New PC - Integrated Wifi Sucks

OfTheCarmen

Cow Humper
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2007
5,208
Bought a new PC as my older Alienware laptop was getting long in the tooth and starting to have some issues.

Went with these parts and put it together myself: https://newegg.io/8c03c477

I'm finding that the integrated Wi-Fi card on the Mobo is getting pretty crappy speeds. I'm on Cox and have their Gigabit service. Speed tests usually put me at ~100MB (with outliers down at ~50 and up to ~160) down and ~35MB up. The up is actually fine, but the down is where I'm struggling. I play some online games and I'm seeing severe stuttering/lag/etc. Different devices on the same wireless network (in the same location) get speeds ~400 down. I've tried updating all of the drivers, switching from using the wireless from my router (thats wired into the Cox modem) and using the wireless directly from the Cox modem, and nothing seems to help.

The Cox app is telling me I'm getting 119% of my signal to the modem. I'm not even complaining about not getting anywhere near the speed the modem is supposedly capable of as I'm on wireless and we have a fair number of devices in the house, but sub 100MB just seems bad.

I've got the little antenna thingies attached to the motherboard for the wireless, I've tried adjusting those and it doesnt have any effect.

Long story short, I'm looking for recommendations for a good, dedicated, wifi card to put into my PC, or if anyone knows of a silver bullet to get the integrated card to perform better.
 

gtmtnbiker

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
1,723
I looked up the specs for your motherboard and it appears that it’s using Intel Wi-Fi chipset. I could be wrong but I think Intel is pretty good.

Have you tried going to Intel’s website and getting their drivers directly?
 

OfTheCarmen

Cow Humper
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2007
5,208
I looked up the specs for your motherboard and it appears that it’s using Intel Wi-Fi chipset. I could be wrong but I think Intel is pretty good.

Have you tried going to Intel’s website and getting their drivers directly?
I have not, I had gotten the Motherboard's drivers updated. Would that be covered with the basic Windows "Update Driver" function?
 

gtmtnbiker

Member
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Jul 15, 2005
1,723
I have not, I had gotten the Motherboard's drivers updated. Would that be covered with the basic Windows "Update Driver" function?
I don't think so. Usually you go to Intel's website and download their download manager. It usually does a good job identifying what Intel drivers you need for your machine.
 

88 MVP

Member
SoSH Member
Dec 25, 2007
534
WNY
What is the ping when you run an internet speed test? I don’t think 50-100 mbps is your problem for gaming, it’s more likely a latency issue. Does the ping improve if you move the computer or your router?
 

Moosey

Mooseyed Farvin
SoSH Member
Jul 20, 2005
4,214
CT
IME, for reliable internet there's no substitute for wired ethernet.
While this is true, I know OTC's setup and it's not really an option for where the machine is without significant wiring work. Doesn't really seem worthwhile.
 

jayhoz

Ronald Bartel
SoSH Member
Jul 19, 2005
17,360
We had some old laptops with under-speced onboard wifi. A cheap USB adapter from TP-Link made a word of difference.
 

OfTheCarmen

Cow Humper
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2007
5,208
I went here, https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/19351/windows-10-and-windows-11-wi-fi-drivers-for-intel-wireless-adapters.html, and grabbed the Win10-Win11 drivers and installed those.

I also grabbed the Intel Driver & Support Assistant and it does not show any available updates for my system. The ID&SA shows this for my wi-fi driver details:

Driver Details
ProviderRealtek Semiconductor Corp.
Version2024.0.10.123
Date8/3/2020


I just ran 3 speed tests on a couple sites.

Expanded Speed Test Results:
Ookla (https://www.speedtest.net/) Using Cox New England Server (I am in CT)
Attempt 1
Ping: 13
Download: 195
Upload: 37

Attempt 2
Ping: 18
Download: 195
Upload: 37

Attempt 2
Ping: 12
Download: 194
Upload: 37

Google (https://fiber.google.com/speedtest/) Using Cox New England Server (I am in CT)
Attempt 1
Ping: 11
Jitter: 1
Download: 200
Upload: 37

Attempt 2
Ping: 9
Jitter: 1
Download: 196
Upload: 37

Attempt 3
Ping: 11
Jitter: 2
Download: 196
Upload: 37

At the very least, the results are a lot more consistent than what I've been seeing.

