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HELP with Steam link. LAG everywhere!

B

Booker.DeWitt

Member
Guys,

I got the steam link so I can do some couch gaming here and there.
I am very frustrated by the device.

I have a very good gaming PC (ryzen 5 1600 overclocked, GTX 1080, 16gb RAM 3200) at 1440p on my gaming monitor.

I just set up my steam link. I connected via etherned cable, and is still bad. the menu seems fine, but sometimes the screen just freezes, and take several seconds for it to become responsive. I can hear the sound of the menu, but the screen freezes. sometimes I can load the game, but then it might take 1-2 minutes for the screen to change.

I tried wireless, wired and still the same crap. There is nothing wrong with my router or modem, I use the same setup with all my devices (ps4, xbox one, switch, netflix), and I am able to stream 4k just fine for example. really fast internet.

SO, it is not my gaming PC(very good hardware), it is not my internet connection (other devices work fine), so is the steam link faulty?

PS: when I test the connection (either wired or wireless), this is the message I got: "network test complete, frame loss 100%, network time 0.0 ms, variance 0.00ms. Your network may not work well with steam link, please use wired network for best experience"

HELP guys.
 
Booker.DeWitt said:
nighhawk , work sfine with everything I have
Click to expand...

Yeah, no reason why you'd have issues with it. I really don't know. Lag in wireless is expected, but you should be fine wired. Maybe a faulty network cable, maybe try that and make sure you're at least CAT5? I have a very similar setup at home and it works perfectly.
 
Nugg said:
Yeah, no reason why you'd have issues with it. I really don't know. Lag in wireless is expected, but you should be fine wired. Maybe a faulty network cable, maybe try that and make sure you're at least CAT5? I have a very similar setup at home and it works perfectly.
Click to expand...

It is not, I have used different cables.

I get this message when I test the network, regardless if it is wireless or not
: "network test complete, frame loss 100%, network time 0.0 ms, variance 0.00ms. Your network may not work well with steam link, please use wired network for best experience"
 
Go to Settings > In-home streaming > Host. Change resolution to 1080p instead of Native. I'm not 100% sure, but this worked for me since I also had a 1440p machine and was getting lag at times.


EDIT: hmm that network message is not consistent with the issue I was having, so this may not help
 
For me, wireless did not work and wired with hot plugs was a disaster, because the hot plug was picking up interference from an adaptor. I switched sockets and it was perfect.

It's still crummy on wireless, but wired works well.
 
It's still laggy and I get artifacts on wired connection too, it's not just you OP.

I've tried messing with the settings and lowering the resolution but it's just subpar.
 
Yoy should check your ethernet cable, im using my steamlink with wifi 5Ghz and the trick was the channel, tested every channel until i found the perfect.

I have a gtx1070, i5 4670k 12gb ram ddr3 and playing 1080p.
 
100% packet/frame loss is the error we're trying to solve here. It should be 0 unfortunately my first thought would be wired but you have that so there's something wrong with your network but I can't comment on
 
Someone with the same issue:

Oh boy, I think I might have fixed it. While fiddling around the settings again I remembered I switch the "Limit bandwidth" setting to unlimited, just to try and get it to work better. I just changed it back to automatic and now everything looks good. I ran another network test and got "Frame loss: 0%, network time: 18.95 ms, varience: 15.08ms." I just tryed Goat Simulator and it looks pretty good. Thanks for helping me through this
Click to expand...
 
Have a Steam Link too. Would recommend you set the Steam Link to accept Beta updates--it's a common recommendation you'll find online, and it seems to help a bit. Second, I get that problem from time to time, but it's mostly fine on my end--if it helps, try changing the Steam Link and Steam Home Streaming settings so that it sets your computer to 1080p60 instead of 1440p or whatever it defaults to--I have an ultrawide monitor and it was sending a 2560x1080 image to the Steam Link, and the Steam Link would downscale it to 1920x810, letterboxing it, and then spitting out a letterboxed 1080p image to my TV. If your Link is doing the same with 1440p (well not letterboxing it, but getting a 1440p image and downscaling it) it's likely taking up more bandwidth than it needs to.

Edit: Just saw your later posts. My problem is that it'll freeze up for a few seconds before updating the image, which isn't likely to be the same thing.
 
Strange, I use my Steam Link on 5ghz wi-fi and it works great, there are some artefacts in the image when something moves really fast but I still think it's great and use it all the time to get some comfy couch time on the PC.
Maybe you've set the performance settings to prioritize quality over speed?
 
I got one, lag is bad, using ethernet.
Especially on games where timing is important, ie Rocket League.

Use it for video streaming now...

For casual games, should be ok-ish
 
Sounds like a network issue to me if the network tests won't even run. Reset the devices network settings to defaults and verify DHCP on your router gives it a valid IP, subnet, and default gateway.
 
DarkestHour said:
Sounds like a network issue to me if the network tests won't even run. Reset the devices network settings to defaults and verify DHCP on your router gives it a valid IP, subnet, and default gateway.
Click to expand...

weird, since ALL of my devices work with blazing speed internet , both wired and wireless (ps4, xbox one, switch, phones, my desktop, laptop, fire TV, roku, etc..)

