PepVPN with SpeedFusion Low Aggregated Bandwidth

Hi,
We are using an Max HD4 IP67 LTE-A unit, connecting to a pair of Balance 380 units at base, via an encrypted PepVPN SpeedFusion profile. Our use case is to stream video into the vehicle on which the Max HD4 is installed. All 4 modems are populated with 4G SIMs from the 4 main UK cell providers - EE, Voda, Three and O2.

With all 4 modems set to Priority 2 (WAN 1 is Priority 1 but typically won’t be plugged in), we struggle to get stable video coming in, if throughput is adding up to anything above 5-10Mbps. The video freezes, pixelates or breaks up (bearing in mind all streams coming into the truck are resilient, running either SRT or ARQ).

If I move 3 of the 4 cellular modems to Priority 3 and leave 1 modem at Priority 2, so it is in effect acting as the main, single path, I can comfortably pull down 3x the throughput and have solid, stable streams.

I’m assuming this lower/less stable throughput is a result of how the HD4/Balance combo aggregates the 4 cellular connections. My question is this - is this expected behaviour? Should I be experiencing less throughput from a combination of 4 modems, than from 1? Do I need to trade throughput for resilience, or can I change the configuration of the PepVPN with SpeedFusion profile so that it is better suited for my purposes, namely pulling in a (relatively) low number of (relatively) high bandwidth video transport streams (around 5Mbps on average)? We use a lot of bonded cellular products like LiveU and typically, I’d expect the sum of 4 bonded connections to be greater than any individual connection, not less than.

I’m hoping that other people are also trying to stream video across their Pepwave units and that the profile can be tweaked to improve the aggregation/bonding of the 4 cellular connections for this purpose…

We at Tactical Wireless have streamed multiple video feeds over a Max HD4, from a range of cameras. The likely problem is the stability of the RTSP stream. We have a range of video processing technologies that ensure successful streaming. There are multiple posts regarding the bandwidth from bonding. Most of our applications are on-the-move, where resilience and continuity are the key issues that are supported by the Max HD4. We have tested a Max HD2 for more than 80k miles in remote areas of the UK.

1 Like

You’ve got lots of things you can look at to help improve throughput for video over SpeedFusion VPN.

The first things to play with within the HD4 profile is Cut-off Latency & Suspension Time after Packet Loss. When moving the latency of the cellular connections will rise as you move away from the tower and as a tower gets more saturated. The HD4 will not release a cellular connection (and stop sending traffic or try the other SIM) until connectivity is completely lost, so you can find yourself in a situation where you have two or more cellular wans connected, but one has high latency and this raises the latency of the tunnel as a whole thus reducing available bandwidth. Setting a nice low cut off (200ms) here will help combat those scenarios.

Another situation is where you come right to the edge of coverage, or are driving in an environment where you pass through RF ‘shadows’ where signal is interrupted between you and the tower so packet loss is introduced. Packet loss causes a re-transmit of data which will raise latency. So set a suspension time of 800ms or so on the cellular links to stop them introducing latency in those instances.

What about antennas? What are you using? and where are you driving is it rural or metro areas? Whacking a honking great high gain antenna on the roof simply won’t work well in metro areas. But in rural areas high gain is a necessity.

Forward error correction on the video stream itself is a must. SRT/ARQ both have mechanisms for this so you should be OK there.

What you really need to is to screen capture the SpeedFusion tunnel graph/stats when you attempt the video stream and then share that here so we can help you work out whats going on.

3 Likes

Hello @RichP

There is a great amount involved in correctly choosing an antenna system that will deliver the most suitable outcomes for your application.

Most wireless (be that cellular/mobile or Wi-Fi) antenna system for MIMO work best with an out of phase antenna array (+/- 45 Degrees of the vertical), meaning you can have a very tightly packed antenna with exceptional performance. The cabling system needs to be 50Ohm impedance (not 75Ohm as used for Terrestrial TV & most MATV systems). The quality of the cable system can make just as big impact as a quality antenna, we run over 50 meter cable runs for some of our clients and get excellent results as we supply a professionally designed fit for purpose solution. The antennas recommended by many Peplink Partners here in the forum are good antennas if they match the location requirements of the required outcome.

We suggest that you contact your local Authorised Peplink Partner for specialised assistance.

Your local Certified Peplink Partner can help you with a copy of the Antenna Selection Guide for Peplink Partners, this is a detailed guide and is only available to the Peplink Partners so to ensure that you are helped in working through it to get the most suitable antenna solution to your application.

Remember that most of these systems are MIMO (Multi In, Multi Out), so you must ensure you use antennas and cabling that are suitably designed for the application.
Happy to Help,
Marcus :slight_smile:

1 Like

@blade: Hi. Respectful suggestion: It appears you have three threads presently going with the exact same issue. You may wish to delete two of them.

1 Like