Setting up new Netgear DGND3300 (good choice?) with Linksys WRT54GL?

alexjholland · 27 Sep 2010 at 19:44

Hey,

(Four questions at bottom)

We just ordered a Netgear DGND3300 from OcUK to replace our ageing white Homehub 1.5. The homehub has soldiered on over five years, whilst a black homehub 2.0 failed - but with a new 'N' enabled Dell desktop; poor performance at distance; a growing PC/printer/extender network and the desire for HD video streaming across our network, the time has come to upgrade.

The Netgear will sit in the hallway, where it connects wirelessly to our 'N' desktop upstairs and our 'G' laptops around the house. I'm hoping to see an improvement in range for both 'N' and 'G' devices.

For me, a 15-20 metre long ethernet runs out of the back of the Netgear, under the floorboards and down to my basement conversion bedroom. Once inside, it connects to a Linksys WRT54GL on Tomato - in turn connected to my XBox 360, Macbook and Windows 7 Desktop PC. I have disabled the 54GL's wireless, as the signal from the Homehub is good enough for casual browsing.

This setup works fine with our HomeHub 1.5, but for some reason the Homehub 2.0 just wouldn't work with my 54GL, no matter what advice I tried from this forum.

So tomorrow I am first going to try simply unplugging the Homehub and plugging in the Netgear, with the same cable arrangement. I currently have the homehub connected to the first LAN port on my 54GL, which is the only way it works.

Questions:

- Are there any options I will need to tweak to get the Netgear DGND3300 to work with my connected Linksys WRT54GL tomorrow?

- Can I use the uplink port on my 54GL this time, as I am possibly getting a second XBox 360 and would then like all four LAN ports available!

- Would a basic Linksys 4-port hub I recently found kicking around be more sensible to use than the 54GL (or allow me to use the WAN instead of LAN), bearing in mind I don't use the wireless function on it anyway?

- Did I make a good choice? (Inter-PC movie streaming; good Windows 7 home network; fast torrenting and XBox 360 gaming are the agenda).

Ps. My connection is BT 6 Meg - let me know if you need any more details!

Many Thanks,

Alex

alexjholland · 27 Sep 2010 at 23:46

I do have Tomato on the WRT54GL - should have mentioned that!

Aside from that, I do wonder what you're talking about. The 54GL firstly has no modem, so I needed one in the hallway as that is where the phone line is (hence home hub) and secondly I need the 54GL in my basement bedroom as I have just the one cable entering it.

The 54GL with Tomato didn't work with the homehub 2.0. This is largely irrelevant, as I will no longer be using homehubs - I just hope it was a problem with the homehub rather than the WRT54GL.

Do you even know which router I'm talking about? It was £110: the top netgear on OcUK - hardly 'cheap'.

Finally, the whole point was that we're streaming hi-def video between computers and we we have N technology on our new PC that we want to tap into. Why would I possibly be interested in G technology in 2010?

Should I ask for some explanation of the assertion that fast torrenting and XBox don't go together?

alexjholland · 28 Sep 2010 at 00:24

Great response, thanks benftl!

Who knows why it didn't work - the important thing is getting the Netgear working tomorrow.

I think I'm going to go straight to the switch, as it's a tidier and more simple solution. Why do you say a switch is 'technically superior'?

Pleased to hear the dual radio is a good thing. We have mainly G devices, just the new PC and my Macbook that are N (surely we will get more N devices though) so it seems dual radios is a sensible investment.

Finally, I've always been told by my XBox that I have strict NAT settings. Will this new router and switch potentially solve this?

Oh - and there is a dedicated 'uplink' on the 54GL. Whether it is actually just another switch and really I could have used this instead of the LAN ports I can't quite remember. Will try switch anyway though!

Thanks

alexjholland · 28 Sep 2010 at 00:44

I just went digging and have two wired potential replacements for my WRT54GL:

- Linksys EFAH05W 10/100 5-Port Workgroup Hub
- Sitecom LN-112 V2 5p 10/100mbps Switch

I'd naturally have gone for the Linksys, as it's got five ports (+ an uplink), is a known brand and looks like a cute mini version of the 54gl! The Sitecom is a brand I don't recognise/respect - but it is a switch.

