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connect bt broadband via airport

C

chiphawk

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 13, 2005
9
0
Can anyone tell me how to set up my Airport Extreme with BT Broadband? I am using an imac with OS10.2 but BT seem unable to support me in setting this up. I can connect with a wired connection but not on airport.
All I need is a step by step guide of what I need to do in Airport Admin Utility/System Preferences etc. etc.
OR someone to tell me that it is not possible to connect to bt broadband via an airport

Thanks
 
edesignuk said:
What equipment do you have exactly? The BT USB "fish" modem??
Click to expand...

No, i think it is a Thomson Speedtouch USB but I want to go via the airport extreme base station

Any ideas?
 
You will need an ethernet ADSL modem for starters. You cannot connect USB modems to AirPort. Do you have the AE base station already? If not I'd look at buying an all-in-one ADSL Modem and Wireless router.
 
Already have the AE base station - have been using for non broadband for 18 months

What exactly would I need to get to make it work? I already have an ADSL filter but it does not seem compatible with my AE

Am I flogging a dead horse here?
 
I think I'm getting there but I'm not very techy

What do i do with that ethernet connection? How does that fit in with my AE and my mac?

Can you explain in dunce's language?!
 
OK, you need to be able to do this:

BT Phone line -> Modem -> AirPort.

Currently you have this problem:

BT Phone line -> Modem. Oh dear. You can't connect a modem to AirPort with the USB connection.

Solution:

BT Phone line -> Modem (With Ethernet connection rather than USB) -> Ethernet port on AirPort.

Make sense?
 
makes sense...

Just one final thing. Are there any broadband providers who can go straight from bt phone line -> airport? Then I wouldn't need to buy the ethernet connection. I thought airports were supposed to be compatible with broadband so it seems strange that I need an extra bit of kit.

I'm not sure that BT are the best people to be with on a Mac!

Thanks for all the help so far!
 
im currently gunning my BT broadbabd through a D-Link DSL-500 router, into the Airport extreme base station and its working fine.

On a side note, is anyone else getting their BT broadband upgraded to 2Mb/s service for £4 less than the current 1Mb/s or is it just me
 
AirPort is compatible with broadband...so long as your modem is ethernet and not USB ;)

There's no way to go from a phone line straight in to an AirPort using ADSL. You must have a ADSL modem in between.
 
Thanks - that's been more useful than 50 calls to the BT helpline!

Will order a new modem straightaway

thanks for all the help
 
Modems are not that expensive though - if you already have the AE basestation, try the Zoom X3 from Dabs.com - I've had one for a couple of years and it's been most reliable.
 
For those of you that haven't got an AE base station and want to use the freedom of airport on BBand you could try the Netgear DG834G router. It has an ADSL port and uses the same wireless standard as the AE base station so your Airport card in your Mac will work fine. The Netgear is around £80 but the range is not as good as the AE base station.....still it will cut out the need for yet another bit of kit on your desk. :D

However, it is about time that Apple put an ADSL port onto the AE base stations and ditch the 56k modem.
 
OK guys, I am now the proud owner of a D-link DSL-300T ADSL modem...but am clueless to how to set it up with my airport.

Anyone got time for a step by step guide to setting it up (in dunce's language please)??? I've managed to get it plugged in and that's about it!
 
chiphawk said:
OK guys, I am now the proud owner of a D-link DSL-300T ADSL modem...but am clueless to how to set it up with my airport.

Anyone got time for a step by step guide to setting it up (in dunce's language please)??? I've managed to get it plugged in and that's about it!
Click to expand...
Unless someone else happens to have this modem, no one is going to be able to give you an exact step by step. Get reading that manual, and good luck! :)
 
I read the manual - and am able to connect via my ADSL modem to broadband - but still can't get it to work with the Airport.

It doesn't seem to want to let me reconfigure the Airport to connect via the ethernet.

Has anyone else had similar problems? Please help! I want to go wireless!
 
chiphawk said:
I read the manual - and am able to connect via my ADSL modem to broadband - but still can't get it to work with the Airport.

It doesn't seem to want to let me reconfigure the Airport to connect via the ethernet.

Has anyone else had similar problems? Please help! I want to go wireless!
Click to expand...
Perhaps you're using the wrong utility program. If you need to tell the AirPort base station to connect to the Internet with its Ethernet port, you must do that via the AirPort Admin Utility, located in the Utilities folder inside the Applications folder (absolute path: /Applications/Utilities). The AirPort Admin Utility has help that you can access like any other Apple Mac software program: go to the Application menu (which has the name of the current application) (or is it the Help menu, if there is one? I don't remember, and I can't check because I'm not at my Mac) and choose Help.
 
OK - I'll give it a go. I don't have that modem but I do have BT broadband via an Airport base station so it's perfectly possible! I do remember a few screams of frustration along the way though

You've got it working with the ethernet modem plugged straight into the Mac? Right?

So turn on your airport but don't plug in the ethernet cable yet.
Follow this guide
http://www.adslnation.co.uk/support/knowledgebase/ht007.php
It's from the company that I got my adsl modem from and helped no end - this one refers to the point after you've got the modem working with the Mac when wired.

If it still doesn't work, then turn modem, Mac and airport off but leave them wired together. Wait a few minutes then turn on the modem, wait for it to connect. Turn on the Airport and wait and then turn on the Mac. You should be OK then. (It was turning everything on in this order that finally got mine working and it's been fine ever since - a year and counting)

Good luck!
 
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