Improving performance of RT-N66U... what are my options?

[L&LD]

No. The box is actually mostly inside the wall. All the wires incoming are from the outside for Cable, Internet and Phone.


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I see what you mean now that I take a closer look at the picture.

What I would do is use the knockout already used on the bottom left and bring out the modem's LAN cable out and alongside the box itself (to somewhere above the metal box) to plug into the router's WAN port.

Assuming that knockout isn't used to go into conduit, of course. If you're lucky, it is just a place where bare cables enter the box from the other (left) side.

 

[alexbc]

An 374 version is even older than what you had. The point where the ISP comes in isn't an excuse to locate the router there.

If you want better WiFi, it has to be moved out and away from that box.

I am confused, I followed your link for the John Fork firmware, which is 374. So, that's no good?

 

[L&LD]

I am confused, I followed your link for the John Fork firmware, which is 374. So, that's no good?

john9527's firmware is great! The wireless driver is the older one, but the rest of the firmware is updated as needed to be current (particularly the security aspects).

Many find the older driver to give better results for their use.

 

[interconnect]

What I would do is if there is a knockout on the top of the box, knock that out and run an ethernet cable up and out and put the router on a wood shelf above the box, if possible. The higher the router the better.

 

[alexbc]

Ok. So I've tried almost all firmware. John Fork seems to have the best wireless performance, and it has Tx setting that can be set up to 200 mW. Merlin is newest and has all the features, for Tx power it has a "performance" setting instead of numerical value. I have no idea how does Performance Tx setting of Merlin compare to Fork's Tx mW?

For now, John fork is fastest but least reliable. Merlin most reliable but not fastest.

Weirdest part is that for 2.4Ghz, I have almost no conflict on Channel 1, have two strong signals in Channel 6,11 and YET channel 1 is slowest?!? Wth is happening?

I am now thinking I may need to upgrade. I don't care about VPN or USB 3.0. Would an AC router help? How would 68U or 87U compare in 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz transmission vs. N66U or AC66U?


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[KevTech]

Would an AC router help?

It has been shown an AC class router can improve N performance.

Have a read of this: http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wire...oes-an-ac-router-improve-n-device-performance

 

[Deleted member 22229]

You can try what ever you want but until you move that router out and away from that metal box nothing will work properly. Your router is basically in a feriday cage and the radio waves can't go out or in not to mention what kind of reflections may be going on.

This is by far the absolute worse place you could ever place a wireless router let alone expect it to work.

 

[alexbc]

You can try what ever you want but until you move that router out and away from that metal box nothing will work properly. Your router is basically in a feriday cage and the radio waves can't go out or in not to mention what kind of reflections may be going on.

This is by far the absolute worse place you could ever place a wireless router let alone expect it to work.

Yeah. I understand. Thanks but as this is the building box, options are limited.

 

[L&LD]

Yeah. I understand. Thanks but as this is the building box, options are limited.

Only if you let them be (limited). You literally have to think outside of the box to improve your network performance here.

 

[ColinTaylor]

I have to drill a hole in the box and run the wires out. Problem is, this box is the property of my cable company. I guess I could do it and see if they find out or not.

You are already running one cable into the box for power. So instead of that, run the incoming-Internet cable out of the box. Then mount the router on the wall, it already has slots in the back for this purpose.

 

[alexbc]

So now I'm looking at running wires out of the box and mouthing this on the wall. Question. Where can I find a narrow or flat Ethernet cable? Might be able to kinda run if off the box of wires are small enough.


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[ColinTaylor]

Question. Where can I find a narrow or flat Ethernet cable?

Amazon sell everything, including flat Ethernet cables.

 

[alexbc]

Ok so I located the router to the outside of the box temporarily. Some improvements, BUT issues on 2.4 still exist.

Here's a basic Speedtest chart to show the massive difference. First and last test are on 5GHz and the middle two tests are on 2.4GHz. I'm on the least conflicted channel 1.

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[alexbc]

Here's another 3 tests back to back. First 3 are on 5GHz and the last 3 are on 2.4GHz.

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[L&LD]

Issues with 2.4GHz band will always persist in a crowded environment.

At this point, you need to play with finding the best location you can 'outside of the box' and then, fine tuning that with router and antennae orientation as needed for best coverage.

While you continually test each channel (for throughput and lowest latency) while doing the above.

This is how you will dial in your WiFi to be the best possible.

 

[dlandiss]

I'm on the least conflicted channel 1

When determining the clearest channel, remember that an interfering radio on the SAME channel is actually less troublesome than one on a channel adjacent to yours, or that overlaps when wider bandwidths are used. If you use Channel 1, for example; 2, 3, 4 & 5 could all overlap depending on the bandwidth configured. In practice I doubt that 4 & 5 would be much trouble, but ..............

 

[alexbc]

Ok guys. Now I'm pretty dead set on getting a new router. What do u recommend? I don't need the latest and greatest but something with best 2.4 GHz signal and as robust and reliable as possible as I work from home and take calls on Skype and the wifi speed a lot of times messes up my calls.

Also, the idiots from cable company have connected my Ethernet like this. How do I replace this wires with a flat one?


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[wh7qq]

Ok guys. Now I'm pretty dead set on getting a new router. What do u recommend?

Did you not read the posts above about getting the router out of the box? Forget about cosmetics. If need be, leave the door open and run the cable out the door but GET THE ROUTER OUT! A new router will do you absolutely no good in terms of improving your signal if it is going back inside the box. The RT-N66U is a perfectly good router but invariably, wi-fi is, at best, a weak second choice to ethernet. The wire may not be pretty but it gives a good, solid, dependable and fast signal. In this case, function must supersede form. But if it makes you feel better, go ahead and drop a couple of hundred on the newest whizbang. It really doesn't matter which....Asus, Netgear or ??

 

[alexbc]

Did you not read the posts above about getting the router out of the box? Forget about cosmetics. If need be, leave the door open and run the cable out the door but GET THE ROUTER OUT! A new router will do you absolutely no good in terms of improving your signal if it is going back inside the box. The RT-N66U is a perfectly good router but invariably, wi-fi is, at best, a weak second choice to ethernet. The wire may not be pretty but it gives a good, solid, dependable and fast signal. In this case, function must supersede form. But if it makes you feel better, go ahead and drop a couple of hundred on the newest whizbang.

Didn't you read what I wrote after? I've placed it outside the box to not much improvement at all!

 

[wh7qq]

Yes I read it but I don't think you really understood. Radio waves, especially microwave, don't pass through steel very well at all. They tend to get absorbed by walls and when placed, even near to, metal objects, AC wires, pipes and the like, they tend to get reflected or stopped in ways that are hard to predict. Have you ever really looked at your microwave oven? It has a metal cavity for the food and a metal screen over the window so your eyes and brain don't get cooked when you watch the food cooking. Even at that, it leaks some of the 1000 or so watts it puts out (vs,a few thousandths of a watt in your router and it's clients), and in some cases, enough to mess up your router's signal to the crappy little antenna and radio set in your smart phone. Also, the orientation of router antennas, and the client devices is pretty random in most cases so wi-fi is going to be a sometimes thing. It's physics you are dealing with and it is damned unforgiving...you obey it's laws or you don't get good results.