RT-AC3100

[alarsen77]

AC88U has this Smart Connect, according to spec on Amazon and manual. is AC3100 the same as AC88U? beside number of ports.

I also saw the smart connect feature listed for the AC-3100 on Asus' website but I didn't look in the router settings to see if it was there. Honestly it isn't something that concerns me with a dual band router, as that is something that would be more beneficial when you have a tri-band router and even then it still isn't working that well for most people. So that is not something that I think is necessary to have anyway.

I'm more interested in a stable version of Merlins firmware.

 

[normanfox]

I also saw the smart connect feature listed for the AC-3100 on Asus' website but I didn't look in the router settings to see if it was there. Honestly it isn't something that concerns me with a dual band router, as that is something that would be more beneficial when you have a tri-band router and even then it still isn't working that well for most people. So that is not something that I think is necessary to have anyway.

I'm more interested in a stable version of Merlins firmware.

let say you usually connect to 5Ghz band. some day 5Ghz is lost and the router connects to 2.4Ghz instead. hours later 5Ghz is back up but your device still connected to 2.4Ghz. you have to manually select 5.Ghz to connect.

this happened to me many time. Smart Connect will take care of this scenario for user. it will connect your devices to the most optimized band (2.4 or 5Ghz)

 

[tl2k2]

My understanding of Smart connect is that the router will automatically use either 2.4 or 5ghz band so that I don't have to select either one manually. is that right?

if you meant 2.4 and 5 are the same ssid name then this technologies exist for years, i thought you meant the smart connect was first introduced with Broadcom AC3200 with six antenna.

 

[normanfox]

if you meant 2.4 and 5 are the same ssid name then this technologies exist for years, i thought you meant the smart connect was first introduced with Broadcom AC3200 with six antenna.

look like you are new to this feature. you should check out Asus manual.

 

[alarsen77]

let say you usually connect to 5Ghz band. some day 5Ghz is lost and the router connects to 2.4Ghz instead. hours later 5Ghz is back up but your device still connected to 2.4Ghz. you have to manually select 5.Ghz to connect.

this happened to me many time. Smart Connect will take care of this scenario for user. it will connect your devices to the most optimized band (2.4 or 5Ghz)

I understand what it does, but if the router is functioning properly and stable there shouldn't be a loss of the 5GHz band. I would rather have my devices connected to the band I want them to be connected to and lose connection if that band went out so this way I know there is something not working right with the router. With smart connect how would I know if there is a malfunction with one of the bands? But that is just my personal preference

 

[normanfox]

I understand what it does, but if the router is functioning properly and stable there shouldn't be a loss of the 5GHz band. I would rather have my devices connected to the band I want them to be connected to and lose connection if that band went out so this way I know there is something not working right with the router. With smart connect how would I know if there is a malfunction with one of the bands? But that is just my personal preference

if you don't like it, you can disable it. for other people, like me, they will have the option to turn it on and let the router to handle it.

 

[alarsen77]

if you don't like it, you can disable it. for other people, like me, they will have the option to turn it on and let the router to handle it.

It could be a misprint in the owners manual, or it could be a feature that will be available with future firmware updates just like MU-MIMO. I would contact Asus directly about it.

 

[alarsen77]

if you don't like it, you can disable it. for other people, like me, they will have the option to turn it on and let the router to handle it.

So I decided to do the research for you. I just had a chat with Asus and was told that the specifications pages and manuals are all generic. I was also told there is this disclaimer for all specifications

''All specifications are subject to change without notice. Please check with your supplier for exact offers. Products may not be available in all markets.
Specifications and features vary by model, and all images are illustrative. Please refer specification pages for full details.
PCB color and bundled software versions are subject to change without notice.
Brand and product names mentioned are trademarks of their respective companies.''

I was informed that it may be planned to be added as a feature later on down the road in a firmware update but there is no guarantee. If you would like to chat with Asus yourself and get more answers you are more than welcome to. But that is the answer directly from Asus. It is not supported by the RT-AC3100 or RT-AC88U at this time. Just like MU-MIMO is listed as a feature but not supported and planning to be in a firmware update down the line.

 

[G997]

What antenna position are you guys using?

