I’ve run into an issue with the Verizon Fios CR1000A router at two different locations and have been trying to drill down what may be the root issue. There is a lot of instability introduced after a certain time threshold (packet loss, lower bitrate, frame drops) when streaming to my phone using the Better xCloud app via Wi-Fi. Of course, I could always replace the router (and will in the future), but I still wanted to see if I could tweak anything to give better performance in the meantime. I also noticed that the Comcast XB8 gateway worked near flawlessly at one of the locations.
A direct connection to one of the CR1000A’s gigabit ports doesn’t introduce the same variability when streaming directly to the Xbox Series X. I don’t believe the issue is in how the CR1000A handles the source of xCloud packets in a general sense, but rather in how it accommodates clients as an access point. I will need to test further, but so far disabling DFS channels has offered a little more stability.
If you’re also running into issues and would like to test this, you can disable DFS channels by navigating to mynetworksettings.com > Advanced > Wi-Fi > Radio Management > Settings > Deselect “Enable DFS channels during channel scan” > Apply Changes. This is a great post as to why you might consider disabling DFS channels and it’s my understanding that airports or military presence nearby can add to instability in relation to these designated channels.
At this point, I’d like to also test disabling the Self Organizing Network (SON) feature of the CR1000A to see if it helps the cause. In theory, this is meant to optimize client connections in your home network in a “hands off” manner, but I’m not convinced the implementation is great on this model. For one, I’ve noticed that my phone (OnePlus 10 Pro) has been handed off to the 2.4 GHz band in situations where it doesn’t need to be. This is the device where I’ve run into xCloud streaming issues and the same device that worked flawlessly with the XB8 gateway. The rapid deterioration after a certain time threshold also applies when streaming locally from my Xbox Series X (although I’m not sure if this is truly local), but it would be interesting to see if the same behavior applies when streaming over Moonlight from my PC. I’ll need to keep experimenting but hopefully this offers some insight if you’re someone that’s also experiencing issues. If you’ve found any useful changes in your home network or see any issues with my reasoning above please feel free to comment.
I’ve always loved video games, technology, and learning – this is a space where I’ll post thoughts, translated notes and research, and anything that’s caught my interest in these spheres. I’m mostly playing on Xbox and PC these days. Professionally, I’ve been working in IT since 2023 and during that time I’ve worked with OS400, endpoint support and monitoring, Microsoft 365, and typical on-premises infrastructure.