded: I got Qwest DSL as a backup and configured all the computers to use both routers as gateways, providing fault tolerance as a result.
Comcast hasn’t blamed anyone but themselves throughout my dealings with them. They have been professional and understanding… Just really slow at fixing problems.
user james_ has entered room
james(Thu Oct 4 18:45:11 CDT 2007)>internet is slow and intermitant
analyst James has entered room
James(Thu Oct 4 18:45:15 CDT 2007)>Hello james_, Thank you for contacting Comcast Live Chat Support. My name is James. Please give me one moment to review your information.
James(Thu Oct 4 18:45:22 CDT 2007)>Please wait for a moment while I review your account information. Thank you for your patience.
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:45:41 CDT 2007)>ok
James(Thu Oct 4 18:46:56 CDT 2007)>For how long has this been happening, James?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:47:16 CDT 2007)>since i signed up
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:47:21 CDT 2007)>the instller
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:47:26 CDT 2007)>left quickly
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:47:38 CDT 2007)>i am connected direclty to the modem
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:47:49 CDT 2007)>however i use a wireless routher
James(Thu Oct 4 18:47:41 CDT 2007)>Okay, thank you.
James(Thu Oct 4 18:48:42 CDT 2007)>Okay. What happens if you connect directly from the modem to the computer, bypassing the router (we can’t assist with wireless routers)?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:49:10 CDT 2007)>i was told you can not assist
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:49:24 CDT 2007)>unless i was attached to th emodem
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:49:33 CDT 2007)>i am now attached to the modem
James(Thu Oct 4 18:49:46 CDT 2007)>Okay, thanks for clearing that up, James. I wanted to make sure we were on the same page.
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:50:02 CDT 2007)>ok
James(Thu Oct 4 18:49:53 CDT 2007)>So, you’re directly connected now?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:50:07 CDT 2007)>connected
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:50:12 CDT 2007)>to the modem via wire
James(Thu Oct 4 18:50:19 CDT 2007)>Okay, great. What happens with your connection?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:50:58 CDT 2007)>i am connect however i am not prepared to anayliss the connection
James(Thu Oct 4 18:51:24 CDT 2007)>Okay. Did you want to try the direct connection for a while and then get back to us, James?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:51:37 CDT 2007)>it was very slow
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:51:43 CDT 2007)>no
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:51:53 CDT 2007)>i need the wireless to runmy network
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:51:56 CDT 2007)>i get connection
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:51:58 CDT 2007)>just slow
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:52:15 CDT 2007)>and it connnects and re connnects at the rate of 8 per minute
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:52:24 CDT 2007)>for ever minute i have had this
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:52:50 CDT 2007)>ifthis doenst work then i will have to find another supplier
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:53:12 CDT 2007)>so how do you analsys the system
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:53:24 CDT 2007)>to check it out to make sure th e modeum is set up righ t
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:54:13 CDT 2007)>hello
James(Thu Oct 4 18:54:23 CDT 2007)>I am here, James.
James(Thu Oct 4 18:54:48 CDT 2007)>When it connects and reconnects, is this via the wireless router?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:55:03 CDT 2007)>yes
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:55:09 CDT 2007)>it is doing it now
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:55:16 CDT 2007)>on the direct connection
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:55:42 CDT 2007)>sort of like on and off
James(Thu Oct 4 18:55:36 CDT 2007)>Okay, James. If it was really disconnecting, you would be leaving the chat room and returning, but I don’t see that happening on my side.
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:55:49 CDT 2007)>8 times a sec
James(Thu Oct 4 18:55:42 CDT 2007)>What makes you think it’s disconnecting?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:56:01 CDT 2007)>i am see it happen here
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:56:12 CDT 2007)>i think it is so fast it doesnt show up
James(Thu Oct 4 18:56:03 CDT 2007)>What are you seeing? Is something flashing?
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:56:24 CDT 2007)>cause the system isnt fast enough
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:56:49 CDT 2007)>i have a piece of software that shows i am connected at 900 kbs down and 1600kps up
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:56:57 CDT 2007)>and the on off thig
james_(Thu Oct 4 17:57:11 CDT 2007)>is you internet on demand type
James(Thu Oct 4 18:57:06 CDT 2007)>James, please answer my question.
James(Thu Oct 4 18:57:14 CDT 2007)>Analyst has closed chat and left the room
analyst James has left room
lol, yea the customer service techs are crappy. They know they system is buggy and it is nothing they can do in their department. I sure they questions about this issue all day long.
