Big issue with my fiber optics internet for Qobuz streaming


 

I just switched from cable to fiber optics for internet. Both download and upload speeds have been upgraded to over 600 Mbps, so speed should not be an issue at all. It came with a modem (AT&T BGW320 model), which handles the fiber-to-Ethernet conversion and also serves as a router.

For TV, video streaming, and cell phone access, the experience has been great—better than ever. However, when I stream Qobuz hi-res music, particularly 24/192, it continuously pauses, drops out, and/or skips tracks from time to time. Sometimes even lower-resolution music has similar issues.

I called AT&T support, and the technician performed a detailed diagnosis and reset from his end but found nothing he could address or offer to resolve the issue. He suggested raising the issue with Qobuz.

What could be the reason? Have you encountered such an issue? How did you resolve it?

lanx0003

@rikkipuu  Thank you for the educational information.  

4. IP Passthrough Stability (If using a second router)

If you have a personal router connected to the BGW320, the Blue 5Gbps port is sometimes cited as less stable than the standard yellow ports for certain hardware. 

Since my router has 1Gbps WAN port, it won’t have any benefit connecting it to 5Gbps LAN port.  I thought about that though.

5. Wi-Fi Band Steering Conflicts

By default, the BGW320 uses one name for both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands (Band Steering). 

I did ask that question to AT&T technician too.  After switching wi-fi over to the new router, I assigned different ssid to each band.  Thx for the confirmation.

1. ActiveArmor Security Interference

AT&T’s built-in security suite, ActiveArmor, is known to cause intermittent latency and drops in streaming performance. 

Just find out the ActiveArmor is included in my plan but NOT activated, which means it is not the culprit.

@tomrk It's not a DNS issue. If you had a DNS issue, your PC would be struggling to even get to this site to post.

If you're having dropouts there's a good chance its the local network (which is my hunch).  

Try this on your PC (or Mac) in a browser. Open your browser, type in play.qobuz.com. Log in, and just start listening to music on your PC (or laptop whatever you have). If there is no dropouts, it's not your ISP. 

I don't think DNS is the issue either.  Thanks for the confirmation.  I don't think it is the bandwidth issue either.  Anyway, after shifting all routing task over the router, the issue seems taken care of.  No issue playing Qobuz on Mac either now.

@lanx0003

What people are forgetting is that even 24-192 flacs are relatively small compared to a 1GB bandwidth (assuming you're not downloading the Beethoven's complete 9th symphony, but even there that would probably be roughly a 10 second download

That's why I suggested trying it from your Mac.  If it works there, it means Qobuz and the external network are fine, especially since you're using WiFi which is a bit slower than a direct Ethernet connection.  Even there when NAD screwed up the Ethernet code on my M33, I was able to switch to WiFi with no lags or dropouts.
 

The good part was NAD was more than willing to work with me, and at the end, they reduced the indexing time for my digitized library from overnight to less than an hour.

@rbstehno MTU default is 1500 and should be left alone. I used to set jumbo frames on our enterprise network which is setting MTU to 9000, and this can improve performance. 

Use AT&T’s modem then buy your own mesh network from there ...

1 more tip, I use a commercial switch in my audio room and it improved the sound quality because this switch  doesn’t use a wall wart

Did not change MTU either.  Thanks for the confirmation.  Currently the router is running fine and we have empty nest new (kids are all grown up / away), it seems no need for mesh.

I am curious though what switch you use / recommend that does not use a wall wart?  Thx.