UK - Wireless Modem/Router interfering with Sky+ Box

[poynton]

Hi.

I wonder if anyone can suggest a solution.



A friend of mine has a Sky+ box which he uses with the telephone connected for the inteactive service.

He has just gone on broadband and has a wireless router/modem.

All works OK when his laptop is connected via a network cable but as soon as he tries to use wireless, the Sky+ system is wiped out.

With the interactive (phone) cable disconnected, the wireless works fine so does the Sky TV. It's only a problem if the interactive cable is plugged in.

He has tried using different phone sockets, moving the Sky box etc to no avail.

He has microfilters on all phones and sockets.


Any ideas??

As usual, the Sky and internet service provider have call centres in India so there is the usual language problem!!


Andy

[analog_sa]

This sounds a little bit too weird. Are you sure that the wireless part has anything to do with that?

[poynton]

It must be.

The TV, and Sky box work fine with the interactive cable connected if the modem/router is either off or connected via the netcable.
The wireless router/modem works OK.

The problem occurs when the interactive cable is in and the modem is used wireless.

Andy

[NinjaKitten]

Sounds like line interference is screwing with the Sky+ box. What can happen with some poorly designed routers is when you turn on the WiFi, the transmitter circuitry induces a current in the phone line. Good routers have shielding around the WiFi stuff - my Netgear one has the WiFi stuff on a daughterboard with metal shielding over it.

Three solutions in order of preference:
1) Get a new router.
2) Open up your router and fit some shielding yourself if you can.
3) Hook up a 2.4GHz notch filter to the phone line socket on the router.

The last is at best and educated guess and is not guaranteed to work, as who knows what other frequencies/harmonics could be induced by WiFi transmitters.