Replacement Router Suggestion

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
Hello All,

I have been having issues with the N-Band on my Linksys E3200 router. It seems that N-Band just drops and only G-Band is discoverable and/or able to be connected to. Just as an idea of what is occurring, I can reset the router, it will work fine with both bands for lets say three (3) days (this time frame can vary and is just for background information). At some point at the end of three (3) days, the N-Band will just vanish. I won't be able to see it with my Ipad, Desktop, Laptop, Galaxy, PS4, etc. Once I reset the router, it will come back and work again. Currently I am using the newest Firmware. I had tried to contact Linksys/Cisco about this a while back, but they weren't really of any help other than having me reset and factory reset the router a couple of times.

After going through several troubleshooting steps with this router, I am still dropping the N-Band I am noticing now (the original issues started about 6 months ago and had been troubleshooting since that point) that I am starting to have issues with the G-Band as well in terms of signal strength and what not. With this said, I think my router may be dying. Maybe going to 101mbs down and 50 up killed it, who knows. I am looking at replacing and getting something overall stronger and with more range. Likely a unit with external antennas again. I was looking at the Netgear Nighthawk 1900AC and the Linksys WRT1900AC. I had looked at the Netgear AC1750, but for $30 more I can go to the Nighthawk. Thoughts on this? Should I be looking elsewhere?

Network Breakdown:
(2) - 5 port workgroup switches (Linksys) - Not all being used simultaneously for the most part, but sometimes.
(2) - Always wireless PC's with N-Band adapters
(4) - Always Wired PC's
(2) - Ipad's
(3) - Smartphones
(3) - Wireless Laptops (Obviously we can't use everything at once, but they are normally on and connected)
(2) - Wireless Printers (Brother 2270-DW and Canon MG5320)
(1) - Mac Mini

House Square footage ~2500 Square feet combining upstairs and downstairs.

Thanks
Chris
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
As a follow-up. I have been doing some research and such on each of the routers I mentioned above. While I am a fan of the Nighthawk with OpenVPN and some of its other features, I am not sure going with such a high end AC router is the way to go. Currently I do not have any AC adapters in the wireless machines. I could make the argument to go with a bit lower Asus RT-AC66U or the Netgear R6300V2 (both of which are roughly $150 and have the ability to add AC adapters later and take advantage of beam forming. On the flip side to this, based on the fact that I do not have any AC compliant adapters I could go for the Asus RT-N66R and call it a day. My question on that front are as follows:

1. Does the RT-N66R provide an improved range over my now defunct Linksys EA3200?
2. Does it provide better performance than my EA3200 (both wirelessly and wired)?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
digitaldoc

digitaldoc

Expert
Ambassador
Oct 31, 2003
5,213
0
36,960
The Linksys EA3200 sounds like it is on its last legs. Even if it was not, you have likely outgrown it with so many devices that are connecting through it. In my experience, I go though a router every 2 to 3 years. Also, the EA3200 has max speeds of 300 on the 2.4 GHz, and also 300 on the 5 GHz, which can be easily upgraded these days.

Any of the replacement routers would be an upgrade, and should get the job done. I would caution against the Asus RT-N66R as I found a price of $176 on Amazon, and it is only N, and for that price I would get AC gear, even if you don't plan on upgrading any adapters as you probably will over time.

The Linksys WRT1900AC is nice if you want open firmware, but is an expensive proposition at $233.

I would recommend the Netgear AC1750 at $154, or the Netgear Nighthawk AC1900 at $199.

http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Router-AC1750-Gigabit-R6300v2/dp/B00EM5UFP4
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833122581

Comparing specs, the speeds are almost the same at 450/1300 for the Netgear and 600/1300 for the Asus. They both also have 2 USB ports. For my dough, I would most likely go with the Netgear.



 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
Digitaldoc,

Thanks for your response on this. I think you are and I are thinking alike on this. After I posted my follow-up thread I did some more research on the different routers (probably because I was looking for something to move me away from the Asus as I am quite deadset against purchasing any of their products). Seems that the big to do about the Asus routers if the instability which is something I am dealing with now. Not something I want to have to continue to deal with given the amount of money these units are costing these days. It seems that either Netgear is a good choice. Right now we are talking about $155 for the AC1750 and $188 for the Nighthawk (Best Buy.com has it onsale so I could just pick it up) Seems that going with something AC would be the better option as it would allow for future upgrade to the network. I certainly want to see how the OpenVPN works on the Nighthawk (I will check out some reviews and youtube videos on this). It might be a nice way to access my computer remotely without Chrome RDP.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
B

bill001g

Titan
Aug 9, 2012
28,355
2,764
125,640
When you are looking at advanced features such as openvpn I would also consider if the router can load third party firmware. Used to be the only way to really get openvpn was with third party firmware now a small number include it in the manufacture. It just gives you more options for the future.

The bad news is that if you buy a 802.11ac router today it will likely be outdated by the end of the year. There is a new standard soon to be finalized last I read. Then again the main feature of this new 802.11ac appears to be the ability to use a total of 8 channels instead of 4. The big problem with that great theory is there are only 9 that are not subject to radar blackout rules. So how useful in the real world is it going to be when everyone is trying to use ALL the channels just for themselves.

