The Wifi Testing Thread

[Discussion]

Hi everyone,

I'm making this thread to hopefully pool everyones various tests using different routers and wifi bands.

First off, all of my tests are done with a wired desktop as a host and a wireless Macbook Pro running OSX Mavericks as the client.

Every test I did with b/g routers were barely playable in even the best test cases. Only games that aren't latency dependant (XCOM, Civ, etc) were playable.

However once I swapped to a full 5ghz band N router the experience greatly improved given the increase in bandwidth. Borderlands, a very busy game visually can run at 1080p 60FPS nearly flawlessly with only a few dips and minimal latency.

Realistically, in a working household full of Wifi devices I expect b/g routers to be pretty much useless given the extra in-house bandwidth taken up by avid Netflix / YouTube users.

I assume the majority of users are going to use Steam in-home streaming over Wifi, hopefully we can get a good knowledge base going to help Valve improve the experience.

[gabri91]

Windows 7 Desktop host to Windows 7 Notebook runs quite good, no hd TVs to test in my house for now so i let the desktop resolution (it did output at 1230x768) Skyrim was running at 30 fps (FPS limit to auto) but Batman AC was running at 20 and had a little constant struttering while playing...

I also had to set Bandwith limit to 20 Mbps (my current subscription is 20 Mb)
I have a wireless N router but i tried both wireless n only and bgn mode and it didn't change much

[leberschnitzel]

And more games added: http://steamcommunity.com/groups/homestream/discussions/0/630802979130451288/#c540731690787003261

[Sazime]

Host:
Intel i7 3820, 3.6Ghz
16GB DDR3 2133
GeForce GTX 670 2GB
Hardwired Linksys E2500

Client:
MacBook Pro, Intel i7, 3.6Ghz
8GB DDR3 RAM
GeForce GT 650M
Wireless N to Linksys E2500

In short, works great. Little latency.

EDIT: I have only tested out XCOM and Saints Row IV so far, but I plan on getting into more once I have another client set up with Linux, just to see what differences I can find.

[Jupper]

I did some 5GHz vs 2.4GHz testing.

Host:
i7-4670 k @ 4GHz
MSI R9-280x 3GB @ 1050MHz
8 GB DDR3
Asus USB-N53 802.11a/b/g/n dual band wifi dongle
2560x1600 Display

Client:
Macbook Air 13.3 2013
i5-4250U @ 1.3GHz
Intel HD 5000 1024 MB
4GB DDR3
Broardcom 802.11 n/ac
1440x900 display

Router:
Asus RT-N56U 802.11a/b/g/n dual band
All tests done at 802.11n, the two machines placed next to each other at ca. 5m distance to the router, nothing blocking the way.
Input: Logitech F710 controller

Games tested Darksiders and Left 4 Dead 2
Host fps not streaming:
Darksiders: 239 fps
Left 4 Dead 2: 198 fps

Streaming both connected to 5GHz wifi:
Darksiders:
Host:
2560x1600 @ 55 fps
Client:
1440x900 @ 58.8 fps.
Latency: 34.9ms
Ping time: 4.38ms
Link utilization 5% of 260 Mbps
Very smooth, didn’t notice any input lag on the controller at all. The host PC is limited to 55 fps wile streaming.

Left 4 Dead 2:
Host:
2560x1600 @ 55 fps
Client:
1152x720 @ 58.8 fps.
Latency: 31.45ms
Ping time: 2.4ms
Link utilization 7% of 171 Mbps
Also very smooth with no input lag, but the resolution changed to 1152x720.

Streaming, host PC on 2.4GHz wifi and Client on 5GHz wifi:
Almost identical results as both on 5GHz, the only difference is the Link utilization estimate is now 63-67 Mbps

Bot PCs connected to 2.4GHz wifi:
Darksiders:
Host:
2560x1600 @ 28 fps
Client:
1440x900 @ 29.4 fps.
Latency: 84.2ms
Ping time: 13.1ms
Link utilization 57% of 25 Mbps
Not very enjoyable, the input lag was all right but the frame rate was annoying. Sometimes the link utilization estimate jumped to 30+ Mbps and the fps would increase to 58.8, but only for a sort amount of time. Host got limited to 28 fps.

Left 4 Dead 2:
Host:
2560x1600 @ 55 fps
Client:
1152x720 @ 58.8 fps.
Latency: 40ms
Ping time: 3.6ms
Link utilization 24% of 54 Mbps
Left 4 dead 2 kept the 58fps probably because of the lower resolution. When I pressed F8 to save a snapshot there was a lag spike for a couple of seconds and the frame rate would fall and stay at 29fps. Even with the same bandwidth estimate of 54Mbps and a utilization of around 25%. If I paused the game for a couple of seconds the incoming bitrate would fall from 14460kbit/s to 5198kbit/s and the fps would go to 58.8 again.

For all details see this spreadsheet[dropbox.com]
I might do some 1920x1080 and increased distance/another room testing later.

