Parameter | Ideal | Acceptable | Unacceptable | Notes |
Bandwidth | Varies based on usage and configuration; described in detail in the following section. For planning, assume 64kbps per user. | |||
Latency (single-direction) | <40ms | <250ms | >250ms | When talkers are in close proximity to one another, sub-40ms latency is important to prevent a "stadium effect" in which the same audio from different sources sounds as though its echoing from multiple directions. Latency above 250ms introduces perceptible delay and begins to impair normal human speech patterns. |
Jitter | <5ms | <30ms | >30ms | Jitter increases effective latency in the communication path between talker and listener. High jitter values combined with high latency produce noticeable delay in the audio path and will begin to impact speech patterns. Further, jitter measurements above 30ms may result in degraded or lost audio. |
Packet Loss | 0% | <2% | >2% | Even small amounts of packet loss produce noticeable degradation and artifacts, especially when using Rallypoints. |