Existential question about modems, routers, cables and wifi!

I work as a voice over actor. Usually, I record either at the studio hired by the client or at my own basic home studio (which I send to the studios a raw recording or I edit myself and deliver the final file).

Now with the Covid-19 situation, a new paradigm has arrived: the studios want people like me to be able to record from home - live - that is, connected through the internet, the sound from my home setup (mic + macbook) goes directly into a channel inside Pro Tools (pro audio recording software - daw) and they record it in real time.

For this, they advise me to get a cable connection from my mac to my modem instead of a wifi one (they say its speed fluctuates a lot - not so much the speed of the wifi is the issue apparently)

So, my modem is physically inside my flat and the recording setup is upstairs, on the next floor. I can’t throw a looong ethernet cable through the window, nor can I pass it along the building stairs… so, is there any suggestion of a setup that could work? (i’m not technically savvy in these things - would a better router help? or another one upstairs connected through the electrical powerline? or?.. idk!)

I’m asking for your ideas before desperate moves - a hole on the ceiling through which the ethernet cable could go (introducing possible noises from here to there while recording) or bringing the setup downstairs (and losing acoustic advantages).

help? :)

Your modem from your ISP might be crappy. :)
Also what speed internet do you have?

A Orbi setup for your 2 floor home might be the best option.

Welcome to Qt3, hope you aren’t a bot in disguise!

I have had really good luck with power line ethernet adapters. They plug in to the wall socket and you run one cable to your router, and one to your Mac. I uses your house wires as the conduit. All my TVs and Consoles are plugged into these and they work great.

Not a bot, as far as I can tell! :)

Thanks for your input - will read more about that setup you mentioned! ;)

hmm that is a good idea - will try it out and see what speeds I can get! thanks!!

I assume you’re recording to your computer and then uploading to whoever is paying for your services. As long as your wifi works, there’s no need to do anything at all. If your wifi is slow or inconsistent, it’ll just take longer to upload. But you’re uploading audio not video, so how big could the files possibly be? Uncompressed 48KHz 24bit stereo audio is only 288KB/sec. An entire hour of you speaking completely uncompressed would take up just over 1GB.

Now if you’re working live with a director or other actors, that’s when consistency comes into play. Bandwidth still doesn’t matter because that’s just 288KB/sec. In that case you may want to improve your wifi (with something like the Orbi or Eero) or wire it. I suggest MoCA 2 rather than powerline as it works better, but you do need a TV-style coax cable outlet in your office.

Hi there!

It is indeed your second described scenario - working live with directors and/or other actors.

Was not aware of that coaxial option! Will look into it! Thank you!!

I have been giving a lot of remote trainings recently, which provides a post hoc justification of my somewhat excessive wireless set up. I have this router: https://www.cnet.com/reviews/d-link-dir-879-ac1900-exo-wi-fi-router-review/

It is a very good router, but it didn’t solve some of the annoying internet “pauses” I kept getting. The problem was with the other side of the “wireless” conversation, my USB wireless adapter. Despite trying multiple brands, those just seem to need to reset every once in a while. Instead, I switched to this PCI-e internal wireless adapter, though you’ll notice it has an external attenna: https://www.asus.com/us/Networking/PCEAC68/

Since then, my wireless internet has been rock solid. Though, your mileage may vary based on your house and provider. While there is a bathroom inbetween my router and my adapter, it is still only about 15 feet.

I used these at my home. Far better than WIFI which is super congested in my area.

https://www.tp-link.com/sg/home-networking/powerline/tl-pa9020p-kit/

great tips! thank you!

I was thinking which models you guys used - thank you for the insight! ;)