Comcast should not be allowed to bid on public airways. You can make a difference. Contact your Representative in government and complain about their incompetence and their poor service.
hey guys. i was just browsing the internet to see who else is having comcast problems. i’m having serious problems with their customer service. I work in customer service, and I can tell you comcast is the absolute worst (next to sprint :)). however…i did do a little research 🙂 and incase anyone is interested, i found the #’s to comcast corporate office in philly! so here ya are:
(215)665-1700, (215)463-1100, (215)673-6600
you guys might consider getting time warner cable/roadrunner, I have experienced some game lag (daoc)but I think that’s my computer’s fault, and have been disconnected from the network only a couple of times in the past 5 years of use.
I love the service and the techs all know their stuff and get right on the problem, even if it’s not their fault. Service charge? they look for ways to not charge, even when I think it’s fair that they do!
If only I had another option to Comcast, I’d try it in a minute, but they have a high speed monopoly in my neighborhood – Not even DSL is available…
Call TWC main office and complain about comcast, then get all your neighbors and friends to call and complain and encourage your neighbors and friends to get their neighbors and friends to complain. enough ppl comlain about comcast TWC will most likely do something.
Is there any possibility that i can sue comcast? its been 2 years since i first had this same problem as everyone else on this page. it still hasnt gotten fixed. i looked at all of the pink forms that we were given to us by the people that came out to my house. 17. 17 different times, ive had someone come out to my house to fix the problem. it hasnt been fixed. i cant switch ISPs because comcast is the only thing that our neighborhood gets. and i cant get everyone to complain, because i only know one neighbor of mine well enough to call and talk to. this is insane and comcast wont do anything. every time they come to my house, i prove to them that there is a problem and they agree. they just cant do anything about it. they just say “ill send someone out here to look at the line, or look at your outside box” but no one comes. we have to schedule them to keep coming. we finally got the supervisor out here and he couldnt do anything, but, he was nice enough to leave us his personal cell # so we can call him. hey, why dont you take a guess on what happens when we call him. he doesnt answer. im so pissed at comcast and i really wish i could sue them out of their f*ing mind.
wow, I feel for you, Eric. with me it was the screen shot of the ping timing out that did the trick. You might try that…
Yeah, I have many screen shots of the ping test. Ive shown it to the technicians that have come to my house and they agree that theres a problem. They just have no clue how to fix it. Is there anyone I can email the pictures to so I can get my point across to comcast?
Send one to me, and I’ll add it to the thread… – I dumped mine long ago.
I’m afraid that other than [email protected] though I have no clue. After I post the image you could link to it from a comcast forum. That might spur senior support to step up their ivestigation
Picture added to post
I agree with all those who think Comcast is the worst company in America. I have had several level 3 techs look into why my service is intermittent and none have been able to help. Pathetic is how I would describe the company and their customer service!!! I can certainly understand why both JD Powers and Assoc and Consumer Reports ranks them the worst cable provider in the United States. Good luck to you if you stay with this terrible company and put up with awful service from a company who does not care about the customer.
f-you, get someone out here and take my cable(old,old reruns)and internet too: it is USLESS & completely and totaly unrelible! your mickey mouse ? & answer bullshit is a joke! good f-ing by!
Having endured almost every one of the speed and reliability problems mentioned above, (but only 3 service calls), I hit upon a way to get results.
When the service becomes intermittent, run “speed test” several times. _Call_ Comcast (remember the line is intermmittent) and politely ask them to check your modem and line speed (they do this remotely. They may have you run their speed tests and reboot their modem).
After verifying with their own tests, Comcast will reset _their_ modems until the speed is acceptable to them. If not, they will give you new DNS URLS to connect to. (you must know how to setup your Browser and Router to do this bec. you can’t get LAN support.)
For this to work:
(1) you must be direct connected to the modem, do not even mention anything else, much less connect it.
(2) _you_ must keep your on-line ticket numbers and NOT allow them to close out. Refer to it on every call, and take names, politely. It reflects badly on tech’s performance reports if the same ticket keeps showing up.
(3)If it doesnt clear up in a week, make a formal _written_ request to Accounting to drop the monthly Internet charge, citing the open ticket numbers. IT WORKS.
(4) for every tech I talked to, this was the first time they ever heard of that problem, and they were so proud that they “fixed” it, and immediately submitted it to their super’s.
The problem goes away and eventually it comes back. It is definitely something in their system that they don’t know about, and is probably load-dependent. Therefore they think it is _your_ problem until you can point them back to their hardware.
