Help With Airport Express And Cable Please

finchi10 · 06-01-2006, 11:05 AM

Hi. I have just moved house and had Telewest Cable Broadband installed. They have provided me with a Motorola Surfboard xxxxxxx cable modem which is currently connected to my Powerbook by Ethernet cable.

My problem is that I can't get it to work with my Airport Express. My computer won't even find the Airport despite my computer being switched on for it.

In my last house I had a Netgear Wireless Modem/Router which isn't compatible anymore apparently as it was ADSL.

Is there a way of connecting the Motorola modem to my Airport Express that anyone knows of?

Thanks, Ian.

finchi10 · 06-01-2006, 11:07 AM

Sorry, the modem is model number SB5101E rather than all those x's

bored28 · 06-01-2006, 04:24 PM

It is very unclear as to what you are trying to do. Heres what I take away from your post, so please, correct me if I'm wrong: You cannot get your cable modem to work with your APE (Airport Express) so that the APE can be used as the router.

First, you'll have to turn DHCP off in your Modem. There are directions for this in the manual. Next, connect the modem to the APE via an Ethernet cable. Now, make sure your Mac is set to DHCP in your network Prefs pane and that your airport is turned on.

Now, turn everything off and restart each device in this order: Modem > APE > Computer. See if this works. If not, let us know.

Photek · 06-01-2006, 06:25 PM

I had the exact same set up at my last house... and it worked amazingly well!

the problem is......... Telewest tie your connection to the ethernet card of your machine..... so it will ONLY connect to the card it first connected to!

What you need to do is give them a call, tell them you are connecting the modem to a new device... they will either tell you to type a bit of code into terminal (its basically an ipconfig) or they will do it for you!

hey presto..... your online!

its annoying... they dont really mention this... but I have had to sort this out for a few friends now.. PC and Mac!

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06-01-2006, 11:05 AM	#1
finchi10 Prospect Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 2	Hi. I have just moved house and had Telewest Cable Broadband installed. They have provided me with a Motorola Surfboard xxxxxxx cable modem which is currently connected to my Powerbook by Ethernet cable. My problem is that I can't get it to work with my Airport Express. My computer won't even find the Airport despite my computer being switched on for it. In my last house I had a Netgear Wireless Modem/Router which isn't compatible anymore apparently as it was ADSL. Is there a way of connecting the Motorola modem to my Airport Express that anyone knows of? Thanks, Ian.

06-01-2006, 11:07 AM	#2
finchi10 Prospect Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 2	Sorry, the modem is model number SB5101E rather than all those x's

06-01-2006, 04:24 PM	#3
bored28 Major Leaguer Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 355	It is very unclear as to what you are trying to do. Heres what I take away from your post, so please, correct me if I'm wrong: You cannot get your cable modem to work with your APE (Airport Express) so that the APE can be used as the router. First, you'll have to turn DHCP off in your Modem. There are directions for this in the manual. Next, connect the modem to the APE via an Ethernet cable. Now, make sure your Mac is set to DHCP in your network Prefs pane and that your airport is turned on. Now, turn everything off and restart each device in this order: Modem > APE > Computer. See if this works. If not, let us know.

06-01-2006, 06:25 PM	#4
Photek Hall of Famer Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Warwick, UK Posts: 4,833	I had the exact same set up at my last house... and it worked amazingly well! the problem is......... Telewest tie your connection to the ethernet card of your machine..... so it will ONLY connect to the card it first connected to! What you need to do is give them a call, tell them you are connecting the modem to a new device... they will either tell you to type a bit of code into terminal (its basically an ipconfig) or they will do it for you! hey presto..... your online! its annoying... they dont really mention this... but I have had to sort this out for a few friends now.. PC and Mac!