ASUS RT-AC68U for good Wi-Fi Range?

[Leyawiin]

I have Comcast and a Netgear C3000-100NAS modem. While its quite reliable as a wired modem its Wi-Fi is incredibly weak. I have 100+ Mbps internet, but even sitting right by the modem/router it gets only 25-30 Mbps. On the other side of the house (about 40 feet) its about 15-20 Mbps. I've been doing some research and have found that the ASUS RT-AC68U is recommended for better than average Wi-Fi range. Can anyone recommend it or tell me about their experience with it? Is there something I've missed that's better for range? Have a budget of $200 max. Thank you!

https://www.amazon.com/Wireless-RT-AC68U-Ultra-Fast-Acceleration-AiProtection/dp/B00FB45SI4

 

[VirtualLarry]

I have an AC68R (same hardware as AC68U), running Shibby Tomato 1.38. Though, I'm only in a small apt. and haven't tried to max out the range. I get fine signal, both on 2.4Ghz and AC 5Ghz bands. I have an AC1200 wireless AP in wireless bridge mode, for the rest of my LAN in the other room. Get around 40MB/sec over the bridge, wirelessly.

 

[razel]

The Asus AC68R/U is great and is still a benchmark router, but it has gotten very old. I believe it's over 3 years old now. Asus has revised it, but the newer revisions (or firmwares) have given up a little bit of it's 2.4G range. I also would not pay more than $70 or even $100 since begins to reach the FANTASTIC Google WiFi.

What'd I'd recommend if you are technically inclined it's Tmobile twin regularly which I've seen regularly on sale in the $50 range and spend time to revert it's firmware back to ASUS, DD-WRT or Tomato. If you just want WiFi, wait for the Google WiFi's to be back in stock. In fact yesterday Best Buy has the Google OnHub (the elder sibling of GWiFi) which uses the same firmware for $100.

 

[Leyawiin]

Actually using it for gaming PCs, not phones or tablets. If i can't access it via a PC browser I don't want it.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

2-way street. You could have the bestestesterest WAP on the planet but if your laptop has a dinky little single channel wifi card and sheet metal blocking half the already-puny output power, you're gonna have a bad time. And getting a bigger, badder WAP won't help.

So yeah, ASUS makes a good router - I'm a fanboy - but what kind of wifi card(s) are in your client devices?

 

[Leyawiin]

Forgot to mention my wireless adapter for the gaming desktop. Distance to the modem/router is about 40 ft through one wall. I have a TP-Link/Archer T8E. So yeah, its a good adapter. It gets the best speed of any of my devices, but they're all slow compared to the wired LAN. Unusually slow.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RL4A314/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[dave_the_nerd]

A wall? IME, 5GHz basically only works well if you have LoS.

Anyway, wifi is slow. When you have multiple devices taking up attention and any kind of "busy" wifi spectrum, you're going to be lucky to see reliable 100Mbit transfers, even if your "connection speed" is 10x that.

So, basically, cope. And if you've got a desktop, RUN A WIRE. Seriously.

 

[VirtualLarry]

So, basically, cope. And if you've got a desktop, RUN A WIRE. Seriously.

Yeah. Although, I live in a small apt., with a couple of main rooms. If I wire everything, it has to cross a doorway, and I don't have any cable concealer strips handy. So I have it half-wired. Both segments of my LAN are wired, with an AC wireless client bridge in the middle.

I get 40MB/sec (MegaBYTES/sec) over the wireless bridge to my main NAS.

 

[Leyawiin]

A wall? IME, 5GHz basically only works well if you have LoS.

Anyway, wifi is slow. When you have multiple devices taking up attention and any kind of "busy" wifi spectrum, you're going to be lucky to see reliable 100Mbit transfers, even if your "connection speed" is 10x that.

So, basically, cope. And if you've got a desktop, RUN A WIRE. Seriously.

I know that wifi is slow compared to wired. I'm not expecting the full 120 Mbps I get from my cable modem plugged directly into a PC. If I can get 50 Mbps from 40 feet I'd be pretty happy. Anything is better than the 18 Mbps I got last night (with only one device using it). Telling me to "cope" or run a wire (in caps) is utterly a lazy and useless response. I'm tired of "coping" and running a wire from the office room to the living room on the other side of the house isn't feasible. That's why I asked about the reputation a certain wifi router had for range.