BTW: use your browser and enter the Modem’s IP address, then you can see what they see. Look but do not touch.
Since 2005 I have been using comcast internet service. When comcast offered the triple play to include cable tv and phone, I signed up. Nothin worked the first month, and I spent most of my time on the phone with comcast. 85% getting past the prompts and 15% talking to someone. I pay for and do not get my Encore Channels, my computer goes out almost every day, and now I can’t us my email. I owned a telephone company for 22 years. If we provided this service we would not have lasted one year. I am anxious for FIOS to come to my neighborhood as I am switching immediately.
I have had Comcast for a year and its crap at night. Its really really bad. When i get online whether xbox or just my laptop it disconnects every 2 or 5 minutes. This lasts from either 9 to
11 30 or 10 30 to 11 30. This makes me very mad because every time i call they tell me its maintenance in the area but i dont understand why they need to do maintenance every single night. Its very very annoying and i am sick of it. Yes its great sometimes but other times its very very very unrealiable wich makes the advertising untrue and false. Really DSL was better.
Instead of creating multiple screenshots of the ping “problem”, just capture the output of , say, an 8 hour ping to a file.
c:\> ping -t ping -t http://www.comcast.net > filename.txt
press and let it chew a while. When you’re convinced it’s been running long enough, press -c and you’ll be returned back to the c: prompt.
Open the file with notepad or equivalent if you wish to view / review. Then send a copy of it to concast for fixage.
I have the same thing, and there is no alternative internet. You can’t stream movies or play online games without huge problems. Doesn’t this just suck?
Comcast Problems! My line ringing to other numbers – one occassion to my neighbor who has a different number. Incoming messages that come in two or more days late like a cell phone. Received calls that are logged digital 2 to 3 days later instead of one hour or so. Break in conversations from neighbors calls. False advertising of services. Privacy risk. Is it just my phone? Technology failures.
Scott,
I came across your site by accident while browsing Google for help on Comcast problems.
The discussion is the quality of Comcast TV. For the past six years I have had the Comcast family of services (TV and broadband).
Over the past two years it has been observed that audio cutoffs on channels of Comcast has become a common occurance.
This can occur on any Digital, HD channel or on a DVR recording. When it occurs (1-3 seconds) there is also a breakup of the video signal on screen.
I have reported the problem to Comcast a number of times and get the usual run around. They have replaced my DVR (Motorola DCT 6412 III) a least twice over the past 6 years.
The interesting thing is that I have been told, off the record, that the local techs have observed this problem in other locations and they believe there is a problem with the design of the the Motorola DVR or an audio problem existing in the Comcast network (something to do with the Broadband traffic they are pushing down the digital pipe).
I have recently sent an Email to the Comcast VP of Customer Service explaining the problem and to date have not received a response.
My location is in Las Cruces, NM.
Sincerely,
Mike Izon
Las Cruces, NM
I have had Comcast Internet for five years. I rebuilt an old house, and decided to go with VOIP with cable INTERNET. It took several weeks for Comcast to get a tech out to our home. When one arrived he was buck toothed, and wet under the ears. I asked him to install the internet connection in the Master Bedroom, and a TV connection in the living room against the north wall.
The tech told me he could not put the cable on the exterior north wall. He suggested we put the TV cable on the interior wall. I left him to do his work. A few minutes later I heard a drill, and thought little of it. When I came into the room, I saw him pulling cable through my brand new hardwood floor. He drilled a hole five inches from my west wall, two inches from the southern interior wall. I was hot. I asked him why he did this. He said there was a wood beam in the way, and he did not have the tools to put it through an exterior wall. That was not a good start to say the least.
For the next two months I got very little signal for my TV or my INTERNET. Comcast sent several people to my home. Finally, after several months of complaints they admitted there was not enough signal from the pole, and told me they would fix it. They told me they had to take the filter off the pole so I could get more signal. It worked better, but kept cutting off.
Five years later, it is still not working correctly. I would have switched if I had an alternative. I have had various techs come out to the house during this period of time.
Last week I called Comcast, and go someone’s attention. The INTERNET was out more than not for the past two weeks. I set up an appointment. The tech called, and asked to come early. My phone did not work because the INTERNET was out. He did not show up. I called COMCAST on my pay as you go cell phone again. They promised me a tech the next day. While my wife and I were out, the tech called and asked to come early. He spoke to my daughter who was home from college. He said since it’s working, I guess I don’t have to come over. I spoke to my daughter, and called back the tech’s phone on the caller ID. The tech explained the “lady of the house” told me not to come over, and that it was working. I got angry, and gave him a piece of my mind.
