>>527401715
>The problem we are facing at the moment is the server provider has horrible performance, the machine can't handle more than four players most days.
that sucks, you should try to get rid of that server and find a better one

Im currently paying under 5€/month for a VPS in west EU and it runs pretty well even with low specs, its not like TF2 needs a lot
2GB RAM will usally be enough for a single server, 3 to 4GB for running 2 servers on the same machine afaik, i can tell you my provider if you're interested, dont want to shill them randomly
>I am also very careful about dividing the player base into multiple servers, since we don't have any e-celebs promoting us.
fair enough. Ever thought about redirecting some of the people during peak hours to server #2 though? or would that be too annoying for players? if out of 24 people, a third or so went to serve #2, it could pick up from there and attract more players as they see people there.
Or maybe have some way to "offer" people to go to the server #2 during peak hours, or have the server show something about joining the server #2 when its full