Need some tech help...

Most perplexing. As mentioned earlier, it sounds like packet loss. I had the same thing at work until they upped the bandwidth out of the building. If that's not your issue as you have stated, it's most puzzling. If you have an option to swap out cards with a friend for an hour or so to try it out, I would suggest that. Just make sure it's of the same slot gen as your MoBo. (i.e. PCIe, AGP etc.) . Put the friends computer on your service at home. If it plays fine for an hour or within the timeline the problem occurs on your system, swap cards. Do all the driver business, and try with your system. This eliminates the packet loss issue, whether it be NIC or service/line issues and insures a known, working card in the mix. If the problem re-occurs, its an issue with something other than your card.

Thanks Flak. I would not be surprised if the cable connection is not as optimized as it used to be. The more popular Optimum Online (Cablevision of New Jersey) gets the slower the connection seems to be.