Very odd timing

[wha2doo]

Sorry, gotta make a longer story out of this, lol! Mostly chuckling about it, but I still would like to diagnose and eliminate this issue if I can!

I was watching the Milwaukee Brewers vs NY Yankees baseball game (MLB Milwaukee Brewers channel) Sunday night. Bottom of the ninth, 2 outs, game tied, the channel started buffering and then kept looping the same 20 seconds. I couldn't get it to stop, and the NY Yankees MLB channel wouldn't come in (same channel?? ...often opposing team has their own broadcast, announcers, etc). Sooo, I missed Turang's solo homer for the Brewers but it was an isolated thing I figured. Nope!

Just now, top of the ninth, Uribe only needs two outs for the Brewers to win and... started buffering and the channel went offline. I tried the opponent's channel (San Diego Padres MLB channel) and was offline as well. I then tried a 2nd tv and the same channels were offline. I "killed" Tivimate, cleared the buffer, and restarted it but no go. About 5 minutes later after the game ended, the channel came back online on both tv's.

If it's on my end, shouldn't I been able to get a "fresh connection" and view these two channels on the 2nd tv? I didn't have a VPN active on the 1st TV, but it was active on the 2nd TV.

Thanks for any input!

 

[MikeVanWa]

Sorry, gotta make a longer story out of this, lol! Mostly chuckling about it, but I still would like to diagnose and eliminate this issue if I can!

I was watching the Milwaukee Brewers vs NY Yankees baseball game (MLB Milwaukee Brewers channel) Sunday night. Bottom of the ninth, 2 outs, game tied, the channel started buffering and then kept looping the same 20 seconds. I couldn't get it to stop, and the NY Yankees MLB channel wouldn't come in (same channel?? ...often opposing team has their own broadcast, announcers, etc). Sooo, I missed Turang's solo homer for the Brewers but it was an isolated thing I figured. Nope!

Just now, top of the ninth, Uribe only needs two outs for the Brewers to win and... started buffering and the channel went offline. I tried the opponent's channel (San Diego Padres MLB channel) and was offline as well. I then tried a 2nd tv and the same channels were offline. I "killed" Tivimate, cleared the buffer, and restarted it but no go. About 5 minutes later after the game ended, the channel came back online on both tv's.

If it's on my end, shouldn't I been able to get a "fresh connection" and view these two channels on the 2nd tv? I didn't have a VPN active on the 1st TV, but it was active on the 2nd TV.

Thanks for any input!

There are so many unknowns to deal with, it's at times impossible to say. Your provider, your device needing a refresh, the Brewer/Yankee game itself, so much in demand? Perhaps it's a conspiracy against Brewer fans (I'm just taking a stab at that, and kidding, of course). I find looping impossible to deal with, and at times, it's just the death of that channel for the time being. E.G., if ESPN has a hockey game and becomes problematic, I'll go to an NHL channel, or a premium Sports channel. I'm going to take a stab that while this game has no interest to me, as they're both 2nd, perhaps there's a huge audience for it and therefore the demand. Check with your provider and see if there's anything they can offer, but no doubt it will be the usual "it's you". Force stop, clear the cache, reboot your device, yada yada yada. I'm convinced it's demand. Good luck.

 

[wha2doo]

Thanks and I figured there are a lot of unknowns and hadn't provided enough details, lol. And even then, diagnosing likely will be very difficult, lol

My provider is AT&T (fiber), running a firestick 4k with Tivimate. The firestick, apps, etc are up to date and has plenty of space (only 50% full). Not totally sure about it being demand (as in my internet provider being overloaded and possibly throttling)... since I'd think I'd be seeing this on more than these few channels (and at other times as well).

I've never been clear on what to expect when checking on a 2nd device/tv. If I get the Channel offline message (or buffering/looping until I let the device reset for about 5-10 minutes), would I get it on my 2nd device? Or would it have a different "connection" and should work fine (as long as it's not due to my internet provider speed having slowed extremely or become inconsistent)?

One other thing I've noticed which could be coincidental, but is still mostly holding true. I was having a lot of buffering while watching some VOD shows prior to the last DOS attack. I thought some was because the VPN servers were overloaded and slowed.. I would switch servers, start the show again, and fast forward past the buffer point by 5-10 secs and it would be fine again for awhile. Once y'all got Mobus back up and going again (and again, a big thanks for all the hard work!!), this issue disappeared. Very, very rarely saw any buffering or issues with live TV and VOD even watching without a VPN active!

Maybe just coincidence, but it did get me wondering!

 

[MikeVanWa]

Thanks and I figured there are a lot of unknowns and hadn't provided enough details, lol. And even then, diagnosing likely will be very difficult, lol

My provider is AT&T (fiber), running a firestick 4k with Tivimate. The firestick, apps, etc are up to date and has plenty of space (only 50% full). Not totally sure about it being demand (as in my internet provider being overloaded and possibly throttling)... since I'd think I'd be seeing this on more than these few channels (and at other times as well).

I've never been clear on what to expect when checking on a 2nd device/tv. If I get the Channel offline message (or buffering/looping until I let the device reset for about 5-10 minutes), would I get it on my 2nd device? Or would it have a different "connection" and should work fine (as long as it's not due to my internet provider speed having slowed extremely or become inconsistent)?

One other thing I've noticed which could be coincidental, but is still mostly holding true. I was having a lot of buffering while watching some VOD shows prior to the last DOS attack. I thought some was because the VPN servers were overloaded and slowed.. I would switch servers, start the show again, and fast forward past the buffer point by 5-10 secs and it would be fine again for awhile. Once y'all got Mobus back up and going again (and again, a big thanks for all the hard work!!), this issue disappeared. Very, very rarely saw any buffering or issues with live TV and VOD even watching without a VPN active!

Maybe just coincidence, but it did get me wondering!

Well, AT&T generally does not "throttle" speeds in the sense of a permanent speed floor, but they do use "network management" practices that can feel like it. (TBH, I would think "network management" is throttling, but that's my interpretation.) I'm assuming you have purchased two connections with your service, not one. As far as VPNs go, depending on the service and your provider, a VPN can help or hinder your connectivity issue. There will be those who disagree with me, notably those who sell VPN services. I have never had an internet provider or a service that, in my opinion, needed a VPN. I've tested them and have found them to be of no value.
The debate over VPNs is valid because they are often marketed as a "magic shield," which they aren't. Whether a VPN is a benefit or a waste of money depends entirely on what you are trying to hide and from whom.

Does a VPN Protect You from Your ISP?​

Yes and no. It changes what they can see, but not the fact that you are using the internet.

• What the ISP can no longer see: They cannot see the specific websites you visit (URLs), the individual pages you browse, or the data you send/receive. All they see is a stream of encrypted gibberish traveling between your home and the VPN server.
• What the ISP can still see: They know exactly how much data you are using and when you are online. They also know you are using a VPN because the connection is "wrapped" in a specific encryption protocol that is easy to identify.