How do i setup a wireless bridge with merlin to ADSL > cable

[loady]

I am currently residing at a property that is on talk talk internet (UK)..the router is an ADSL Huawei HG533 (crap)...the wifi reach on it is rubbish. I have a spare ASUS RT-N16 cable routerwhich i have installed merlin on and i am not sure how to go about setting up a wireless bridge to get better signal in other part of house i also want to be able to use the lan ports on the asus so i can connect my xbox to it so i do not need to buy a wireless adapter for it, i would appreciate any instruction if it is at all possible.

 

[netwrks]

Check under Admin page to see if there is a media bridge radio button..

 

[ColinTaylor]

I don't think that you can achieve what you want, both wireless and wired client connections at the RT-N16.

I could be wrong (someone please correct me) but if you put the N16 in Media Bridge mode then you can only use wired connections to the N16. If you put it into Repeater mode then you can extend your wireless coverage but I don't think you can use the N16's LAN ports.

 

[loady]

I could toggle that maybe. I'm more interested in connecting lan ports to my eaquipment

 

[ColinTaylor]

Try putting it into Media Bridge mode and see how it goes. You'll have to place the N16 close enough to the Huawei to maintain a good wireless connection though.

 

[loady]

I don't think that you can achieve what you want, both wireless and wired client connections at the RT-N16.

I could be wrong (someone please correct me) but if you put the N16 in Media Bridge mode then you can only use wired connections to the N16. If you put it into Repeater mode then you can extend your wireless coverage but I don't think you can use the N16's LAN ports.

well i have put it in repeater mode which gives me use of the ports but not wifi it would seem, so thats good for the xbox, so i understand i can have it one way or another but the terminology is a little confusing, cant see media bridge mode on the administration page, just AP mode, wireless router mode and repeater mode, i think it may have changed to WDS ?...i did have a play with this but cant get it to work, i might be mising something silly, it would seem to connect to network but i could not get internet access. setting up repeater mode was an aboloute breeze...just a matter of filling in security fields...is it not as easy with WDS if indeed that is what i should be looking at for upping the wifi signal in this room.

 

[ColinTaylor]

I'm rather confused as well. I don't know why you don't have the Media Bridge option. I'd guess it's because the N16 is a single band device and they thought it wasn't useful for such a setup.

I'm very surprised that you said the repeater mode doesn't give you Wi-Fi. After all, that is it's primary purpose, to "repeat" the wireless signal of another access point. Are you sure? What you describe sounds more like a Media Bridge, perhaps they messed up the names.

Assuming you can get repeater mode to work correctly, WDS won't give you any extra coverage. WDS and repeater mode are "sort of" similar in what they do, but WDS is non-standard and often has compatibility problems if both devices aren't from the same manufacturer.

Here's some more (general) info:
https://www.dd-wrt.com/wiki/index.php/Repeating_Mode_Comparisons

 

[loady]

Thanks for the pointers... I'm not entirely sure if I am picking up its wifi as it takes on the same ssid as the primary router so how do I tell which one my phone say is connected to.

 

[ColinTaylor]

You can normally tell just by looking at the signal strength on the phone. You said the wi-fi reach of the Huawei is poor in the other part of the house. So if you're standing next to the N16 you should have maximum signal strength. If it's still poor then you're still connect to the Huawei.

If you've got an Android phone I suggest that you install the free app Wifi Analyzer, then you'll be able to see all the Wi-Fi access points in your area.

 

[vincom]

i have successfully done so using tomato on a wrt54tm in bridged mode and merlins on ac66u as the wan router.
the wrt54 can give wireless and wired clients access to internet and lan. the wrt54 has to be configured correctly.
read a post for a similiar setup w/pics using 2 tomato routers here http://www.linksysinfo.org/index.ph...router-a-dumb-access-point.37403/#post-263455

 

[loady]

just to complete this post, I put merlin on my spare rt-n16 and set it up in repeater mode, it extends the wifi and ALSO lets me use the ports at the same time