Any fast 2.4GHz Routers?

[alcoholbob]

I just bought a Asus RT-AC87R router, upgraded from a el cheaper $40 Netgear N600 router. I've been suffering from slow streaming from Netflix and uploading files to network drives wirelessly (only getting about 2MB/s). My wired internet is Comcast which usually gets 8-9 MB/s download (aka 60-80MBps).

I read reviews and supposedly the Asus RT-AC87R router was supposed to be the "fastest wireless router!!!111"

However with 2.4GHz wireless transfers to and from USB 3.0 network drives with the new Asus router I'm still only getting about 2-2.5MB/s, download speeds on my laptop seem to max out around 1.5MB/s, which is slightly faster than 1.1-1.3MB/s I was getting on my old Netgear.

Is 2.4GHz band just really slow or what? Seems like I'm maxing out at around 16-20MBps. Seems like for $300 I got a router that's like 15% faster than an el-cheapo router. There is no way I'm gonna be able to stream uncompressed HD or 4K with these kind of wireless speeds from the supposed fastest wireless router. My other problem is all my laptops and wireless adaptors that supposedly are wireless N can only see my 2.4GHz network, but my iphone has never had any problems seeing the 5GHz network.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Is 2.4GHz band just really slow or what?

Yes, in a nutshell, unless you live out in the sticks, it can be slow, due to bandwidth / channel congestion.

There is no way I'm gonna be able to stream uncompressed HD or 4K with these kind of wireless speeds from the supposed fastest wireless router. My other problem is all my laptops and wireless adaptors that supposedly are wireless N can only see my 2.4GHz network, but my iphone has never had any problems seeing the 5GHz network.

Get some AC1200 USB wifi dongles for your laptops and PCs. That's what I did. Sadly, I have trouble streaming internet radio over them. Not because of bandwidth issues though. I can copy 16MB/sec to my gigabit NAS over wifi.

 

[alcoholbob]

Thanks. Also do you know if there is a big difference between USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 AC dongles? The reviews for USB 2.0 ones on Amazon seem all to be in the 3.5 star range and the USB 3.0 ones seem to be in the 4.5 star range. I know this isn't scientific but I assume this means the USB 3.0 ones are markedly faster...maybe that's why the USB 2.0 ones are all on clearance in the $30 range and the USB 3.0 ones are all $60-70.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Thanks. Also do you know if there is a big difference between USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 AC dongles? The reviews for USB 2.0 ones on Amazon seem all to be in the 3.5 star range and the USB 3.0 ones seem to be in the 4.5 star range. I know this isn't scientific but I assume this means the USB 3.0 ones are markedly faster...maybe that's why the USB 2.0 ones are all on clearance in the $30 range and the USB 3.0 ones are all $60-70.

USB2.0 is limited to 480Mbit/sec. AC433/AC600 (single-stream) is 433Mbit/sec.

AC1200 is 867Mbit/sec. USB3.0 is 5Gbit/sec.

 

[smitbret]

I just bought a Asus RT-AC87R router, upgraded from a el cheaper $40 Netgear N600 router. I've been suffering from slow streaming from Netflix and uploading files to network drives wirelessly (only getting about 2MB/s). My wired internet is Comcast which usually gets 8-9 MB/s download (aka 60-80MBps).

I read reviews and supposedly the Asus RT-AC87R router was supposed to be the "fastest wireless router!!!111"

However with 2.4GHz wireless transfers to and from USB 3.0 network drives with the new Asus router I'm still only getting about 2-2.5MB/s, download speeds on my laptop seem to max out around 1.5MB/s, which is slightly faster than 1.1-1.3MB/s I was getting on my old Netgear.

Is 2.4GHz band just really slow or what? Seems like I'm maxing out at around 16-20MBps. Seems like for $300 I got a router that's like 15% faster than an el-cheapo router. There is no way I'm gonna be able to stream uncompressed HD or 4K with these kind of wireless speeds from the supposed fastest wireless router. My other problem is all my laptops and wireless adaptors that supposedly are wireless N can only see my 2.4GHz network, but my iphone has never had any problems seeing the 5GHz network.

Sounds like you are missing a lot of basic information about wireless networking.

#1 Wireless N is a data transfer standard and runs on both the 2.4GHz & 5GHz band. The vast majority of wireless N equipment is still 2.4GHz only. If your laptop or wireless adapter doesn't specify "dual-band" or "5GHz" then it won't see your 5GHz network.

#2 Just getting a 'faster' router will often do nothing to resolve speed issues. I find it laughable If you are using the world's greatest router but the wireless adapters are weak and can't communicate back to the router at a decent rate, then it won't make much difference. Wireless communication is a 2-way street and if one side is garbage, it doesn't matter how loudly the router is yelling.

#3 Your issues may be basic attenuation or channel congestion. If your clients are a long way from your router or the signal has to penetrate walls, floors, AC ducting, etc, then the only way to get it better is to add more Access Points that are closer to your client devices. If you live in a busy neighborhood with lots of wireless networks, then moving everything to the 5GHz band may be your only choice. If you can download this app:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.farproc.wifi.analyzer

You can run it on your phone and it will show you just how crowded your wireless spectrum is and help you choose the least crowded channel.

