Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
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When watching the WOO shows at Cedar Lake Speedway all three nights via DIRTVision, I had continuous problems with the streaming signal stopping and freezing. Anyone else experience that frustrating problem?

Mine was seamless..

I had some issues Saturday that required me to restart several times .Was wondering if they were having issues with their CDN. 

If you're watching a device connected to your WiFi download a wifi analyzer and speed test app.  I used to swear that I had good wifi but a closer check revealed signal drops and dead spots in our lower level.  I bought a mesh wifi booster and it solved my problems.  It consists of three units, the first plugs into the modem using an Ethernet cable and the other two are placed in the home to relay and amplify the signal.  I watch Floracing using a Roku app on a TV hard wired to Ethernet but have to watch Dirtvision on a Fire Stick as they don't make a Roku app available.  The mesh system made watching anything through wifi a painless experience.  

I'm so close to Cedar Lake at about 40 minutes I could have gone but am laying low this year avoiding crowds due to my age.  PPV has been my lifeline hence my willingness to pay for two services and a couple hundred bucks invested to boost the wifi signal.  It was money well spent as the CLS broadcast and all others have been flawless.

Stan Meissner

I didn't have any issues. The last time I had significant issues w/ DV was either Beaver Dam or Lake Ozark, but it's been perfect since. In fact, since they went to the truck at every race, that was the only time I ever had significant issues.

Both DV and Flo have been excellent all year.

Stan, 

How do you watch DirtVision on the FireStick?  I always end up using Apple AirPlay (not reliable) or hard wiring HDMI cable to my laptop.  I'd love to get my laptop out of the equation. 

The fire stick has a web browser app, I believe the one I use is Silk but Firefox is also available.  Just gonto the Dirtvision website same as you would on a laptop.  Click the race you want, open the live feed, maximize to fill the screen and let your eyeballs do the rest.  I'm not the official Dirtvision help desk but don't mind sharing how I am connecting.  Actually somebody here on hoseheads recommended that last year.  I guess Chromecast or whatever it's called is similar and some use that.  I have since curtailed my beer consumption but at one point I was afraid I would drop and wreck my wife's laptop at the end of the night so that was my initial reason for finding another solution.  

This method does require a strong and consistent wifi connection.  

Stan Meissner

It's now labeled just Internet and works great.  Also Stan is right almost every internet issue is related to your own network and not Dirtvision.  Wifi Analyzer works really to see what your signal is.   

I was having the same issue with Williams Grove Friday night and I emailed them and they said there were no problems on their end. I cleared my browser and rebooted my laptop and it solved the problem.

A

Worked perfect every night. If there is a good thing from covid it is finding dirtvision and monthly subscription. I have watched every weekend from the comfort of home. Its been awesome.

Thanks!  My TVs are all within probably 50 feet of the router (and that may be overestimating).  I usually use AppleTV but may be worth hooking up my old Firesticks for that.  Thanks! 

I have a related problem but with Flo.  I am new to this streaming stuff and finally bought into Flo.  I have not had one problem since I got it, no buffering, no drop outs (offs) until Sunday night.  I was watching the IRA from 141 Speedway and everything was flawless until the A main for wings.  Then, during the race, I had 3, 4 times it stopped and buffered (if that is the word) Could it be that a lot of people tuned in at that time or could it have been just a coincidence in timing?  Again, I am new to this.  Thanks

If it's any help I watched the IRA at 141 and didn't have any issues so I would encourage you to start with analyzing your wifi signal strength before making any other changes.  Some systems, ours included, experience speed drops during peak hours and if your wifi isnt up to the task the combination of speed drop and wifi issues will combine to cause buffering.  Another thing I did was to install a wifi analyzing app on my phone that shows if perhaps switching wifi channels will help.  This is drilling down into the type of settings that most people aren't very comfortable messing with.  

One thing I do if I'm watching and it buffers is to check on here and social media first to see if anyone else is having issues.  If others are reporting the same thing I'm experiencing then my first assumption is that it's on their end and I wait to see if it improves.  I'm no wifi expert but I have been upgrading and maintaining my own computers for 25 years so I'm not afraid to roll up my sleeves, do some research online and trouble shoot things like this.  This time that meant learning that the single plugin wifi extenders are basically junk and that the only good solution for my situation was to purchase a mesh wifi system.  

Be advised that every situation is unique and results may vary.  

Stan Meissner

I think some things need clarified here - WiFi signal strength is one small piece of a puzzle. You can sit your viewing device right next to a router and have full WiFi signal strength, but the speed of the connection to begin with is extremely important as well - if your network is struggling to get you a good speed, you're not going to accomplish anything with the best mesh WiFi system money can buy.

A fast and reliable internet connection and a good WiFi setup are both required for a good streaming experience. 

I had problems all weekend with Dirtvision. Normally it works great but all three days I had issues with it. Didn’t matter what I was trying to watch on it I had issues.  I could switch to Floracing and didn’t have any issues at all all weekend.  

My comments assume that speed is not the issue.  The minimum required to stream is generally considered to be in the 6 Mbps range and if that's all a person has other devices in the home will slow it and cause buffering.  I rent a Hitron combination modem/router from our provider and we pay for 100 Mbps but it does drop sometimes in the evening at peak hours.  The hard wired speed is pretty consistent but I think the wifi drop might be due to traffic in the neighborhood and all these devices being set to the same default channels.  My mesh system solved that problem and I'll see speeds in the 90 Mbps range in the TV room with an occasional dip but never enough to affect performance. 

Like I said, I'm no expert, just someone who did a bunch of research and found a solution that works for my setup.  Every situation is different and that is why I suggest downloading a wifi analyzer and speed test.  Use the analyzer to determine the best channel and the speed test to check for dead spots.  I had one of the Netgear plugin wifi boosters with the little antennas and it was junk,  My mesh system is the Eeros brand and resolved all of my problems but it costs $200 so some might not be willing to spend as much.  Again, every situation is different due to wifi speed, home construction, distances and a host of other factors.  Some will consider what I'm saying elementary wifi 101 and others will likely run for an interpreter to figure out what the hell I'm talking about.

Mileage and circumstances may vary, one size does not fit all but hopefully we've floated some ideas that will help some of our fellow Hosers.

Stan Meissner

I pay the bills pretending to be a FTTH technician. I install and trouble shoot Internet, CATV and Dial Tone over a fiber optic network. Streaming a video will always be better done with a wire over wireless. If the device you are using is wireless try to connect to your router's 5GHz network. If you router does not have a 5GHz network. Get a new one. 

99% of the issues regarding OTT video is stated above, a lack of a solid in home network. Anything less then an AC1750 router today is not going to be satifactory to your viewing experience. Yes, I know of "JimBob" down the street that isn't having issues and his router is 10 years old. Great, the unicorn out there is your buddy. 

If you are in the market for a new router, please do look into the mesh option.