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Need advice upgrading from an N300 router

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jontalk

Senior Member
I have Comcast Blast Internet and with my Doc 3.0 modem get over 125 mbps down, 12 mbps up. I have a Netgear N300 router supplied by Comcast at no cost, but my wireless speeds at best are only 30. After reading posts here I'm under the impression that staying with an N router won't improve speed much. So I need help deciding what to do in order that I get somewhere near the wired speed. I've been looking at the Asus RT-AC68U among others, but don't want to spend more than I need to if there's a better solution. Thanks.
 
The RT-AC68U is the model I would universally recommend today.

What clients do you have to connect to this new router? What area are you covering? Are you using the router for more than basic routing and wifi?

Depending on the answers, an RT-AC56U may be all you need, has the same hardware except for the 2x2 antennae vs. the 3x3 antennae of the '68U and can save you considerable cash.
 
The RT-AC68U is the model I would universally recommend today.

Also consider Linksys WRT-1900ac and the Apple Airport Extreme AC - these are all pretty solid...

Some folks like the Netgear R7000, but no experience here with that device...
 
Thanks. I live in a one bedroom condo and have 3 devices though none are AC enabled. The router is used just for basic application. The rtn 56u is pretty dated isn't it. I'd prefer to have a router covered by warranty. It's been recommended that I go with the newer Asus which have the two year warranty. Thanks
 
Correction; you don't have AC devices; yet. :)

I would recommend the RT-AC56U for your one bedroom condo. Don't buy the first one you see, wait for the sales that always seem to be offered (for about $100 or so) and consider the hggomes fork of the RMerlin firmware.

The RT-N56U is still great with the moonman / padavan firmware and used as a bridge for a TV, etc.
 
AC1200 is the new N300 (except it's simultaneous dual-band, not 2.4 GHz only). AC1200 is well suited for your needs, i.e. few devices and relatively small space.

If your modem really delivers > 100 Mbps downlink, you need a router with Gigabit ports. Most AC1200 routers have them, but not all. So be sure to check.

I wouldn't worry too much about warranty. There are plenty of AC1200 options around $100 or less. Factory refurbs are also a good deal. You'll probably want to trade up in a few years anyway.
 
Thanks Tim.. I'll look into the AC1200 routers. Can't justify spending nearly $100 for a RT-N56U when for a few bucks more I can get the AC66, or AC68. I tend to stay away from refurbs though since I had a HORRENDOUS experience with an N66U I got from an Ebay seller.. worked for 3 days and died, LOL. New is lightly used is far better to me :)
 
Well just did a quick search and like the N56U, it seems even the AC1200 routers are going for similar prices to the later models. Seems to me it makes more sense to go with an AC1750 or 1900 instead, especially since they may be new or hardly used.
 
I never buy from eBay. Factory refurb or Amazon warehouse only.

The ASUS AC1200 has always been overpriced.

Plenty of options for $100
 
OK thanks.. I've had good luck buying modems and other stuff on Ebay but never a router. The AC-56U is definitely overpriced. Its interesting that SNB gave it a very good review when it was released but that was quite some time ago too. What I'm mostly watching on Ebay are factory sealed NEW devices so I think that's pretty safe. I think at the very least the AC66U/R if I can find one might work, though I'm holding for the 68U/R.
 
I never buy from eBay. Factory refurb or Amazon warehouse only.

The ASUS AC1200 has always been overpriced.

Plenty of options for $100


That is not true. It has dipped to $100 and lower many times in the last year.
 
I never buy from eBay. Factory refurb or Amazon warehouse only.

The ASUS AC1200 has always been overpriced.

Plenty of options for $100

Asus RT-AC56U is $100 on Newegg right now, $75 refurbished by Asus. Not bad.

I certainly agree about buying from eBay.
 
eBay. Best way to protect yourself and your time too is to simply avoid using it.

The deals are never as good as they seem to be when ordering.
 
