RT-N66 or RT-AC-68 to replace RT-N16

[teh_g]

Hi everyone!

I am looking to replace my RT-N16 with a new router. I have a lot of data moving around my network through the day, and I suspect that the router is causing part of the issue. Tomato reports that it sits at 90% CPU during most of my file transfers. I work at home and have the following clients connected:

Wired:
PS4
PS3
Google TV
Personal Desktop
NAS / Media Streaming Device (mostly used in network)
Work Laptop

Wireless:
Two phones
Work iMac
My wife's work laptop

Weird custom configs:
-DDNS setup so a subdomain points to my IP
-Static DHCP setup for all my devices on the network
-May use VPN if the router can handle it (I only use it on my personal desktop now, but would love to have it network wide if possible)
-Might setup a separate WAN for the work systems (virtual would be handy, but may use the RT-N16 to handle that)
-A few port forwards

I am trying to decide between the RT-N66 and the RT-AC68 for a new router. I have a love for Tomato since I have used it for years, but would be willing to switch to Merlin's build (which I read a lot of great things about) for the RT-AC68. From what I see, the biggest difference is that the RT-AC68 has more power behind it it seems, not sure if it is worth the extra ~$70

I would love any anecdotal thoughts as well! Thanks.

Edit: Some reviewers suggested just getting the RT-AC66 instead of the RT-AC68 as well, so any thoughts there would be great.

 

[RMerlin]

Basically I would sum up the differences as such:

RT-N66U: RT-N16U but with slightly faster CPU, and 5 GHz support
RT-AC66U: RT-N66U with 802.11ac support
RT-AC68U: RT-AC66U but with a much faster CPU, USB3, and better support for newer 802.11ac technologies
RT-AC56U: RT-AC68U but limited to 300 Mbits/866 Mbits, and with internal antennas

If the coverage isn't an issue and you don't intend to go triple stream (450/1300 Mbits), the RT-AC56U is an excellent compromise.

 

[L&LD]

I would agree with RMerlin's list above.

I would also add (anecdotally) that the RT-AC56U and even the RT-AC66U I get to use are noticeably faster feeling (networking/internet stuff) than the RT-N66U I have.

If the next RMerlin firmware gives us a stable RT-AC68U (v374.39), I am positive that the AC68U will be the router of choice for range, throughput and stability for wired and wireless networking needs. Note that I do not use the other features, but the raw horsepower (and newer drivers) of each newer model have shown positive increases for me.

For $70 over the life of the router; I think it's worth it. Just make sure within the return period that you want to keep the router for a few years, else; take it back.

 

[teh_g]

Basically I would sum up the differences as such:

RT-N66U: RT-N16U but with slightly faster CPU, and 5 GHz support
RT-AC66U: RT-N66U with 802.11ac support
RT-AC68U: RT-AC66U but with a much faster CPU, USB3, and better support for newer 802.11ac technologies
RT-AC56U: RT-AC68U but limited to 300 Mbits/866 Mbits, and with internal antennas

If the coverage isn't an issue and you don't intend to go triple stream (450/1300 Mbits), the RT-AC56U is an excellent compromise.

Thanks for the summary! Sounds like the N66U is out, I would love to have AC support going forward. Hmm.. My only other need is that I am in an apartment complex, so if one of the ACx devices has better network performance in congested areas, that would be good.

Reviews seem to indicate that the RT-AC68 had some struggles at launch and that the RT-AC66 actually had better range and throughput in a few tests... Is that resolved yet?

 

[RMerlin]

Thanks for the summary! Sounds like the N66U is out, I would love to have AC support going forward. Hmm.. My only other need is that I am in an apartment complex, so if one of the ACx devices has better network performance in congested areas, that would be good.

Reviews seem to indicate that the RT-AC68 had some struggles at launch and that the RT-AC66 actually had better range and throughput in a few tests... Is that resolved yet?

Things have improved a lot in the last 2 months, with Asus releasing new firmwares twice a month for a while. Personally I don't have any issue with my AC68U running as my main router, but the apartment in which I live is fairly small, and I mostly use the 5 GHz band, except for my phone and N7 that are both on the 2.4 GHz - and no need for ludicrous speeds on either of these.

 

[teh_g]

Things have improved a lot in the last 2 months, with Asus releasing new firmwares twice a month for a while. Personally I don't have any issue with my AC68U running as my main router, but the apartment in which I live is fairly small, and I mostly use the 5 GHz band, except for my phone and N7 that are both on the 2.4 GHz - and no need for ludicrous speeds on either of these.

OK, so it sounds like for my needs, the AC66U or the AC68U is the best. I am leaning towards the AC68U since it sounds like it is performing better now and it may future proof me for a few years since 802.11ac is relatively new and it has the new things.

 

[teh_g]

Thanks for the help everyone! I decided on the RT-AC68U. I will miss Tomato, but from what I understand, Merlin makes a mean build of ASUS-WRT.

 

[wayner]

Basically I would sum up the differences as such:

RT-N66U: RT-N16U but with slightly faster CPU, and 5 GHz support

Doesn't the N66U have about 5X the WAN-LAN throughput of the N16 as well? Not that that differntiates it from the other three routers you mention.