[Powerbacon]

Host:
Windows 8.1 pro
AMD FX-4100
Radeon HD 6850
Wired gigabit

Client:
Asus Vivobook
i5 3317U
4gb ram
wireless n

router:
Sagecom 2764 b/g/n

results:
video latency no less than 40ms... input latency no more than 10ms... ping estimated in 2-4ms, still really strange things... need to test more... batman arkham origins worked good at 1366x768 30fps... more than that doesnt work...
rogue legacy doesnt work good... in fact work terrible...
civilization worked flawlessly, without lag, including touch mode on the notebook!
Will test more stuff and then I will post here =D

[Lucy's free eats]

Host
Win 7 Ult, i7 2600k OC, 580 OC, 16GB RAM 1600Mhz.

Client
(connected to old asus desktop with i3 and 330s UC)

reuter ZyXEL P-2812HNU(L)-Fx using 802.11n(5Ghz)

first some delay and lag 720p&30fps then turned bandwith from auto to unlimited and also turned quality up to 1080p.
Was working fine so wen't up to 1080p and 60fps feed was fluid with very little delay.
i don't know if would i play FPS games online but games like CIV 5 were FANTASTIC expirience!
Even dota 2 was playable, i expected a little more delay.
(you can still feel it,but not that bad)
(some games require accepting certain settings on streamin PC)
(internet speed about 300mb/s up and down(Fiber)about same on internal network.)
Great job so far so keep up the good work!

[AroundWayOtherThe]

Host
=========================
Intel i7 4770k @ 4.2GHz
Gigabyte GA-Z87X-OC motherboard
ASUS DCII GTX680 OC
16 GB G.Skill Ripjaws X 1600MHz
Windows 8.1 Pro
[Ethernet to router]


Client
=========================
Lenovo Yoga 13 (i5 3317u)
Windows 8.1
[WiFi to router]


Router
=========================
Netgear CG3000 802.11n [2.4GHz]



Tested over WiFi about 5m away through thin wall.
Portal: Played at 720p 30FPS with 80-100ms lag. Constantly dipped to 15FPS. Would not recommend.

Saints Row 3: Crashed. Couldn't play.

Trine 2: Hung. Wouldn't load game at all. Couldn't play.

GRID: Played at 1600x900 at 20FPS and 85ms lag.
Would work better as a couch experience. Would also work better with a controller. Was acceptable, although you had to be careful to adjust for the input lag enough. Found myself overcorecting a lot as I fishtailed along straights, due to lag.
Crashed on return to main menu.

All in all... much more suited to the couch experience. FPS's are unplayable, though.

[SHOWT1M3]

Please post your specs if your streaming 1080P at 60FPS with 802.11AC, as I am seriously considering taking the money plunge to buy the hardware I need for this.

[Powerbacon]

OK! Updating my experience and more info on hardware:

Host:
Windows 8.1 pro
AMD FX-4100
Radeon HD 6850
8gb ram
Wired gigabit

Client:
Asus Vivobook
Windows 8.1
i5 3317U
4gb ram
wireless n

router:
Sagecom 2764 b/g/n 2.4ghz

Yesterday my experience was not that great. I wasn't able to play the games I wanted in a comfortable way... thats the fact... only civ and other turn based games worked well...
THEN I realize that I was causing the problem! I choose unlimited bandwith on in home streaming settings, and this is not good at all! It was really laggy to encode and decode graphics at unlimited bandwith, then I selected 5mbits and everything was reeally smooooth! Now I can play Rogue Legacy on 1366x768 @60fps just fine, on wifi! All the other games were fine too! I even played World of Warcraft just fine too! Amazing!
The problem I've found now is that I can't play Dirt Showdown... It simply refuses to go, says that the computer can't reach the network...
Note: I didn't perceived any difference between wired and wireless on my setup... Tried Rogue Legacy on both and was awesome!
I will do more testings today, including using HDMI out to see if I can do 1080p@60fps with 5mbit! Will test on 10mbit too!

[MiWincheGusta]

Hey guys, thought i'd join in the wifi testing fun!


Host--
OS: Windows 8.1
Memory: 8GB RAM
Connection: Gigabit Ethernet
Processor: AMD Phenom X6 1090t 3.8ghz (OC)
Graphics Card: AMD Radeon HD 7970 (Asus DirectCU II)

Client--
OS: Windows 7
Memory: 4gb ram
Connection: 802.11n Wifi Adapter (5ghz)
Processor: Intel® Core i5 m430 2.27ghz
Graphics Card: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5800 Series

Router: ASUS RT-AC66U Dual-Band Wireless-AC1750 Gigabit Router


Games tested so far:

Tomb Raider avg 20fps-58fps (framerate was not consistent)

Assasins Creed 4 avg 30fps-58fps (consistent 30fps in open world, jumped to 58 fps during cutsenes)

Non-Steam Games:

Diablo 3 avg 14-29 fps (TERRIBLE PERFORMANCE)

The Witcher 2 Did not start, stuck at pre-game window (GOG version)

Overall in my intial tests the link utilization seemed oddly low with the limit bandwidth setting set to automatic.