The tech admitted going up the pole, and checking the signal. He said the problem was not at our home. He said the signal from the pole was too low, and he knew that was the reason why I couldn’t get a good signal. (I have been running up to 5 Mb/sec, but usually less than 2 Mb/sec) He said he told his supervisor it was a design problem five years ago. He said everytime he came out it was the same issue, and his supervisor was unwilling to fix it due to the cost. He said it would do no good to come out because it had never been fixed correctly, and that was up to his supervisor.
I have been paying $50 per month for five years. Comcast has known of this problem for all this time. They have taken my money. I have not been getting the service I was promised.
When I complained to the tech about this, he said we do not guarantee your VOIP will work with our cable service. I told him you guaranteed me a advertised a certain amount of band width, and knowingly deliver more than half as much over a five year period of time. He had no answer for that.
I am still waiting for Comcast to fix the problem. A new tech is supposed to be out this Saturday to fix the wiring issues in the house. When that is done properly, I will pursue the lack of bandwidth. I know who the supervisor is, and may pay him a visit. He lives a few houses down the street. He is a neighbor.
Sad, but unfortunately, not really surprising. Good luck, and keep us posted!
I am having this problem right now. Every few minutes, the connection drops out for anywhere from 5 seconds to an hour… and then it comes back again. It also causes “On Demand” to not work. It gets pretty annoying because its been happening for the past few days all day long. I’m either watching something On Demand, using my computer, or playing video games online and it just drops out. Usually, right after it drops out, its back up within a couple of seconds, but then it drops out again a few minutes later.
We haven’t even called Comcast because we’ve had this problem before. They’ve came and changed the cable wire, switched DVR boxes, and gave us a new modem, and here it is, back again. Supposedly, this happens when they are updating things (that’s what they told us anyway), but how long does it take to update? Last year, it was almost the whole summer. And even throughout the year, we had random drop outs. Sometimes whole days without the internet or “On Demand” working. They did also tell us that this was probably just a bad area…. but can’t they do something to fix that? It is really annoying!
Thanks for posting this! I know this is five years after your original posting, but I have been having nearly the same exact problem as you. AT&T U-verse is not offered in my area, so I cannot switch, so I have been stuck with Comcast for over 4 years. The last two years I have had the same problem as you. Everytime I’ve tried to go higher up, I never got called back, everytime a new tech showed up I had to spend 30 minutes explaining the problem, then they’d replace a wire or part and say it was “fixed”. The last few times they blamed it on my VOIP box “interfering with the signal” (Complete BS).
Basically, they’d make an excuse and leave. Never fixing the problem. I eventually gave up. This article gave me the energy to keep up the fight, thanks!
Thought you might find this image amusing, it was occurring at the same time I was reading this! Haha.
http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/8466/wwwcomcastnet.png
That image looks familiar! good luck!…
I am so happy I found this. We switched to Comcast from Uverse about a year ago after we moved, because Uverse was not out here initially. It has been nothing but problems. Cable constantly pixelizing or going out completely for hours at a time, internet connection going on and off. After several calls to tech support, and going through the “reset your router, or unplug and plug back in, etc etc…” every single time, with no change, I finally am switching back to Uverse. They even have the nerve to want to charge me to send a tech out to fix THEIR problem. Yeah, that’s not going to happen. I’m sorry, but THEIR connectivity issues are not due to my box not being plugged in all the way.
I used to work for Uverse when they first put the lines out in Houston. I had them for two years before switching to Comcast without ever having a single problem. Every time I see the commercials about Uverse being outdated, having connection problems, etc, I can’t help but laugh. Maybe that talking heap of wires should be named Comcast instead.
I am switching back tomorrow. Don’t waste your time with Comcast. Go with Uverse or Time Warner instead. If you don’t have those available to you, I’m really very sorry….
I had to switch form comcast as well. I am in the Houston area. Their connection is not stable. There are timeouts every so many seconds. Trying to play games online on the ps3, watching movies online, etc… was annoying. They have fast internet services but it’s not point with no stability.
Shit! This is my EXACT FUCKING PROBLEM! Sorry for the language. My internet has been cutting out for about 2 months. I’ve had 6 “techs” come out to replace everything in the home over and over again. They can’t do anything! Same intermittent pings all day, every day. I get about a 10% packet loss over the course of 24 hours. Sounds small but this means I can’t play online video games, I struggle to watch Netflix, even my cable TV lags and struggles to play.
I don’t know what to do! I’m stuck in this awful loop.