Network Vision/LTE - Chicago Market

[nick]

So what does B26 optimization supposed to do?

optimize B26, from what i under stand they configure band 26 for capacity so they make it match band 25 coverage.  until band 41 is properly deployed then they optimize band 26 for coverage, both radius and building penetration because its no longer needed for capacity.  many areas have band 26 that performs nearly identical to band 25, since band 26 is 800 and band 25 is 1900 its set up that way to begin with.  This seems to be a slow process why no one is for sure, some have speculated it has to due with old iden/nextel equipment interfering, some think its man power shortage, others poor network management (they don't know how to optimize it).  I think its man power shortage...  

[Vince]

Well, I got another response about the network here in Chicago. I've emailed about 5 people over the last year, and each email gets a little better. What do you think?

 

 

 

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[Fraydog]

My God, it's local people who act like they have a clue! Yes!

[Vince]

My God, it's local people who act like they have a clue! Yes!

It's something, but still seems rather generic for my taste. I would really love some numbers and a timeframe from the engineers.

 

 

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[Joeynach]

It's something, but still seems rather generic for my taste. I would really love some numbers and a timeframe from the engineers.

 

 

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I was thinking the same, thought always a pleasure to see a large corporation acknowledge pros and cons of their service outside of standard marketing rhetoric.

[nick]

Well, I got another response about the network here in Chicago. I've emailed about 5 people over the last year, and each email gets a little better. What do you think?

 

 

 

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mine was better, i also emailed Tracy see the same twiter feed as you (i think that was you)  i got an email from her cheif of staff holly, to set up a phone call with me and Hammad shaikh. he is the network manager for my region (not Chicago though) we talk for an hour and a half last night.  long story short they are going to make tower adjustments based on my recommendations, then send in a drive team to  the changes.  in 2-3 weeks they will upgrade the final tower in my town, they will send a drive team to get a better assessment after the new tower is activated.  I also learned they have just begun to select macro and micro sites for NGN they are planning one for janesville near the intersection i recommended in my email lol.  They are still finalizing NGN equipment vendors for small cells, he claims they will be band 41 only(primarily to help with capacity and coverage), and deployment will begin in early 2016 (jan-feb) the roll out will be swift they expect to have is nearly complete by the end of 2016.  I am so happy to have a contact on the network side, he said he has been with the company for years and this is only the second time he has been asked to contact a customer.  I asked if i could ride along during the next test, he laughed... he probably thought i was kidding 

[Vince]

It's a small world out there on the interwebz. That was definitely me on that Twitter conversation.

 

 

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[Arysyn]

Well that's great. I hope something good comes of it. I fear that nobody is even aware of this "little" issue.

 

The sad part is, this person is already looking at exercising his 14 day return period because of this. Can't imagine how many other people already hesitant but willing to try Sprint are doing so and finding the same results and canceling.

That was a major issue I was having when I had Sprint the last time around. I was being honest about it by trying to not entirely blame the network, but to give the possibility of it being a phone problem, which in part it was. The store employees I spoke with about it though were blaming the network, which seemed very odd to me.

 

However, I now regret cancelling, as I should have tried the higher rf rated Sharp Aquos Crystal and kept that while dealing with the network issues present, as I would have been better off than I am now dealing with T-Mobile.

[nick]

That was a major issue I was having when I had Sprint the last time around. I was being honest about it by trying to not entirely blame the network, but to give the possibility of it being a phone problem, which in part it was. The store employees I spoke with about it though were blaming the network, which seemed very odd to me.

 

However, I now regret cancelling, as I should have tried the higher rf rated Sharp Aquos Crystal and kept that while dealing with the network issues present, as I would have been better off than I am now dealing with T-Mobile.

no cellular network is perfect, they all have dead spots, and slow data.  but it was nice to have sprint reach out to me in a meaningful way, in the coming weeks i will know if i affected positive change or not.  I believe the network manager was legitimate as he had almost zero "customer service language", called well after hours, from his cell phone, and had more information available to him than any other CSR i have even delt with.  I wish they had an advanced customer service line, not just one that recommends people to update the phone's PRL or gives answers like the network is being upgraded or we are experiencing issues.  this guy was digging down to the degree of direction for each panel on each tower, talking about down tilt levels and power out put ratios.

[Arysyn]

I think it is a great thing Sprint is doing by having its network team communicating with customers when there are issues. I should have tried that after getting the Sharp device, which at least in getting the Sharp device would have resolved that half of the issues I had. Then I could have moved on trying to communicate with the network team.

