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Wifi Extenders

3K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  ExDilbert 
#1 ·
Hello,

A little background.

I have a 3500 square foot house (basement included) that is a cab over design with the master bedroom above the garage. I currently have Shaw internet (fastest I can purchase in my area) along with a netgear 750 router, a 24 switch port hitched up, and my house is all wired ethernet cat5 to various points including security camera points outside (not hooked up yet) and about 8 spots in the house.

We have multiple laptops, ipods, iphones, tablets, etc. (probably close to 30 devices-large family) hooking up to the internet on both 2.4 and 5.0 frequencies.

Two problems in our system. One is that the end of our bedroom, near the bed, often looses signal, which I would like to extend. Second, is that often the wifi is slow due to multiple people accessing it (girls use a lot of netflix, boys play a lot of online videogames like minecraft).

Anyways, I'm looking into a few options.

One: Put another switch in the basement and wire the boys laptops directly so they aren't accessing wifi and are using the wired network.

Two: Purchasing and including a wireless/wifi booster/extender to get the signal to bedroom.

Any suggestions? Price is not an issue (within reason), and I'm looking for the best possible solution to provide the most stable internet experience, both wired and wireless with full household coverage. Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated.
 
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#2 ·
I use an ASUS RT-N66U configured as an access point. It's slightly dated now but still difficult to beat for range and throughput. The newer ASUS RT-AC66U is a good solution for AC compatibility with new devices. Using the supplied firmware to configure it as an access point is very easy. Just hook it up to the existing wiring in a location that requires better coverage. To increase throughput, it's possible to have multiple access points at different locations on the same channel and SSID. Devices will automatically connect to the router with the strongest signal.
 
#3 ·
...girls use a lot of netflix, boys play a lot of online videogames like minecraft...
...over Wi-Fi?

You buy enough bandwidth to satisfy your whole house requirements and proper allocation is the issue, right?

First, try moving to wired ethernet anything (semi)stationary with an RJ45 jack.
Make an inventory of all gadgets/computers and Wi-Fi flavours they support.

Shaw normally gives you two IP addresses.
Ask them to switch the modem into bridge mode and attach two different router to two of the switch ports in the back.
Assign one to handle the 5GHz traffic, the other - 2.4GHz.

The gaming laptops most likely consume the most bandwidth. Assign one of the routers for their tasks.

If that doesn't help start looking into subnetting and QoS (bandwidth limiting). Use routers that support it...

I have had very limited success with boosters/extenders and don't use them.
 
#4 ·
it's possible to have multiple access points at different locations on the same channel and SSID.
Actually, it's better to use different channels so they're not interfering with each other. Sharing a channel can result in poorer performance. Of course your neighbours might not appreciate you takingt up so much of the spectrum.

However, another switch is always a good idea for devices that don't have to be mobile.
 
#5 ·
I recently purchased the Netgear Nighthawk R7000 (previously was Cisco) and I was able to remove my Wifi extender as signal strength improved a lot. I even turned down the Nighthawk power to lower than the DD-WRT firmware default. I also turn wireless off by given hour (mostly night time and mid day) to reduce EMF (for spouse/kids) when unnecessary. Best investment in wireless I have made in years. I also use D-Link's Ethernet over Power Line and I find it works perfectly for Netflix and Hulu Plus on TV's where I have no ethernet cabling.
 
#6 ·
single access point should handle 20-25 wireless devices before you start to see performance issues on the AP

the volume of bandwidth on said AP tho might be a different matter

what speeds do you have? netflix can be very greedy with bandwidth


you could simply install a 2nd wifi AP at a hardwired location closer to your bedroom, and that would probably give you all the coverage you need
 
#7 ·
it's better to use different channels so they're not interfering with each other.
Agreed. That's especially true if you want high bandwidth devices like gaming machines, for example, on a completely different SSID. Using a single SSID and frequency is more neighbor friendly, at least on the 2.4 GHz band. Around here, I'm the only one on the entire 5 GHz band so it's a lot friendlier for multiple frequencies and throughput is higher due to the usable 40 MHz bandwidth.
 
#8 ·
^^^^
I meant with the same SSID. When you're moving around, you want to use the same SSID. However, you get better throughput with different channels for the access points. If they're on the same channel, one can't transmit when the other is. They can if they're on different channels. When planning WiFi coverage for a large area, you try to keep access points as far from another on the same channel, as is practical.
 
#9 ·
Agreed. In this case, the access points will be far apart so interference will be less of an issue. The best choice will depend on the results of a site survey. That's easy to do using a phone or tablet app. Find the best frequency in each location and use it. That could be different in different parts of the house. It can change if other people change their settings so it's worth rechecking if wireless performance changes.

Hard wiring as many devices as possible is the best solution, especially for devices used for video or gaming. That won't work for portable devices though. In that case, it might be better to use a third access point or to make use of the 5GHz band for devices that support it.

An additional option would be to upgrade the existing access point. ISP devices tend to have very weak wireless coverage and throughput. Disable the wireless in the ISP supplied router and use a better router as an access point in its place. Going from an N300 to an N600, N900 or N1200 router could, theoretically, double or triple total throughput, in addition to providing better coverage and signal strength. Remote devices must support the same protocols as the router to achieve significant improvements.
 
#11 ·
I've seen a couple customers who had a single unit that only had a WPS button on it. I'mm assuming this is a wireless repeater, but I really wonder if they work well, since they aren't hardwired to the first router. I didn't touch it, as we don't deal with 3rd party equipment. One guy had it plugged in and had no clue how to use it, so I think he assumed just plugging it in would mean it's doing something. The other guy hadn't even opened his yet. I went there on a trouble, and found he had his own router AND the providers router set to the same SSID, but his was dual band with the second SSID having a number 2 on the end. His connection was constantly dropping, so I unplugged his router completely. Anyway I don't want to get too off topic. Thanks
 
#12 ·
Wireless repeaters can help extend range but they limit throughput. That's because they must spend half the time receiving and half the time retransmitting. Setting them to receive on 5MHz and transmit on 2.4MHz is a better option for extending 2.4Mhz range. That can be done with a dual band router with DD-WRT (and probably Tomato, haven't tried it.)

When possible, hard wiring a new access point is always a better option. I disabled the ISP wireless and put a hard wired ASUS RT-N66U (configured as a access point) on the second floor near the center of the house. It works like a charm for the house and back yard.

WPS should work (provided the main router is configured for it) but it is a HUGE security risk. It's much better to disable WPS completely and use WPA Pre-Shared Key authentication with a secure key.
 
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