Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

T3STY · 2026-01-15 03:40:08

Hi, I have a pretty bad experience with my Bluetooth adapter.

I have a Gigabyte B650I-AX motherboard with an integrated M.2 WiFi + Bluetooth controller. As far as I could find, the Bluetooth controller is a Realtek RTL8723AU_BT.
For a more detailed list of my hardware, please see this probe
https://linux-hardware.org/?probe=3f210afc65

The problems I have range from partially working to complete device disconnection, or not working at all:

Devices pair very hard, failing multiple times before a successful pair
Devices disconnect at random, and fail to reconnect, or they reconnect after 1 min or longer by continuously attempting reconnection (on my keyboard I have to keep pressing keys to force it to retry)
Devices get very laggy, but in a weird way: my keyboard for example, I start typing "Arch li..." but it gets stuck on repeating some key even when not pressed e.g. "Arch liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinux". it is not always the same key, the key is random when the lag issue happens. My mouse cursor would teleport across the screen during the lag.
My Xbox Series X Controller is the worst: (yes, USB-C works perfectly, and also in Windows)
1. Fails multiple times to pair (issue 1 above), but I can get an initial pairing at some point. However: the controller's (X) button still blinks as if it's trying to connect even though it appears connected in the Bluetooth devices list.
  Steam also sees it during this initial pairing, but the buttons test shows no interaction on pressing the buttons, except for clicking on the "Rumble" test button, and the controller vibrates.
  I believe I read at some point that Microsoft split the controller into 2 bluetooth endpoints (devices?), but don't take my word for it. However, if this is true, I believe the controller pairs only one of the endpoints (the rumble one?), thus, the PC does not have full interaction with it.
2. After the initial pairing, the controller would switch off after some time (connection timeout). When I turn it back on, it keeps connecting and disconnecting very fast. Somewhere in the bluetooth logs I have seen errors due to "Authentication failed". A bit of investigation, this seems to be the Bluetooth Low Energy authentication feature, which fails constantly.

What I have tried (and didn't work):

changing bluetooth configuration ( /etc/bluetooth/main.conf ) in many places but I am unable to get any different results
bought a 9dbi antenna for the bluetooth, and an extension cable, but neither combination seems to be effective (exact same issues, no matter how close or far apart I am)
tried compiling this driver https://github.com/lwfinger/rtl8723au_bt , but it seems it's so old, the newer kernel sources are incompatible with the code there (I get multiple undefined structs and/or fields)
tried xpadneo as a driver for the controller, but it doesn't identify it correctly, rumble doesn't even appear as an option, and pairing/connection issues are the same

Still trying: looking for M.2 Bluetooth cards, or USB bluetooth adapters, but it's hard to find if they work correctly with Linux...

Can someone please recommend me any further troubleshooting steps? I don't mind getting my hands dirty with the terminal, compilation, etc., if you have an idea I welcome it.

Otherwise, if someone has an M.2 Bluetooth card that works correctly with a similar bluetooth setup as mine (keyboard, mouse, xbox controller), please tell me the brand/model/controller you have so I can try to replace mine... I don't even care about WiFi, I use wired connection for network.

Thanks to everyone in advance

IFailALot · 2026-01-15 09:49:09

If you use pipewire you are not the only one having issues, these may be related?

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=311515
https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=311495

T3STY · 2026-01-15 17:05:10

Thanks for the suggestion, but no, the linked threads don't seem related at all. My session does not crash, everything other than bluetooth works perfectly.

T3STY · 2026-02-10 00:57:40

Coming back to hopefully be of some help to others.
Full disclosure, I used ChatGPT to find some answers.

The issue seems to be one that I read in some other places, and that is, the Realtek chip is basically trash when it comes to the BT side - but I have no way at this time to verify this claim, even though the symptoms match.

