Thank you! PCTel HSp problems
D.Rider
stuff, and in this particular case this meant looking through Google
Groups.
I found this message and other similar messages once I got the new
clue to the search term "acceleration". I bumped my video
acceleration down to absolute minimum and BAM! now my Internet access
just absolutely flies with my PCTel HSP56 MR (modem riser board).
Pages snap in place seemingly almost as fast as they do at work on our
T1 line. I will next bump it up to see where it drops off again and
will try the "BusThrottle=1" line in system.ini (currently running
Windows 98 but will soon go to 2000).
So here is some help for others who may encounter the problem of slow
throughput and dropped connections ("remote modem hung up") <blast
from the past: 1999/05/07>:
dani...@netzero.net wrote in message <7gl3gl$m02$1...@nnrp1.dejanews.com>...
>I've been scouring the Internet for info about the PCTEL HSP chipset.
Other
>than it's host based which I knew (and hate)- and re-iterations of
PCTEL's
>FAQ - I haven't seen much. Any good tips or FAQs around? I wish that
I wasn't
>stuck with this thing in my notebook computer....
Horrible and evil. I urge you to throw the modem out of the window
with the
greatest force available.
Spend the money on a *good* modem - it will be worth it in peace of
mind.
Below is some stuff from our own internal HSP FAQ, compiled by me. I'm
sure
there's some completely wrong information here, but it's well known
that the
best way to get correct information on Usenet is to post incorrect
information ;-)
I welcome all possible corrections to the info below.
I've thought of making this into a web page, but if I did that I'd
have to
support it for the rest of my time on the Net. And I'd rather only do
that
for stuff I *like*. So if anyone else wants to use the info below,
feel free
:-)
* Switch off all hardware graphic acceleration, set video to 256
colours.
Yes, crippling the video may get the modem working. (The video card
uses the
system bus a lot.) This problem is actually known to PCTel and is
listed in
the Zoltrix HSP FAQ below. (If the user really cares about video
performance, they're probably using it for games and should be using a
modem
that doesn't suck up their processor power.)
Make sure you have the latest driver (version 2.16, I think).
* Init strings
An init string is unlikely to fix the problem, but it's worth a try
...
First thing to try: We achieved a good connection by using &FX1 and
changing to a 33.6k-restricted line. I have no idea how or why this
worked,
but it did. (We have Bay 5399 modem banks on our dialins.)
The init string I've managed to find: &F&C1&D2&K3W2
To get it to behave a bit better, you might want to tack on %C0
(disable
data compression), %E0 (disable auto-retrain and fallback, as it seems
to
hiccup when changing speeds), N0S37=13 (use K56flex - our 5399s seem
to like
this better than V.90) - this gives &F&C1&D2&K3W2%C0%E1N0S37=13 -
note
that I haven't actually tried this string. If someone can try it and
tell me
whether it hangs the modem ...
Also found (especially if they have the older 33.6k HSP):
&FX1&C1&D2S37=12S34=13S35=5S91=10 - this is supposed to achieve a
decent
33.6k connection. (Haven't tried this one either.)
http://808hi.com/56k/ had the following as a contributed solution:
S37=12 - I think this forces a 33.6k connection.
http://www.pctel.com/support/faq.html - hype-filled manufacturer's FAQ
http://www.zoltrix.com/hsp-qa.htm - manufacturer's FAQ listing some
problems
http://www.pctel.com/support/developm.html - AT Command Set for HSP
modem, S
registers (for modem init strings: S[number]=[number]), etc.
http://www.e4me.com/techsupport/faq.html#modem - These scoundrels
(E-Machines) sell HSP modems in their preassembled systems. This FAQ
gives
some info on getting the things to work a bit.
* Companies selling HSP modems, and driver download sites:
- Zetnet (a UK ISP) has some drivers at
http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/shiva/modem/driver.htm .
Behavior Tech Computer: All modems, apparently. Drivers at
http://www.btc.com.tw/btc/software/faxmodem.html
BTC: BTC 1890, BTC1898, BCT56IP
CTX International: Make computers with HSP modems included.
ftp://ftp.ctxintl.com/desktop/MODEM/56K/PCTEL/ contains the latest 56k
driver; ftp://ftp.ctxintl.com/desktop/MODEM/336/ contains 33.6k
drivers (see
ftp://ftp.ctxintl.com/desktop/MODEM/336/00_FileDescription.txt for
details).
