Video over Wireless problems, do I need Wireless N?

Community Archives WD TV Live Networking
1

OK everyone, here’s what I’ve got.

I’m trying to go with a wireless setup but am getting stuttering problems when playing back video, especially on DVD ISO files.  What’s happening is that the video is stuttering really bad and eventually gets to the ponit where it just won’t play at all.  Netflix and compressed videos (m4v) also stutter but not always as bad.  I would call this somewhat intermittent, as at times its worse than others.

I have a Linksys WRT54G running DD-WRT and all my devices connect to it just fine.  On the WD end, I’ve tried 2 different wireless connection options.  First I tried the Airlink AWL5077 card that I’ve seen recommended on here and it connected just fine, but when launching a video it had the stuttering problem.  Thinking maybe that adapter wasn’t strong enough of the box just didn’t like wireless for some reason, I bought one of those Netgear Universal wireless adapters.  This should have addressed each of the potential issues, as the connection strength from that device to my router was excellent, and as far as the WD box knows it’s using a wired connection so it wouldn’t be triggering any kind of built in issue with the box in regards to wireless video streaming.  I had identical results with the Netgear device though, stuttering.

Well, that leaves the potential culprit as my router.  Its a great router, and I thought 54G would be plenty fast for streaming video, but am wondering if there’s something unique about the WD box that it requires more bandwidth.  The reason I say that is that I’ve got 2 TiVo boxes (one right next to the WD and one in a room even further away from the router) that stream Netflix and video just fine.  I also have an Apple TV in the far room that streams Netflix and video just fine.  Granted I can’t test the same iso files on either of those devices because neither support it (which is why I bought the WD box to begin with).

So, that leaves the WD box.  Maybe it can’t handle these big iso files very well?  Well I hookedit up a hard wired connection and it worked beautifully, watched 2 hours of a movie last night with not one problem.  So the box can handle it. Again the Netgear device would have addressed anything along the lines of the WD box ‘thinking’ that it had to adjust something because of a wireless connection because the box sees that as a wired connection.

OK, so maybe wireless G just isn’t fast enough to support streaming files this big quick enough.  Well that can’t be right, by my calculations the iso files should require absolutely no more than 2 MB streaming capability, and actually much less than that in reality, and I know my router is working quicker than that.  

SO, I’m kinda lost as to what to try next.  I could try a new router, but have no actual logical reasoning to do that, so I’m looking for any help here.

Thanks for your time.

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The SIZE of an ISO file is irrelevent.  

It’s the BITRATE that matters.   DVD ISOs need up to about 12 megabits per second SUSTAINED bandwidth.

All kinds of things affect wireless performance:

    Interference  (Telephones, Microwaves, Baby monitors, etc)

    Distance

    Number of clients associated

    Co-Channel interference (Neighbors nearby that are using the same channel or one within 5 channels of the one you’re using)

    Associated clients at low data rates

    Associated clients that only support 802.11b

etc. etc.

The same things would apply to 802.11n using the same old 2.4 GHz band. 

For that reason alone, I always recommend a simultaneous DUAL-BAND setup.

Even though those same concerns apply to Wireless N at 5.8 GHz, they are MUCH easier to mitigate.

  - Interference:   Fewer Non-WLAN devices operate in the 5.8 GHz band. 

  - Number of Clients:  Only my MEDIA DEVICES use the 5.8 GHz band.   All my other dozen or so WLAN devices use the 2.4 GHz band.

  - Co-channel interference:   2.4Ghz only has 3 clear channels.  5.8 GHz has dozens.  Less probability that someone else is using the same channel.

 - Associated clients at low data rates or 802.11b/g only:   Again, if you keep the b and g clients in their OWN band, it’s not a problem.

Also, since 802.11n can operate close to 300 Megabits per second, ALWAYS choose a base station that has a GIGABIT ETHERNET port.   And make sure all the switches involved (if any) are also Gig-E.

3

Thank you for your reply, quick followup question:

Would the linksys E2500 router work, or would I need to step up to the E3200?  You mentioned the gigabit port, but am wondering if it’s needed for this application, as it nearly doubles the price of the router from $75 to $140.

If I go that route, which wireless adapter would you recommend for the WD?  Would the airlink card still work, or would I need something else?

Thanks

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 The E2500 is a dual-band router, so yes, that’d fit the bill.

It’s entirely up to you whether you want 100meg or 1 gig connection out of the box…   I think gig is worth the investment, but your opinion may vary…

The AWLL5077 is NOT dual-band it’s only 2.4 GHz.

I use the Cisco / Linksys WUSB600N on my Hub.

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OK, so $300 later and I’m still having the same issues, maybe a little better but not gone.  I bought the Linksys E4200 and the WET610N dual band wireless bridge, got it all up and running but still have stuttering.

On the status page for the bridge, I can see it getting 162 Mbps, should that be fast enough for streaming the DVD iso files?

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Hmm, yeah, that’s disapointing.  

One thing to note is that when a wireless device says it’s “connected” at a certain data rate, that does NOT mean that’s the actual throughput it’s getting.   That’s just the negotiated data rate of the connection.  

I doubt that’s relevent, though.  

162 Mbps should be PERFECTLY adequate for anything the Hub is capable of playing, including full un-re-compressed Blu-Ray.

What is the source device that’s streaming these videos, and how is IT connected to your network?   Have you tried putting the same ISO on a USB stick and playing that on the WD?

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The source is on a computer, and it’s hard wired.  I have not tried the USB stick, but I have played the same ISO from the same source using a wired connection and it works just fine.

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Ok.  Try this.

On your 4200, do *not* use AUTO CHANNEL SELECTION.   If you’re using AUTO, the wireless base can decide to change its channel at any time.   It then notifies the clients of the upcoming change, forces the clients OFF NETWORK, and they have to reconnect.  You may have to experiment to find the best channel on your own.

In 5.8 GHz, there’s no concern with “overlapping” channels like there are on 2.4 GHz WLANs, so you’re free to try them all.

Also, I suspect you’ve already done this, but just to confirm:  Make sure you’re you’ve configured a DIFFERENT SSID for your 5.8GHz band than you configured for the 2.4 GHz band.   Make sure your WET is using ONLY the 5.8 GHz SSID.

Go through all the channel width options : 20Mhz channel width, Auto or 40, 

On the ADVANCED WIRELESS pages, make sure you leave everything at DEFAULT, except for, perhaps, the TRANSMIT POWER setting.   You should use the LOWEST POWER you can manage, to be kind to the spectrum and not cover more space than you need.  

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I’ve tried all that, but with no luck. 

I appreciate all the advice and help, and no doubt that’ll all come in handy on something in the future.  For this application though I just bit the bullet and ran some wire through the walls and have the box hard wired now, and everything works great.  The only reason I bought this box is to play DVD ISOs and now it does that beautifully.

So now I’ve got it all working and am done troubleshooting, so this thread can be closed if the mods wish or bumped to the bottom to get more attention on some of the other topics.