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AC3200 MAC Has Changed - Want to Return to Actual MAC

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billiam

New Around Here
Hi Everyone,

I'm hoping someone can offer some help so I don't go off on my own and inadvertently brick my router. Long story short, over the last year I have tried Merlin, Fresh Tomatoes, and DD-WRT on my AC3200, but have always gone back to the ASUS-WRT due to problems experienced using the third-party firmware. I'll admit said problems were likely lack of experience/knowledge on my part. I don't recall if I was having issues with the router which prompted the trying of third-party WRT firmware or if the problems began in earnest afterward. My roommate pointed out recently that the MAC for AC3200 is peculiar and upon further investigation the current MAC address is mentioned in the Merlin documentation (LAN MAC - 00:55:77:44:66:00 or perhaps 2.4GHz MAC - 00:55:77:44:77:00) which are apparently Broadcom reference values.

Here are the details for current setup:
Model: RT-AC3200 running as Access Point (behind RT-AC1200G due to not pulling an IP from modem)
Firmware Version: 3.0.0.4.382_52288-gcc0dc96

The real oddity here is the Broadcom reference value MAC has been the MAC for, well it seems all of the last year. Over the last year networking issues such as dropped wireless connections, slow connections on both WiFi and LAN, and generally underwhelming performance have caused me to go back to my trusty AC1200G which is now functioning as a glorified switch with the AC3200 as an access point. This setup was prompted when, following a system reboot, the AC3200 was unable to make a connection, stating in the GUI console that my ISP DHCP servers weren't functioning properly. Plugging in my roommates Netgear proved this to be false.

Back to the point of this post - could the Broadcom Reference Value MAC addresses be causing the connectivity issues I've been experiencing? Mind you, I haven't been able to get DD-WRT nor Fresh Tomatoes (on my most recent foray into Tomato land I abandoned the install after not being able to get an internet connection, which I'll attribute to my ignorance in setting up virtual connections which Fresh Tomatoes seems to rely on) to function properly (always with this incorrect MAC). If this MAC is a problem, how to I change it back to the actual MAC? Obviously I have recorded the MAC that is printed on the underside of the router and also have the original box which has the MAC printed on the box.

I really like the router due to its speed and features, but at this point it's pretty useless.

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
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