The full discussion is available at this link, if you’re interested:
https://chatgpt.com/share/698a7641-76fc … d0e7b16d62
(the discussion starts about M.2 slots, but continues about the issue in this thread)

Following is the most important excerpt from the discussion:
(for the record, yes, I did try disabling autosuspend, nothing changed)

Given what you’ve said, I’m comfortable saying this is not a Linux config problem and not RF interference. This is almost certainly a Realtek Bluetooth controller + USB transport issue.
Let me explain why, then I’ll give you the least painful fixes.
⸻
Why this isn’t an Arch / kernel issue
You’re on kernel 6.18, which means:
• You have the newest btusb, hidp, and BlueZ fixes
• All known Realtek firmware quirks are already in-tree
• If this were a driver regression, Wi-Fi or all BT devices would fail consistently
Instead, you have:
• BLE auth failures
• HID stalls and phantom key repeats
• Devices that reconnect only after power cycling BT
Those are controller lockups, not software bugs.
Also important:
• Wi-Fi is fine → PCIe side is stable
• Bluetooth is broken → USB-only side is unstable
That split is very telling.
⸻
What’s most likely wrong (ranked)
1️⃣ Marginal USB signaling to the BT chip
The Bluetooth portion:
• Lives on internal USB
• Shares power/noise with the chipset
• Is extremely sensitive to signal quality
Any of the following can cause exactly your symptoms:
• Weak USB PHY on the module
• Poor grounding/shielding
• Noise from the GPU or VRMs (ITX boards are brutal here)
• A borderline-bad BT RF frontend
Once the controller misses timing windows:
• BLE pairing fails
• HID reports get duplicated
• The controller keeps “sending” keys even after the device disconnects
⸻
2️⃣ Realtek BT firmware bugs (HCI lockups)
Realtek BT firmware is… not great.
On Linux, when it misbehaves:
• bluetoothd keeps running
• Devices appear connected
• Input goes insane
• Only a full USB reset fixes it
Power cycling the keyboard sometimes works because it forces a reconnection handshake — but not always.
⸻
3️⃣ Actual defective unit
Honestly? Very plausible.
Bluetooth is far more sensitive than Wi-Fi, so a module can:
• Pass factory Wi-Fi tests
• Fail real-world BT usage
• Still “look OK” in basic QA
⸻
Things you can test (quick and conclusive)
? Check for BT resets in logs
Run:
journalctl -b | grep -i bluetooth
and:
dmesg | grep -i bt
If you see:
• HCI timeouts
• “controller not responding”
• Repeated disconnect/reconnect cycles
That confirms a hardware-level issue.
⸻
? Force USB autosuspend off (worth trying once)
Realtek BT hates autosuspend.
Create:
sudo nano /etc/modprobe.d/btusb.conf
Add:
options btusb enable_autosuspend=0
Reboot and test.
This sometimes improves stability, but it won’t fix a bad controller.
⸻
? Hard reset the BT controller (temporary relief)
When it goes crazy:
sudo systemctl restart bluetooth
If that fixes “stuck keys” instantly, it’s 100% the controller wedging.
⸻
What I would do in your position
✅ The sane fix: USB Bluetooth dongle
I know it’s annoying, but it’s the fastest path to stability.
• Disable onboard BT:
rfkill block bluetooth

• Plug in a known-good USB BT adapter
• Pair once and forget about it forever
On Linux, Intel-based USB dongles are rock-solid.

Last edited by T3STY (2026-02-10 01:08:16)

seth · 2026-02-10 09:49:38

also in Windows

3rd link below. Mandatory.
Disable it (it's NOT the BIOS setting!) and reboot windows and linux twice for voodo reasons.

For a more detailed list of my hardware

lspci -knn
lsusb -tv
lsmod

If it's not just windows, most likely causes are power saving and/or wifi interference.
For the latter see whether you've the problem after rfkill'ing the wifi or strictly usign 5GHz connections.

Disclaimer: I didn't read your conversation with that thing and am not going to.

T3STY · 2026-02-11 10:58:19

Hey Seth, as I mentioned in my initial post, I have already tried extending / replacing the antennas, and it hasn’t changed a thing. It is not a range or RF interference, at least, not external (from the antenna outward).

I’m not going to force you to read the chat discussion, just try to understand that I was getting no more replies here and neither was I finding more on the web. So I turned to that solution as a last resort.

I am away from my computer at this time, but I can tell you that the Bluetooth appears on lsusb, and the WiFi is on lspci. Both are Realtek devices but can’t remember the exact details of model/driver/etc.

