Streaming Sound Issues- Internet Related?

[dlporter56]

Our ward is in SE Washington and is very rural and spread out. We use Zoom Webinar to Stream our Sacrament meetings and some of our users live 25+ miles away and internet reception CAN be spotty. I am one of the Ward Tech Specialists and when I stream a meeting I listen to the meeting using Samsung Ear Buds and today I heard NO issues. A listener emailed us and said she had continuing issues with audio being choppy until the closing prayer, then it came in clear. 2 weeks ago she mentioned a beeping pulsing sound. I called a sister who lives 25 miles away and she said her sound was soft but clear until the closing prayer today, then it became garbled so she turned the meeting off.

My question is this- could poor Internet reception be causing the sound issues? My setting for the sound today was automatic background noise reduction. 2 weeks ago when the Sister had issues with the sound I had it set on low. The other Tech sets it "auto" then "low" when the congregation sings. I forgot to do that today.

[russellhltn]

Yes, poor internet connection can affect the sound. The question is: it problems uploading from the church, or is it the member's download speeds? Not much you can do about the latter.

[BrianEdwards]

Two other ideas: if the member does occasionally come to the church building, then perhaps she could bring her setup and try and listen to a broadcast with that same setup, but maybe from inside or outside of the building. That might also help with in-person debugging. Otherwise, if ministering brothers or sisters visit her at home, perhaps they could bring their own equipment that they know works for them, and at her house try listening to a broadcast using both her and their own equipment.

There obviously would likely still be unknown differences if "it works for me but not for you", but that might help provide insight into root causes, or at least further things to test out.

[russellhltn]

I'd suggest running a speed test to see what the member has available to them. Note that it can change, such as if a member of the household is streaming a football game at the same time.

[brad_p]

My experience is that a bad internet connection never results in bad sound.

Every time it's been due to an improper audio setting, or a a funny sound driver, or an audio setting in Windows like Automatic Gain Control (AGC), or a loose cord.

If possible, have the person text you when the issue pops up. Then get a pair of headphones and another device and double check yourself. I've found that every time someone has complained about an issue with the audio, they were right. Even the 88 year olds.

[russellhltn]

My experience is that a bad internet connection never results in bad sound.

I think the first question to ask is "what about the video"? Most streaming systems prioritize the audio over the video. If the video is unaffected (no freezing), then there is a connection problem somewhere. If the video IS freezing but they're just living with it, then then failing audio is no surprise.

[dlporter56]

My experience is that a bad internet connection never results in bad sound.

Every time it's been due to an improper audio setting, or a a funny sound driver, or an audio setting in Windows like Automatic Gain Control (AGC), or a loose cord.

If possible, have the person text you when the issue pops up. Then get a pair of headphones and another device and double check yourself. I've found that every time someone has complained about an issue with the audio, they were right. Even the 88 year olds.

I listen to the stream with Samsung earbuds and heard no issues or change in the audio. None of the other 10 people watching the stream said anything and I called one of them after the meeting and she had the opposite experience- everything was good until the closing prayer, then she experienced degraded audio quality. I'm at a loss to explain why one person has problems and others don't. We had a LOT of issues before switching to Zoom Webinars. Thanks.

[dlporter56]

Yes, poor internet connection can affect the sound. The question is: it problems uploading from the church, or is it the member's download speeds? Not much you can do about the latter.

I emailed her and told her how to run a speed test. I also asked if anyone else is using the Internet while she is trying to stream Sacrament Meeting, i.e. watching football, playing video games, etc. I told her if she isn't getting the speeds she's paying for perhaps her provider can help. I haven't heard back yet, I hope it helps. Thanks for the tips.