Wireless N Network With G Devices: G will drag down the speed, yeah?

[Jschmuck2]

So we've been looking to upgrade our router because we have a mix of N and G devices. I never really thought about it but doing some reading, the minute a G device connects to a N network, the whole thing goes down to G speeds.

Right?

And is there a way around that?

 

[Capt Caveman]

You'll need a dual band simultaneous router that broadcasts at 2.4/5ghz.

Something like this - Link

I'm in a similar boat and may just get a Wireless N router and buy an USB N adapter for my laptop.

 

[Jschmuck2]

You'll need a dual band simultaneous router that broadcasts at 2.4/5ghz.

Something like this - Link

I'm in a similar boat and may just get a Wireless N router and buy an USB N adapter for my laptop.

And how does that work, exactly? N is on the 5ghz band and G the 2.4?

 

[Jschmuck2]

Because we'd have both N and G devices running on the dual band router - I just want to make sure I won't be dragging anything down.

 

[RavenSEAL]

It shouldn't drag it down...the Router still sends out the signal @ 5Ghz...the G receiver still only picks it up @ 2.4...right? Which means it shouldn't drag it down...right?

 

[Jschmuck2]

....right?

 

[bad_monkey]

It shouldn't drag it down...the Router still sends out the signal @ 5Ghz...the G receiver still only picks it up @ 2.4...right? Which means it shouldn't drag it down...right?

That is correct, it wont drag it down. I have a dual band linksys WRT400N. Notice in the first screenshot I can have both channels in Mixed mode but in the second I can switch the 5ghz channel to N only and the 2.4ghz channel to anything. Since the channels operate independently there is no drag down.

 

[bad_monkey]

I suppose to elaborate, I should say that the 5GHz and the 2.4GHz reciever/transmitter are separate (if not in actuality then at least in implementation) which is why you can set the modes separately. Hope that helps. I would also recommend the WRT400N. I live on the 6th floor of a loft and I can pick up the signal at street level on my side of the building. It's also easy to set up especially if you've ever messed with a linksys router before. It's $130 on newegg but well worth it IMO.

EDIT:
WRT400N has 6 antennae, 3 for 5GHz channel and 3 for 2.4GHz channel so they are separate.

 

[Vincent]

2.4GHz has 3 bands that we can use for wireless networking. If none of your neighbors are using them, you can have the 802.11g network use one band and the 802.11n network use the other two bands. This will probably give you the best performance since 5GHz 802.11n devices/adapters are often expensive, have shorter range, and can be difficult to find.

 

[masteryoda34]

the minute a G device connects to a N network, the whole thing goes down to G speeds.

Right?

No, that is inaccurate.

In the case where:
a) there is one 2.4GHz band
b) it is operating in g/n "mixed-mode"

Then:
1) adding a G device to the network WILL impact the performance of the N devices, however
2) the N devices will still operate at much greater than G speeds

 

[VirtualLarry]

I'm using DD-WRT on a DIR-615 C1 router, and I'm doing wireless repeating, using client mode, and a virtual AP. The physical wireless interface is set to mixed, and I have it connected to a G AP in client mode, and my laptop connects to the virtual AP in N mode. So the router is constantly switching between G and N mode. Yet things like video streaming work just fine. The internet connection on the G router appears to be 3Mbit down/768Kbit up (DSL).