You think this Sitecom Switch will be a better option then? (Assuming both manufacturers know to use the words 'switch' and 'hub' correctly?)

Was tempted to get a cheaper single-band radio, but am glad we forked out for the dual radios now!

I massively appreciate your help - it's great to have someone who really knows their stuff in an area I really don't. This does mean you're my first port of call if I need any help tomorrow though!

alexjholland · 28 Sep 2010 at 01:06

Sorry, I meant I actually have the Linksys mini hub and Sitecom switch sitting in my room now. I got them a few years ago and forgot I had them.

Is it safe to assume the Sitecome will do better - or is there any way of measuring? Broadbandspeedtest.co.uk?

I'm definitely going to replace the WRT54GL with one of these two, as simpler is almost always better to me!

alexjholland · 28 Sep 2010 at 20:14

Well I've got the Netgear/sitecom switch plugged in. Setup was fairly easy, although having two wireless networks threw me a little. It appears my G laptop can see videos from my N PC - so I still have one overall network.

NAT is now open in my Halo settings! The only slight disappointment is that I appeared to have a weak connection on the ingame interface bar (no noticeable effect though). I am on 6 meg BT, so this surprised me. I will experiment with the sitecom switch/linksys hub this week sometime.

The interface seems a little disappointing. I remember on my Homehub I could see every individual item and select unique services for each one, such as 'XBox 360'. That said, I don't know what more I can expect apart from an open NAT and my games opening.

Overall, it seems good. I need to check various things like printers work from all our different computers in the next few days. Turns out both my sisters' laptops are 'N' too - so the router was an even more sensible purchase than planned.

Thanks for your help so far!

alexjholland · 29 Sep 2010 at 19:17

Benftl, it appears 5Ghz has appalling range! We cannot pick up the 'N' channel upstairs (10-15 metres and one floor away).

Looks like we will need to have one channel at 2.4 ghz. Unlike some other routers, I do not have the option of running seperate N and G both at 2.4ghz - only one.

Options:
- Up to 145mbps at 2.4Ghz
- Up to 300mbps at 2.4Ghz

What is the difference and which should I choose?

Also, bearing in mind the second radio is now irrelevant in our router, is there still enough in it to justify the £110 price-tag? Is it still good?

I do wish Netgear or OcUK had made the appalling range of 5Ghz clearer..

alexjholland · 29 Sep 2010 at 20:07

It appears the first is 20mhz and the second is 40 mhz. I am trying 40 as we only pick up one neighbour's homehub, so should be able to hog the entire bandwith to ourselves.

alexjholland · 29 Sep 2010 at 23:53

It appears this is my only option. I actually prefer having one channel from a practical point of view, my concern is just that it's a wasted feature having paid for two radios - and I want good performance/range.

The definition of 'performance/range seems' to be N at 2.4Ghz.

alexjholland · 30 Sep 2010 at 00:07

My mum really doesn't like lots of wires, she wasn't even too happy with this in her hallway! I had to wire it neatly to keep her happy!

Having one channel seems to do the job and it's a lot neater with one SSID.

alexjholland · 4 Oct 2010 at 14:29

Right. This router is going back - it's appalling. The wireless seems to go from bad to worse and one of the feet was broken when we got it.

It has worse range than our Homehub 1.5 and constantly drops out, no matter what settings I've tried. Absolutely dreadful - I cannot believe we paid £110 for this rubbish.

Even the firmware is rubbish - there are very few configuration options (such as being able to stop internet access to my sister's laptop after 10pm on school nights).

Very disappointed. I will not trust user reviews alone next time and do more research - this thing will be getting 2 stars if it's lucky.

Can anyone recommend a good replacement? We want RANGE and POWER. We just want the strongest, most reliable G/N signal we can get and some options such as turning off access to my sister's laptop at certain times would be a bonus.

alexjholland · 4 Oct 2010 at 16:33

That Linksys does look great, but a combined purchase cost of £200 and two boxes sitting in our hall next to my mum's antiques with all their various cables is going to push her tolerance!

Surely there is a good box that does it in one? Do Linksys not offer that performance in one box with a router? I can't believe we need to spend £200 to get performance equal or better than our 4-year-old Bt Homehub 1.5!