About Tp-link archer c2300, A10, A9 v6

[Budgeter]

Note: For now, I will only consider these 3 routers. I have no intention to go for other brand like asus, synology, D-link, etc. No need to care about the USB ports.

Between C2300, A9 v6, and A10, which one would best suit for my usage (I can get them for the same price, so cost is not an issue!)

Usage: local streaming server (full hd to 4k content), local network – connecting devices together to transfer files (via wifi or cable), high usage of latency-priority application like VoIP and video call (most important). There will be about 11 clients/devices using the router simultaneously. These clients can use whatever application/task they want.

Besides, how will the router perform in these two setup scenario?
1) All devices connect directly to the router via wifi. Assume that there is 2 walls in between devices and the router. The distance is about 18 meters. I know these are not detailed information, but there are too many factors that affect wifi coverage and I don't know what to include.

2) All devices connect to access point (AP). The APs are connected to router via cable. (This scenario is more about how will the router handle the clients, since stuffs related to coverage and transmission are now done by the ap)

Optional requirement: Good coverage for the room directly below where I put the router, the distance is about 8 meters (2-story house). This is optional because I can use AP if necessary.

Side questions:
Is the difference between 3 and 4 streams (3×3:3 / 4×4:3 vs 4×4:4) noticeable?
If possible, can anyone upload UI of C2300 advanced wireless setting (both 2.4 and 5 Ghz), and system parameter in the latest firmware (2018/09/03). TP-link emulator version is already outdated.

Here are the wikidevi link in case anyone need.
A9 v6: https://wikidevi.com/wiki/TP-LINK_Archer_A9_v6.x

A10: https://wikidevi.com/wiki/TP-LINK_Archer_A10

C2300: https://wikidevi.com/wiki/TP-LINK_Archer_C2300_v1.x

Any opinion would be appreciated!

 

[L&LD]

What are your ISP speeds now and do you expect them to increase significantly?

Normally, the 4x4:4 routers are best for throughput and range. However, the weak 880MHz dual-core C2300 is suspect for higher ISP connections approaching 500Mbps to 1Gbps speeds.

The 1.8GHz dual-core 3x3:3 router with the higher RAM may be better suited to a truly high-speed connection. But this is a guess until more details are offered.

In the end, you may need to buy a couple of models and test to see which works best in your environment which varies greatly, as you indicate yourself.

 

[Budgeter]

What are your ISP speeds now and do you expect them to increase significantly?

Normally, the 4x4:4 routers are best for throughput and range. However, the weak 880MHz dual-core C2300 is suspect for higher ISP connections approaching 500Mbps to 1Gbps speeds.

The 1.8GHz dual-core 3x3:3 router with the higher RAM may be better suited to a truly high-speed connection. But this is a guess until more details are offered.

In the end, you may need to buy a couple of models and test to see which works best in your environment which varies greatly, as you indicate yourself.

My ISP speed is only 35 Mbps so basically a much weaker router can handle it, so that's not my issue at all. The thing is since there will be intense usage of file transferring so I have to take cpu/ram into consideration.

However, the weak 880MHz dual-core C2300 is suspect for higher ISP connections approaching 500Mbps to 1Gbps speeds.

You mean the A10? C2300 is the 1.8 Ghz one.

Sadly I can't just order and test them at all because this will be a gift for my relative in other country when I visit them.

What make me hesitate the most is they all have their own advantage/disadvantage, and use different platform (mtk, qc, bcm)
C2300: Dual core 1.8ghz, 64bit broadcom, 4906 and 512 Mb ram, but I have heard that the radio chips (BCM 4365E 2.4Ghz, BCM 4360 5Ghz) aren't really reliable, especially in term of MU-MIMO.

A9 v6: New qualcomm quad-core 710 Mhz SoC QCN 5502(there isn't much info about this SoC yet, but I think they are just 3x3:3 version of IPQ 40xx). QCA 9984 for 5Ghz radio, but having only 128 Mb ram.

A10: Weak dual core 880Mhz from Mediatek, and I have heard that the mtk chips in general are hit or miss (quality control issue?), plus there will be even more issues over the time (rebooting, signal loss, etc). However, it is a 4x4:4 router, and having 256 Mb ram.

And because they are all Tp-link products, so I guess the implementation are comparable (code, hardware).

 

[L&LD]

The 35Mbps up/down speeds will be a problem with any router you buy for the number of users and the types of use indicated.

If the person you are gifting this to is someone you like, buy the better one (512MB RAM and 1.8GHz dual-core 3x3:3) to get the best chance of having it work for them as long as possible.

If you're feeling lucky, buy the cheapest one (128MB RAM and 880MHz dual-core) but with the possibility of having a slightly greater range with the 4x4:4 setup).

For the best user experience, consider an RMerlin powered Asus router along with the FreshJR QOS script to give each user the bandwidth and latency they need for any given activity and not affecting others as much as possible. The RT-AC66U B1 is in a similar price range (at least in this area).

I know you didn't ask for the last suggestion. But it is the only real recommendation I can make with my experience.

Hope others offer more direct responses for you.

 

[Budgeter]

The 35Mbps up/down speeds will be a problem with any router you buy for the number of users and the types of use indicated.

If the person you are gifting this to is someone you like, buy the better one (512MB RAM and 1.8GHz dual-core 3x3:3) to get the best chance of having it work for them as long as possible.

If you're feeling lucky, buy the cheapest one (128MB RAM and 880MHz dual-core) but with the possibility of having a slightly greater range with the 4x4:4 setup).

For the best user experience, consider an RMerlin powered Asus router along with the FreshJR QOS script to give each user the bandwidth and latency they need for any given activity and not affecting others as much as possible. The RT-AC66U B1 is in a similar price range (at least in this area).

I know you didn't ask for the last suggestion. But it is the only real recommendation I can make with my experience.

Hope others offer more direct responses for you.

Tks for your opinion, I really appreciate it! By the way, I only choose Tp-link simply because they have what I call "user-friendly" UI (there is little to nothing to tweak in their firmware). Plus, my relative doesn't have much experience with these stuffs so I think these can be the best solution for them.

Just to be correct, the ISP speed is of my relative, not mine . Beside, when I say the clients will do whatever they want, it means they mostly do the task that I listed above.

There is something I want to state again.
1) I can buy these router at the same price, so there is no cheapest one here.
2) Tp-link archer A10 has 256 Mb ram (not 128 Mb as you said), dual-core 880 Mhz cpu, 4x4:4 configuration.

Beside I have a question here, you said that 35Mbps is not enough for these task, why is that? Aside from VoIP and video calling, the other are mostly local network task (NAS - streaming from local drive, etc, not from streaming service like Netflix). That also means they will not all use Youtube @1080p or above at the same time. And for video call and VoIP, AFAIK it requires about ~1.5 Mbps at best so 11 clients would consume about 16.5 Mbps. Thus, 35 Mbps will be far more than enough for these task, but probably you misunderstand me because I didn't clearly explain about the usage of clients.

For some reasons, It is really hard to find information about these routers(I rarely see reviews on retailer site like Amazon since I don't trust them in the network field at all). Even on our forum, I see that Tp-link has much less topic on them compared to other brands.