DSL connection problem

[ap1s2k]

Here's some basics:
Windows XP Home
Speedstream 5200 modem
Linksys BEFSR41 router
not networked
ISP- Alltel

The problem is that I regularly "drop" connection. Not sure if that's the proper term. There are 2 phones in the house both cordless, the downstairs phone is connected to a wall jack through a Homelink wall mount dsl filter. The upstairs line doesn't connect to a jack but is not in the same room as my computer & modem. We have direct TV which uses the upstairs phone jack, the jack has a splitter on it to connect the satellite and dsl to it. The dsl is plugged into the splitter and the satellite is through an inline filter, no filter on the dsl line. The dsl line (cat3) is then a 25' cable to the speedstream modem. Cat5 (8" length) from the modem to router, 18" length cat5 from router to pc.
The modem randomly loses connection and the dsl light will blink 4-5 times then repeat but never hold a connection, I usually try to reset the router first and see if it will connect, if not I power down the modem for 30sec to a minute and plug it back in with no luck. I've tried unplugging all devices that use the phone jack and plugging in the dsl modem & still no luck. There used to be a phone upstairs that when the modem would lose connection if you pick up the phone you could hear a lot of static, but if I would dial 55555555 or any number sequence. hang up and repeat the modem would immediately come back online. That phone is now gone and I am luck to keep a connection for over an hour before losing it. I have been down for a day and a half now. I went through a problem like this last year and after numerous calls to Alltel and a month later they send a line technician to my house to test signal strength, he said it was perfectly fine. Alltel sent me a replacement modem and then 3 days later it established a connection and was fine with very minimal problems.
The home is a century plus old and I presume it could be due to internal wiring. I was debating using and external dsl splitter and rewiring accordingly from outside the house.

[Alfie]

By dsl standards a filter is to be placed on all phone lines,so maybe get an extra filter,what service are you using?
If it's Verizon,they'll send you another.

[glc]

Best thing to do is get what's called a "nid splitter" - which you wire into the outside phone box. Hook the existing lines up to the filtered side, and run a new line from the unfiltered side direct to the DSL modem. Remove all your inside filters.

[ap1s2k]

Originally Posted by glc Best thing to do is get what's called a "nid splitter" - which you wire into the outside phone box. Hook the existing lines up to the filtered side, and run a new line from the unfiltered side direct to the DSL modem. Remove all your inside filters.

This was the route I was going to take, just working on getting some more info on how exactly it is done before I start. Am I correct in thinking that I don't need to make changes to the inside existing phone wiring it is all done at the NID box and the outside splitter, where the only major change is with the dsl wiring? Also do I need to cut power to the phone box or can this be done with everything "live"

[glc]

It's all done outside except running a new cable to the modem. You can't cut power to the phone box - it's powered by the phone lines. Just don't grab any bare wires or do it when it's raining. Remove all wires from the 2 posts on your (customer) side of the nid and remember/mark where they go. If you have multiple phone lines or more than one pair of posts with wires on them, unplug the RJ11 from the test jack on each slug before you disconnect anything and connect a phone into it. If you have a dial tone, dial your cell phone and read off the caller ID. Connect a (new) wire pair from the posts to the input of the nid splitter and reconnect the wires you removed to the filtered side of the splitter. Run your new cable to the unfiltered side of the splitter.