Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

JohnBobSmith · 2017-01-23 21:33:46

Hello,

I'm having trouble understanding why my powerline adapter ping to my router seems awfully high. I have tried just about everything you can think of physically to the devices: Pairing them, alternating plugs, trying plugs across the room, varying types (cat5e and cat6) of cable in varying lengths (no larger than 2m, 6ft), you name it. This all yielded one surprise: a consistent ~3.8ms ping to my router despite the above. The current plug in use, however, seems to be spiking slightly....

[jbs@dmb-gaming-laptop ~]$ ping -c15 192.168.0.1
PING 192.168.0.1 (192.168.0.1) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=3.56 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=3.54 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=3.59 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=4.71 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=4.71 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=6 ttl=64 time=3.56 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=7 ttl=64 time=6.85 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=8 ttl=64 time=5.80 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=9 ttl=64 time=4.76 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=10 ttl=64 time=3.68 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=11 ttl=64 time=3.65 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=12 ttl=64 time=5.74 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=13 ttl=64 time=5.75 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=14 ttl=64 time=3.56 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=15 ttl=64 time=3.56 ms

--- 192.168.0.1 ping statistics ---
15 packets transmitted, 15 received, 0% packet loss, time 14027ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 3.549/4.473/6.854/1.069 ms
[jbs@dmb-gaming-laptop ~]$

I've dealt with ping spikes for my entire online gaming "career" if you will. It's super frustrating. The reason for getting powerline adapters in the first place was because nothing was more frustrating than getting d/c'ed from a match of cs:go because someone used the microwave, causing the wireless to die completely. In addition, supposedly the wired connections are, in the words of a doge, "far superior, must have, much love, no lag". That, and no one, not even the ISP for banana cream pie's sake, will give you the time of day until you can wire in. Horse radish! The reason this is troublesome is the high router ping causes small but super noticeable amounts of what resembles input lag. I average 40 frames per second, and I'm not interested in starting a war over the 60fps bean salad. Essentially, I've been suffering constant setbacks with my connection. I'm not sure where to continue troubleshooting...

I should mention I am using connman. Using just dhcpcd.service plainly doesn't appear to help either, though it's been a while since I've lasted tested it. The router and powerline adapters are all TP-LINK. Pings to the router with the wireless connection are much better:

[jbs@dmb-gaming-laptop ~]$ ping -c5 192.168.0.1
PING 192.168.0.1 (192.168.0.1) 56(84) bytes of data.
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=1 ttl=64 time=0.893 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=2 ttl=64 time=1.50 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=3 ttl=64 time=0.812 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=4 ttl=64 time=1.00 ms
64 bytes from 192.168.0.1: icmp_seq=5 ttl=64 time=1.05 ms

--- 192.168.0.1 ping statistics ---
5 packets transmitted, 5 received, 0% packet loss, time 4005ms
rtt min/avg/max/mdev = 0.812/1.053/1.505/0.244 ms
[jbs@dmb-gaming-laptop ~]$

Thus my connection dilemma never ends... Any help appreciated!

tl;dr version: My powerline adapter is not performing as expected, nothing helps. I'm very frustrated with my inability to have a stable internet connection, because I play a *lot* of online games. I'm also slightly hungry...

Last edited by JohnBobSmith (2017-01-24 15:14:43)

Morn · 2017-01-24 09:12:13

I'm getting a 3.18 to 3.65 ms router ping over powerline (Devolo) right now, so I would say a 3 ms ping over powerline is pretty normal. Just because powerline is a wired connection does not mean that it will have a ping anywhere close to an Ethernet cable. I don't really do online gaming, so it does not bother me, but yes, for FPS games powerline is not ideal.

Edit: And now the ping is 8.35 ms, so spikes like that can happen.

Last edited by Morn (2017-01-24 09:15:21)

JohnBobSmith · 2017-01-24 14:55:51

*head desks*

So it looks like the fastest way to improve my online experience is to move out and invest rent into a place where I can 110% guarantee that I will be able to plug *directly* into a router or DSL line or similar. At least my devices aren't malfunctioning then.

Do double female ended ethernet extension cords, if you will, exist? If I could plug two ethernet cables into eachother, I would be able to easily bridge the straight line distance running cables across the roof. Time for some research....

I'm not going to mark this thread as solved, simply because there doesn't appear (at least for now) to be a viable, working solution. Any additional help welcome though!

