Problems with Voice Chat

[CreepImpact]

Hi together! S
ince several weeks me and my borderlands Pre sequel-partner have big problems with the steam voice chat, during starting and playing the game. We can not understand each other, because the voices sounds hacked. It is impossible to understand each other and so of cause impossible to play coop.
Do other players have the same problems? Maybe, is it a problem of the steam chat-server and is there a solution? Many thanks for answers.
(Please do not recommend some other team-chat servers, we know them. ;-)

[CreepImpact]

Forgot: Bevor starting the game everything sounds good. The problem begins with loading the game. On bothe side of the players. (We live in different towns.)

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

It's peer to peer. If you have bad connection to another person that might be something to consider.

Another thing can affect this is either using custom ports to block somethings, or custom DNS servers, or using 3rd party software that manages your network for incoming and outgoing.

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

Originally posted by CreepImpact:

Forgot: Bevor starting the game everything sounds good. The problem begins with loading the game. On bothe side of the players. (We live in different towns.)

Oh, then seem like hardware limitations you're facing.

[CreepImpact]

I am a little bit late, sorry. Thanks a lot for your answer! Can you give me any hints how to look at hardware limitations and change them? You have to know I am a little bit of a nerd in things like this.

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

You can use hardware monitoring software such as HWmonitor, or etc... For in-game view could try MSI afterburner + rivatuner and look up a video how to setup display for hardware monitoring in-game for CPU, GPU, Ram, storage, for usages, and temperature.

My best bet is either the HDD/SSD or CPU is hitting 100% usage when loading, that when you encounter your choppy voice chat issues.

Also this a laptop you're using, I assume?

[CreepImpact]

Yes, it's an ASUS R556L (bought in 2015) with
intel i5-5200U@ 2.20 GHz 2.20 GHz
12 GB RAM
graphic: intelHD graphics 5500

But I don't know the laptop of my borderlands-partner. But it seems to be like mine (graphics is the same I remember, because we talked about it).
We wondered, because when playing Borderlands 2, we did not have such voice-chat problems.

(Sorry, if there are some mistakes in my writing, I am German. :-D

[CreepImpact]

I've just downloaded the HWmonitor and startet. Temperature (44°) and cpu seems to be normal, But I am not in a game this moment.

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

No worry, anyways, I can assume either it's your dual core cpu, or HDD when chocking is when you encounter your voice issues.

Also when running the HWmonitor, click on view, and click on clear min/max this way you have a refresh reading.

[CreepImpact]

Thanks again! System- information says the core is running as quad. I just took a fresh snapshot from system exlplorer, which you can see here:
https://c.gmx.net/@324516393682737161/z_JjJ10_QQGbEtsE4qYDqw
And thanks a lot, I appreciate your patience and your spended time very much. :-)

[CreepImpact]

Domo arigatou, Dr.Shadowds san. (I took a look in your profile, sumimasen ;-)

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

Yea it will display as that, but really your cpu is a dual core with hyperthreading which is four threads.
https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/products/85212/intel-core-i5-5200u-processor-3m-cache-up-to-2-70-ghz.html

My cpu is i7 6700k it's a quad core with hyperthreading, but it will display as eight because of the 8 threads.

Cores = / = Threads.

Threads is basically pipelines basically breaking the task between each core more better the simplest I can make it.

[CreepImpact]

I see. (I also have an bigger PC with i7 and good grafic card, but very seldom in use, because I love playing as couchpotatoe. :-D.
Next time (few days) when we will play the B. The Pre Sequel I will use the HWMonitor to look for the limitation. Then I will give you a new message here.
Meanwhile big thanks for your help so far. :-)

[CreepImpact]

New Info: Today we played Borderlands 2 for testing the voice chat. No choppy voices. My cpu use were on 100% and temperature at 77°.
So I think that the hardware of our laptops is not enough for playing Borderlands-The Prequel with clear voic chat, although the game runs fluently. Next time we will give a try with an extern voice chat and see if it works better.
I wonder if a bigger RAM than 12 GB will make it.

[CreepImpact]

Update:
We tried to play B. Presequel with using the Discord Voicechat. It seemed not much choppy as the Steam voicechat. The Discord sound is not perfect but better and -important!- not hurting our nerves so much. It does not scratch. :-)

Solution: The mistake was no mistake. Our laptop hardware seems to be not strong enough for playing B. ThePresequel with the steam voicechat.
And that means, we both will also not able to play the new Borderlands 3.

Big thanks for your advices, Dr.Shadowds!

Oh, btw ...is it possible to play coop online when the players are using different platforms? I meen for example Windows PC versus PS2 or other?

[Dr.Shadowds 🐉]

They didn't add cross platform support to any of their games. If they plan to do that in the future it might be borderlands 3, but gearbox have no interest in supporting it really IMHO. 2K is their publisher, if they want it, they will make gearbox do it.