NEWBIE: Mofi 4500 Sim 7 Using Visible SIM. Set-Up & Optimization. *HELP*

[happy2bhere]

Hi there,

I just purchased a Mofi 4500 Sim 7 Router and a Visible sim card to use as my internet setup in my van. I’ve completed the general setup (so I think?). I’m using “VSLBINTERNET” as my custom APN, Linux-2 65 as my TTL, and I’ve even updated to the most current firmware available. I’ve done multiple speed tests and am unable to get any faster speeds than 3/4 download and 2 upload. I NEED HELPPPPPP!!

What settings can I change to optimize my connection? Why are my speeds so slow if I have almost perfect Verizon coverage where I’m located? Am I being throttled by Visible? If so, how will I know? Please someone help me bypass Visible’s data caps and get this bad boy up and running. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Thank you *so much* in advance

[Didneywhorl]

Try removing the TTL setting. Then power cycle.

Then set TTL to 64. Then power cycle again.

Test after letting it get fully booted up and connected.

You need to be setting both IPV4 AND IPV6 TTL too, make sure.

[BDF1234]

A fellow Sim 7 owner here. Definitely test a few TTL's, as Didneywhorl is suggesting. If your unit is like mine, IPV6 was not enabled, and I left it that way.

Just to be sure, have you band locked onto the fastest band? If not, you will want to do some experimenting and note taking.

1. Perform a band scan. Take note of the available bands, the signal strength, and the bandwidth.
2. Perform a band lock on each band and run several speed tests. Take notes to determine which band gives the fastest speeds.
3. Lock onto the best band and keep it locked until you change locations.

For me, Verizon Band 13 is 10MHz up & down, and has the strongest reception. Therefore the Mofi will probably choose that band by default (i.e. if you don't band lock and let it choose). However, the lower bandwidth and the fact that it is probably the most congested band don't make it the fastest. Some of the other bands (Band 4 and sometimes Band 66) have higher bandwidth. In my area, Band 4 has 20 Mhz up and down. So even with weaker reception (but still useable), Band 4 will be faster than Band 13. Plus its usually less congested.

I hope this helps. Let us know how it works for you.

[BDF1234]

One more note, some users here are running TTL at 117 for Verizon. I have never tried it. But might put that on your list of things to try.

[happy2bhere]

@Didneywhorl and @BDF1234, Thank you SO MUCH for your quick responses and helpful suggestions!!!

@Didneywhorl, a question. What do you mean by "remove the TTL setting"? I have tried to leave the TTL field blank and i'm unable to as it just defaults to another setting. Is there an advanced setting to make that happen? Also, I have no idea where to find the IPV4 and IPV6 settings...

@BDF1234, I've done a band scan, noted the speeds of each band on my carrier, and performed a band lock and multiple speed tests on each. I have no experience setting up a modem or locking to bands, so this was super helpful to learn. On Band 4, I was able to get the fastest speeds using a a TTL of 64. 13.98 download and 7.89 upload. Way faster speeds than I was previously pulling! Still haven't been able to get anything higher than that. Is it safe to say that's probably as good as it's going to get? In this location at least? I was really hoping to pull AT LEAST 20mbps, but I might be dreaming. My home internet gets around 50mbps and sometimes you'll find me complaining about "slow internet". I just want to make sure I'm set up to pull the fastest speeds I can in that area. Thank you for your suggestion of locking into the best band and keeping it locked until i change locations. These are things I need to know as a newbie.

I have some general questions: does the TTL affect the speed of a specific band? I'm new to this and don't quite understand how it all works. Should I at any time have to change my TTL or can I expect to use Verizon's Linux 64 TTL by default in most of the locations i'll be traveling to? While band locking to different bands and changing my TTL, I've found the speeds vary with each TTL used. Also, side note, I tried my TTL at 117 and got pretty slow speeds. The most success i've had so far is with Band 4 and a TTL of 64. It was also suggested to me to use Linux-2 65 as my TTL and I didn't see much of a difference in speeds than using 117.

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

[Didneywhorl]

I forget your using a MOFI. My fault. I'm not a MOFI user :/

TTL simply is a way the carrier sees if the traffic is hotspot or not. Not all carriers use it. It does nothing else, and is band agnostic.

[BDF1234]

Sorry for the late reply. Glad you made some progress! 14 Mbps on the download is really not too bad for a Sim 7. That will likely fluctuate depending on what time of day (slower in the evenings with more congestion on the network). Is that as good as it gets? Hard to say. An external antenna could help, possibly.

I would start by checking your signal strength (under Internal Modem in the Mofi menu). I would mostly ignore the green bar graphic. You can start by checking the RSRP. If your signal is better than -100 dBm (i.e. -95 or -90), you will probably not pick up much speed by implementing an external antenna. But if you are worse than -100, you might benefit. Sometimes the benefit of the external antenna is better stability, but not necessarily better speed.

You have to remember the Mofi Sim 7 has a very basic Cat 4 modem, meaning no carrier aggregation. The Sim 4 does have CA with its Cat 6 modem, but is missing some of the bands that the Sim 7 can pull. So both of the Mofi units are a compromise in performance. The Mofi is very easy to use and extremely reliable (in my experience), but it is unfortunately one of the slowest solutions.

Regarding TTL settings, this is generally only utilized to beat throttling. 14 Mbps download is quite good, and you are not experiencing throttling. TTL settings cannot help with deprioritizing, I'm not aware of anything that can help with that.