Bad lag on low latency servers

eolsen · 03-13-2008, 07:08 PM

Ok, I'm not sure if I should post this here or somewhere in the Networking forums, so sorry if this is in the wrong spot.

Anyway, I live in NJ and play TF2. I almost exclusively play on my guild's servers located in Toronto, Canada, so the latency isn't very high, only around 50. When I join a game, my ping is an acceptable 50. I would be perfectly happy with a constant ping of 50-60 however, when there are quite a few people around me, my ping shoots up to upwards of 250, which is obviously not acceptable for playing.

So what I'm looking for are some possible solutions. I have Verizon DSL, a Westell 327W modem, and my Intel 975x on board ethernet. Changing my ISP really isn't under my control, so that isn't an option.

Here's what I've been thinking:
1. Buying a new modem. I've been convinced since I first signed up with Verizon that the 327W modem is a piece of junk, so if buying a new one would be going in the right direction to solving this problem, please give me a recommendation on a good one.

2. Buying a Killer NIC
Now, I'm pretty unsure about buying one of these. It's a huge investment for a product that has pretty controversial reviews. From what I hear, it doesn't reduce ping by too much, but I'm not really looking to reduce my ping, only to just get a more constant ping, though I'm not sure a Killer NIC would do this either.

So I'm really hoping that someone can confirm that one of these will increase my performance, or if you have any other suggestions, please throw them my way.

eolsen · 03-14-2008, 05:09 PM

Also, I did a line quality test on DSL reports.com and got a 0% loss, so the line is not the issue. Also decided to do port forwarding for steam, which did absolutely nothing.

mcmuffin222 · 03-14-2008, 07:47 PM

Well, if your running Vista, your ping may shoot up like a rocket around other players. I have vista and i aslo have a huge problem with latency. If this is you, i would cosider downgrading to XP. I am almost certain that would fix your problem.

eolsen · 03-14-2008, 08:01 PM

Sorry, already using XP, thought thanks for the advice.

**FreoHeaveho** · 03-15-2008, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mcmuffin222

Well, if your running Vista, your ping may shoot up like a rocket around other players. I have vista and i aslo have a huge problem with latency. If this is you, i would cosider downgrading to XP. I am almost certain that would fix your problem.

Load of rubbish.

NOt sure why you are getting increased ping, however the server in question probably has a lot to do with it. Can you confirm this happens on more than one server, and more than one game?

03-13-2008, 07:08 PM	#1 (permalink)
eolsen Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 41 OS: WinXP	Bad lag on low latency servers Ok, I'm not sure if I should post this here or somewhere in the Networking forums, so sorry if this is in the wrong spot. Anyway, I live in NJ and play TF2. I almost exclusively play on my guild's servers located in Toronto, Canada, so the latency isn't very high, only around 50. When I join a game, my ping is an acceptable 50. I would be perfectly happy with a constant ping of 50-60 however, when there are quite a few people around me, my ping shoots up to upwards of 250, which is obviously not acceptable for playing. So what I'm looking for are some possible solutions. I have Verizon DSL, a Westell 327W modem, and my Intel 975x on board ethernet. Changing my ISP really isn't under my control, so that isn't an option. Here's what I've been thinking: 1. Buying a new modem. I've been convinced since I first signed up with Verizon that the 327W modem is a piece of junk, so if buying a new one would be going in the right direction to solving this problem, please give me a recommendation on a good one. 2. Buying a Killer NIC Now, I'm pretty unsure about buying one of these. It's a huge investment for a product that has pretty controversial reviews. From what I hear, it doesn't reduce ping by too much, but I'm not really looking to reduce my ping, only to just get a more constant ping, though I'm not sure a Killer NIC would do this either. So I'm really hoping that someone can confirm that one of these will increase my performance, or if you have any other suggestions, please throw them my way.

03-14-2008, 05:09 PM	#2 (permalink)
eolsen Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 41 OS: WinXP	Re: Bad lag on low latency servers Also, I did a line quality test on DSL reports.com and got a 0% loss, so the line is not the issue. Also decided to do port forwarding for steam, which did absolutely nothing.

03-14-2008, 07:47 PM	#3 (permalink)
mcmuffin222 Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 10 OS: Windows Vista	Re: Bad lag on low latency servers Well, if your running Vista, your ping may shoot up like a rocket around other players. I have vista and i aslo have a huge problem with latency. If this is you, i would cosider downgrading to XP. I am almost certain that would fix your problem.

03-14-2008, 08:01 PM	#4 (permalink)
eolsen Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 41 OS: WinXP	Re: Bad lag on low latency servers Sorry, already using XP, thought thanks for the advice.