Wifi vs. Ethernet for 1080p Streaming
#1
Hi,

Couldn't figure out a bunch of search terms to try and find an answer to this question. Is it possible to stream 1080p Blu Ray Rips over my wifi from my NAS/server to my device without any glitching etc?

I know with 4K rips streaming over your local network is dicey because bit rates get up to 100mbps (that's my understanding of it) so gigabit ethernet is recommended. Could someone clarify recommended solutions for 1080p blu ray streaming and 4K HDR streaming?
Reply
#2
Unable to say with certainty because everyones home setup is different when the Can of Worms - WiFi is involved....

Dual band 2.4/5GHz N WiFi might be OK.
Dual band AC WiFi even better.
Even better than that is dual band AC MIMO WiFi, depending on the WiFi router placement and how many walls, floors, brick, wood etc the RF signals have to go thru. and the distance involved.

Avoid like the plague 2.4GHz only WiFi.
Far too much 2.4GHz RF interference in houses these days, as an example ask the Shield guys about their 2.4GHz Bluetooth Mini remote RF interference problems !

External WiFi antennas on media players are better than motherboard, integrated ones.
Dual Antennas are even better for MIMO WiFi, like you see on the new FireTV Stick 4K, which has very good AC MIMO WiFi.

Plug N Play - media player hardware sold by major companies like Nvidia, Amazon, Apple, Xiaomi usually undergo FCC RF testing for certification purposes and will usually have better WiFi performance.
Legit google certified Android TV OS devices I would think would have to undergo FCC testing as well before USA retail sale.

High bitrate - 4K HDR Bluray Rips with HD audio, really needs Gigabit Ethernet. It's the peaks in variable bitrates that cause 100M only LAN issues.
There simply are too many variables with WiFi to make such streaming reliable.

Comparatively low bitrate 4K HDR Netflix, YouTube, Prime video etc internet streaming - > you might get away with Dual band N WiFi.

NFS Networking protocols should be used if WiFi is marginal, due to less data transport overheads.

Reply
#3
More ideas:

avoid wifi extenders (really bring down throughput badly)

Avoid powerline based wifi-APs. that just adding insult to injury.

APs from companies who are big in the consumer market may be more likely to have worked out wifi quirks to be compatible with most consumer equipment. In my experience, they did even better at that than professional only WiFi APs (how many support calls do those get to make work with internet radios, TV sets, and other wifi connected home-stuff).

Testing testing testing. There are nice wifi testing apps for phones, so you can roam the home and see how high connection speed is, check roaming if you have multiple APs, and so on.

If you measure throughput X to one client, and the client needs X/4 bandwidth to stream, don't expect that you can stream in parallel to 4 of these clients. Not even to 3. As soon as you stream simultaneously to multiple clients, your safe aggregate bandwidth goes down.

Be sure to check the connection rates of all clients to minimize issues. Ideally, all clients should connect at equal, highest speed.

Different APs have differently good/bad GUI to troubleshoot/monitor whats going on. I am fairly happy with Unifi APs for this.

WiFi drivers/software can suck. Always have another highest-speed USB3 wifi stick to compare and diagnose whether problems/speeds come from the clients built-in wifi.

Good luck
Reply
#4
Oh yes, and i am actually looking for further troubleshooting ideas myself: Got a really nice win 10 atom pc kodi build, but when using the onboard intel wifi, i always get after a while (hours/days) connection reset issues accessing the server (linux/samba). Also any TCP connection (e.g.: just telnet to www.google.com or the like). Will try my "use different USB wifi) suggestion from above, but would also lover to hear other diagnostics opinions. Of course no such problem with GigE.
Reply
#5
Thanks so much for those replies guys! Very very helpful. I suppose a lot of it to start off with is just trialing first and then adjusting to suit.
Reply
#6
Look into Multimedia over Coax Alliance products (MoCA). They use coax cable to extend your network. Far better than wifi or powerline.
Reply

Logout Mark Read Team Forum Stats Members Help
Wifi vs. Ethernet for 1080p Streaming0