Network Vision/LTE - Chicago Market

[gusherb]

On 8/24/2017 at 5:33 PM, gusherb said:

I found another new site going up and this time it's not AT&T or Verizon (Verizon is already on this tower). It doesn't look like TMO....So could it actually be a new Sprint macro!? The only thing I could tell that it might be Sprint is the two equal sized outer panels and shorter inner panel (two B26/25 and one B41 panel in the middle), but I'm holding reservation about it being Sprint just because they don't really ever add sites, and there's already a Sprint site right in that area. 

 

 

 

On 8/25/2017 at 8:03 AM, Dkoellerwx said:

 

It looks like it might be T-Mo to me. No indication of a new Sprint site going in in that area.

Turned out to be T-Mobile

[runagun]

New Microcell Found In Rockford IL.  Location = https://goo.gl/maps/uAtzZ2yLzR22

 

[bucdenny]

8 minutes ago, runagun said:

New Microcell Found In Rockford IL.  Location = https://goo.gl/maps/uAtzZ2yLzR22

 

 

 

Is it live?  What speeds are you getting?

[runagun]

50 minutes ago, bucdenny said:

Is it live?  What speeds are you getting?

30-40 megs. The dead zone in Woodman's has been fixed.  In the store it was more like 10-15megs.  Much Better then no service or 3G.  

[WuTang03]

8 hours ago, runagun said:

30-40 megs. The dead zone in Woodman's has been fixed.  In the store it was more like 10-15megs.  Much Better then no service or 3G.  

Awesome to see the pace of small cell deployments coming up! Now they just need to get them in the parking lots of every big box store so B41 doesn't cut out

[runagun]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/burr-ridge/news/ct-dhd-central-antenna-sprint-tl-0315-20180309-story.html

[WuTang03]

On 3/10/2018 at 1:44 PM, runagun said:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/burr-ridge/news/ct-dhd-central-antenna-sprint-tl-0315-20180309-story.html

Yay! The current antennas (Verizon, etc) on the water tower were proposed to the administration by me back when I was in HS! Glad to see Sprint catching up

[mhammett]

On 2/21/2018 at 9:30 PM, Paynefanbro said:

Wow, those are unattractive. Do other parts of Chicago have rules about how these are supposed to look that go beyond "make it the same color as the pole it's on"?

Who cares what it looks like? I didn't know this was the Victoria Secret Fashion Show.

[Paynefanbro]

10 minutes ago, mhammett said:

Who cares what it looks like? I didn't know this was the Victoria Secret Fashion Show.

Ok???

[gusherb]

This seemed like a rather odd placement for a small cell, on a pole in an alley. Not sure anyone's getting the best use out of it there as opposed to being along the actual main road instead.

 

[lilotimz]

3 hours ago, gusherb said:

This seemed like a rather odd placement for a small cell, on a pole in an alley. Not sure anyone's getting the best use out of it there as opposed to being along the actual main road instead.

 

 

Very inconspicuous  

[Cubbiefan82]

Didn't even have to check the site by my parents(elgin) I ran a speed test and I am getting 150 mbps from my htc9. Cant wait to see what my new phone does, love seeing the upgrades coming though

[emusselman]

I'm having a strange issue that just started happening 1-2 weeks ago.  I have a Pixel XL (1st gen), and as I move around the city (walking, car, bus, el, etc.) I will lose LTE data -- the signal strength bars will be just an empty outline.  A few seconds later, it'll be full strength but roaming with an "R" next to it, then empty outline again.  Then it will come back up full strength LTE.  This repeats frequently-- every 1-2 minutes.  It doesn't seem to be an issue when I'm stationary at home or at work.

After performing all self-troubleshooting I could (remove/clean/reseat SIM card, reset network settings, *#*#SCRTN#*#*, factory reset entire device, etc.) I contacted Sprint for assistance last night.  I was transferred to level 2 tech support in OKC.

The tech said that it was because there were so many magic boxes that have come online in my area, and that's straining the network; she said all of the cells around me were "2.5g, slow data only, with the nearest full LTE tower 2+ miles away", and when I clarified-- 2.5 GHz LTE or truly 2.5 G data speeds, she said the latter.  That doesn't sound right to me-- I've never had issues like this anywhere in the city, and this was happening to me all over.  Edgewater, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, even on the south side along the Dan Ryan.  But, isn't happening anywhere else outside the city.  Was in Central Illinois all weekend and didn't have a single issue once I got out of Chicagoland.

I also did a search online, and found some people complaining about something similar back in 2016 in Chicago and Indy, but nothing in the last 1.5 years.  It's just strange this started happening, and I am not sure if the tech support person I spoke with either fully understood the issue or provided me with the correct answer.  She basically said, "I'll put in a ticket, but there's nothing else we can do right now." 