#4 You will never be able to stream uncompressed HD or 4K content over Wireless N, regardless of 2.4GHz or 5GHz. You will have to have an AC router (which you do) and AC clients.

 

[Ketchup]

So how far is the router from the device(s) playing Netflix and the wireless devices streaming content? Are you in an apartment when there are a lot of other wireless networks nearby?

 

[Emulex]

Most 2.4ghz devices won't hog all 3 channels to allow maximum 2.4ghz bandwidth ! Certain models will allow this (both client and router)! Otherwise you have to go to 5ghz to get maximum performance assuming your power/noise ratio is good enough for this!

 

[alcoholbob]

I tried a couple of AC dongles and connected on the 5GHz network. I'm getting about 15MB/s transfer to network drives at peak speeds. I'm about 15 feet away from my router with direct line of sight. The speed is interesting, and fast enough for streaming HD/UHD, but it's still no faster than a USB 2.0 thumb drive. So it's definitely not a replacement for a computer directly wired to the router if you want to swap files to a network drive. It's not practical at all if you need to transfer GB sized files from or to a network drive.

 

[smitbret]

I tried a couple of AC dongles and connected on the 5GHz network. I'm getting about 15MB/s transfer to network drives at peak speeds. I'm about 15 feet away from my router with direct line of sight. The speed is interesting, and fast enough for streaming HD/UHD, but it's still no faster than a USB 2.0 thumb drive. So it's definitely not a replacement for a computer directly wired to the router if you want to swap files to a network drive. It's not practical at all if you need to transfer GB sized files from or to a network drive.

You've got something else wrong, then. I used to have a wireless AC bridge between two Archer C7s that got 380-425Mb/s (about 45-50MB/s). That was covering 8-10 feet at a 45 degree line through a wall, a floor and past some furnace ducting.

What is the uplink speed that you are getting from the AC dongles?

 

[ImDonly1]

I live in a fairly crowded 2.4Ghz place. 2 MB/s is pretty normal for 2.4Ghz.
On 5Ghz though... I am the only network.

Look into upgrading the WiFi card on your laptops to support 5Ghz wireless AC. They cost like $30 I believe and are usually pretty easy to upgrade.

 

[azazel1024]

You've got something else wrong, then. I used to have a wireless AC bridge between two Archer C7s that got 380-425Mb/s (about 45-50MB/s). That was covering 8-10 feet at a 45 degree line through a wall, a floor and past some furnace ducting.

What is the uplink speed that you are getting from the AC dongles?

I'd agree. my "old" (like 2 years old) WDR3600, which is an N600 can manage 25MB/sec between itself and my laptop with an Intel 7260ac in it (300Mbps link rate) on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz. To my 11ac router (Archer C8) I can manage 28MB/sec on 2.4GHz and 60MB/sec on 5GHz.

If all you can manage is ~2MB/sec on 2.4GHz and 15MB/sec on 5GHz 11ac, there is something else very wrong going on here, especially at 15ft line of sight (my numbers above are for 12-15ft line of sight, but heck, with my Archer C8 through 3 walls, a floor, a fireplace and 50ft I can still get 3.5MB/sec between the C8 and my laptop on 2.4GHz 40MHz).

 

[JoeMcJoe]

Having good equipment is one thing, configuring it correctly is another.

 

[RadiclDreamer]

2.4 is crowded airspace my friend, and it penetrates really well for wifi. You either need to try different channels or switch to 5ghz

 

[alcoholbob]

You've got something else wrong, then. I used to have a wireless AC bridge between two Archer C7s that got 380-425Mb/s (about 45-50MB/s). That was covering 8-10 feet at a 45 degree line through a wall, a floor and past some furnace ducting.

What is the uplink speed that you are getting from the AC dongles?

I've gone through a couple of cheap Amazon dongles as well as a few of the pricier ones. Seems like the cheap Amazon no-name ones were the ones limiting me to around 15MB/s. A Netgear AC6210 is now getting me around 35-40MB/s which is pretty good, although at $77 for a usb stick it costs more than my old router!

I'm planning to upgrade my laptop soon whenever Dell or HP start to sell 28W Broadwell-U with Iris Pro HD graphics (HD6100). Hopefully the internal wireless AC cards on laptops are decent, I'd hate to lug around a giant wireless dongle on a small Ultrabook for decent reception.

 

[VirtualLarry]

You've got something else wrong, then. I used to have a wireless AC bridge between two Archer C7s that got 380-425Mb/s (about 45-50MB/s). That was covering 8-10 feet at a 45 degree line through a wall, a floor and past some furnace ducting.

Yes, but that's triple-stream AC. Most USB dongles are only dual-stream AC. Mine only connect at 560Mbit/sec, so you have to figure actual throughput is less than half that.

 

[smitbret]

Yes, but that's triple-stream AC. Most USB dongles are only dual-stream AC. Mine only connect at 560Mbit/sec, so you have to figure actual throughput is less than half that.

True, but it should still be considerably faster than the numbers he was getting.