ASUS 5G-1 vs 5G-2 How to configure

[spawn]

Hey all, I am having the Asus AX16000 Router and I do have a lot of bands. My questions are:

1. Why do I need 5G-1 and 5G-2?
2. Would it make a difference to switch one band off in terms of overall performance on the other bands?
3. If the suggestion is to use both 5G bands how to differentiate them in configuration e.g. one has 160 MHZ on and the other one off?

Thanks for guidance.

 

[drinkingbird]

Hey all, I am having the Asus AX16000 Router and I do have a lot of bands. My questions are:

1. Why do I need 5G-1 and 5G-2?
2. Would it make a difference to switch one band off in terms of overall performance on the other bands?
3. If the suggestion is to use both 5G bands how to differentiate them in configuration e.g. one has 160 MHZ on and the other one off?

Thanks for guidance.

The 5G-2 band is often used for a wireless backhaul to another router/AP (for example with Aimesh). Otherwise you can use it if you have a lot of high bandwidth devices, you can split them between the two, but honestly it is unlikely you'd need that since a single band can do close to a gig at 80mhz channel width and much more at 160.

160mhz channels are tough to get stable. If you have radar in your area (which most people do) it will often drop to 80, and it can sit for several minutes scanning during which time your wireless will be down. There are only two 160 mhz channels available so if you try to run both bands at 160 you'll have an even harder time. Stick with 80 mhz and do not enable DFS channels, that will be your most stable option. Do the same on 5G-2 if you decide to use that for something.

You can toy with trying to get 160 working but do you even have any 160mhz devices?

 

[tgl]

Under US regulations, I'd say the right thing is to configure 5GHz-1 as 80MHz using channels 36-48 (pick any one of those as control channel), and 5GHz-2 as 80MHz using channels 149-161 (ditto). To go outside those ranges, you need either to use DFS channels --- which is problematic as @drinkingbird says --- or venture into the U-NII-4 band above 165, which almost no client gear can deal with yet. Bottom line is that 5GHz 160MHz channels are marketing hype unless you live in the middle of nowhere, in which case it's unlikely that you have an internet connection fast enough to justify them. The 6GHz spectrum will provide actually-usable 160MHz (or even wider) channels, once there's clients that can use it, but those are still mighty thin on the ground.

In other countries the answer might be different, but I don't know of anyplace where the regulations are any more favorable for 160MHz than the US.