After having experienced this for almost 2 weeks, I'm wondering if there is value in trying to call back and speak with someone else for a second opinion.  Could an influx of new magic boxes really be causing this problem for me?  And am I the only one experiencing this?

[tongboy]

I'm having a strange issue that just started happening 1-2 weeks ago.  I have a Pixel XL (1st gen), and as I move around the city (walking, car, bus, el, etc.) I will lose LTE data -- the signal strength bars will be just an empty outline.  A few seconds later, it'll be full strength but roaming with an "R" next to it, then empty outline again.  Then it will come back up full strength LTE.  This repeats frequently-- every 1-2 minutes.  It doesn't seem to be an issue when I'm stationary at home or at work.
After performing all self-troubleshooting I could (remove/clean/reseat SIM card, reset network settings, *#*#SCRTN#*#*, factory reset entire device, etc.) I contacted Sprint for assistance last night.  I was transferred to level 2 tech support in OKC.
The tech said that it was because there were so many magic boxes that have come online in my area, and that's straining the network; she said all of the cells around me were "2.5g, slow data only, with the nearest full LTE tower 2+ miles away", and when I clarified-- 2.5 GHz LTE or truly 2.5 G data speeds, she said the latter.  That doesn't sound right to me-- I've never had issues like this anywhere in the city, and this was happening to me all over.  Edgewater, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, even on the south side along the Dan Ryan.  But, isn't happening anywhere else outside the city.  Was in Central Illinois all weekend and didn't have a single issue once I got out of Chicagoland.
I also did a search online, and found some people complaining about something similar back in 2016 in Chicago and Indy, but nothing in the last 1.5 years.  It's just strange this started happening, and I am not sure if the tech support person I spoke with either fully understood the issue or provided me with the correct answer.  She basically said, "I'll put in a ticket, but there's nothing else we can do right now." 
After having experienced this for almost 2 weeks, I'm wondering if there is value in trying to call back and speak with someone else for a second opinion.  Could an influx of new magic boxes really be causing this problem for me?  And am I the only one experiencing this?

Are you experiencing these issues in the suburbs too?

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

[emusselman]

1 hour ago, tongboy said:

Are you experiencing these issues in the suburbs too?

I'm afraid I can't answer that-- I don't really go to the suburbs.  However, when I was on my way out of town Friday afternoon, I didn't experience any issues once I got on I-57 (from I-94) and then to I-80 to Joliet. The only place I've experienced this is in the city proper.

[blinky847]

My current temp job takes me from Crystal Lake to Naperville to Oak Lawn, even to a few neighborhoods in Chicago (e.g. Bronzeville, Ravenswood), but I never had a problem that severe. Well, maybe when I go to a nearby park called Lake Park in Des Plaines - my Pixel XL may switch from LTE to 3G, and then back. Maybe its "large" body of water degrades the signal?

I do a fair amount of driving on the expressways and tollways, especially when on a job earlier this year, but had no issues with my Pixel phone - in fact, sometimes it worked better than my work Verizon phone when going back and forth on the southern portion of the I-294 tollway. ?

[mhammett]

If a Sprint channel is on 1875 MHz, what size of channel is it?

What is the Chicago-area currently running on?

[Flompholph]

These are the earfcn that I have seen in chicago.

8290/8665/8763/41374/41176/40978/41111/40913

8290 should be 10x10 which has 1875 Mhz uplink. But that is just from my logs need in person to be sure.

[RAvirani]

46 minutes ago, Flompholph said:

8290 should be 10x10 which has 1875 Mhz uplink. But that is just from my logs need in person to be sure.

I can confirm that is true. 

[mhammett]

The one I was looking at was 8290, so that should hold true.

https://www.cellmapper.net/map?MCC=310&MNC=120&type=LTE&latitude=41.85563059481918&longitude=-88.50457084856009&zoom=11&showTowers=true&clusterEnabled=true&tilesEnabled=true&heatMapEnabled=false&showOrphans=false&showNoFrequencyOnly=false&showFrequencyOnly=false&showBandwidthOnly=false&DateFilterType=Last&showHex=false&showVerifiedOnly=false&showUnverifiedOnly=false&showLTECAOnly=false&showBand=0&mapType=custom_map&showSectorColours=true

[RedSpark]

Very nice!

[RedSpark]

Sprint plans to start turning on its 5G network in Chicago during the first half of this year.

Representatives from T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon all declined to comment on specific Chicago plans.

[RedSpark]

 

[mhammett]

Did you run CellMapper when driving around?

[RedSpark]

A couple of interesting reports.