Can A Signal From A Tower Change?

---

@Rickochet wrote:

At a rural location at a lake I got ok signal for about 18 months.  Only usually one bar but always had service and never dropped calls.  Before I changed from Sprint to ATT I made sure the service worked at the lake.  This past spring and all of this summer I get "no service" most of the time and more dropped calls than completed ones.  Nothing has changed with my location or any changes between my location and the tower which is 5000 feet away.  I get the same with three different phones.  The only thing I can think of is that something has changed with the tower or signal strength.  Does this happen often?  BTW I have been using the ATT mark the spot app if that will do any good.  

 

I can except it if I had gotten poor signal from day one but I switched providers and bought two new GoPhones based on good signal and they worked fine for a long time but now nothing.  So now I have to walk about a 1/4mile to get signal which for an old geezer with bad knees is no fun.

---

I don't know if that could happen or not.

You should check out the Microcell.

http://www.att.com/att/microcell/

AT&T just does not do good in the country. Whether that is the River or a Lake.

Please re-read my posting.  I got adequate signal for 18 months so it does work in rural areas. Now it doesn't.   Something has changed with the ATT system with my reception.  

Microcell requires a hardwired internet connection which I do not have.  

I changed providers after making sure ATT would work for me.  They have changed something and now it doesn't work.  I am not a happy camper.  

Towers have three antennae, each covering 120 degrees. Sometimes the antenna are re-oriented to improve service to one area and to the detriment of another. Best signal is obviously directly in front of an antenna. Signal strength is not a perfect circle, but more like a three leaf clover.

---

@Busternutt wrote:

Towers have three antennae, each covering 120 degrees. Sometimes the antenna are re-oriented to improve service to one area and to the detriment of another. Best signal is obviously directly in front of an antenna. Signal strength is not a perfect circle, but more like a three leaf clover.

---

Great info, thanks.  I would appear that the antennas for my location have been reoriented and we got the short end of the stick.  Looks like time to look for another provider.  

It is curious that my neighbor who is 50' away gets good signal with Cricket as her provider.  I thought Cricket would now be using the same antenna.

So I am guessing that if a tower has multiple providers using it there is a possibility that one particular company might have there three antennae oriented to provide better service for a particular sector?

Yes, to put it simply, the signal from a tower can change. Power levels can be increased or decreased; a conversion from 3G to LTE may affect signal strengths.  Remember your phone also has to be able to communicate back to the tower, so if there's something new in the way keeping your phone's signal from getting back to the tower you will have a dropped call or no service as well.

---

@joelwnelson wrote:

Yes, to put it simply, the signal from a tower can change. Power levels can be increased or decreased; a conversion from 3G to LTE may affect signal strengths.  Remember your phone also has to be able to communicate back to the tower, so if there's something new in the way keeping your phone's signal from getting back to the tower you will have a dropped call or no service as well.

---

Something has indeed changed either with signal coverage area or signal strength.  This is on a large marina with hundreds of boats.  I have posted this issue on the marina facebook group and there are many other ATT customers posting there with the same issue.  The 5000 feet between the marina and the tower is farmland and nothing new is between the tower and the marina.  We will now be bombarding ATT with calls, emails and with the ATT app Mark The Spot notifications.  All we are hoping to get is what we once had, nothing more.

Are you sure that tower is an ATT tower?  That is not even a mile away...  unless the panels are facing the wrong way you should have service.

if you use the fcc site you can see where the att tower is for your area or close to it.

http://reboot.fcc.gov/reform/systems/spectrum-dashboard

also

cellmapper.net is another good one.