b1ggjoe
Regular Contributor
Hey Everyone,
So, I'm a bit stuck on which way I should go. I've immersed myself in tons of articles and information on this incredible website. I think I know what I want to do, however I welcome your advice:
Very recently, I was able to move into a brand-new home. It's a 2-story home and about 3000 sq ft.
Unfortunately, at the time of move-in...only the Living Room and Master Bedroom had a Coax and Ethernet drop.
I was finally able to hire a contractor and added additional RG6 Coax and CAT 6 Ethernet to a few other areas of our home.
As I currently stand, I have Cox Cable (Internet / TV / Phone) but the fastest internet service available for me is 300 mpbs download. I do have Fiber already ran to the outside of my home, but according to Cox, I still do not qualify for their Fiber Optic 'GigaBlast' service.
I'm using the standard 'Panoramic Wifi Modem' by Arris. I also have 2x ActionTec 802.11AC WiFi Network Extenders (w/ Bonded MoCA). One is located upstairs and the other is downstairs on the opposite end of the home from where the main Panoramic Modem is located.
Thus far, things are well.
HOWEVER, I just switched today and will be having new service installed later this week:
I went with CenturyLink (I know, I know) for their internet service because they do offer and I do qualify for their Fiber Optic 1Gbps UL/DL Internet service, along with their Digital Phone System.
For the TV-side of things, I'm going with DirecTV.
This being the case, I'm going to lose the 2x ActionTec 802.11AC WiFi Network Extenders, since they were backhauling to the Panoramic Modem via RG6 Coax and...since they belong to Cox Cable.
Now I need to make some decisions as to what I want to do to solve my WiFi coverage situation.
At first, I thought of going the inexpensive route and pull out my old ASUS RT-AC68U...then by a 2nd one...and install the latest Merlin Firmware with the AI-Mesh.
Place them in different sections of my home and have them backhaul to whatever Modem I get from CenturyLink via Ethernet (At least I hope that Ethernet backhauling is supported with the AI-Mesh), and having them in AP-Only mode.
The problem is that if I went this way...there would be one area, clear on the other side of the home where I do not have any Ethernet, only Coax. I wouldn't be able to follow this strategy and have the hardware backhaul via Ethernet.
The other side of me is thinking about going with one of the new systems like the Netgear Orbi (although they currently do not support Ethernet backhauling), or perhaps with a system that does...like the 'EERO GEN 2'.
Anyway, these new Whole Home WiFi systems have an attraction of simplicity that I like. I also like that some of them have these tiny adapters that you can plug-in to your standard outlets and expand your WiFi coverage.
So as you can see, I'm a bit stuck.
I'm even wondering if I should place my old SonicWall Firwall TZ210 behind the CenturyLink Router and look for custom firmware for it, since I stopped paying for their updates years ago LOL.
Anyway, I'm trying to be budget conscious but also don't want to short-change myself by going cheap.
Of course, I'm also going the whole 'Smart Home' route, so that's an entirely separate topic.
Anyway, I welcome any and all suggestions.
Thank you very much in advance!!
BJ
So, I'm a bit stuck on which way I should go. I've immersed myself in tons of articles and information on this incredible website. I think I know what I want to do, however I welcome your advice:
Very recently, I was able to move into a brand-new home. It's a 2-story home and about 3000 sq ft.
Unfortunately, at the time of move-in...only the Living Room and Master Bedroom had a Coax and Ethernet drop.
I was finally able to hire a contractor and added additional RG6 Coax and CAT 6 Ethernet to a few other areas of our home.
As I currently stand, I have Cox Cable (Internet / TV / Phone) but the fastest internet service available for me is 300 mpbs download. I do have Fiber already ran to the outside of my home, but according to Cox, I still do not qualify for their Fiber Optic 'GigaBlast' service.
I'm using the standard 'Panoramic Wifi Modem' by Arris. I also have 2x ActionTec 802.11AC WiFi Network Extenders (w/ Bonded MoCA). One is located upstairs and the other is downstairs on the opposite end of the home from where the main Panoramic Modem is located.
Thus far, things are well.
HOWEVER, I just switched today and will be having new service installed later this week:
I went with CenturyLink (I know, I know) for their internet service because they do offer and I do qualify for their Fiber Optic 1Gbps UL/DL Internet service, along with their Digital Phone System.
For the TV-side of things, I'm going with DirecTV.
This being the case, I'm going to lose the 2x ActionTec 802.11AC WiFi Network Extenders, since they were backhauling to the Panoramic Modem via RG6 Coax and...since they belong to Cox Cable.
Now I need to make some decisions as to what I want to do to solve my WiFi coverage situation.
At first, I thought of going the inexpensive route and pull out my old ASUS RT-AC68U...then by a 2nd one...and install the latest Merlin Firmware with the AI-Mesh.
Place them in different sections of my home and have them backhaul to whatever Modem I get from CenturyLink via Ethernet (At least I hope that Ethernet backhauling is supported with the AI-Mesh), and having them in AP-Only mode.
The problem is that if I went this way...there would be one area, clear on the other side of the home where I do not have any Ethernet, only Coax. I wouldn't be able to follow this strategy and have the hardware backhaul via Ethernet.
The other side of me is thinking about going with one of the new systems like the Netgear Orbi (although they currently do not support Ethernet backhauling), or perhaps with a system that does...like the 'EERO GEN 2'.
Anyway, these new Whole Home WiFi systems have an attraction of simplicity that I like. I also like that some of them have these tiny adapters that you can plug-in to your standard outlets and expand your WiFi coverage.
So as you can see, I'm a bit stuck.
I'm even wondering if I should place my old SonicWall Firwall TZ210 behind the CenturyLink Router and look for custom firmware for it, since I stopped paying for their updates years ago LOL.
Anyway, I'm trying to be budget conscious but also don't want to short-change myself by going cheap.
Of course, I'm also going the whole 'Smart Home' route, so that's an entirely separate topic.
Anyway, I welcome any and all suggestions.
Thank you very much in advance!!
BJ