 

I had a mostly bad experience with the store staff at corporate stores, which many people here on S4GRU have since advised me is a known Sprint trouble area Sprint is working at improving, which definitely is good to hear. I'm going to give Sprint another try, if Sharp brings an updated device to Sprint. Although I'm also considering Verizon if they have good holiday deals this year, along with either the Sony Xperia Z4v or the new Droid Turbo. I might also consider Sprint, if they introduce the Android Forever program, where I can get an S6 soon, then trade it in when the S7 is available.

[nick]

I think it is a great thing Sprint is doing by having its network team communicating with customers when there are issues. I should have tried that after getting the Sharp device, which at least in getting the Sharp device would have resolved that half of the issues I had. Then I could have moved on trying to communicate with the network team.

 

I had a mostly bad experience with the store staff at corporate stores, which many people here on S4GRU have since advised me is a known Sprint trouble area Sprint is working at improving, which definitely is good to hear. I'm going to give Sprint another try, if Sharp brings an updated device to Sprint. Although I'm also considering Verizon if they have good holiday deals this year, along with either the Sony Xperia Z4v or the new Droid Turbo. I might also consider Sprint, if they introduce the Android Forever program, where I can get an S6 soon, then trade it in when the S7 is available.

the average customer service representative for sprint knows significantly less than most people on this website, they typically don't know much of anything about the network.... Not uncommon for all carriers, att reps at not knowledgable about att's network either.

 

 

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[gusherb]

Well, I got another response about the network here in Chicago. I've emailed about 5 people over the last year, and each email gets a little better. What do you think?

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The way that's worded suggests to me that they think LTE 800 is already tuned and optimized properly. I hope that's not true though.

[Vince]

The way that's worded suggests to me that they think LTE 800 is already tuned and optimized properly. I hope that's not true though.

Yeah, I'm done worrying about it. I'm happy with my phone, my bill, and my service. If I drop to 3G, an airplane toggle doesn't bother me if I need high-speed data. I have fast speeds everywhere, hd voice, and my calls don't drop. I just think Sprint has the potential to really nail down this market and others with not only blazing speeds, but really strong LTE coverage with their low-band spectrum, too. They employ engineers for this stuff, and I'm quite sure they know what they're doing. I'm just a guy with an iPhone and an idea.

 

 

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[gusherb]

Yeah, I'm done worrying about it. I'm happy with my phone, my bill, and my service. If I drop to 3G, an airplane toggle doesn't bother me if I need high-speed data. I have fast speeds everywhere, hd voice, and my calls don't drop. I just think Sprint has the potential to really nail down this market and others with not only blazing speeds, but really strong LTE coverage with their low-band spectrum, too. They employ engineers for this stuff, and I'm quite sure they know what they're doing. I'm just a guy with an iPhone and an idea.

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I should stop worrying too, I'm on another carrier that i have a very good plan with and service that is usable everywhere, and VoLTE/HD voice that works great with no drops. But if sprint thinks the way it is is ok and leaves it that way Indefinitely, with holes, I definitely won't consider coming back unless that changes.

[sbureau]

I should stop worrying too, I'm on another carrier that i have a very good plan with and service that is usable everywhere, and VoLTE/HD voice that works great with no drops. But if sprint thinks the way it is is ok and leaves it that way Indefinitely, with holes, I definitely won't consider coming back unless that changes.

Having issues in Downers grove 60516 @ 59TH & Janes Ave (my house). Call are not coming in, rining on the callers end then going to VM on my end without ringing. 

 

Support tells me there are many tickets open on the towers in my area but none for the nearest tower to my house. They say blocked calls (what I'm seeing) are being reported an that tower upgrades are in process which may be causing some of this.

 

I've done pinpoint reports via sprint zone. I'm within my 14 day return window (iphone 6s +)and it's critical that calls come in at home. I can't use WIFI calling due to bug with HD voice not working on non-wifi calls.

 

Can anyone help pinpoint the towers in my area that are having issues or put me in touch with someone? (Tracy Nolan?) at Sprint who can really help? I would love stay with Sprint, but can't if this isn't resolved. 

Edited September 30, 2015 by sbureau

[nick]

Having issues in Downers grove 60516 @ 59TH & Janes Ave (my house). Call are not coming in, rining on the callers end then going to VM on my end without ringing. 

 

Support tells me there are many tickets open on the towers in my area but none for the nearest tower to my house. They say blocked calls (what I'm seeing) are being reported an that tower upgrades are in process which may be causing some of this.