Slithery · 2017-01-24 15:02:12

The best way is to buy a reel of CAT5 cable, some RJ-45 plugs and a crimper. That way you can make up cables of whatever length you want (up to the 100m limit defined by the ethernet spec).

Last edited by Slithery (2017-01-24 15:35:01)

ewaller · 2017-01-24 15:02:56

JohnBobSmith wrote:

Do double female ended ethernet extension cords, if you will, exist? If I could plug two ethernet cables into eachother, I would be able to easily bridge the straight line distance running cables across the roof.

https://www.monoprice.com/category?c_id=105&cp_id=10519

Last edited by ewaller (2017-01-24 15:03:30)

JohnBobSmith · 2017-01-24 15:14:03

Many thanks ewaller! I would not have known to search for "inline coupler".

Slithery, I agree that that too would be the better solution. I would need to wire in quite a few PC's (2 for sure) in this manner. Assuming of course I have permission to do so. I'm not currently the head of the household

The above ideas, although not a solution for the problem at hand, make for excellent workarounds. I'm going to go ahead then and mark the thread as [WORKAROUND], to distinguish this. It doesn't look like the original problem of the powerline adapters can be properly fixed, In the future, I wouldn't buy these devices. Happy arching regardless!

Last edited by JohnBobSmith (2017-01-24 15:17:14)

Slithery · 2017-01-24 15:36:04

Bear in mind that the coupler solution isn't waterproof, if your planning to run the cables outside then this may be an issue.

JohnBobSmith · 2017-01-24 23:27:49

Crap, yes it would be. I was hoping to go outside of one window and thru another, in order to avoid ~15 extra feet of cable length and/or drilling through a wall. Thanks for the catch!

rsmarples · 2017-01-26 01:40:40

The reason for getting powerline adapters in the first place was because nothing was more frustrating than getting d/c'ed from a match of cs:go because someone used the microwave, causing the wireless to die completely

Get better wifi.

Using a Unifi AC Pro I get <1ms ping to the router from my gaming PC (w intel dual band AC 7260) @400mbs.
On an average evening gaming, 2 people are also streaming HD content over the same AP (TV and tablet) - luckily my ISP does 200mbs down. There is no lag, even when using voice comms or uploading to twitch (20mbs up also helps).

While this is going on, the wife is using all the appliances - dish washer, clothes washer, tumble, microwave. It's all gravy.

I was also an early adopter of powerline adapters ... my lowest ping end to end was 50ms which really sucks ... so your ping is pretty darn good in comparison!

JohnBobSmith · 2017-01-26 09:50:01

rsmarples wrote:

Get better wifi.

I wish it was that easy...

Also, for bandwidth, I am getting 1.5 Mbps (bits, not bytes) up and down. What I have heard people call "line speed". It's also on a wireless ISP. The best part? I'm not paying dollars for it, for now at least hehe. I'm grateful to have internet. I help out and keep/save the peace at home, so I have no issues. Since this is Arch Linux, my reward/move out gift to myself will eventually be a great deal of tacos, to be claimed whenever I move out.

I'm grateful for all the insights that have come from this thread, but I think we can let it die now.

ewaller · 2017-01-26 14:55:49

One last comment on cables going over the roof. Lightning. Unless the roof is protected by an arrester, I would go around the building under the eave rather than over the top.

Morn · 2017-01-26 17:53:27

ewaller wrote:

One last comment on cables going over the roof. Lightning. Unless the roof is protected by an arrester, I would go around the building under the eave rather than over the top.

Or use POF (polymer optical fiber) for the outside cabling. Going with fiber would make lightning a non-issue. The only question is how this would impact ping times.

Arch Linux

#1 2017-01-23 21:33:46

Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#2 2017-01-24 09:12:13

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#3 2017-01-24 14:55:51

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#4 2017-01-24 15:02:12

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#5 2017-01-24 15:02:56

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#6 2017-01-24 15:14:03

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#7 2017-01-24 15:36:04

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#8 2017-01-24 23:27:49

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#9 2017-01-26 01:40:40

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#10 2017-01-26 09:50:01

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#11 2017-01-26 14:55:49

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

#12 2017-01-26 17:53:27

Re: Troubleshooting poor powerline adapter ping to router [WORKAROUND]

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