It feels like we're talking about two different things.

I've bought SFIV at least five different times (every version on Xbox 360 plus 3DS and PS4) and I'd always play online. Before an online match, I'd choose my character. Even if I played someone and won/lost, the character select menu would come up and I could choose a different character. 

In SFV, unless I overlooked something (very possible), I would choose a single character to play online with. The game would notify my when an online match was available and I would join it. There was never an option to choose a different character, win or lose. I'd have to go back to the menu and choose my character.

In neither SFIV or SFV, did I ever go to the lobby. I'd just set it to where I would join an available battle when one was ready. Than I'd play arcade mode until someone challenged me. InSFIV, when "A new challenger appears", I'd go to the character select menu. In SFV, when "a new challenger appears", whichever character I'd already chosen would be the character I was stuck with.

I always had an arsenal of about 10+ characters I was good or great with. I always hated being stuck with one "main".

-Guile

-Blanka

-Cammy

-Cammy Li

-E Honda

-Fei Long

-Poison

-Elena

-Dee Jay

-T Hawk

-Sagat

I was "B" rank or higher with almost all of them. Unfortunately, quite a few didn't make it into SFV and many don't control the same as they have for years/decades.

I was great with Shoto characters to the point where I despised using them. It felt like cheating. And, for whatever reason, if I was dominating online with a certain character, I'd change to one of my lesser characters just to keep things fun.

Yes we are talking about the same thing.  The character select screen is setting your favourite character in your profile.  It's only cumbersome if you're doing survival while you wait.  If you're waiting in the menu it's actually faster to switch your favourite character than it is to load up the character select screen.  If you're in training and you're waiting around, it's probably as fadt to quit training and change your character.  Cammy, Chun Li, and Guile play better in SF 5 than they do in 4.  Chun Li was god tier last season and Guile is currently god tier in season 2.  Cammy is all around more flexible.  We should shareplay so I can show you around the game.  But tomorrow.  I'm going to sleep now.

Is the match making at least accurate? Some people prefer waiting longer and being matched against people closer to their MMR.

How many people are playing the game? Is it cross platform? Could simply be that there are just not enough people.

I still play it once a week for the weekly mission and maybe a few ranked matches but not every week. Matchmaking for ranked match usually takes 5 minutes now. Mid last year when I bought the game it took around 1-2 minutes.

Cammy Li? Like this?

I find it accurate.  I'm at 1700 lp and I always get around that.  Normally I'm facing people in the 2000s.  Casual is a bit different, but it's casual.  Before I started doin better I was still getting people in my bracket.  Though most of them were from South America.

I hover between 1850-2150 Points.

I sometimes constantly fight 900-1200 point players and 3000-4000 players hence my range. 

Tekken stuck one more fork into it ;]

That's pretty hot!

My phone is the culprit. I was auto correcting like crazy last night. I'd type out entire names and it was changing them to thinks I posted before whenever I hit "enter". Thought I caught everything!

i mean rank match...