Asus RT-N66u: Upgrade Path

[ngsm13]

Hello All,

Yes another one of these threads. I'm about 5 years in with my RT-N66U, and looking to upgrade.

Current infrastructure:
Spectrum Cable Internet 200/10Mbps
3K+ feet Cat6. Minimum 2 hardwired connection per room.
TP-Link 24-port gigabit patch panel
TP-Link 24-port gigabit unmanaged switch


Previously I had my network equipment in my living room, but over winter break I relocated modem to basement, and the N66U to the kitchen above my cabinets. (Near center of home). I did this because I wanted to try to give more equal coverage to my home/lot. (I have a shed and a firepit on the opposite side of my home outdoors). The side effect of this, which I didn't think of at the time... the router is now on the opposing side of a large cold-air return (big sheets of metal)... and I created a new problem of inconsistent speeds in my home office on the second floor (opposite the cold air return).

Ideas:
1) Disable wireless on N66U + Add 2 WAPs (TP-Link AC1200 or AC1750)
2) Buy new router: Such as Synology AC2600 or Netgear X4S
3) Buy inexpensive used 'router upgrade' (Netgear R7000 or Asus AC1900) + Disable wireless + Add 2 WAPs (TP-Link AC1200 or AC1750)

Obviously, I could do option 1 fairly easily/cheap. Is it worth taking the jump to moderately upgrade the routing side while I'm at it?

Thanks for input.

 

[st3v3n]

Perhaps I'm missing something, how many square feet (and stories) in the home, one end to the other in your area of coverage, and how many/what type of wireless devices are you needing to cover adequately?

At five years of good use with the 66, even if the radio is getting a bit long in the tooth, you could use it to extend the network to the farthest point, (shed for the kids or chickens? ha). You look to be in good shape with your 24 port panels and cable, so unless you want to get newer switches just for the sake of having newer (or managed switches) those things either work well or quit working.

Not to be cheap, but as one who has been burned badly on TPLink routers (didn't say switches) I'm firmly in the quality and years we've had with the higher end Asus units, from 66, 56, 68 and 3200 units. Currently there are some really good prices on the TMAC1900, which TMobile finally and quietly gave up trying to support, thank goodness. The great news is that it's really an Asus 68 with a TMobile CellSpot logo on one edge, that were practically given away by TMobile to their good mobile customers, then last year were sold to anyone who had $99 at Christmas. Now you can pick up a refurbished (as new) or a brand new unit in original box for peanuts really, and they convert fairly easily into an RT-AC68 if you decide you need bragging rights. At that point it will in Fact an Firmware, be an AC68, run the Asus official builds, RMerlin or John9527's forks. For an investment of $150 to $200 at most, even if you don't convert the the FW, they are Asus 68's or the equivalent of a 1900 in terms of bandwidth. For all practical considerations, you'd have great looking, powerful, dual CPU gigabit routers, with all the Wi-Fi coverage you'll need for a good while, for a pittance.

If money is no object, just indulge yourself. Years of frugality and a taste for good quality have made me appreciate the best bang for the long-term buck that Asus delivers on in such units. If AIMesh becomes more than the official new buzzword for Asus, this may be even more meaningful for you in time. Whatever you do, I'd stay away from that metal ductwork Cheers and good luck.

 

[ngsm13]

Perhaps I'm missing something, how many square feet (and stories) in the home, one end to the other in your area of coverage, and how many/what type of wireless devices are you needing to cover adequately?

Hey, I kept reading and reading threads here and you're right... I left out some information.

I have a 2500 sqft 2-story home. See attached floor plan here:


With the N66, I got decent coverage in the original location... Even had 2.4Ghz for most of my half acre lot, spotty coverage good for streaming music at my fire pit and shed about 200ft away.

Wireless devices: 20-25 devices - 3 Chromecasts, 2 Chromecast Audios, Google Home, Google Home Mini, 6 wireless electrical plugs, Printer, AV Receiver, Laptop, Tablet, 3 phones. Plus I have frequent guests.

At five years of good use with the 66, even if the radio is getting a bit long in the tooth, you could use it to extend the network to the farthest point, (shed for the kids or chickens? ha). You look to be in good shape with your 24 port panels and cable, so unless you want to get newer switches just for the sake of having newer (or managed switches) those things either work well or quit working.

Not to be cheap, but as one who has been burned badly on TPLink routers (didn't say switches) I'm firmly in the quality and years we've had with the higher end Asus units, from 66, 56, 68 and 3200 units. Currently there are some really good prices on the TMAC1900, which TMobile finally and quietly gave up trying to support, thank goodness. The great news is that it's really an Asus 68 with a TMobile CellSpot logo on one edge, that were practically given away by TMobile to their good mobile customers, then last year were sold to anyone who had $99 at Christmas. Now you can pick up a refurbished (as new) or a brand new unit in original box for peanuts really, and they convert fairly easily into an RT-AC68 if you decide you need bragging rights. At that point it will in Fact an Firmware, be an AC68, run the Asus official builds, RMerlin or John9527's forks. For an investment of $150 to $200 at most, even if you don't convert the the FW, they are Asus 68's or the equivalent of a 1900 in terms of bandwidth. For all practical considerations, you'd have great looking, powerful, dual CPU gigabit routers, with all the Wi-Fi coverage you'll need for a good while, for a pittance.

If money is no object, just indulge yourself. Years of frugality and a taste for good quality have made me appreciate the best bang for the long-term buck that Asus delivers on in such units. If AIMesh becomes more than the official new buzzword for Asus, this may be even more meaningful for you in time. Whatever you do, I'd stay away from that metal ductwork Cheers and good luck.

Yeah, In the interim my friend is going to let me borrow an Ubiquiti UAP-AC-PRO that he isn't using until his new home is built. I'll likely just add it as a 5Ghz AP to cover the spotty side of my house since relocating.

Think I'll sit tight and spectate until new Wave 2 APs become cheaper, or the AI-Mesh is really solidified. Thanks for tips!

 

[st3v3n]

Just, that's a jolly fine floor plan. Two routers (not counting the N66), with each unit placed approximately 1/3 of the way from the outside of each floor, as high up on the wall as you can manage, say in the great room on one side and corner of the master bedroom on the upper story and you'll never have spotty coverage again. Since there isn't a basement to contend with, you'll have excellent all-band (with A/C) coverage for all bands. The loaner Ubiquiti will give you a good frame of reference since you can move it around to test. If it were my situation, if the TMAC1900 were available in UK at reasonably similar cost to avoid shipping them over, I'd latch onto two of them in a heartbeat, and problem solved.

I really hope the official AIMesh thing pans out, as does everyone else, but most Asus units already do so well in either AP or extend mode, we're in no rush, and will let everyone else provide all their mesh-test data on making the older routers be the 'new' thing. We snagged another TM-AC1900 (TMobile branded AC68), and after converting, it would be difficult to justify paying double for a full-fledged Asus RT-AC68U. The only possible issue is that since TM has abandoned all support, Asus won't touch it either even though they built them. Asus isn't making any money from the ones coming on the market so unofficially it's considered a unique, but end of life product, even though it performs magnificently. If our 3200 ever decides to retire (perish the thought), we'll set up two of the 1900s in locations similar to your floor plan. Asus external antenna and being able to angle them to enhance coverage is always nice. Good luck, and cheers.