Replace AC-3200 with?

[zoomee]

Hey chaps,

So I've had enough of Asus dragging their feet and getting round to releasing an actual stable and fully operational firmware for my AC-3200. I paid a fortune for this POS expecting most bugs to be ironed out as it's coming up to nearly a year from its initial launch - unfortunately no such luck.

In fact I don't think I've ever had as many problems with a router as I have with this - my previous RT-N66U used to work a treat (albiet I only used to use RMerlins firmware with it) and chose this new one thinking I could stick with Merlin firmware and get an upgrade to AC technology - what a waste of money.

If the wireless isn't crashing out (I've had this problem from day one on the 5Ghz network - previously the whole 1st 5Ghz network used to stop working, now it just drops intermittently and the range is really poor compared to my RT-N66u), the AI protection is throwing errors left right and centre, and recently even worse I can't access the router's GUI as it keeps crashing due to Asus not being able to sort out a networkmap issue (it doesn't seem to like Hikvision IP cameras).

Had enough of Asus, as this isn't the only area they've been dragging their feet in when it comes to tech gear - My Asus Rampage IV Black Edition was still running beta firmware as the latest, and my Phoebus Solo soundcard also hasn't had proper Win10 drivers that actually work released for it - so I got rid of them all and switched to MSI and Creative - very happy with this move bearing in mind I've been an ROG fanboy for the past 5 years or so!

Now its time to do the same to my router - question is what do peeps recommend to replace it with? I have numerous wireless kit, but most stuff is hard-wired (using a netgear switch). The ONLY feature I can think of that I would like to retain is the ability for Anti-virus and malware protection at router level.

Kit I have is as follows:
Wireless: 2 x Sony Z3's, 1 x Acer Laptop (5Ghz but not AC), 1 x Samsung ATIV SmartPC (5ghz AC), 1 x LG 760T TV (5ghz - keeps dropping every so often with the AC-3200 when streaming at mo).
Wired: 2 x Hikvision IP cameras, 1 x TIVO, 1 x Synology DS-415+ (would like to use link aggregation with this - funnily enough a feature missing from the AC-3200), 1 x Samsung SmartTV, PS4, Xbox, - and probably other stuff I've forgotten.

I don't think I need the extra 5Ghz radios tbh - but will probably use MU-MIMO as my IT stuff gets upgraded over the next year or so.

Was looking at the new ASRock router - anyone had any experience with this? Would appreciate any alternatives being mentioned and also if anyone has any experience moving from the AC3200 to another manufacturer.

thanks in advance, zoomee.

 

[microchip]

I've had great success with TP-Link routers in the past, but mine don't support the anti-virus/malware at router level with their stock FW

 

[thiggins]

Was looking at the new ASRock router

Why would you consider the first router from a company that hasn't been in the business if you're looking for something stable?

 

[jerry6]

asrok =Asus light , my 2 3200 have been rock solid for over 9 months , only time they get rebooted is for new FW . What troubles you have ? One 3200 has been running almost 3 months no drops no reboots , does not get updated FW very often

 

[avtella]

asrok =Asus light , my 2 3200 have been rock solid for over 9 months , only time they get rebooted is for new FW . What troubles you have ? One 3200 has been running almost 3 months no drops no reboots , does not get updated FW very often

Actually ASRock is owned by Pegatron which itself was spun off from Asus in 2010, I agree that it would be risky, considering they only recently seemed to have officially dipped into the networking arena. Then again Pegatron & Foxconn do seem to make routers for other networking companies including Netgear, so you never know.

 

[System Error Message]

dont replace it, get another AC3200 and you will be able to cover most of the 5Ghz spectrum.

 

[zoomee]

No chance I'm touching Asus again - been burned by them too many times recently (not only on the router front).

I have a TV less than 3 metres away from the AC3200 - it still drops when playing a high bit rate MKV on any of the 3 radios. Worked fine with the N66U.....even on 2.4ghz band.

Smartconnect is still a dodgy area, signal strength is actually worse than the N66U - doesn't cover as far as that router used to, it's all fine and dandy introducing new features and functions but what use is that if I can't even log into the router!

