Airport Extreme, Motorola Surfboard and Time Warner Cable

[mneblett]

Another request for an update -- I am experiencing the same problem.

I have a current-generation Time Capsule and a Motorola 6121. I purchased (and returned) a 6141 after a factory-reset of the Time Capsule restored internet access (i.e., it appeared that the modem was not the problem). Direct ethernet connection to my MacBook Pro always shows good internet connection. I made an appointment with Apple to swap the Time Capsule, but now I'm not sure whether to proceed with the swap if the issue is actually a Cox/modem issue.

 

[jshea]

Another request for an update -- I am experiencing the same problem.

I have a current-generation Time Capsule and a Motorola 6121. I purchased (and returned) a 6141 after a factory-reset of the Time Capsule restored internet access (i.e., it appeared that the modem was not the problem). Direct ethernet connection to my MacBook Pro always shows good internet connection. I made an appointment with Apple to swap the Time Capsule, but now I'm not sure whether to proceed with the swap if the issue is actually a Cox/modem issue.

I also have Cox and had these same problems. Modem/Time Capsule connection would freeze up every night, requiring a reboot of one or both devices. Finally, I replaced the modem with a Zoom 5341J, and my connection has been up ever since (over a week now).

 

[Altemose]

The SB6141 is notorious for problems with Apple networking equipment. I would stick with the SB6121 or get an SB6183.

 

[manumanishk1234]

I have TWC with that same modem and a new Time Capsule (essentially the same as your Extreme with a hard drive inside) and everything works fine, so what you have can work together.

http://192.168.100.1/cmLogs.htm

The very next time this happens, click on this link and that will take you to your cable modem's log page. Look there for clues to what is going on. I suspect what you will see when you do this is a series to T3 and T4 timeout errors like this, followed by a modem reboot. You will be able to see the reboot in the log. Note the times there are shown in GMT, so will be off your local time.

If this is what is going on, you need to get TWC out to fix it because there is a bad connection somewhere between you and the cable plant. What happens is the cable plant and modem talk to each other all the time to stay online, and when there is a breakdown in that process you get those T4 T4 errors. After a string of those errors back to back, the cable modem will reboot to try and fix things. I suspect it is during this reboot that your Internet is going down.

In 2007 I fought with TW for two months before a tech finally fixed a bad connection in a junction box a mile away and I never had the problem afterward.

Take a screenshot of the T3 and T4 errors followed by the log showing the modem reboot. Don't be surprised when some of the techs don't even know what those log entries are and try to dismiss them.

[doublepost=1469551564][/doublepost]I had the same problem and the log details was much helpful. i called up TWC and they could confirm that there was some issue at their end. She was able to fix this and after that I didn't have any issues. thanks for the log information though.

 

[manumanishk1234]

so if my Technology sense is correct there shouldn't be a compatibility issue between modem and router as there is no rocket science in modem. it is a very very simple device which participates in modulation and demodulation. and WIFI just takes that digital signal and emits wireless signal. In my case it was totally issue with the wrong configuration at TWC and nothing to do with compatibility. I can understand the compatibility issue with very aged devices like latest router with years old modem or vice versa. but here we are talking about DocSIS 3 modem and latest wifi. but I could be wrong.

 

[mk313]

I had this exact same issue (except with a Time Capsule), and it drove me nuts. I replaced the modem & the TimeCapsule, but with no improvement. I had the Time Warner tech guys out twice and no luck. I did find a thread on the Apple Support site with others who had the same issue. While both the airport & the motorola are great pieces of gear, there is some kind of issue between them. The thread recommended switching to a new modem. I bought a Zoom Modem & all of my issues went away immediately. I did that in October of last year & have had zero issues since then. Not sure what is causing the issue, but in my case, switching modem brands (or probably router brands too, but I like the Time Capsule more than I like the modem) completely fixed my issue and I have had zero connectivity issues since then.

 

[Altemose]

It is well documented that the SB6141 has had significant issues with Apple and some Linksys routers. It is quite astounding actually since the SB6121 (predecessor) and the SB6183 (successor) both work fine in identical configurations.