Each to their own.. I've only had one problem buying on Ebay and it happened to be a refurb N66U. It turned out that the seller had purchased it from someone that abused it. There are a number of brand new, sealed AC68U/R's listed along with one that's 6 mos. old WITH RECEIPT of purchase that if possible I'll nab for $100. The reviews I've read about the AC56U have not been very good. Also the article Tim posted showing the testing of AC routers with an N client also demonstrates the performance of the AC68U over others.
".. and that's all I'm going to say about that.. " ~ Forrest Gump :)
 
If I'm not too late, I'd just like to throw in my vote for this one (TP-Link Archer C7):

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BUSDVBQ/?tag=snbforums-20

I have used one as my primary router for about 20 months now and it has been nothing short of solid the entire time.

I had been curious about the Asus love that permeates the home networking crowd so in December I went down to my T-Mobile store and picked up their free Cell-Spot router. It's an Asus RT-AC68U with the T-mobile label slapped on it. I was curious to see what I had been missing.

I brought it home and flashed it to the Asus firmware instead of the custom T-Mobile firmware and swapped it into the network and gave my Archer C7 a little break. I used it as my main router for about 8 weeks and it worked great..... just like the Archer C7. There was literally no difference in performance between the two, range or throughput. The GUI for the Asus is a little easier to work with but I hate the upright form factor. The C7 just sits better; discreetly under the shelf of my home entertainment center so I swapped it back in. The Asus is sitting in the box as a backup in case something happens to the Archer C7.

The Archer C7 and it's N600 little brother, the WDR 3600, are great routers if you just want something that works without the need for fancy bells and whistles or the ability to flash to alt firmware.
 
Never too late my friend.. An Ebay seller offered me a 'nearly new' AC68R for $110 yesterday only to sell it before I could accept or reject the offer. Seems like even used AC68's are going for at least $120+.. am seeing new ones for around $150-ish. If you read this SNB article you'll see how well the Asus routers did when testing with an N600 client: http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wire...oes-an-ac-router-improve-n-device-performance. Since the Archer is an AC1750 it wasn't tested with the others. It's really not about fancy bells, it's about wireless performance with non-AC devices. If you read the original post, I state I have a 100+ mbps service and get maybe 30 mbps with my old N300 router, which sucks.
 
Well as it turns out it appears that investing in any of these won't give me what I'm looking for, i.e. significant wireless throughput over the N300 Netgear router. So I'm grateful for all the feedback and ideas. It appears that switching to an N900 router won't give me much more either. It appears you have to have 2x2 adapters to receive the benefit and all my devices are 1x1 :)
 
Well as it turns out it appears that investing in any of these won't give me what I'm looking for, i.e. significant wireless throughput over the N300 Netgear router. So I'm grateful for all the feedback and ideas. It appears that switching to an N900 router won't give me much more either. It appears you have to have 2x2 adapters to receive the benefit and all my devices are 1x1 :)

I think your conclusions are way off, or you just decided to not spend that money towards a router at this time.

1x1 or 2x2 adaptor won't matter much. What will make a difference is the percent increase over the base RT-N66U that you link yourself that matters. Yes, Tim used an Intel N7260 which is a 2 antennae client and the RT-N66U as the 100% base. I think that the jump from your N300 class router (with questionable ISP supplied firmware) to the base RT-N66U client is worth at least double.

From there, another jump is offered as indicated in the article linked again below.

http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/wire...oes-an-ac-router-improve-n-device-performance

You don't have to buy an AC class router if you don't want to.

But reading all the available info and deducing that 1x1 clients won't benefit is not entirely seeing the truth either.
 
Well that's encouraging! I have no problem spending the money believe me. I just don't want to end up doing it for nothing, LOL. Since my wired speed is consistently 125 down, I'd love to think I could get maybe 50 or 60 wireless with a different router. Sounds like you're a fan of the N66U also. What I find interesting is the price difference between the N66U and AC66 or AC68 isn't huge.
 

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