Router Question - Linksys EA6900 vs Asus RT-N66U

[Bipedal Humanoid]

Need help deciding on a Router. Currently I am looking at the Linksys EA6900 and the ASUS RT-N66U.

I was ready to pull the trigger on the Asus, when I came across the Linksys - they are both the same price but the Linksys is ac whereas the Asus is N.

Both routers fit the budget (~100USD). I am leaning towards the RT-N66U because the only ac capable devices in our household are two smartphones and a Chromecast. Other devices are, one gaming PC which will be hardwired, with another gaming PC being 25ft away from the Router using a Netgear DualBand N USB adapter (WNDA3100). The second PC is in a different room. ISP is Comcast, 150/10 speeds.

The Asus router seems to have more features according to this website.

I also plan to attach my 4TB WD MyBook (USB 3.0) to the router, and while the Asus "only" has USB 2.0, the Asus also has a cloud function which seems to allow me to access all my files 'on the go'. I can't find any info whether the Linksys has the same feature. It's not a must have, but I do like the idea of being able to access my files anytime from anywhere, especially when it comes to playing music and movies. Then again I suppose this is something I can configure with any router?

Any other thoughts and pointers you can give me, that I might have missed?

Thanks in advance for any pointers!

 

[boomerang]

I have the N66U at one residence and an AC66U at another. Both drop the wireless connection far too frequently for my tastes. Once a day, sometimes twice a day sometime once or twice a week. It's random. The only cure is to reboot the router. I even set them up to reboot daily at 4 AM and that didn't help. A few days back I found that the AC unit was dropping wired connections in conjunction with the wireless connections.

The AC unit is in for RMA right now. The N unit I turned off the wireless and paired it with a UniFi AP AC Lite. Six weeks so far with no problems. It's a shame to have to have to turn off the wireless but if it continues to work I will stay with it. If the AC unit is not fixed upon its return (or exchange, however they handle it) that's it for me. I don't know what I'll go to, I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

No advice on the Linksys, just wanted to share my experience with the Asus routers.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

It's difficult to recommend either router considering the negative reviews. I would personally lean more towards the R6400 as it is AC capable and has better reviews overall (4.4 vs 3.8 and 4.2 stars). While it is only AC1750, total throughput is similar to the better AC1900 routers. It's a little more expensive, but seems to be less frustrating than the other routers, and does have NAS functionality (ReadyCLOUD).

I'm also a fan of the Ubiquiti UAPs that boomerang mentioned, but you would still need a gigabit router that met your other requirements.

 

[JackMDS]

Asus N66U is very good but Not AC.

The Belkin (AKA Linksys EA 6900) is an AC. But it is Belkin.

I would spend few $$ more and buy this one.

ASUS (RT-AC68U) Wireless-AC1900 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JZFG6QS?psc=1

Or stay in budget with this one - TP-LINK Archer C5 AC1200

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JZFG6QS?psc=1

 

[Bipedal Humanoid]

Thanks for the input guys, that is too bad to hear about both Asus dropping connection!

We have the Netgear R6400 at work and it does the same thing - the router needs to be rebooted every now and then, and it seems completely random. Definitely less than once a day, but usually every 1-2 weeks. There is no observable pattern that would pinpoint the issue and IT can't locate the problem either. I wonder if it is something in Windows rather than the router itself.

I too noticed the 1/2 star better average and more overall reviews on the Netgear and I'm guessing we might just have a lemon at work. Ultimately I went with Small Net Builder to narrow down my choices.

I also noticed the ratings for the Cloud app on Android are slightly better for the Asus routers than the other two, although by a mere margin. (3 stars for Netgear ReadyCloud, 3.9 for Asus AICloud, 3.8 for Linksys SmartWiFi).

[EDIT: Breaking down the Amazon Customer reviews, the Asus has 10% negative reviews out of 5841, the Linksys 24% out of 636, and the R6400 7% out of 1393] .

I'll probably take another long, hard look at the R6400. At a minimum your input already convinced me to go with new over used - that way I have warranty and/ or can simply return for a refund if it comes down to that.

 

[Bipedal Humanoid]

Asus N66U is very good but Not AC.

The Belkin (AKA Linksys EA 6900) is an AC. But it is Belkin.

I would spend few $$ more and buy this one.

ASUS (RT-AC68U) Wireless-AC1900 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JZFG6QS?psc=1

Or stay in budget with this one - TP-LINK Archer C5 AC1200

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JZFG6QS?psc=1

Sorry, I did not see your reply until just now.

I have been looking at the RT-AC68U, although not really considering it due to the many reported USB 3.0 issues and the fact that it is over my budget. As far as the issues go with this particular unit, the USB port is not shielded and causes WiFi connection to drop when used, unless you limit the USB throughput down to USB 2.0 speeds in the router settings. These issues have been resolved in the RT-AC68P, which specifically addresses the USB issue and also sports a slightly faster processor. But the P unit is also far more expensive and double my budget.

In terms of staying at 100USD, the TP-Link Archer C7/8 have also achieved excellent scores on smallnetworkbuilder.com .

 

[AnonymouseUser]

In terms of staying at 100USD, the TP-Link Archer C7/8 have also achieved excellent scores on smallnetworkbuilder.com .