Ever since getting my hikvision IP cameras - I've never been able to access the GUI without it crashing. Wireless issues I can accept - I know (having studied CWNA course) that theres lots of factors that can influence a wireless setup, however I expect a wired setup to work flawlessly from any router otherwise its not even got the basic functionality correct!

The fact they can't even resolve a networkmap issue (and don't seem to be interested in it either) yet RMerlin was able to resolve it in his firmware shows they are seriously slacking in the firmware coding department. In all honesty it was RMerlins firmware for the RT-N66U that made me buy the AC3200! - unfortunately he can only do so much with crappy base code. I've been waiting over 3 months for Asus to resolve this issue.....

One can't just stick with old and outdated firmware when it comes to the AC3200 - The AV engine is built into the firmware and would soon be outdated if new firmware patches wern't applied.

I'd be far more willing to splash cash on a company's first product than something they are well experienced in and are only interested in selling new products (This goes for most of Asus's line of products, soundcards, gfx, motherboards and not just routers).

Anyways - Synology have just introduced a new router too - any good? Any other suggestions welcome - not sure about Netgear as it's been a looooong time since I used any of their routers.

 

[AndreiV]

My AC3200 has been 100% perfect from day one. I have never had any issue with wireless , it works fine all over the house.
The 5GHz and AC work surprisingly well as we have thick walls and the upper floor is reinforced concrete.

The only time I need to do anything is when firmware is upgraded.

 

[System Error Message]

smarconnect will cause a quick drop in wifi in order to associate with another radio. Theres no other way around it because its not like every client supports ever feature even enterprise ones.

 

[Razor512]

When the WiFi drops, does it happen to all devices connected on the band?
(wondering if you may have a router with some factory defect).

Also disable any and all smart connect functions, and give each radio, its own SSID. Many devices do not like it for some reason.

While I do not have much experience with Asus routers, friend of mine has an RT-AC3200 and it works reliably with everything except his HP touchpad tablet (we both got some during the fire sale a number of years ago) where it connects and works fine for a few hours, and then suddenly stops sending or receiving data (though it remains connected). This happens until you reconnect. Other than that, it works well for him.

For me, I have not felt much of a need to upgrade from my R7000. Many of my devices have reduced range on the lower 5GHz band since while many routers may have been updated to meet the new FCC rules, many client devices are still under the old and more restrictive rules.

AC2600 and up (4 stream) seemed interesting but it does not seem like many companies making the client devices are putting much effort into making a 4 stream WiFi radio for smartphones, tablets, and laptops.

If you have a backup router, would you be okay with doing an RMA? (worth a try as final effort before the warranty runs out)
It is hard to justify an expensive upgrade unless there is a large performance boost.

 

[Trip]

First, wire all the media-heavy and/or latency-critical endpoints, using powerline/moca if needed, only wireless for roaming endpoints.

Next, back off of the bleeding-edge wifi paradigms -- most are vaporware to real-world clients anyways. Stick with AC1900 units that are well-proven with stock or third-party firmware. Use as many as are needed for central/guest wifi, and/or wifi bridges. I'd recommend against wifi bridging, though, as in order to do it properly, you need dedicated radios just for the link itself, and things get expensive quickly, versus simply finding a way to wire.

Should solve your wifi problems pretty quickly.

 

[System Error Message]

only the client should drop when using smart connect not all clients.

If your AC3200 is not working like your friend's one assuming you use same firmware and settings than do an RMA.

 

[MysteriousGuy]

I'd recommend you RMA your 3200 before buying a new router. You had the wireless dropout issue since day 1, so it is most likely an hardware issue.

I've never owned an Asus router but I'm planning to buy one to use with Merlin's firmware.

 

[zoomee]

When the WiFi drops, does it happen to all devices connected on the band?
(wondering if you may have a router with some factory defect).

Also disable any and all smart connect functions, and give each radio, its own SSID. Many devices do not like it for some reason.

If you have a backup router, would you be okay with doing an RMA? (worth a try as final effort before the warranty runs out)
It is hard to justify an expensive upgrade unless there is a large performance boost.

It doesn't drop per-say - the movie starts to buffer on the LG TV its being streamed to. The buffering is intermittent to start with and then gets worse and worse until the router is restarted - once restarted it works fine for a while then starts to exhibit the same issue.