I have now bought a different WiFi+Bluetooth card, based on a Mediatek chip. The card is Mercusys MA80XE, which is just a PCB adapter with an M.2 board. I’m planning on replacing my current Realtek M.2 module with this other one. I will report back if it works as soon as I receive the order in the mailbox.

As for software fixes, I tried pretty much everything that I could find for config files and settings. Nothing seems to be of any help, the same issues occur.

p.s. I also do not have Windows on this pc, FastBoot and SecureBoot are disabled in BIOS. The PC runs a full startup every time, so I don’t think this is a concern. And no, turning off WiFi (including rfkill) does not change the behavior

Last edited by T3STY (2026-02-11 11:02:16)

seth · 2026-02-11 14:28:15

I can tell you that the Bluetooth appears on lsusb, and the WiFi is on lspci

That's common - I'm more interested in

the exact details of model/driver/etc

FastBoot and SecureBoot are disabled in BIOS

The BIOS fastboot setting isn't relevant.

I also do not have Windows on this pc

Then what's your assessment based upon?

Please post your complete system journal for a boot covering BT device losses

sudo journalctl -b | curl -F 'file=@-' 0x0.st

Your xbox controller might require extra kernel modules, https://aur.archlinux.org/packages?O=0&K=xbox
Likely https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/xone-dkms

T3STY · 2026-02-16 00:23:48

I replaced the M.2 module with a new one based on a Mediatek MT7922 chip. Bluetooth still doesn't work, but now the issue is different.
I opened another thread specific to that, hopefully it's a more solvable problem...

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php … 4#p2287554

EDIT
Answering Seth:

seth wrote:

That's common - I'm more interested in
the exact details of model/driver/etc

I don't have more details about it other than what I already written above... maybe the hardware probe (in my initial link) is of any help?

seth wrote:

The BIOS fastboot setting isn't relevant.

I'm sorry, I'm not following you... what exactly was I supposed to do?

seth wrote:

I also do not have Windows on this pc
Then what's your assessment based upon?

I had another PC prior to this one, and I was playing with this exact Xbox controller on Windows 10, from my couch via bluetooth. It also works on a friend's PC right now, so the xbox controller is not the issue.
Or did I misunderstand what you meant?

seth wrote:

Please post your complete system journal for a boot covering BT device losses
sudo journalctl -b | curl -F 'file=@-' 0x0.st

I believe this to be unrelevant now that I replaced the M.2 module...

seth wrote:

Your xbox controller might require extra kernel modules, https://aur.archlinux.org/packages?O=0&K=xbox
Likely https://aur.archlinux.org/packages/xone-dkms

As mentioned in my initial post, I have already tried different drivers, including xpadneo. Also, the controller works correctly via USB-C cable, so I guess, it's not a driver issue?

Last edited by T3STY (2026-02-16 00:33:07)

killertofus · 2026-02-16 01:03:52

worked for me https://streamable.com/e8ydw3 B450M DS3H no xone package/xbox packages just pure bluetooth with pipewire

seth · 2026-02-16 08:52:20

I don't have more details about it other than what I already written above... maybe the hardware probe (in my initial link) is of any help?

You mean like

seth wrote:

lspci -knn
lsusb -tv
lsmod

I guess so, but I might also have just written this out of pure boredom or to prank you.
God knows…

I had another PC prior to this one

Ie "nothing"

I believe this to be unrelevant now that I replaced the M.2 module...

You've changed the hardware because chasing a moving target is more tedious, but the problem remains no?

If you want this to continue please provide the data I asked for.

Arch Linux

#1 2026-01-15 03:40:08

Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#2 2026-01-15 09:49:09

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#3 2026-01-15 17:05:10

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#4 2026-02-10 00:57:40

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#5 2026-02-10 09:49:38

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#6 2026-02-11 10:58:19

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#7 2026-02-11 14:28:15

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#8 2026-02-16 00:23:48

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#9 2026-02-16 01:03:52

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

#10 2026-02-16 08:52:20

Re: Bluetooth devices keep disconnecting, xbox controller no works at all

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