 

[Leyawiin]

Ended up going with the Linksys WRT1900ACS for about the same price as the ASUS. Its well reviewed for both throughput and range.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B014MIBLSA/?tag=httpwwwtechsp-20

 

[JackMDS]

There is No big magics in Wireless Hardware.

In reality (as oppose to wishful thinking) the Wireless functioning of Brand name Wireless Routers above $90 performance is very similar. (I.e, brand and price does not really make big difference in the Wireless outcome)

The differences in experience that you read about on Networking forums have to do with Environments factors and the way that the Wireless Networks are used rather than Magic Wireless Routers.

The bizarre concoctions of multiple Antennae and other "Visual Plays" on the Wireless Routers have very little to do with tech. they are usually Marketing Ploys to play on our emotions.

As said above, if one good Wireless Router does not cover the enviroment and number of Wireless client devices, than One should use a laptop to do Wireless survey and place as many Wireless Routers (configured as Access Points) and connected via wire to the main Router.

If one have excuses not to do so, then One is doomed to have whatever his/er enviroment dishes to them.

But Hmm.... I know Trusted people that a specific Model of one Brand helped them as oppose to other that did not work well.

Reason 1 - It is impossible to test every product of the millions that are manufactured. As a result Quality Assurance is statistically based and thus there is always a probability that our specific unit is on the negative part of the statistic.

Reason 2 - There might be construction differences between how the signal propagation interact with Ones enviroment of one Wireless Router transmission vs. the other (mainly Antennae). The process of scientifically ID and evaluate such variables (in the Router and One's specific enviroment) needs special electronic equipment and cost much much more then buying few Wireless Routers.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well said, Jack. Environment can have as much or more to do with how any wireless router performs at your location, than the router itself. That said, some routers do have deficiencies in some aspects; those can be avoided with thorough review of online comments and reviews, to note a pattern. For example, the particular $20 AC1200 router sold by TrendNet at Newegg, was noted to "run hot", even with DD-WRT installed. Well, I bought four of them (on two different sales for $20 ea), to have some DD-WRT AC1200 routers, and yes, they run REALLY hot. So much so, that I would be concerned to deploy them in a client's location. Three of them are unopened, might just resell them for what I paid for them. They do work though, and they are DD-WRT capable, maybe someone will buy them.

But other than obvious lemons, most routers do have similar performance, if they are based on similar technology platforms.

SmallNetBuilder has excellent router reviews and ranking charts, if anyone is interested in comparisons.

Basically, look at their chart, find a router that meets your WAN-LAN routing speed needs, or wireless distance needs, and pick a price point and look at the models around there.

Edit: That said, I consider myself a "SOHO router veteran user" (as I am sure Jack is too), having have used a 802.11b router, and NIC, 802.11g (and SpeedBooster), 802.11n 150Mbit, 300Mbit, draft and final, and 802.11ac 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, as well as DD-WRT, Tomato, Netgear, LinkSys, Asus, TrendNet, TP-Link factory firmware, and wireless client, client bridge, WDS, and other things.

But I have yet to use one of the really high-end "Super" routers ($300+ class), with multiple 5Ghz AC bands, etc.

My most advanced router, that I am also currently using, besides my FIOS-supplied router, is an Asus AC68R, that I bought refurb off of Newegg on ebay, for a very reasonable price (compared to new). I subsequently put on Shibby Tomato 138. (I had been running Tomato on my Asus RT-N12/D1 N300 router previously.)

I like it, it has been mostly stable. Performance is fine.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Will be interesting to see if the new router helps. I'm guessing marginal improvement: ~25mbps instead of 18.

 

[Leyawiin]

Well, my download speed went from 16 Mbps to 76 Mbps with the new router (wired right now is about 100 Mbps - prime time in the evening). That's about what I was hoping for given the distance and obstructions. It was a snap to set up - just took about ten minutes. Its huge though! About the size of a dinner plate. lol