Don't use Smartconnect - each radio has its own SSID and I've tried all three bands - get the same results on them all from this LG TV

Anyways - I'm more concerned about the networkmap issue tbh chaps- wireless problems aren't usually a gripe I hold so its good to see Asus is actually listening and created this thread:

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/be...-for-checking-bug-in-network-map.29269/page-2

It's firstly acknowledgement that there is an issue and secondly the fact they released a beta and are asking for our feedback - theres not much more I can ask for in terms of customer service!!

Hate RMA'ing things to the company I bought from (scan) - If they find a fault (which you have to be able to 100% prove) they don't just replace the item but try to fob you off with a lower value item claiming that because you've had the product x amount of months its only worth 80% of its value for example! - I'll end up with a RT-N66U again lol!

 

[AndreiV]

Hate RMA'ing things to the company I bought from (scan) - If they find a fault (which you have to be able to 100% prove) they don't just replace the item but try to fob you off with a lower value item claiming that because you've had the product x amount of months its only worth 80% of its value for example! - I'll end up with a RT-N66U again lol!

This is scan UK ? If they try that rubbish quote them the sale of goods act.

They have to supply goods fit for purpose and if the item is faulty they have to replace/repair/credit full value.

Make a note not to buy from them in future, there are companies out there that know how to behave.

 

[zoomee]

Yeah - they only do that if they don't have an exact replacement in stock.

Good news is the new beta 9460 firmware has finally addressed the networkmap issues!

 

[System Error Message]

scan UK is actually more expansive to buy from than everywhere else. Even amazon is cheaper and offers a lot better service.

 

[zoomee]

It usually works out about the same - I get free next day delivery from scan and often their customer support is quite good. Only issues I've had is when returning faulty equipment that they no longer stock - they then offer either a part-refund (claiming devaluation) or an inferior product to the value of what they deem refundable. This is AFTER the 30 day initial purchase period and IF they don't have the item in stock - otherwise they will just swap out for a new one.

Even better news is that the networkmap issue has been resolved for me in this latest beta firmware - I'm sure wireless performance has improved slightly aswell too (no more buffering on me TV yaay!) - so I'm quite happy for now that everything is working as it should be.

Just hoping they can implement this fix properly into the official firmware now though!

 

[jegesq]

Zoomee,

I see from this that you reference the "new beta 9460 firmware":

Yeah - they only do that if they don't have an exact replacement in stock.

Good news is the new beta 9460 firmware has finally addressed the networkmap issues!

Perhaps that is at least one root cause of some of the issues you're experiencing, since the 9460 firmware is for the AC87U, not the AC3200. The highest official Asus firmware available for the AC3200 is Firmware version 3.0.0.4.378.9313 (available at this link: http://www.asus.com/us/Networking/RTAC3200/HelpDesk_Download/).

See also, http://www.snbforums.com/threads/asus-rt-ac3200-firmware-official-releases.23211/

So perhaps part of your difficulty is that you may be using the wrong firmware, designed for use on a different ASUS wireless router.

I've had the AC3200 for about 10 months now, and it has worked flawlessly, and I'm using Merlin's FW (note, the latest version for the AC3200 is version 380.57.0 available here: https://www.mediafire.com/folder/bkfq2a6aebq68/Asuswrt-Merlin#6j0t39j2weoga

I would suggest you at least give the Merlin firmware a shot before giving up on the AC3200 or before you RMA it. Alternatively, it sounds like you're having some other environmental issues, perhaps some contention with other nearby RF interference that you might want to try to suss out before chucking the AC3200. I admit I haven't used Smart Connect, but that's just a sort of gimmick in my view, and using separate SSID's for all three radios has worked flawlessly for me.

Hope you work this out. Give Merlin FW a shot before you give up. You might be surprised.

 

[JoeJoe]

I have a TV less than 3 metres away from the AC3200 - it still drops when playing a high bit rate MKV on any of the 3 radios. Worked fine with the N66U.....even on 2.4ghz band.

Use an Ethernet cable.

If you want a great router, build/buy a pfsense one and use Ubiquiti Unifi if you want full control of the wifi.