I didn't recommend those due to their poor USB performance. The R6400 is not the best, but is better than the TP-Links.

 

[Bipedal Humanoid]

I didn't recommend those due to their poor USB performance. The R6400 is not the best, but is better than the TP-Links.

Yeah, I wasn't really considering any of the TP Link routers. It was on my option list at one point, but got discarded for one reason or another.

Dang... Looks like I am back to square one... Perhaps I'll just bite the bullet and go with the Asus RT-AC68P.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

Upgrade the office router (Ubiquiti UAP) and buy the R6400 from them?

 

[Bipedal Humanoid]

Upgrade the office router (Ubiquiti UAP) and buy the R6400 from them?

What is the UniFi AP? Is it a router? I see the AP stands for access point, but I don't know what an access point is.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

The UAPs are enterprise grade wireless access points. They are much better than consumer grade wireless routers, though they still need to be connected to a router or switch (almost any router/switch will do). Ubiquiti products are much more affordable than typical enterprise equipment, and are often purchased by home users. Easily add additional APs as needed.

 

[Bipedal Humanoid]

The UAPs are enterprise grade wireless access points. They are much better than consumer grade wireless routers, though they still need to be connected to a router or switch (almost any router/switch will do). Ubiquiti products are much more affordable than typical enterprise equipment, and are often purchased by home users. Easily add additional APs as needed.

Ok, very cool idea! I read up a bit on access points in the meantime and have a better understanding of Ap's now.

So... basically I can get an Ethernet switch such as the TP-LINK TL-SG1005D and an AP device and have the same thing a router would accomplish.

Regarding the switch, I plug my modem directly into any of the ports? I don't see which one is labeled as "In" as it would be on a router.

Thanks for your patience man, and sorry for all the noobish questions

 

[AnonymouseUser]

You'll still need to have a router in the mix somewhere, and a modem is not a router (though they are often combined into one unit). The problem you would run into at home is that you would be left without the cloud sharing functionality found on most of the better wireless routers, which is why I mentioned pairing it with a gigabit router earlier. That TP-LINK switch still needs a router between it and the modem, but with a router you don't necessarily need a switch (eg, EdgeRouter X).

Your office may have an additional router so it might be easier to just add the AP there, or if you currently have a satisfactory (Gigabit) wireless router you could add the AP to that and disable wireless on the router.

 

[Bipedal Humanoid]

I see... I think going with just a router is going to be the simplest way to get started. Down the road I can continue educating myself, when/if the router turns out not to meet my expectations. For now a switch seems redundant to me as I have trouble seeing any real benefits - which I am sure they are but for now the benefits escape me.

On a side note, my roommate told me he just pulled the trigger on the Asus N router. We also decided we are going to hardwire his PC running an Ethernet to his room. So now the only devices that will be wireless are our phones, his laptop (non gaming) the TV and the Chromecast, making wireless much less of a priority.

I've definitely learned a lot, and see that I have much to learn yet - something I will do in the upcoming weeks.

Again, thank you so much for all the pointers, I might follow up at some point and let you know how the Asus N900 is working out for us. I suspect it will exceed our previous CenturyLink Modem/Router combo but am also not holding my breath thanks to boomerang's observations.

 

[AnonymouseUser]

I suspect it will exceed our previous CenturyLink Modem/Router combo but am also not holding my breath thanks to boomerang's observations.

The Asus router is almost definitely better than any combo modem/router. Hope it works out!

 

[nenforcer]

The Linksys EA6900 is the first Belkin branded Linksys - the previous EA6700 which I have is the last Cisco / Linksys one. It is AC and I am having good luck with mine.

A friend of mine went with the much more expensive ASUS RT-AC68U and has reported no issues but he flashed his firmware with Tomato by Shibby just like his previous Linksys E3000.

I'm trying to flash my EA6700 with Advanced Tomato but have had no luck so far. Have you considered flashing either router with custom firmware (tomato.groov.pl) to improve stability?

 

[VirtualLarry]

I've got an entry-level Asus N300 router flashed with Tomato to do my routing duties, and then I've got an Engenius AC1200 router/AP acting strictly as my 2.4Ghz N / 5Ghz AC AP, daisy-chained to my network.

The Asus router is only 10/100, and not gigabit, so I had to do a bit of creative wiring on my LAN, to allow for the AP (which is gigabit) to give me full speed to my (wired) NAS units, over AC1200 wifi.

My internet connection (currently) is only 25/25, which works out to 30/30. I dropped the speed from 75/75 (90/83) to save some money. Other than the occasional Linux ISO I download to try out, I don't use my connection all that much.

 

[Router_help]

I loved my ASUS RT-N66U when it worked. But it started dropping the 2.4Ghz wifi band and then 5Ghz wifi band and nothing would reconnect, even after restarts.

This is a somewhat common problem, alarmingly, reading the ASUS router forum on Small Net Builders.

I am shocked at how this has been going on for a year or two with no resolution. I have tried the Merlin firmware, no difference.

So I've switched to Netgear R6300 and R6900 (CostCo version of the R7000). I have one for main use and one for back up. Should the R6900 fail I can do an easy return to CostCo for the latest router.

It's very sad to not have routers that are 100% reliable. I'm very disappointed at the poor performance of my ASUS routers. I will avoid them in the future.