AC68U, AC87U, Nighthawk ?

[Ozzy9999]

I've spent the past 2 weeks looking at reviews here, Amazon, Newegg, NCIX and random blogs to seek out the best AC router.

What I've discovered is that every router in what you could call a "top 10" list is not that great. It seems that every one of them have about 15-20% of the users claiming reboots and disconnects. Whats happened in the past couple of years? Double and triple router prices for garbage routers ?

I'm looking for something rock solid. I haven't read much on the AC68U that's been posted recently. Have the AC68U issues been resolved?

My need is consistency only. I do not need usb ports, Aicloud, etc. I have wireless networked printers, an ftp server on a Ubuntu box and cat6 cable to every room in the house so I'm not looking for the router to do any extra tricks, just route traffic.

I run 8 Wemo devices, an Ecobee3 WiFi thermostat, several WiFi cameras which is why stability is paramount above all else.

The current RT-N16U never drops a connection or reboots, ever. I would know because as soon as a WeMo can't talk to the router it shuts itself off.

The only reason I'm looking to upgrade is because I do have a couple of AC devices and want to run OpenVPN at my max speed.

Thanks for any good tips.

 

[htismaqe]

Honestly, the 15-20% of consumers who experienced those issues (I'm one of them actually), experienced them during the early days after the routers' release.

The R7000, RT-AC68U, and WRT1900AC are all now pretty much stable on stock firmware.

 

[Ronv42]

Yes it's a rush to get the router to market and then the early adopters complain the router is buggy, a firmware update or two and the router is now stable. Does the reviews ever get updated? Nope. That is why I don't base my purchase solely on customer reviews.

 

[Ozzy9999]

Honestly, the 15-20% of consumers who experienced those issues (I'm one of them actually), experienced them during the early days after the routers' release.

The R7000, RT-AC68U, and WRT1900AC are all now pretty much stable on stock firmware.

Thanks for the info. I am leaning in the AC68 direction. P if I can find one.

I also saw pretty good reviews lately on the DIR-880L. The problem is that there wasn't a bunch of reviews.

 

[Trip]

I'm looking for something rock solid. [...] My need is consistency only. I do not need usb ports, Aicloud, etc. I have wireless networked printers, an ftp server on a Ubuntu box and cat6 cable to every room in the house [...]I run 8 Wemo devices, an Ecobee3 WiFi thermostat, several WiFi cameras which is why stability is paramount above all else.[...]The only reason I'm looking to upgrade is because I do have a couple of AC devices and want to run OpenVPN at my max speed.

If I were you, I'd buy the 68U, or whatever unit, purely on the best wifi performance and range for the buck. Then if the core routing ability/stability comes up short (which it inevitably might...), you can put the all-in-one into AP-mode and drop in a real router -- EdgeRouter Lite (or PoE), a PfSense box like a Netgate APU4, a Mikrotik box, or even a dedicated firewall appliance like a Zyxel or Fortinet and be done with it.

The only appeal that these all-in-ones have for me is their wifi ability; that's it. If you want to get serious with the other networking features, I find it's almost always best to piecemeal those duties out to dedicated devices.

 

[Ozzy9999]

Yes it's a rush to get the router to market and then the early adopters complain the router is buggy, a firmware update or two and the router is now stable. Does the reviews ever get updated? Nope. That is why I don't base my purchase solely on customer reviews.

That's the problem. When everyone is happy they stop posting

 

[Ozzy9999]

If I were you, I'd buy the 68U, or whatever unit, purely on the best wifi performance and range for the buck. Then if the core routing ability/stability comes up short (which it inevitably might...), you can put the all-in-one into AP-mode and drop in a real router -- EdgeRouter Lite (or PoE), a PfSense box like a Netgate APU4, a Mikrotik box, or even a dedicated firewall appliance like a Zyxel or Fortinet and be done with it.

The only appeal that these all-in-ones have for me is their wifi ability; that's it. If you want to get serious with the other networking features, I find it's almost always best to piecemeal those duties out to dedicated devices.

To be honest I'm not a fan of WiFi in any way shape or form The only wireless I have an interest in is LTE. That being said, the new home "automation" toys do like that WiFi connection. The DuneHD, Boxee Box, XBOX etc all have wired connections. For real HD video streaming I think wired is the best way to go.

You did however have a good suggestion with the AP. Since the N16 is rock solid I can just use that as an AP for the Wemo devices. Then it won't matter if the new AC68U (ordered that because I couldn't find a P) drops a wireless connection or reboots for that matter.

Those Belkin Wemo devices are a little odd. If you drop an internet connection they won't shut down but if they can't talk to the router they turn off. So, as long as they can still talk to the N16, internet or not, they'll be happy. I guess that's Belkins backward attempt at a safety feature, no access, shut off all potentially dangerous devices. You can turn on a device that may burn your house down while your 50 miles away via the internet. If your home internet goes down and you can no longer access that device the Wemo is still happy because it can communicate with the router. Maybe it should be checking for an internet connection and not a router connection.

I'm looking at the ERPoe-5 now.