Limited testing of playing a single game seemed a little better (ping in-game hovered ~20-40 with no appreciable packet loss), but historically the issues havent been during the day, but more late at night. I'm hoping the intel driver helps and my experience is a bit better tonight.
 

cgori

Member
SoSH Member
Oct 2, 2004
3,999
SF, CA
I went here, https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/19351/windows-10-and-windows-11-wi-fi-drivers-for-intel-wireless-adapters.html, and grabbed the Win10-Win11 drivers and installed those.

I also grabbed the Intel Driver & Support Assistant and it does not show any available updates for my system. The ID&SA shows this for my wi-fi driver details:

Driver Details
ProviderRealtek Semiconductor Corp.
Version2024.0.10.123
Date8/3/2020
Ah, it's a realtek wifi not an intel. This has the drivers for your motherboard (whichever you are using win10 or win11):
https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/B550-UD-AC-rev-12/support#support-dl-driver-wlanbt

But it looks like that is the same version as what you have installed (2024.0.10.123) - I can see there might be newer ones out there but I cannot find an official/trusted source for the newer driver.
(This was the newest https://treexy.com/products/driver-fusion/database/network-adapters/realtek/8821ce-wireless-lan-80211ac-pci-e-nic/ if you feel like living dangerously, but I have no idea if that site is legit)
 
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OfTheCarmen

Cow Humper
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2007
5,208
Ok, I feel a little better now as I had thought it was Realtek and spent a long time looking for drivers.
 

gtmtnbiker

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
1,723
Ah, it's a realtek wifi not an intel. This has the drivers for your motherboard (whichever you are using win10 or win11):
https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/B550-UD-AC-rev-12/support#support-dl-driver-wlanbt
Thanks for the correction. I was looking at the gigabyte website for the motherboard product info and the page I was on was showing Intel. This is what it says:

The onboard 802.11ac Wi-Fi module from Intel® supports Dual Band and up to 1.73Gbps, 5x faster Wi-Fi speed than 802.11n and also support BLUETOOTH 5.

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/B550-UD-AC-rev-10-11#kf

That page says Realtek for the wired network.

Definitely want to confirm the actual vendor of the chipset and go to the vendors website
 

OfTheCarmen

Cow Humper
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2007
5,208
The Wifi card is definitely RealTek, per Device Manager.

65846

Gaming session last night was a little better. No extended experiences of lagging/packet loss. If I do decide to go dedicated, is a USB better than a PCI? I'm already using all of the USB ports and I'm unsure if adding a USB port extender will just muddy up the waters.
 

gtmtnbiker

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
1,723
If I do decide to go dedicated, is a USB better than a PCI? I'm already using all of the USB ports and I'm unsure if adding a USB port extender will just muddy up the waters.
Glad you confirmed that it's Realtek chip. PCI will offer better performance than USB as it connects directly to the motherboard. Not sure if it translates to noticeable real world performance.
 

tmracht

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 19, 2009
3,070
While this is true, I know OTC's setup and it's not really an option for where the machine is without significant wiring work. Doesn't really seem worthwhile.
Any reason he couldn't do power line? Actually? Why am I replying to you. @OfTheCarmen have you thought about doing power line?
 

OfTheCarmen

Cow Humper
SoSH Member
Jul 18, 2007
5,208
I haven't tried those in a long time. Last time I considered it I read a lot about it needing the outlets to be set up properly and I don't trust the wiring the previous home owner did.

Plus prior to this PC, every other device in the house has been mobile and I kind of forgot about them.

Moosey was over the house the other day and we surmised that the decorative metal on my desk might be working like a pseudo faraday cage. He's got an antennae for a PC Wi-Fi card that can be placed for better reception that I'm going to try out.
 

tmracht

Member
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Aug 19, 2009
3,070
Gotcha the new ones are pretty good I had to use it my house for the bedroom in the extension part of the house and it's really good for PS5 so worth a shot if the faraday cage isn't the answer.