I posted this already in their support qeue and on their forums, got nothing as a response so far. maybe someone here has some insight. any help would be awesome but I fear its a rapidtv server issue where they just cant keep up with demand.

kodi 17
win10 64bit 16gig ram 512gig ssd
comcast 200 mb down connection
no qos in router
router is ubiquiti edgerouter x with 8 port edgeswitch pro
gigabit ethernet connection from pc to switch (not wifi)

followed the guides to get my m3u file into simple iptv client with epg and channel logos... no problem
followed the stickied tweak guide for adjusting cache within kodi (tweaked what was needed for kodi 17)


> <advancedsettings>
> <network>
> <curlclienttimeout>20</curlclienttimeout>
> <curllowspeedtime>20</curllowspeedtime>
> </network>
> <cache>
> <memorysize>67108864</memorysize>
> <buffermode>2</buffermode>
> <readfactor>5</readfactor>
> </cache>
>  
> </advancedsettings>

^^sorry if formatting there looks messed up after pasting here^^

(cache settings in kodi 17 are a little different official kodi wiki)
I even managed to get my time shift set correctly.
but no matter what I try, and no matter what channel I choose I get pausing and stuttering after about 30-60 seconds of smooth playback.
I also tried installing the rapidiptv addon from the rapidtv repository and even watching through there I get the same issue. (note: in the rapidiptv addon if I change streamtype from the default ts to m3u8 I can get a few minutes before pausing and stuttering.)
what I need to determine is if there is a way to test the peering speed I am getting with my comcast connection to rapidiptv servers. I have experienced comcast fuckery before with throttling netflix and whatnot and I would like to see if there is a way to test if that is the case here.
unless there is something else you guys can suggest? help.... please

edit: just tried with pc connected to modem directly, no router. same issue