High Upstream Power Levels

Yep. The upstream power is borderline / too high. There's no wiggle room to allow for the inevitable intermittent fluctuations of it. It may be a problem just waiting to happen. The 3.5 dB loss splitters will help a bit but it may not be enough. An active splitter / zero loss amplifier or an amp with an active return may be needed instead of passive splitters.

Thanks EG. I'm not familiar with what an active splitter or zero loss amplifier - any recommendations on which and how to install? Or do you recommend getting a tech out to assist with balancing the upstream levels?

Since you are not having any problems, you may want to consider trying a wait-and-see approach. If you do have problems, perhaps it indeed would be best to get a tech out. Be advised, at the tech's discretion, there may be around a one hundred dollar charge for their service. Good luck !

Appreciate it. Since I have to have splitters for my MoCA setup to work properly, do you think swapping out the ones I have with lower loss output terminals would help upstream power levels at all? I just got the standard splitters meant for MocA frequencies, but not sure if there are other ones (still compatible with MocA) but with lesser loss.

Yes. Theoretically, it will help, but it may not be enough as was stated. If you only gain 1, 2, or 3 dB less loss, that still may not be enough wiggle room. Two-way (3.5 dB loss) MoCA-compliant splitters are the lowest-loss passive splitters that are made.

Thanks EG. I'm going to look into swapping out that 2-way splitter I have for a lower loss (-3.5 db) one that you suggested.

On a side note, I've read on the Xfinity forums that the specific tolerance range for upstream power is:

Upstream Power Level:  +25dBmV to +54dBmV

Upstream Signal to Noise Ratio (uSNR): >31dB  

Being that my upstream power fluctuates between 50-51.5 dbmV, is this why I haven't experienced any disconnects or modem reboots?

That's incorrect. These are the specs from the "Internet Troubleshooting Tips" topic that is pinned at the top of this help board;

50-51 is just about the upper limit. Bear in mind that some makes and models of modem's chipsets are more forgiving of less than perfect signals / connection quality than others are.

Got it - thanks for clarifying. I'll keep you posted when I get that -3.5 db loss splitter and swap it out from my existing to see if it makes any difference. Appreciate your help!

Ok. Good luck !

So to update, I'm still with my MoCA setup, and have not experienced any drops or internet connectivity issues.

Yesterday I received my new splitter that has a 1 db lower loss than the one I'm currently using for my setup. I swapped out my 2-way splitter that had a -4.5 db loss for both output terminals for another 2-way splitter that has -3.5 db loss to each terminal. The hope was that swapping the splitters would have a positive impact to lowering my upstream power levels slightly.

Looked at the cable modem signals and downstream remained the relatively the same as before, but the upstream levels actually increased! Definitely was not expecting that - I was thinking that the power would go down very slightly. Before I had power between 50 - 51.5 as the max.

I had restarted the modem and still surprised I got these stats. The modem has been up for roughly 15 hours now, no drops, no disconnects, and internet working fine as it did before. Modem log is empty.

Is this expected? Am I missing something?

@unioncorps2021 Perhaps the line conditions have changed and that has negated that 1 dB gain ? 1 dB is not nearly enough to be able to be used as a point of reference / comparison. Line conditions can vary by 3-4 dB daily.