Just got fiber installed a couple days ago and I’m already losing my mind.
Internet is supposed to be 2 Gbps and normal speed tests look great, but when I’m gaming on my PS5 I get these random bursts of horrible lag every 10–15 minutes.
Everything will be fine, then suddenly my character starts teleporting backwards, inputs stop registering and the game basically freezes for a few seconds. Then it goes back to normal like nothing happened.
The fiber jack and router are downstairs near the TV. My PS5 is upstairs in my bedroom over WiFi.
Yes, I know Ethernet would be better. Unfortunately running a cable upstairs isn’t really an option right now.
Called the ISP and they said they can replace the router if it keeps happening, but I’m not convinced throwing another router at it will actually fix anything.
How do I figure out whether this is the fiber connection or just my WiFi?
Before replacing anything, figure out where the packet loss starts. Run a continuous ping to your router/gateway and another one to something on the internet. If the ping to the router spikes when your game does, that points at the local WiFi. If the router ping stays clean but the internet one goes crazy, then start bothering the ISP.
@404_Found I’ve only been running internet speed tests, which obviously look fine whenever the lag isn’t happening.
A 900 Mbps speed test doesn’t tell you much about a five-second latency spike that happens every 15 minutes.
Also check what the WiFi actually looks like upstairs. Put a laptop next to the PS5 and run NetSpot. Look at the actual signal level, band/channel and what other networks are around you. Apartment buildings can be ugly RF-wise even when the WiFi icon looks perfectly happy.
@Dilemma_Fixer PS5 usually shows pretty strong signal though. Would NetSpot tell me anything the console isn’t?
More useful numbers, yeah. Strong signal doesn’t automatically mean low contention or clean airtime. At minimum you’ll know whether you’re sitting on weak 5 GHz, dropping to 2.4, or sharing the channel with half the building.
Buy your own router. ISP routers are almost always the first thing I replace.
@Dreamer_XYZ Or maybe don’t spend $300 before proving the router is the problem. OP is upstairs, on WiFi, in an apartment building. There are several suspects ahead of “fiber router bad”.
@Wild_cat_2000 Fine, but if they swap the ISP router for free I’d still take the replacement.
@Dreamer_XYZ Sure. Free troubleshooting is different from blindly buying hardware.