I will try resetting everything again and tweaking the settings and see what happens.
 
Ensure that your router is in the correct wireless mode for your Steam Link, it should be operating in 802.11ac on the 5GHz band.

Also, usually in cases like these, it's because the router prioritizes traffic for certain devices over others - it may not know what a Steam Link is. Check your firewall and other advanced settings. I've found that I've only had issues with the Steam Link if the router is set incorrectly - every time I fix those issues, it works just fine. (I don't have a Nighthawk though.)

Ethernet is also a great solution, especially with powerline adapters, but there are a few caveats with that - any powerline adapter must be plugged into an outlet with preferably nothing else plugged into the same circuit. And if the wiring inside the walls is old, your connection speeds may vary.
 
Stupid question maybe but is your pc also connected to your network by wire? I have an i3 6100 and gtx970. It works flawlessly for me, not even blocky picture.
Edit: also make sure you have hardware encoding ticked in the options.
 
Malawhur said:
Stupid question maybe but is your pc also connected to your network by wire? I have an i3 6100 and gtx970. It works flawlessly for me, not even blocky picture.
Edit: also make sure you have hardware encoding ticked in the options.
Click to expand...

yes, my Pc is wired.

I will try that. any other suggestions?
 
Does your monitor use Gsync? I had issues where I had to disable gsync for the lag to go away, but that was such a huge tradeoff that I returned mine. This was like a year ago though so I don't know if the issue is still there.
 
Are you positive that the Steam link and your PC are in the same subnet?

I once had problems with PS3 media server and eventually figured out that my PC and PS3 didn't actually belong in the same subnet despite being in the same network.
 
You have bufferbloat like most people.....

Wireless AC sucks and induces latency so if you want to avoid that use N.

I use a nighthawk 7800 with lede firmware, not the garbage stock. If you use stock firmware and it's updated enable Dynamic QOS as it anti bufferbloat, not the best solution but worlds better than old QOS.

If you're on windows make a screenshot of your various "netstat -s" so we can rule out the machine. If it's on your router and you use stock firmware not much me or anyone can do till you move off that crap.
 
Balmung421 said:
Does your monitor use Gsync? I had issues where I had to disable gsync for the lag to go away, but that was such a huge tradeoff that I returned mine. This was like a year ago though so I don't know if the issue is still there.
Click to expand...

My monitor is gsync. Come on, I won't disable that Everytime I want to steam link. I will just return this piece of crap
 
Dude.. I'm telling you it's your router. I've had the same issue with the nighthawk. Switching to an Asus router fixed all my issues
 
ElfArmy177 said:
Dude.. I'm telling you it's your router. I've had the same issue with the nighthawk. Switching to an Asus router fixed all my issues
Click to expand...

maybe, but I bought this router for $150 few years ago, works perfectly fine for all my needs, still working fine, I am not throwing this router away and get another one just for this steam link piece of crap. I will just return that. god damn it, thanks for the suggestion though. Just pissed that nighthawk is a high end router
 
Labadal said:
Just buy a hdmi cable and hook it to your Tv from your PC. Works like a charm.
Click to expand...

Oh cool, I'm totally going to run a cable all the way from my upstairs bedroom to my downstairs TV, a distance of maybe 20 meters.

seriously tho not really an option for a lot of people
 
snap said:
Oh cool, I'm totally going to run a cable all the way from my upstairs bedroom to my downstairs TV, a distance of maybe 20 meters.

seriously tho not really an option for a lot of people
Click to expand...
True. Didn't think about that. I have my PC in the same room as my TV. It could still be an option if they want to. You don't want to see how my ethernet cables are hooked up in the house. (They are hidden, but still, lol!)
 
Booker.DeWitt said:
maybe, but I bought this router for $150 few years ago, works perfectly fine for all my needs, still working fine, I am not throwing this router away and get another one just for this steam link piece of crap. I will just return that. god damn it, thanks for the suggestion though. Just pissed that nighthawk is a high end router
Click to expand...

Return it then. You're dead set on the steam link being a piece of crap.
 
Laggy via ethernet is definitely something weird.

Are you Streaming in 1440p to another 1440p screen? Pretty sure the current Steam Link is only 1080p 60fps. It gets unstable after that and at 4k will lag and have all manner of bitrate issues. Downsampling of course is fine as long as the stream is 1080p

If you have the Samsung TVs and are using the app, those TVs have the in-built Steam Link hardware capable of 4k 60fps streaming - but that is the only place so far I think.
 
Booker.DeWitt said:
maybe, but I bought this router for $150 few years ago, works perfectly fine for all my needs, still working fine, I am not throwing this router away and get another one just for this steam link piece of crap. I will just return that. god damn it, thanks for the suggestion though. Just pissed that nighthawk is a high end router
Click to expand...

I'm right there with ya, trust me... But it's your router I promise you. Get a new one and return it if it doesn't fix the problem maybe?
 
