Internet performance became oddly inconsistent after switching the LAN cable from the modem to the router.
Internet performance became oddly inconsistent after switching the LAN cable from the modem to the router.
Hey there! I'm facing some odd issues with my home network setup. I have a cable modem from the ISP, and a cat6 LAN cable connecting it to my router (Linksys Velop). I usually check speeds through the Linksys app, which shows exactly what I should be getting. I also run speed tests on my Android phone using different tools, and I thought maybe Speedtest.net was causing trouble. My PC, which is directly connected via LAN to the router, consistently reports 300/30 Mbps as advertised. But yesterday I switched some LAN cables from the switch I normally use, and I suspect I may have touched the cable between the modem and router. Suddenly, my speeds dropped drastically—around 0.6/3 or 12/5, which is pretty unusual. Every time I run a speed test, the results change. I've tried standard troubleshooting: unplugging the modem and router, disconnecting devices for long periods, contacting the ISP who said everything is fine, resetting the Velop, and even swapping the LAN cables. My current thoughts are that either the modem itself might be faulty, or maybe I had a previous issue where gently moving the cable caused problems. I've also noticed that if I touch the LAN cable between the router and modem a bit harder, the connection seems to fail. After a few minutes, it sometimes works again. Now it's not working at all. My concern is whether the LAN port on the modem is damaged—especially since I've changed the APs and moved the main node. I don't see any info about bad LAN ports on modems online. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
I changed cables several times. I switched between cat5e, cat6, cat6a, even cat7. It doesn’t really make much sense, but I tried everything. Now I’m doing it again, and for a moment I had my 300/30. Then I bent the cable differently and speed dropped completely. It seems the issue is with the modem’s LAN port. It looks normal to me, but it’s definitely affecting performance. How can a different angle suddenly restore full speed? It’s strange since all contacts still connect properly. Why would that work?
It's actually quite normal if the solder connections between the socket and the board have deteriorated. Bending the cable can improve their contact.