 

I've done pinpoint reports via sprint zone. I'm within my 14 day return window (iphone 6s +)and it's critical that calls come in at home. I can't use WIFI calling due to bug with HD voice not working on non-wifi calls.

 

Can anyone help pinpoint the towers in my area that are having issues or put me in touch with someone? (Tracy Nolan?) at Sprint who can really help? I would love stay with Sprint, but can't if this isn't resolved. 

you can find your tower on sprint's own map, here is the link.

http://network.sprint.com/search/chicago/

if the problem is upgrades in progress then no one at sprint can help you, the upgrade is being made as quickly as possible.  no one can magically speed it up or fix it.  Any one you can "get a hold of" isn't going to be able to fix your problems within your return window....  sadly you either have to wait and see if it gets better, or move on to a carrier that better suits your needs, also the "bug" that prevents HD voice is not the worst thing in the world regular calls aren't bad, they just aren't HD.  How is service outside your house and around town?   

[sbureau]

you can find your tower on sprint's own map, here is the link.

http://network.sprint.com/search/chicago/

if the problem is upgrades in progress then no one at sprint can help you, the upgrade is being made as quickly as possible.  no one can magically speed it up or fix it.  Any one you can "get a hold of" isn't going to be able to fix your problems within your return window....  sadly you either have to wait and see if it gets better, or move on to a carrier that better suits your needs, also the "bug" that prevents HD voice is not the worst thing in the world regular calls aren't bad, they just aren't HD.  How is service outside your house and around town?   

At my home location inside and outside calls are being blocked and rolling to VM. The signal is ok and when outgoing calls are made or an incoming call that comes in and isn't blocked, the service is fine.

 

When HD voice isn't working (due to wifi calling bug) calls are so muffled and distorted that you can't understand what people are saying. 

[nick]

At my home location inside and outside calls are being blocked and rolling to VM. The signal is ok and when outgoing calls are made or an incoming call that comes in and isn't blocked, the service is fine.

 

When HD voice isn't working (due to wifi calling bug) calls are so muffled and distorted that you can't understand what people are saying. 

according to the network upgrade map on sprint's website your house is positioned between two towers, it is possible that you "bounce" between them and that is causing your issues (if one is being upgrades), have you contacted sprint care via twitter? I find the twitter reps to be slightly more knowledgeable than the phone reps, when you leave the area say 2-3 miles away is your service ok? I only ask because its possible you have a defective phone(unlikely but possible).  beyond that you may have to cancel service or just keep it and hope it gets better, you may have luck contacting tracy nolan on twitter, see her tweets for her email address, worth a shot i suppose. 

[Rasta Cheesehead]

At my home location inside and outside calls are being blocked and rolling to VM. The signal is ok and when outgoing calls are made or an incoming call that comes in and isn't blocked, the service is fine.

 

When HD voice isn't working (due to wifi calling bug) calls are so muffled and distorted that you can't understand what people are saying. 

The Rep was telling you correct. If some towers near you are having issues, it will affect adjacent sites. When on tower goes down the adjacent sites have to handle the traffic. Block calls are a result of this increase in traffic on a site that should for example handle 2000 connections and now has to handle 3000 or even 4000, now. When the tower cant connect you call ,or make any more connects,  it will block you.

[sbureau]

according to the network upgrade map on sprint's website your house is positioned between two towers, it is possible that you "bounce" between them and that is causing your issues (if one is being upgrades), have you contacted sprint care via twitter? I find the twitter reps to be slightly more knowledgeable than the phone reps, when you leave the area say 2-3 miles away is your service ok? I only ask because its possible you have a defective phone(unlikely but possible).  beyond that you may have to cancel service or just keep it and hope it gets better, you may have luck contacting tracy nolan on twitter, see her tweets for her email address, worth a shot i suppose. 

I emailed Tracy Morgan yesterday morning and got a response from her around 3pm Chicago time. She said she asked her network team to give her an update in the next 24 hours.

 

I got home around 4:45 and there was car sitting on the street in front of my house with 2 guys in it, didn't think much of it until 7:30 pm when it was still sitting there. My neighbor and I got suspicious so we went an talked to them. They were 2 contractors working for sprint and they were there due to my email to Tracy! They were running tests and collecting data on their laptop and communicating what they found to higher ups.