 

[teh_g]

Doesn't the N66U have about 5X the WAN-LAN throughput of the N16 as well? Not that that differntiates it from the other three routers you mention.

It does look like it has way better throughput, which is kind of crazy since I found the N16 to be quite powerful on throughput for most of my needs (prior to having a ton of work at home equipment)

 

[wayner]

For some reason the WAN-LAN of the N16 seems really low at 141 Mbps compared to 700Mbps+ for the newer Asuses (what's the plural of Asus - is it Asuses or Asi?). I just upgraded my cable internet service with Rogers cable from 150Mbps to 250Mbps so the N16 would have been a bottleneck (assuming that I could actually get more than 140 Mbps in real world applications other than speedtest.net).

 

[RMerlin]

Doesn't the N66U have about 5X the WAN-LAN throughput of the N16 as well? Not that that differntiates it from the other three routers you mention.

An RT-N16U running the latest firmware should be very close to an RT-N66U in WAN-> LAN throughput, provided you have HW acceleration enabled on both. They should both be able to hit 700+ Mbps.

Without HW acceleration, we're talking about 100 Mbps (N16) versus 150 Mbps (N66U).

Don't compare based on the 4 years old N16 reviews, as these were using a totally different firmware.

 

[wayner]

Then someone needs to update this web page. That is how I found SNB in the first place and I use these types of data as my bible when picking networking hardware.

 

[teh_g]

For some reason the WAN-LAN of the N16 seems really low at 141 Mbps compared to 700Mbps+ for the newer Asuses (what's the plural of Asus - is it Asuses or Asi?). I just upgraded my cable internet service with Rogers cable from 150Mbps to 250Mbps so the N16 would have been a bottleneck (assuming that I could actually get more than 140 Mbps in real world applications other than speedtest.net).

Yeah, having the RT-AC68U will really help me in the future if Comcast stops being jerks and actually offers higher than 50Mbps

 

[wayner]

I used to think that Canada was much worse off than the US in terms of telecoms, but our internet service is faster and cheaper than what most parts of the US get. But we lose out on wireless service.

The latest and greatest DOCSIS 3.0 modems that can handle 24x8 channels can theoretically hit speeds of 960Mbps - pretty impressive.

 

[teh_g]

I have the Motorola SB6121 SURFboard which does DOCSIS 3.0 (it is cheaper for me to buy the modem outright, since they charge like $10 a month to "rent" one). So in theory I could get 172Mbps on that one with the number of channels it has.

The new router (that comes tomorrow!) should be able to handle the LAN-WAN with no issue, and have plenty of cycles for any local traffic!

 

[L&LD]

Then someone needs to update this web page. That is how I found SNB in the first place and I use these types of data as my bible when picking networking hardware.

It would be pretty impossible to keep all the reviewed routers around and retest them with each firmware (can you imagine the size of the database).

But I would agree that at least a few 'top' routers should be retested as possible.

(One of the requests I made to Tim Higgins regarding a retest between the R7000 and the RT-AC68U, both with the latest firmware, of course).

 

[RMerlin]

I used to think that Canada was much worse off than the US in terms of telecoms, but our internet service is faster and cheaper than what most parts of the US get. But we lose out on wireless service.

The latest and greatest DOCSIS 3.0 modems that can handle 24x8 channels can theoretically hit speeds of 960Mbps - pretty impressive.

The big problem here in Canada is the ridiculous monthly quotas you get as part of that basic service. Bell and Vidéotron still pushes a lot of packages that gives you 60-75 GB of monthly quota, charging extra for anything above this.

Thankfully I'm with a reseller so I get 300 GB/month.

 

[wayner]

But that has gotten much better in the last year or two. Rogers' Ultimate service has gone from 200 GB to 250GB to 1TB. And both Rogers and Bell offer unlimited if you have the right bundle. It is still ridiculous but it is getting better. And there are options that are cheaper with higher or no caps, like Teksavvy.

 

[RMerlin]

But that has gotten much better in the last year or two. Rogers' Ultimate service has gone from 200 GB to 250GB to 1TB. And both Rogers and Bell offer unlimited if you have the right bundle. It is still ridiculous but it is getting better. And there are options that are cheaper with higher or no caps, like Teksavvy.

Yeah, I'm on Teksavvy vCable here. We're actually a wholesaler for them at work.

 

[wayner]

Two weeks ago I called Rogers to cancel my Ultimate 150/10 250GB service to switch to Teksavvy's Cable 150 service. But Rogers kept me by upgrading me to their new 250/20 1TB service and giving me a discount for 12 months. But the problem is that they give you a Hitron CGN3 gateway (the only one that works for these higher speeds as you need a 24x8 modem) that crashes every 24-48 hours, at least it does in bridge mode. This piece of hardware is a total fracking disaster, which they (Rogers) are finally beginning to realize.

But while it is up the 250/20 speeds are totally awesome - I get speedtest results of about 325/22. And the 1TB cap is pretty much the same as no cap for me - Teksavvy charges a lot for uncapped 150/10 service.