[arm-allstar] multiple echo link connections and "under water" audio

[David McGough]

Patrick,

Speed tests aren't really a good indicator of overall network connection 
quality for VoIP applications.

I'll try to help figure out what is going on with the echolink issues 
you're having over the next few days.


73, David KB4FXC



On Sat, 15 Feb 2020, "Patrick Perdue via ARM-allstar" wrote:

> The internet connection isn't the problem. I've tested it in three 
locations --

1: Verizon Fios 1 Gbps fiber with Raspberry Pi 4 connected to Gigabit 
switch. Speed tests on this system using speedtest-cli:

Retrieving speedtest.net server list...
Selecting best server based on ping...
Hosted by Natural Wireless (New York, NY) [20.78 km]: 9.421 ms
Testing download 
speed................................................................................
Download: 659.66 Mbit/s
Testing upload 
speed..........................................................................................
......
Upload: 579.69 Mbit/s

That result is a little lower than average. Usually, it's in the 700's 
or higher in both directions, with pings between here and my ASL VPS 
usually 2 or 3 MS.

2. Northstate Communications 100/30 Mbit/sec fiber connection, Raspberry 
Pi 4 and 2.

Results from a Pi 2 on this connection, since the 4 is currently offlife:

Retrieving speedtest.net server list...
Selecting best server based on ping...
Hosted by Continuum (Mooresville, NC) [91.85 km]: 22.152 ms
Testing download 
speed................................................................................
Download: 91.33 Mbit/s
Testing upload 
speed..........................................................................................
......
Upload: 28.15 Mbit/s

Pings from there to my VPS are solid at 16 ms. No spikes after running 
that for over a minute.
3. The VPS itself, a Linode in Newark, NJ.
Retrieving speedtest.net server list...
Selecting best server based on ping...
Hosted by Interserver, inc (Secaucus, NJ) [11.03 km]: 2.956 ms
Testing download 
speed................................................................................
Download: 1458.97 Mbit/s
Testing upload 
speed..........................................................................................
......
Upload: 1380.57 Mbit/s
This VPS is running ASL, of course, since you can only run HamVoIP on a 
Raspberry Pi these days, but I get the same general result there. In all 
cases, when more than one connection exists to echo link, inbound audio 
is degraded for every additional connection. The first user gets great 
audio. Everyone else doesn't. This generally starts about a minute or 
two after the second connection is established, not right away. Outbound 
audio is fine for all echo link users, even those who have degraded 
audio back from HamVoIP.
I have also verified the same issue exists by having a few connections 
to a private node and echo link through HamVoIP without the VPS involved 
at all.

On 2/14/2020 11:28 PM, "Douglas Goree via ARM-allstar" wrote:
> Forgot to say internet connection has to be very good, if not will cause
> the packet loss. Just what I've found out.
>
> On Fri, Feb 14, 2020 at 10:25 PM Douglas Goree <degforyou at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I have found using echolink on android AT&T using vpn makes it work a
>> lot better, really good. I don't know if vpn can be put on Allstar though.
>>
>> On Fri, Feb 14, 2020 at 9:56 PM "Joe KD2NFC via ARM-allstar" <
>> arm-allstar at hamvoip.org> wrote:
>>
>>> I don’t know if this is the same underwater sound I hear at times but if
>>> you sit on the WINS system long enough you hear folks with bad audio from
>>> their allstar nodes. Garbled, underwater sounding audio. Others on that
>>> system describe it as it packet loss.
>>>
>>> Joe
>>> KD2NFC
>>>
>>>
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>
>>>> On Feb 14, 2020, at 7:53 PM, David McGough via ARM-allstar <
>>> arm-allstar at hamvoip.org> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>
>>>> I'll try to reproduce this audio issue over the next several days.
>>>>
>>>> If anyone has some active nets where this issue is happening, I'll try
>>> to
>>>> link in via echolink and have a listen.
>>>>
>>>> Also, if any user can link a HamVoIP system into one of these nets,
>>> using
>>>> chan_echolink, and capture some audio that might be useful. Please
>>> record
>>>> the audio file using PCM (uLAW). That is accomplished by setting the
>>>> rpt.conf node parameter: archivetype=pcm
>>>>
>>>> 73, David KB4FXC
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> On Fri, 14 Feb 2020, "Patrick Perdue via ARM-allstar" wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> I am experiencing it on a rPI 4 1GB, also tested with the same results
>>>> on a rPi 2, and same with a stock ASL server on x64 VPS.
>>>>
>>>> On 2/14/2020 3:00 PM, "Kevin Custer via ARM-allstar" wrote:
>>>>> I have had the "underwater" sounding audio issue with certain X86
>>>>> servers using DIAL.  It usually occurs after the node has sit idle for
>>>>> some time, and usually presents this issue for a few transmissions
>>>>> then clears up.  The fix was to move to different hardware.  I've
>>>>> never experienced it on a RPi no matter the distribution.
>>>>>
>>>>> Kevin W3KKC
>>>>>
>>>>>> On 2/14/2020 10:41 AM, "David McGough via ARM-allstar" wrote:
>>>>>> This isn't typical of what I've heard when listening to nets with many
>>>>>> echolink users, so I'm curious as to what the cause is??
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Do remember that the HamVoIP distro is radically different from ASL,
>>>>>> from
>>>>>> a software perspective. ASL or any AllStar running on a cloud-hosted
>>> VPS
>>>>>> is the WORST CASE scenario for bad audio issues. So, don't make a
>>>>>> generalization assuming that if there is a problem with VPS hosted
>>> ASL,
>>>>>> there will also be the same problems with HamVoIP running on a
>>> dedicated
>>>>>> RPi3 or RPi4 board.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Do you know of a repeatable scenario where bad quality echolink audio
>>>>>> can
>>>>>> be produced?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 73, David KB4FXC
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>
>>>>> ARM-allstar mailing list
>>>>> ARM-allstar at hamvoip.org
>>>>> http://lists.hamvoip.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/arm-allstar
>>>>>
>>>>> Visit the BBB and RPi2/3/4 web page - http://hamvoip.org
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>> ARM-allstar mailing list
>>>> ARM-allstar at hamvoip.org
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>>>>
>>>> Visit the BBB and RPi2/3/4 web page - http://hamvoip.org
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>
>>>> ARM-allstar mailing list
>>>> ARM-allstar at hamvoip.org
>>>> http://lists.hamvoip.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/arm-allstar
>>>>
>>>> Visit the BBB and RPi2/3/4 web page - http://hamvoip.org
>>> _______________________________________________
>>>
>>> ARM-allstar mailing list
>>> ARM-allstar at hamvoip.org
>>> http://lists.hamvoip.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/arm-allstar
>>>
>>> Visit the BBB and RPi2/3/4 web page - http://hamvoip.org
>>
> _______________________________________________
>
> ARM-allstar mailing list
> ARM-allstar at hamvoip.org
> http://lists.hamvoip.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/arm-allstar
>
> Visit the BBB and RPi2/3/4 web page - http://hamvoip.org
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