I changed it to unlimited and it increased my link utilization to a solid 30% which resulted in a consistent framerate for AC4. I'll retest other games as well.

All in all this is just such a fantastic opportunity to play with this new technology, and I am quite pleased with the results so far. Wifi (with the right conditions) seems to be just fine.

Another thing to keep in mind folks (as found in a neogaf thread) DirectX11 games do not require additional encoding when streamed, therefor with the appropriate hardware you can achieve 60fps. If you are running a DX9 game however, additional encoding is apparently done which results in a reduced framerate. (I think I got that right?, valve feel free to correct me!)

Anywho, enjoy all! I'll be back with more results soon.

[Hirorir]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgQp6hv71Dk
I've been streaming over a Wireless AC network. Works pretty well. Since I don't see saturation in the network, I'm assuming that the current bottleneck in the quality is video-encoding bound (since it's software only as of right now).

Publicado originalmente por SHOT1M3:

Please post your specs if your streaming 1080P at 60FPS with 802.11AC, as I am seriously considering taking the money plunge to buy the hardware I need for this.

i7-3770k @ 4.2GHz on an Intel DZ77-GA70K (I don't recommend this board, go aftermarket brand Z87 or better)
4x4GB 1600MHz 9-9-9-24 Corsair Vengeance
Gigabyte GTX 780Ti Windforce

Using 2-way wifi configuration in the video above. Host (gigabit wired) -> Netgear R6300 (wireless bridge) -> R7000 (router) -> Laptop (Intel 7260AC WiFi chip)

Currently the biggest bottleneck that I'm having doing In-Home Streaming is the CPU, since encoding is software only, and is heavy on a single core. When hardware acceleration is enabled (hopefully with NVidia as well as Intel), then the performance boosts might kick in.

[SHOWT1M3]

Have purchased 2 802.11 AC routers, one is 1900 AC the other is 1200 AC. They are about 15 - 20 metre apart, with one thick wall. Streaming is immaculate in terms of the network. The games usually sit at 30 FPS at 1080P though so all thats left is the software bugs to be ironed out.

[K1D 1C4RU5]

This technology seems to work great for most people so early on. That's amazing, and I look forward to what's coming in future updates. I have some playable games, but not many, and mostly strategy games, which is fine with me for the moment.

As Valve has stated, the Linux-side of streaming is not caught up and not expected to work as well(which is normal) so that partially explains why I'm having less than normal results. My specs are:

HOST - desktop
----------
CPU: i5 760 @ 3.8Ghz
8 GB of 1333Mhz RAM
AMD Radeon HD 7970
Gigabit Ethernet to router

CLIENT - laptop
------------
CPU: AMD E1-1200 dual core @ 1.4 Ghz
4GB of 1333 Mhz RAM
AMD HD 7310
Gigabit Ethernet / Wireless N/G


Every stream says "Slow decode" for almost the entire game. I'm guessing that's my weak but capable gpu with even weaker Linux drivers. This laptop is extraordinarily weak(I bought it just for coding) and even weaker in Linux than it was in Windows 8. I look forward to see what improvements Valve offers to Linux. This is a very exciting technology, especially if you have one main gaming machine.

[Kill Target]

Host--
OS: Windows 7 Pro
Memory: 16GB DDR3 RAM
Connection: 1Gbps Ethernet
Processor: Intel i7 4770k @ 4.9GHz
Graphics Card: Asus Direct CUII OC Nvida GTX 760 - Core Clock @ 1350MHz
Custom Water Loop

Client--
OS: Mac OSX Mavericks
Memory: 8GB DDR3
Connection: 5GHz Wireless N
Processor: Intel i7 @ 2.7GHz
Graphics Card: Intel 4000 Series Integrated
Logitech Wireless KB & Mouse

Router--
Linksys Smart Wi-Fi Router EA6700

Results --

Portal 2 @ 720p - Solid 60fps, Perfect
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch - Solid 60fps, Perfect
Batman Arkham City @ 1280x800 - 50-55fps some dropped frames

[Cookington]

Host/Client--Laptop
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Memory: 4GB
Connection: 50mbps Upload/100mbps Download Ethernet
Processor: Intel i3 @ 2.66 GHz
Graphics Card: Intel HD Graphics 3000 Integrated

Host/Client--Desktop
OS: Windows Vista Ultimate 64-bit
Memory: 6GB
Connection: 50mbps Upload/100mbps Download Ethernet
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 @ 2.66 GHz
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GS

I've gone back and forth between these systems because testing!
With my laptop to desktop, I played Batman: Arkham City GOTY, at lowest settings on 1360x768. The framerate stayed at a unplayable 10 to 15 FPS, with the exception of loading screens at 60 FPS. The latency was about 134.31ms.

With desktop to laptop, I tried out BioShock Infinite. It was pretty playable, at the normal 30FPS at 1360x768. It dropped down quite often, with a "Slow game" status appearing. Also mind you, this was on Low settings (my desktop can't run it that well :P).