Doug, at 02:57 on Aug 07 1996, you wrote to Bill Grimsley...

BG> Some brands are capable of having their Tx levels physically set as
BG> high as -9dBm, but that can actually be detrimental under certain
BG> conditions.

DL> G'Day Bill, thanks for the reply, I was beginning to doubt whether anyone 
DL> out there could hear me:-)

I still can't hear you, but my eyes are still relatively functional...

DL> I'm not going to fiddle with any of these hidden "s
register" settings,  
DL> not yet anyway.

I think you'll find that the majority of modems will only allow the
transmit level to be manually adjusted in "leased line" mode
anyway, although some NetComms and USRs (amongst others) have undocumented
S-registers which can alter the Tx level in dial-up mode as well.

DL> But I am sure I have a problem here, either within the modem or in the 
DL> phonelines between my machine and my local exchange (might even be the 
DL> Solly's brand extension line to my phone socket?)

Dodgy telephone extension leads are certainly not unknown, and have had
many a good man tearing his hair out in frustration (yes, I've been caught
too).

DL> But I thought that the constantly slower connects, around 19200, 21600, 
DL> either 2km away or interstate connects pointed to a line quality problem. 

If you are connecting fairly consistently to other modems with link rates
around the 19k2 or 21k6 mark, regardless of whether the remote is local or
interstate, that indicates to me that you may have excessive loss in the
twisted pair between your home and your exchange.  Where are you living,
and roughly how far from your exchange are you located?

DL> The modem is a 28800 fax/switching Netcomm, and I'm not sure if it may even 
DL> be an inherent problem with that model? but I don't think so.

No, I see regular 28800/28800 connects between my USR here (in Brisbane)
and a NetComm M34F in Sydney, so the modem is certainly capable of those
speeds.

Regards, Bill
@EOT:

--- MsgedSQ/2 3.50