PS180-T - recommended applications and limitations
BEFORE PURCHASING PS180-T, please be sure to understand the recommended use cases and product limitations.
There are a few points that are important to consider to determine if it is the right product for you.
1) the PS180-T is not the same thing as a typical VDSL modem - it does not have it's own power supply, ethernet bridging or routing subsystem and does not have large amounts of memory for sophisticated software. Therefore, it is not expected to perform as well as some 'purpose build appliances' in more 'harsh' signal environments on VDSL lines with high attenuation (e.g long distances, water ingress or copper corrosion) or high noise (e.g. machinery proximity, electrical discharge, poor earthing)
Therefore it is not unusual that a purpose build all-in-one VDSL modem might perform more reliably in those example conditions.
2) the PS180-T does not have it's own power supply system or significant noise filtering hardware. Therefore, it can be highly susceptible to background noise interference if the host device power supply is poorly filtered or not properly earthed. We are aware of several cases whereby regular loss of VDSL sync has been corrected by ensuring direct connection of the SFP module casing to a solid electrical earth.
We understand that many customer use PS180-T in low-cost routing products like MikroTik, Ubiquiti and others, and since most such products are powered by a 'plug pack' PSU, then there is NO STABLE EARTH available to shield the SFP module from power supply or environmental RF noise. As the premier Mikrotik Distributor in Australia and Pacific region, we are aware of many cases where sync issues with PS180-T have been corrected by use of the external earth lug present on some MikroTik router models, or installed to models like CCR that have 3-pin power supply and thus solid electrical earth.
3) since PS180-T does not have significant amounts of on-board memory, there is limited room for firmware code and therefore many of the more 'advanced' software features of more sophisticated modem hardware are not present. The SOS and ROC features recently implemented by NBN to the FTTN services is one example - those extensions are intended to improve reliability of the VDSL sync in cases where there is poor signal due to attenuation or noise. PS180-T only supports /connection/ to services offering those extensions - it does not actively /support/ them - therefore, it not unexpected that PS180-T (and probably some other modem hardware) will struggle to hold sync on such services while other hardware will appear to work better.
4) we have sold many thousand PS180-T modules in Australia, and we have received a lot of feedback from many hundreds of customers, including quite a few NBN RSPs and reseller ISPs using these as part of their standard range of products offered to customers. We are therefore confident that PS180T works very well for most NBN (and non-NBN) VDSL services, but by the same token we know that there are some cases where the only robust solution is to use a different hardware option.
An important point to note is that there are some cases where PS180-T will fail to maintain a persistent sync (i.e. regular 'drop out' behaviour) while an altermnative model will work fine. In such cases, improvement /may/ be possible by:
- implement proper earth and/or lctrical shielding to the module. This may involve use of the grounding lug on the router casing (if present) or by wrapping a bare conductor (e.g. copper strand from a CAT5 cable) around the module and attaching the other end to an earthed device (e.g. desktop PC casing, desk-lamp base, etc)
- use an alternative router product with proper electrical earth to the SFP cage
- deploy the modem to a different location
In cases where it is not possible to obtain a reliable sync for any reason, you are welcome to return your PS180-T within 14 days of purchase for a full refund under our Satisfaction Guarantee offer: https://shop.duxtel.com.au/shipping.php#guarantee