 

[jbodine74]

my antenna position is \ | | /. I also switched from rmerlin's alpha build to asus official. I was getting a lot of slowdowns and disconnects. I am sure he will have his updated soon and I will switch back. He puts way more settings/info in his firmware that I like.

 

[G997]

Is that ASUS recommendation or are you thinking it carries over from the 68 recommended position?

 

[ssahnan]

my antenna position is \ | | /. I also switched from rmerlin's alpha build to asus official. I was getting a lot of slowdowns and disconnects. I am sure he will have his updated soon and I will switch back. He puts way more settings/info in his firmware that I like.

Switching back to official this week on a ac3200 improved my performance as well.

Finding the right mix for these routers to function properly is just getting harder and harder to do.

 

[lilstone87]

I see Asus released the source code for the new firmware. So I dunno if Merlin already has a newer build's source code to work with. But if not, he does now. So hopefully we can get a Merlin build over the next month, or so. I will hold off on his alpha build for now

 

[nofferman]

I also tried RMerlin's alpha build a few days ago but I ran into an issue where I could not select a control channel on either 2.4 or 5GHz bands. The channel selection box was blank, and choosing a new channel from the drop-down didn't actually change the channel when I clicked Apply. Staying stock for now and eagerly awaiting a new version to test.

 

[jbodine74]

I also tried RMerlin's alpha build a few days ago but I ran into an issue where I could not select a control channel on either 2.4 or 5GHz bands. The channel selection box was blank, and choosing a new channel from the drop-down didn't actually change the channel when I clicked Apply. Staying stock for now and eagerly awaiting a new version to test.

I had the same problem

 

[lilstone87]

Well on this new firmware by Asus, today I was setting a static lan ip for one of my devices, and the router would hang when applying the settings for me. Which resulted in me losing internet connection, I was able to just reboot the router to get the internet back working. I noticed when this happen, even the light for internet on the router would go out. I was able to get it to do it again, as I removed one of the lan ip's I set, and applied again. Same result of losing internet. So from what I see, there appears to be a bug when applying dhcp server settings.

 

[RMerlin]

Asuswrt-Merlin 380.57 preview release for the RT-AC88U and RT-AC3100.

 

[lilstone87]

Thanks Merlin for this firmware build of yours. I'm up way past my bed time, but headed to bed very soon. I went ahead, and installed your new build, and mostly everything is working okay so far. However I noticed I can't set the "Control" channel on either 2.4GHz, or the 5GHz band. When setting the channel i want, and hitting apply. It seems to not do anything, and everything goes back to auto for channel selection. Wasn't expecting this build so quickly, but you're very kind, and I appreciate it Merlin.

EDIT: Just noticed this same issue was mentioned with your other alpha build as well. So it seems there's a little bug to work out with the wireless channel selection, and the apply button not working like it should. I did try firefox, and chrome as well, both showed same issue.

 

[RMerlin]

Thanks Merlin for this firmware build of yours. I'm up way past my bed time, but headed to bed very soon. I went ahead, and installed your new build, and mostly everything is working okay so far. However I noticed I can't set the "Control" channel on either 2.4GHz, or the 5GHz band. When setting the channel i want, and hitting apply. It seems to not do anything, and everything goes back to auto for channel selection. Wasn't expecting this build so quickly, but you're very kind, and I appreciate it Merlin.

EDIT: Just noticed this same issue was mentioned with your other alpha build as well. So it seems there's a little bug to work out with the wireless channel selection, and the apply button not working like it should. I did try firefox, and chrome as well, both showed same issue.

Works for me. I'm able to switch between Auto, 149 and 153 without any problem (I had already it set to 153). Check in your browser console if there's any Javascript error.

 

[lilstone87]

Works for me. I'm able to switch between Auto, 149 and 153 without any problem (I had already it set to 153). Check in your browser console if there's any Javascript error.

I will check, but like I said I tried it on both Firefox, and Chrome. Issue was there on both of them. I even used my phone, and tried it on there, same problem.

Edit: I just tried messing around again. used Firefox, Chrome, and even microsoft edge browser. I can't set a channel on either band. I like using 20/40 for width on 2.4GHz band, and 40mhz width for my 5GHz band. If there's anything I can do on my end to help, I'm willing to do so. I know this wasn't an issue with the Asus release.