I am going to bet all the interference on the current 2.4g band with everyone trying to use 40mhz of the total 60mhz is part of your current issue.

I would move as much as you possibly can to the 5g band and use only a single 20mhz channel and hope to not get interference. Also on your 2.4g frequency you may want to lock it to support only 802.11n. Sometimes the compatibility mode for 802.11g causes strange errors. Locking it to 20mhz channels also helps in the 2.4g band also.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
Bill,

I would love to move everything to the 5ghz band if it worked. Like I said, that is my big issue, it doesn't work at all anymore. Occasionally I can see it, but try to connect to it and nothing. Just says everything is unstable even when I am standing in front of the router. This is one of the main reasons I am looking for a replacement. If everything was wired, I would leave it well enough alone.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
So I have done some additional troubleshooting with my existing router just to see the status of it.

Currently -

N-Band - Channel 44 - 5.22 ghz - Set on auto width
G-Band - Channel 11 - 2.462 ghz - Set on 20 mhz width

Running Stumbler I determined the following on my private road.

There are two (2) other channel 11's with a signal strength of 26%. Looking solely at my network through Stumbler, My n-signal strength is 42% (I got this network back up by restarting) and my g-signal is a roller coaster fluctuating between 42% signal strength with a maximum of 72% (this lasted for like 3 seconds). All of these strengths are in close proximity to the router.

The wireless phones in my house run at 1.9ghz (AT&T Dect 6.0 phones).

I am perplexed at this point.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
g90814

g90814

Honorable
Apr 11, 2013
1,382
1
11,960
Your current router can be flashed with dd-wrt, that may be an option? It may help resolve your issues, and/or give more configuration options. You can also tweak the power output a bit, although that may be risky ;)
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
Hey guys,

I went ahead and switched channels, that didn't do anything of significance. It changed the reception a percent or two. I grabbed one of my spare Sonicwall Router/Firewall combinations from my office today. I am going to set that up, and see what happens. I may even configure it as an access point and grab a wire feed from on of the other rooms closer to the wireless devices and see what happens. Either way, it looks like I may have to purchase a router.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
Here is what I was able to do. Turns out, I didn't have a spare router (Sonicwall) here in the office. I couldn't try another router. I did confirm I have the latest firmware, changed channels, and rebooted the router. I found the following to be very interesting.

My internet is actually Optimums Ultra 50 (Wired it pulls 60 download and 32 upload)
@ 3-feet from the router:
G-Band - 100% Signal - Internet throughput - 9 mbps down / 3.5 mbps up
N-Band - 100% Signal - Internet throughput - 7-8 mbps down / 3.5 mbps up

@10-feet from router:
G-Band - 86% Signal - Internet throughput - 12 mbps down / 3.5-4.5 mbps up
N-Band - 70% Signal - Internet throughput - 8-9 mbps down / 3.25 mbps up

2nd Floor (upstairs) directly above router:
G-Band - 94% Signal - Internet throughput - 30 mbps down / 16 mbps up
N-Band - 68% Signal - Internet throughput - 15-17 mbps down / 6 mbps up

2nd Floor (upstairs) 10 feet from previous position
G-Band - 52% Signal - Internet throughput - 25 mbps down / 12 mbps up
N-Band - 40% Signal - Internet throughput - 12 mbps down / 6 mbps up

Prior to the start of my thread, the issues seemed to be just intermittent signal, not it seems that my signals and throughput's are being affected all over the house. On average, the download wireless was 35-38 mbps down / 20ish upload. This is obviously not as strong as wired, but was working well outside of signal issues. This seems to be screaming a dying router (wireless side).
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
digitaldoc

digitaldoc

Expert
Ambassador
Oct 31, 2003
5,213
0
36,960
Overall, your speeds are pretty good. Sometimes if you are too close to the router, the speeds are slower, and the numbers you get at 3 feet bear this out.

Replacing the router may improve the speeds when closer, but on the 2nd floor I would guess the speeds will stay the same.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
If I could stay at the 25 down and 12 up on wireless I would be happy. As of this writing, my N-band is non-existent and has an unstable connection even after reset. G-Band down/up is look exceptional tonight as the signal doesn't appear as choppy. I am thinking of an access point and putting it in place of my workgroup switch on the second floor and creating a second SSID. Seems all the devices are actually all N-band so this should work. Thoughts on an access point?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
I was considering getting an access point and creating a secondary wireless network, but the cost is similar to that of replacing the router. I suppose my choice now is simpler. I just need to decide if I want to go all out and get a top flight router. I would like to get this done this weekend, so I will have to make a trip to Best Buy or Microcenter. Either way, if one doesn't do it, bring it back and try another.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
S

StealthArsenal

Distinguished
May 25, 2008
116
0
18,690
Well, I made a decision and went ahead and purchased a regular N-Band router. Asus RT-N66R from Best Buy. The Asus seems to be doing the trick. Both my 2.4 and 5 gHz bands are functioning as they should. I am sitting around 80 percent and 76% signal respectively (This is in place of the 40% I was getting on the second floor). I have all of the wireless devices set to 5 gHz band. My MSI Dominator (gaming laptop) is pulling 59mbps down and 30.15 up. What a difference from my old router.

I appreciate everyones help and input on this.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom