WiFi Speeds - What Do I Need?

[Vraciu]

Probably the wrong forum here but....

My iPad is hitting 55ish Mbps over Wifi.   My gaming console is getting about 9.  Should I care?   If so, what could the speed restriction be caused by?

Thanks a lot.

[Bizman]

It may be the location of your WiFi router. Or the directionality of the antenna. Or something between the router and the device - not necessarily even visually. A ferroconcrete wall outside the straight line between the devices can have a magnetic field strong enough to kill the wireless signal. A Faraday cage consisting of your electric wiring and other metal elements inside the walls is another invisible WiFi killer. Not to mention the differences between the antennas of various devices: How does the iPad work right beside the gaming console?

[mikeWe9a]

Also, what model is your gaming console and your router?  The two devices could be connecting on different bands, with the gaming console being on a busier/noisier channel.

Also, if your gaming console is located on a shelf under your tv and between your cable box and stereo, it may not be getting a good signal due to interference or just blockage by other equipment.  If possible, run ethernet directly to your gaming console, then you won't have to worry about it.  Wired will also likely give you better gaming performance, as recommended by Skuzzy and HiTech for AH.

Mike

[Drano]

What's more important than connection speed is consistency. A stable signal will serve you well regardless of your ping. When online bring up the map and right click on it. On the menu that pops up click on net stat. Look at the variance graph. That should be pretty flat. If it has a bunch of odd spikes you'll see other planes jerking around and people with stable signals will see your plane jerking around.

The short of it is if you can use a wired connection to your router use it. It'll be more stable generally than a wireless one. What your connection is from your house to the servers is beyond your control beyond changing ISPs.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

[Skuzzy]

Wireless connections are single-duplex.  The faster they are, the higher the rates of collisions and packet retries.  It is the nature of a single-duplex connection, even if it is hardwired.

It is the primary reason a wired connection works so much better.  A wire connection is full-duplex and does not suffer collisions (as long as the connections are via a proper switch) which makes everything run smoother.

The speed difference in your connections are probably based on the wireless protocol being negotiated.  Although, sometimes slower is better on a wireless connection.  Fewer collisions and bit errors.

[Vraciu]

1) Net Status - Flat.  Zero variance delay.

2) iPad right next to PC.

3) At my old house I used the electric wiring to run a signal to my PC via Ethernet.   That was super fast.  Here it is not.   

The game seems to run fine at 9.   My bandwidth is not dedicated solely to internet.  U-verse boxes for tv in three rooms.   I have two wifi channels, 2.5 and 5 with an equal number of devices...   Relevant?

Maybe I should go back to DirecTV. 

[Bizman]

The 2.5 and 5 aren't channels, they're radio frequencies measured in MHz. 5 should be somewhat more stable but it has a shorter range.

There's also channels within either of the frequencies and choosing the right channel which isn't overlapping with the neighbourhood you may get a more stable network. Wikipedia tells more about them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WLAN_channels

For the electric wiring not working as it used to in your old house you might want to call an electrician to check your wiring schema and do some metering. It may just be a question of rearranging your fuse box.

[Vraciu]

Sounds good.  Is there a minimum number I'm looking for to run AH properly?   Variance, ping, Mbps, etc.?

I'm going to run Ethernet directly to my ATT box and see if that changes anything.  Thanks all for the input.   

[TequilaChaser]

As Bizman posted, they are not channels, they are "Bands" , and are measured in GHz.... Having two of them means you have a dual band Wi-Fi router 2.5 GHz / 5.0 GHz

Yes, running an Ethernet cable should give you the best possible connection

[Meatwad]

I dont trust any speed test results from gaming consoles. They are designed to play games, not run speed tests.

Could be the server they use, demand on server, routing issues to server, etc etc etc.


I have run on a lot of service calls for speed issues on wifi just on gaming systems. Its common for a gaming system to say 7-15 mbps either hardwired of on wifi, and then run a speed test on a laptop using either the exact same cable, wifi setup, and in the exact spot where the gaming system is and see over 90 mbps on the laptop.

And also if one device is rated for gigabit speeds and the other is at 10/100, you will see a big difference on speed tests especially when you are looking at very high speeds

[Vulcan]

Also consumer wifi products tend to over-promise under-deliver. A lot of the awesome speeds you see on wifi are based on enterprise grade radios (expensive). I have some wifi I can easily game on, but it is 802.1ac Wave 2 4x4 MU-MIMO and it costs a small fortune.

[Vraciu]

Well, what stymies me is I had five times higher wifi speeds at both of my old places.  Nothing has changed hardware-wise except gong from DirecTV to U-verse.   But this is also a fiber neighborhood so....   

[Bizman]

Your hardware may still be the same, except for some aging, but the surroundings have changed. As I said in my first post, even invisible things can get in the way of the WiFi signal.

A local IT magazine has done some testing every now and then, having the routers in one corner of a semi open office with partitions. The signal strength is illustrated as a thermal camera image over the map of the office and it clearly shows how the signal weakens on its way from a corner to the opposite one. Another thing to consider is directionality. Your router should be somewhat omnidirectional at least horizontally, but the receiver of your game console might be located so that it works best with a certain side directed towards the router. Worth trying, turning it sideways for testing shouldn't be too much of an effort.

[Vraciu]

Your hardware may still be the same, except for some aging, but the surroundings have changed. As I said in my first post, even invisible things can get in the way of the WiFi signal.

A local IT magazine has done some testing every now and then, having the routers in one corner of a semi open office with partitions. The signal strength is illustrated as a thermal camera image over the map of the office and it clearly shows how the signal weakens on its way from a corner to the opposite one. Another thing to consider is directionality. Your router should be somewhat omnidirectional at least horizontally, but the receiver of your game console might be located so that it works best with a certain side directed towards the router. Worth trying, turning it sideways for testing shouldn't be too much of an effort.

Interestingly enough, one thing that has changed is my tower is now on its side instead of upright.   

As for obstructions I only have two layers of Sheetrock between the router and the PC.   I had more at my old place.  Hmmmmmm.............. 

[Bizman]

What's inside the sheetrock walls? Lots of electricity wiring? Or even worse, a metal frame?

Upright or sideways can also have a significant effect depending on the transceiver.