Thanks

 

[Bombero cs]

Hello, good evening.
First introduce in this my first post. Segudo I ask forgiveness because I use google translator to write, since I live in Spain and my English is very bad.
Well, I wanted to ask you a question, and I want to buy a wifi router AC. I have problems with my router (CBN) putting ono company here in Spain.
I need wifi coverage, and I have problems to watch movies from my computer through the router to my cable VT60 BD remux category 6. I fail to see the movie without stops.
Also what I want is to install the router and forget since I'm not very good at computer science. I also have the maximum coverage possible wifi.
I have 1 desktop, 2 macbook pro 2014 computer, mobile phones and 4 ac (note 3). I've been looking at the AC 87U, and I like what they say about him in the catalog, but once you see the opinion of the people on the forums, you're not sure what to decide.
The ac87u has more coverage than wifi N and AC Ac 68 U. ????
bearing in mind that what I want is to connect the router and that's it, (automatic mode, or play some simple parameter) is ac87u I need or will I have problems ???? settings.
I see here in the forum, many people upgrade the router with fireware that are not official. is the asus support in this regard is bad ?????
Forgive my ignorance in some.
A greeting and thanks

 

[htismaqe]

That's the problem. When everyone is happy they stop posting

That's not the only problem, no.

The other issue, as is the case with me, is that they gave up on the router long before it was ever stable.

It's a question of lifecycle.

Many positive reviews, especially for wireless gear, are written during the "honeymoon" phase, when everything is freshly-unboxed and the "wow" factor is still present. Very few of those people go back and edit their review in a month when it becomes apparent that the router has to be rebooted every 3 or 4 days to keep it stable.

On the flipside, many of the negative reviews are posted during that 2nd window, when the router has to be rebooted all the time. Those reviewers very rarely make it to "stability" so they have no frame of reference to go back and update their reviews with current information. They've already moved on to some other model or brand of equipment.

 

[Ozzy9999]

That's not the only problem, no.

The other issue, as is the case with me, is that they gave up on the router long before it was ever stable.

It's a question of lifecycle.

Many positive reviews, especially for wireless gear, are written during the "honeymoon" phase, when everything is freshly-unboxed and the "wow" factor is still present. Very few of those people go back and edit their review in a month when it becomes apparent that the router has to be rebooted every 3 or 4 days to keep it stable.

On the flipside, many of the negative reviews are posted during that 2nd window, when the router has to be rebooted all the time. Those reviewers very rarely make it to "stability" so they have no frame of reference to go back and update their reviews with current information. They've already moved on to some other model or brand of equipment.

Good points on all counts.

I rolled the dice with the AC68U so I'll see how that goes when I receive it in a day or two.

I may add the EdgeRouter for the hardwired entertainment gear and run the AC68U and N16 as AP's. As long as the N16 doesn't die I know it's very stable and should keep the Wemos happy until I dump those.

I'll try the AC68U out stock for a few days first, go to Merlin if need be and resort to DD-WRT if all else fails

I'll make sure to follow up on the stability of the AC68U.

 

[htismaqe]

Good points on all counts.

I rolled the dice with the AC68U so I'll see how that goes when I receive it in a day or two.

I may add the EdgeRouter for the hardwired entertainment gear and run the AC68U and N16 as AP's. As long as the N16 doesn't die I know it's very stable and should keep the Wemos happy until I dump those.

I'll try the AC68U out stock for a few days first, go to Merlin if need be and resort to DD-WRT if all else fails

I'll make sure to follow up on the stability of the AC68U.

I think you'll like it, especially if you end up going with Merlin's FW.

 

[Ozzy9999]

I think you'll like it, especially if you end up going with Merlin's FW.

Yes, I can say I like it. I'll post a bit about it in case anyone is on the fence about an RT-AC68U.

As I've mentioned in earlier posts my only concern for wireless at all is because of a few wireless security cams, Wemo devices and a couple of Nest protect smoke/CO detectors. Everything else is wired.

The AC68U is very good. I now get full speed downloads with my 30/10 connection running OpenVPN on the router. The CPU cores when downloading are around 65% on core 1 and 5% on core 2 so it doesn't struggle with the decryption at all.

The range of the 2.4GHz is about 75% the range that my RT-N16 had running stock firmware. The 5GHz range is terrible as it's about 25% the range the N16 had. I've tried different channels, channel width, power output and nothing helps the 5GHz range at all. Good thing wireless is not my concern or I'd be a little upset about that. I also notice that changing the power output, on the Merlin firmware, doesn't really do anything. I can run it at 100% or 10% output power and the range is the same.

It's been up and running for 5 days now without a signal drop or reboot. That combined with the fact it does great with the VPN makes me very pleased overall with the AC68U.

If you're looking for great 5GHz range you'd have to find a better setting than I was able to uncover.

I give it 8.5/10. If wireless was my main concern I'd give it 6.5/10.

 

[OP06D]

If you are still considering an Edgerouter, now is the time. I own an Edgerouter Lite and an Edgerouter 8. Firmware version 1.6.0 has been released for both and with the new setup wizards available, setup is a breeze even for the nontech. With the new firmware, there is also a gui settings tree, so most users will never have to go into the cli if they don't want to.

 

[Ozzy9999]

If you are still considering an Edgerouter, now is the time. I own an Edgerouter Lite and an Edgerouter 8. Firmware version 1.6.0 has been released for both and with the new setup wizards available, setup is a breeze even for the nontech. With the new firmware, there is also a gui settings tree, so most users will never have to go into the cli if they don't want to.

Already in the house

Thanks

 

[paulies]

Hi

Do you think this router could manage openvpn with 100/10 connection?

Thanks

 

[Ozzy9999]

Hi

Do you think this router could manage openvpn with 100/10 connection?

Thanks

100, nice

I have no idea about 100 but from the CPU usage I see I'd say 50 would be no problem. Maybe someone else lucky enough to have 100 and this router can help you out.