Just Checking
Regular Contributor
I have done quite a bit of testing of different antennas for both an RT-N66R and RT-AC66R router with mixed results. Basically, I have tried several whip antennas and the Asus WL-ANT157 plate antennas to try to increase signal strength and sensitivity for the wireless radios on these routers.
Recently, I have been using two RT-AC66R routers with Asus-Merlin FW ver. 374.40 along with an Intel 6350 dual band wireless adapter card in an HP Elitebook 8460p laptop to look at signal strength and transmission rates.
I will not go into the full test methodology and detailed results because it gets too long. In summary, the Asus WL-ANT157 plate antenna actually reduces signal strength and wireless throughput under the best conditions. TP-Link 8db High Gain antennas increase signal strength in the 2.4GHz band as well as increase sensitivity for increased upload speed. Other cheap 9db high gain antennas also increase signal strength and reception sensitivity on the 2.4GHz band. To date, I have not found any antennas that surpass the stock antennas for 5GHz performance.
I have also tried changing the antenna orientation to different configurations and have not found anything which beats having all 3 antennas oriented parallel to each other in a vertical orientation. My application has all client receiving stations on roughly the same plane (all on the same floor of the building) so I do not want the signal vertically spread. I have tried enabling and disabling beam forming and have not found any statistically significant difference in either detected signal strength or wireless transfer rate.
The best configuration that I have found to date is a TP-Link 8db High Gain antenna in the center with stock Asus antennas on either side. The antennas oriented perpendicular to the floor and parallel to each other. This provides the maximum strength and sensitivity on the 2.4GHz band with the least disruption on the 5GHz band.
I have studied articles on different antenna configurations and know how to create a "shotgun" antenna. I have also thought about trying a parabolic reflector type antenna but that does not suite my requirements. An omni directional antenna is the best design for what I need.
My question is - Does anyone have real world test information which would lead to a better performing antenna(s) for the 5GHz band? If so, can you show some test results, how to orient the antennas wrt each other, and tell me where to get these antenna?
Recently, I have been using two RT-AC66R routers with Asus-Merlin FW ver. 374.40 along with an Intel 6350 dual band wireless adapter card in an HP Elitebook 8460p laptop to look at signal strength and transmission rates.
I will not go into the full test methodology and detailed results because it gets too long. In summary, the Asus WL-ANT157 plate antenna actually reduces signal strength and wireless throughput under the best conditions. TP-Link 8db High Gain antennas increase signal strength in the 2.4GHz band as well as increase sensitivity for increased upload speed. Other cheap 9db high gain antennas also increase signal strength and reception sensitivity on the 2.4GHz band. To date, I have not found any antennas that surpass the stock antennas for 5GHz performance.
I have also tried changing the antenna orientation to different configurations and have not found anything which beats having all 3 antennas oriented parallel to each other in a vertical orientation. My application has all client receiving stations on roughly the same plane (all on the same floor of the building) so I do not want the signal vertically spread. I have tried enabling and disabling beam forming and have not found any statistically significant difference in either detected signal strength or wireless transfer rate.
The best configuration that I have found to date is a TP-Link 8db High Gain antenna in the center with stock Asus antennas on either side. The antennas oriented perpendicular to the floor and parallel to each other. This provides the maximum strength and sensitivity on the 2.4GHz band with the least disruption on the 5GHz band.
I have studied articles on different antenna configurations and know how to create a "shotgun" antenna. I have also thought about trying a parabolic reflector type antenna but that does not suite my requirements. An omni directional antenna is the best design for what I need.
My question is - Does anyone have real world test information which would lead to a better performing antenna(s) for the 5GHz band? If so, can you show some test results, how to orient the antennas wrt each other, and tell me where to get these antenna?