Xbox has higher ping and very variable download speeds with upgraded internet and new modem

[JayupNorth]

Hi, I recently upgraded to 100mbs internet and received a t3200m modem.  I am enjoying the upgrades for most things but gaming has become worse.  The first thing I noticed was ping increased from 21-24ms to 36ms.  I am also getting extremely variable download speeds through the Xbox test.  I am hard wired and can get as high as 95.  However, most of the time I am low 60mbs and have dropped as low as 8 down/25 up.  The speed test is quite inconsistent even if I am the only one home.  The tech, who had to come back to fix the television (wasn't working with the coaxial on the new router so he brought a wireless box) suggested problems with the Xbox.  Well today, I upgraded to a brand new Xbox s and the inconsistency remains.  I am experiencing more lag playing Overwatch than I was before the upgrade.  I have bridged to a quite old d-link n wireless router and my ping is usually a bit better.  32ms although sometimes 36 as well.

i have port forwarded all the recommended Xbox ports and set the Xbox up to be forwarded through the router advanced settings but no improvement.  Could it be a problem with the router?  I tried to get the tech to try a new one but he blamed the Xbox itself for the speeds and coaxial technology for the tv.  Instead he drove an hour to get a wireless box and took 4+ hours total.  As he was leaving he did offer to try a new one but at that point I had stuff to get done, make supper, and I just found him to be annoying and unprofessional.   I am willing to put the t3200m in bridge mode and buy a new inexpensive router to handle the Xbox if people think it will help.  I will just disable the wifi.  Will bridging just provide a free glow through the t3200m or could it remain problematic?  Could he have messed something up when he added the second wire (he needed to add a wire to go from 50 to 100).  My older one did help a bit sometimes.  I am also considering requesting a new tech check this guys work.  There is a wire hanging out of the box now and I am not convinced the first guy is overly qualified.

Other things to note.  My firewall settings on the router are nat only.  My iPad has slightly variable speeds as well, but no real super poor results like the Xbox.  Ping tests to google.com or google.ca get 26-32ms.  So my ping times are up 50% on Xbox one s and I am getting some lag (noticeable through the kill cam on overwatch) that wasn't there before.  Nothing terrible, but a step backwards as far as gaming goes.

[Nighthawk · Accepted solution]

First thing to note is that most speedtest servers cannot consistently support 100mbps connections. Console speedtests are well known for being unpredictable and often below the speed of the user's connection. In terms of gaming even a 5mbps connection is more than sufficient in the extreme majority of cases.

1. Coax on the T3200m is a MoCA port. It is not compatible with any of the current Optik boxes without another MoCA adapter on the box's end. I'm not sure if Telus even has those yet.
2. With two phone lines connected to the T3200m, that slight bump in latency is not unexpected. It means your area does not have lines capable of delivering 100 so it's split between two. My setup is the same way and I have a T3200m. If you log in to the T3200 you can see the stats for each line.
3. "NAT only" is the minimum firewall setting. Most games/consoles hate anything other than that. The higher NAT gets the less likely games will work. Bridging the T3200 had no effect on my latency here.
4. Do NOT test by pinging any of google's websites as you will rarely ever get the same one consistently for testing and with the load most are under the results are never guarateed to be consistent either. You should be testing to the game server itself if you really want any accurate idea of latency for whichever game you are complaining about.
5. Also you should be using WinMTR instead of traceroute or ping tests and let it run for at least a minute or two. Traceroutes or pings by themselves do not provide enough information. 
6. Saying you experience "more lag" is not a quantifiable number. How are you gauging this lag? If in game, what is your latency showing as both before and after?
7. Do not use anything wireless to gauge speeds. Too many environmental and hardware factors that can impact the speed and results.

One thing to remember, the further you are from the game server, the higher the latency will get.

[JayupNorth]

Thank you for a lot of good information.  I am judging lag by comparing what I experience to what the kill cam shows.  I am mostly playing Overwatch.  I die instantly, but the kill cam will show that I take damage for a good .5-1 second.  There could be many reasons for lag in online gaming; however, I noticed more lag while expecting less with the upgrade.  I am also a regular speed tester and my results are now much less consistent.  It is not the end of the world, but it is my main hobby and I get aggravated.  

I am am curious if I can disconnect an incoming line and lower my ping.  I usually play during the day when the house is empty and do not need 100mbs as you have noted.  Is that a possible workaround?  It may be inconsequential but that would probably make me feel better.  Playing in worldwide games like Destiny and Overwatch, I am at a bit of a geographical disadvantage to the higher populated areas.

[Nighthawk]

The modem usually needs both phone lines to get online. You can try dropping one but it'll likely not work.

500-1000ms in lag on the kill cam? That would make the game unplayable if accurate. I've been on servers (not overwatch but other PC games) where if you're even 150ms you're at a disadvantage.

[JayupNorth]

The worst lag .5-1second is rare, but noticeable lag has been fairly frequent.  I just purchased Overwatch a month ago after putting up with Destiny's laggy pvp for far too long.  The first few weeks were magically good.  I would gladly get Telus to switch back to my old service if I was able to bridge the actiontec 1000 just to get better wifi reception.

Thanks again.  I will try pulling one wire and seeing if it works; however, I doubt it will work.  (If it does I will make a post).  I have lurked on this forum occasionally for years and it has been very helpful.

[JayupNorth]

Ok, this morning I tried to remove a line.  It does indeed work and my average ping dropped from 36 to 31.  So slightly improved.  I did not have any lag yet, although I only played a few games.

i did notice that line one struggles when compared to line 2.  Speed tests on Xbox and iPad (I know not the best) were on average 20-30mbps faster.  Line one was 25-35 ish and line 2 was 55 ish and a consistently better ping.  Line one ping was more likely to be higher as well.  

[kikithecafekief101]

ya, i just did a speed test my older first gen xbox one and i paying for 25mbps but got 11 down,  have a gaming pc tho only two youtube video that would be using alot of bandwidth tho there not playing!! why is it only 11mbps download? 😛 =(

[Nighthawk]

Kief, you asked this previously. Speed tests done on consoles are not reliable and often show very low results. If your Xbox is still wireless, wireless should not be used for speed tests. 11mbps is also far more than needed for online gaming anyways.