Hi guys i recently got 910 vodaphone broadband package and wondered if using the router as modem and plugging in asus ax5700 would be a upgrade in the range department. Also my speeds go from 800s to 300 feom one side of the house to the other?
Router upgrade
- Thread starter SamyBoy13
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That sounds fine speed wise, WiFi is a convenience not an ideal solution.
Router wise id save your money you won't get any meaningful improvements in range or speed. You mostly upgrade routers for control reasons, like running VLANs.
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Then why waste your money buying an all in one device when you could just buy an access point.
Location, location, location
Unless you need the functions of another router, simply buy an access point and mount it upstairs centrally. Look into UniFi, but there are others. I would read into Asus as mentioned, very shady company and with a history of security issues where their networking kit.
What?
Having two devices in separate locations it’s better that trying to cover the whole property with a single device.
Soldato
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Yeah I agree with this and other comments to use a proper AP and not a consumer AIO router.
OP, Take your current router and connect it to a proper AP via Ethernet - it’ll result in a much better connection.
I bought a used Unifi cloud Gateway Ultra (for £50) and a Unifi U6 Pro (for £105) and some CAT5e cables to extend the network from the stock router and it’s much better. (You just connect the stock router via Ethernet to the WAN port on the Unifi Gateway Router)
Ubiquity/Unifi is quite expensive for the money but work really nicely for most people - there are other brands that offer better value but it depends on a lot of factors.
I’ve read reasonably good things about WiFi mesh systems and I have used one before and they do work ok but nothing beats a LAN cable as a backhaul.
Check out MOCA networking if you have COAX in the walls - it’s well rated and said to be better than Ethernet over power.
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Soldato
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One really good access point that offers really good value for the money is the Ruijie RG-RAP2260(E) which has 4x4 MIMO on both the 2.4ghz and 5ghz spectrums with WiFi 6 and is really affordable.
I’ve seen the above on sale at £114 inc VAT which is insane.
I was lucky enough to get a POE injector with the AP I bought and that is a pain because it adds bulk and cost but it’s not the end of the world because it means you can mount the AP really high for better distribution and it doesn’t stick out.
I hope this helps.
I’ve seen the above on sale at £114 inc VAT which is insane.
I was lucky enough to get a POE injector with the AP I bought and that is a pain because it adds bulk and cost but it’s not the end of the world because it means you can mount the AP really high for better distribution and it doesn’t stick out.
I hope this helps.
I didn't say otherwise. I said why waste your money on an all in one device rather than get what you actually want an access point. You can use two routers at the same time.
You might already have second (or find a used) router that could be repurposed as a AP.
That's not how the OP read.
Soldato
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How much sq footage are your covering, number of floors ? Is it a house or flat etc .... All important info to know
Question also goes for the OP
Soldato
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These are great points. It does depend on size of property.
I live in a 3 bedroom house with 2 floors, living room, dining room and medium small (I can’t give exact size).
The U6 Pro works but I’d get either another AP for the garden or switch to the U6-LR which has better MIMO.
If I had it my way and it was my property, I’d run CAT6a (somehow) to an access point on the other side of the property.
I can see COAX in the walls so I could run MOCA (spelling?) which works well too.
I had an Asus Mesh system in a 3 story property once and it was ok at best but sometimes dumb and would almost always use the AP at the highest part of the house which added a ton of latency.
I’d use mesh again if I could connect it via LAN cable for the backhaul.
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Soldato
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Yeah I think we need a WiFi guru guide, it's a flipping dark art
I was drawn to you post as I was surprised that a single u6 pro can cover a house, having said that I busted one of my two APs and surprisingly now a single AP more centrally placed is working better than the pair as a mesh
I was drawn to you post as I was surprised that a single u6 pro can cover a house, having said that I busted one of my two APs and surprisingly now a single AP more centrally placed is working better than the pair as a mesh
Soldato
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What you can do is fire up a virtual machine of Kali Linux and use one of the WiFi scanning tools (such as Wifite2) to show access points, channels, signal strength and so on from where the laptop is and then walk around to see what changes make to the wifi coverage.Yeah I think we need a WiFi guru guide, it's a flipping dark art
I was drawn to you post as I was surprised that a single u6 pro can cover a house, having said that I busted one of my two APs and surprisingly now a single AP more centrally placed is working better than the pair as a mesh
Make a change to the AP location and then note the change in signal strength.
It’s not perfect and there are better tools out there but they cost a lot of money and Kali is free.
There are some good principles to follow though, put the AP up high, don’t put it near a microwave, don’t put it next to a ton of metal or between thick walls and expect the signal to be good.
WiFi signal is very very inefficient and adds a ton over latency when compared to LAN cable connections.
You also have the Unifi WiFi tool on mobile which is free and very handy.