Dataflex: An OEM who make modems for other manufacturers.
http://www.dataflex.co.uk/ - nothing on this page admits to using
HSPs.
EMachines: The driver is on the CD with the machine.
ESS Technology: ES2808 chipset, ES56 chipsets.
E-Tech: PC56 PVP. http://www.e-tech.com.tw/engh/driver.htm
Evershine: See 'Goldenway'.
Goldenway: A page entirely in Chinese at http://www.goldenway.com.tw/
with
no links on it! "Sells PC-TEL based modems around the world. Look on
the
card for a part number similar to GW UT-8D94V-0 or an FCC ID #:
MTQGW-PCT2814I. Some of their modems are in a box with a picture of
the card
on the box and the brand name Evershine. The modem can also listed as
the
Weber 33.6 Internal or with the Model No: AMI1428HV."
Harmony USA: HM18021 (but not HM18021-1, HM18021-2 or HM18021-3).
http://www.harmonyusa.com/hspv90up.html
HostModems: An Australian company. The page,
http://www.hostmodems.com/ ,
has not been updated since 1997.
Innovative Trek: NovaPort HSP. Drivers page at
http://www.ittrek.com/download.html
Multiwave: CommWave 56K PnP, CommWave 56K PCMCIA, CommWave 336K PNP,
CommWave 336K PCMCIA, CW V.34 HSP,
CommPro - http://www.multiwave.com/support/download.htm - Note that
they
also sell LT WinModems and HCF; don't be confused.
NovaPort: See 'Innovative Trek'.
PRO-NETS: Used to make the HVI-3314 - see page at
http://www.asiansources.com/pronets.co (that's not a typo) or
http://www.pro-nets.com/ - no drivers on their page, nor anything
admitting
they made HSPs.
Shark Multimedia: Leopard Win56K, Win56K PCI - drivers at
http://www.sharkmm.com/tech/downloads.htm
Silicom Multimedia: Modem Master 6000 - drivers at
http://www.silicom-multimedia.com/mm6000drivers.htm
Speedstatic: No web page, but apparently they do sell the things.
SMART Modular Technologies: 56k HSP PC Card (ST5614HPNAMSR):
http://www.smartm.com/i_o/56khsp.html
Zoltrix: FMHSP56p, FMHSP56e, FMHSP56PCI, FMHSP336i, FMHSP336e, Phantom
56k.
Identify the modem with the Modems control panel under Diagnostics,
when you
hit 'More Info' - the identifying ATI3 and ATI6 responses are at
http://www.zoltrix.com/MODEM.HTM as are the drivers.
* Quotable warnings re: HSP modems (and other soft modems)
http://www.56k.com/reports/winmodem.shtml - 'Beware Soft Modems' - why
HSP,
HCF and LTWin should be avoided like the plague.
From http://www.dircon.net/support/gmodemfaq.html :
'Recently, there have been some modems coming onto the market called
"Host
Signal Processor" modems, sometimes marked "Pentium Compatible Only",
or
"Designed exclusively for Windows/Windows95". Some manufacturers have
been
selling these modems as the latest technology, and they are notably
cheaper
than similar external modems.
'They use a digital sound processor, controlled by special driver
software,
run on your computer's CPU to emulate a modem. A conventional modem
does all
this processing on board the modem, in hardware. Therefore, these
internal
HSP modems increase loading on a CPU already busy supporting things
such as
Windows95 and all the other software running.
'When connected to the Internet, the stability of the connection is
vital.
If you are using a HSP modem on an already busy computer, some of the
crucial PPP timings can be messed up. Many of these modems are only
compatible with Intel Pentium processors, and will not run correctly
on
systems using Cyrix or AMD CPUs.
'One of the brand leaders in modems, US Robotics, has also introduced
a HSP
modem called the Sportster "Winmodem". This is an internal "Windows
only"
modem, and retails for approximately Ł75. This modem is to be avoided,
but
other USR modems, such as the external Sportster Voice and Courier are
good
modems, which we recommend.
'From our experience, we have found these types of modem to be
unreliable,
and have difficulty in maintaining a stable, useable connection. They
should
be avoided wherever possible.'