 

Follow up call form Tracy's chief of staff just now and she read me an email from the head network engineer Vlad which said they out here for so long because they were working with the tower people to physically turn and tune the antenna's to try and provide a better signal to my area. They said they don't have any antennas pointing directly towards my location, but they were able to make marginal improvements. The good news is (and we'll see how long it lasts) I'm at home today and the call from the chief of staff rang on my phone and the quality of the call was good.

 

Finally, I also pointed out to Tracy in the email the HD voice not working when you enable WiFi calling bug. This is a bug where even when making a cell to cell call HD voice doesn't work if wifi calling is enabled. This was forwarded to their devices and systems team and apparently they have been able to reproduce it and have opened a ticket with Apple and with Sprint engineering. So, perhaps we'll get some traction on this issue as well.

 

Kudos to Tracy Morgan for taking charge and getting things done, I've NEVER experienced anything like this with Sprint or any other carrier before. If this is what sprints new model for running their markets is going to be like, I think it's great.

Edited October 2, 2015 by sbureau

[nick]

I emailed Tracy Morgan yesterday morning and got a response from her around 3pm Chicago time. She said she asked her network team to give her an update in the next 24 hours.

 

I got home around 4:45 and there was car sitting on the street in front of my house with 2 guys in it, didn't think much of it until 7:30 pm when it was still sitting there. My neighbor and I got suspicious so we went an talked to them. They were 2 contractors working for sprint and they were there due to my email to Tracy! They were running tests and collecting data on their laptop and communicating what they found to higher ups.

 

Follow up call form Tracy's chief of staff just now and she read me an email from the head network engineer Vlad which said they out here for so long because they were working with the tower people to physically turn and tune the antenna's to try and provide a better signal to my area. They said they don't have any antennas pointing directly towards my location, but they were able to make marginal improvements. The good news is (and we'll see how long it lasts) I'm at home today and the call from the chief of staff rang on my phone and the quality of the call was good.

 

Finally, I also pointed out to Tracy in the email the HD voice not working when you enable WiFi calling bug. This is a bug where even when making a cell to cell call HD voice doesn't work if wifi calling is enabled. This was forwarded to their devices and systems team and apparently they have been able to reproduce it and have opened a ticket with Apple and with Sprint engineering. So, perhaps we'll get some traction on this issue as well.

 

Kudos to Tracy Morgan for taking charge and getting things done, I've NEVER experienced anything like this with Sprint or any other carrier before. If this is what sprints new model for running their markets is going to be like, I think it's great.

great to hear you got this level of service, i think its Tracy Nolan you talked to though.  that is what it will take to make a great network, fine tuning micro adjustments are going to be key going forward.  hope your troubles are over. 

[sbureau]

great to hear you got this level of service, i think its Tracy Nolan you talked to though.  that is what it will take to make a great network, fine tuning micro adjustments are going to be key going forward.  hope your troubles are over. 

Tracy Nolan not Morgan as you point out, lol.

[WiWavelength]

I emailed Tracy Morgan yesterday morning and got a response from her around 3pm Chicago time.

Tracy Nolan not Morgan as you point out, lol.

 

Thank goodness her name is not Tracy Morgan.  Otherwise...

 

 

The situation reminds me of a woman I worked with a few years ago.  She was a well educated professional, a lawyer, but I worked with her as a lecturer.  Unfortunately for her, she was named Jessica Simpson.  Much like with the "Michael Bolton" character in "Office Space," I imagine that was no problem in her early life -- until the air headed pop star Jessica Simpson had a TV show.  While my colleague's full name was indeed Jessica Simpson, she operated in her professional life as Jessie Simpson.  Completely understandable.

 

AJ

[nexgencpu]

Thank goodness her name is not Tracy Morgan.  Otherwise...

 

 

 

The situation reminds me of a woman I worked with a few years ago.  She was a well educated professional, a lawyer, but I worked with her as a lecturer.  Unfortunately for her, she was named Jessica Simpson.  Much like with the "Michael Bolton" character in "Office Space," I imagine that was no problem in her early life -- until the air headed pop star Jessica Simpson had a TV show.  While my colleague's full name was indeed Jessica Simpson, she operated in her professional life as Jessie Simpson.  Completely understandable.

 

AJ

Except in this case Tracy Morgan is awesome, Jessica Simpson...not so much.

[WiWavelength]

Except in this case Tracy Morgan is awesome, Jessica Simpson...not so much.

 

Tracy Morgan on Saturday Night Live, yes.  Many excellent characters and sketches.  Tracy Morgan playing himself on "30 Rock" and in everyday life, no, hell no.

 

AJ