Wolf Akela said:
Try setting Limit Bandwidth to Auto or Unlimited.
Click to expand...

tried both options, same shit.

Nzyme32 said:
Laggy via ethernet is definitely something weird.

Are you Streaming in 1440p to another 1440p screen? Pretty sure the current Steam Link is only 1080p 60fps. It gets unstable after that and at 4k will lag and have all manner of bitrate issues. Downsampling of course is fine as long as the stream is 1080p

If you have the Samsung TVs and are using the app, those TVs have the in-built Steam Link hardware capable of 4k 60fps streaming - but that is the only place so far I think.
Click to expand...

I set up the steam link to only output 1080p
 
Booker.DeWitt said:
tried both options, same shit.



I set up the steam link to only output 1080p
Click to expand...

I tried everything under the sun... Qos, limiting bandwidth, changing settings, yadda yadda. Nothing worked. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do outside of switching the router. Which is stupid cause the router is hella expensive.. maybe there was a bad batch? Who knows
 
ElfArmy177 said:
I tried everything under the sun... Qos, limiting bandwidth, changing settings, yadda yadda. Nothing worked. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do outside of switching the router. Which is stupid cause the router is hella expensive.. maybe there was a bad batch? Who knows
Click to expand...

I know, that sucks man. I can't return my nighthawk because it's been 3 years since I bought it, and otherwise I love the router, really fast.

I think I will just return the steam link. That sucks.
My desktop is on the second floor, my TV is on the first floor. Maybe I will just bring my desktop to first floor (office), and use a HDMI cable.My wife won't like it though lol
 
Booker.DeWitt said:
maybe, but I bought this router for $150 few years ago, works perfectly fine for all my needs, still working fine, I am not throwing this router away and get another one just for this steam link piece of crap. I will just return that. god damn it, thanks for the suggestion though. Just pissed that nighthawk is a high end router
Click to expand...

Meh, doubt it's the router since it's all LAN so it's literally just the switchports and Cat5 cables. Only issue I could see if the port has a weird setting enabled on it, went bad or the cable is bum but since all your other devices work fine I doubt that's the issue.

Regardless if those switchports are 100mbps or 1gbps it shouldn't matter.
 
Have you tried just plugging your Steam Link and PC into a simple switch (via ethernet, disconnecting all other networking for each device) to diagnose the issue?
 
Odd, I don't think it's the Steam Link because mine works so well that the difference between playing on my PC and my Steam Link is negligible.

Make absolutely certain that both the Steam Link and the Computer are both on ethernet connections within the same network, I know you mentioned the Steam link was, but I don't think you mentioned anything about the computer it's connecting to being on ethernet. I had to convert my router into a makeshift switch for this to work. Also make sure you opt in and download the Beta patches on both the client computer as well as the Steam Link. Make sure you're using Cat5E cables or Cat6, I'm not sure if just regular Cat5 will mess things up but can't hurt to use better cables.

Booker.DeWitt said:
My desktop is on the second floor, my TV is on the first floor.
Click to expand...

This is also the case for me, so I don't think distance is an issue.

That's all I have off the top of my head though.
 
Zutrax said:
Odd, I don't think it's the Steam Link because mine works so well that the difference between playing on my PC and my Steam Link is negligible.

Make absolutely certain that both the Steam Link and the Computer are both on ethernet connections within the same network, I know you mentioned the Steam link was, but I don't think you mentioned anything about the computer it's connecting to being on ethernet. I had to convert my router into a makeshift switch for this to work. Also make sure you opt in and download the Beta patches on both the client computer as well as the Steam Link. Make sure you're using Cat5E cables or Cat6, I'm not sure if just regular Cat5 will mess things up but can't hurt to use better cables.



This is also the case for me, so I don't think distance is an issue.

That's all I have off the top of my head though.
Click to expand...

I am using the ethernet cable that came with the steam link. I will try one more thing before returning the steam link, I will try to connect the steam link directly to the powerline with a different brand new ethernet cable and see how it goes (not using a switch). I doubt that is the issue since I have other devices using the same hub and they work fine
 
Booker.DeWitt said:
I am using the ethernet cable that came with the steam link. I will try one more thing before returning the steam link, I will try to connect the steam link directly to the powerline with a different brand new ethernet cable and see how it goes (not using a hub). I doubt that is the issue since I have other devices using the same hub and they work fine
Click to expand...

You are using a hub or a switch? If you are using a hub that is absolutely your problem. A hub sends the signal out to every port on the network and not just a single port that requires it. So that goes for every device that is connected to the hub.

If your using a switch it should be fine, but that's going to depend on the switch you have.
 
Iorv3th said:
You are using a hub or a switch? If you are using a hub that is absolutely your problem. A hub sends the signal out to every port on the network and not just a single port that requires it. So that goes for every device that is connected to the hub.

If your using a switch it should be fine, but that's going to depend on the switch you have.
Click to expand...

sorry, I am using a switch, the one you just have extra ports. it is a switch
 
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