[GreenKeys] Amateur Radio and at&t U-Verse = Big Problems

[Don Robert House]

I have long suspected this was going to happen.  .  This is not just a  
HAM Radio problem.  The military uses the HF spectrum as well.  The  
node equipment was not designed to handle HF interference  Why,   
because no one asked the vendor to do the third party compliance  
compatibility testing.  As far back as 1994 I could not get people  
interested in spectrum compatibility issues.  You cannot take the  
supplier's word for it.  LiteSpan failed. Rmember??  I do...

Jim Zarembski and tech support cared but marketing and management only  
looked at the bottom line.  EMI and RFI testing was simply too  
expensive to require the supplier to do it.
I wonder if the same node equipment is used in the old Pac Bell area?  
Pac Bell was always more careful with NEBS and compliance  
certification.  Verizon was a stickler as well.

Just my silly experience and opinions.

Don

Ham Radio and ATT "U-Verse" IPTV-Internet-Phone Problems

During the last 3 weeks, I have talked on the air with 3 different  
hams who are going through a new kind of nightmare with the ATT U- 
Verse broadband/HDTV/phone package that has arrived in their  
neighborhoods. In all three cases, the U-Verse package was of the FTTN  
variety which is fiber to the node and then twisted pair (copper) for  
the last 2500 feet throughout the neighborhood.

It appears that these FTTN installations are very susceptible to  
ingress from the HF spectrum between 1 - 10 mHz. According to the hams  
I spoke with, when they were operating on 160 meters through 40  
meters, even with RF levels at or below 100 watts, they were  
completely disrupting their neighbor's U-Verse installations. STB's  
crashed, internet and phone connections were dropped, and video was  
frozen, tiled, or simply went to a black screen.

When the affected subscribers contacted ATT, no resolution was  
offered. It turns out that filtering is not really an option since ATT  
is sending RF between 1 mHz and 9 mHz right down the copper twisted  
pair. If you attempt to filter out RF from the HF spectrum, you will  
also filter out the IPTV - internet - phone signals that are supposed  
to be there. Some U-Verse subscribers are experiencing ingress from SW  
broadcasters from the 5 mHz - 8 mHz bands when propagation is really  
rocking.

At this time, all three hams are trying to be good neighbors, one is  
even attempting to re-orient his wire antennas to reduce coupling, but  
really, this is NOT their problem. That doesn't mean they aren't  
getting a little heat from their neighbors though.

Has anyone else heard about what is going on with this stuff? It has  
been over 25 years since I got a knock on the door with a TVI/RFI  
complaint. Generally, if they were civil, I would listen, smile and  
nod at the appropriate times, then thank them and offer a QSL card to  
confirm their 5-9 reception report. After demonstrating that I  
interfered with none of my own television-phone-stereo equipment, even  
with a kilowatt of RF, I would escort them to the door and suggest  
that they call or write to their TV manufacturer or the phone company  
to resolve their problem. If they were nice, I'd even offer to help  
them write the letter, or assist with the phone call. But that was it.

This just looks like another rats nest ready to fall on our heads.  
Anyone else hear anything about this issue?

Rob W1AEX

On 10 May 2009, at 10:28 AM, R.T.Liddy wrote:

<http://www.broadban dreports. com/forum/ r21536214- Ham-Radio- and-ATT-UVerse 
 >