Cisco E4200 Speed Issue

[Pharcyder1406]

Im having speed issues with my E4200. Win7 Wireless Connection Status Window is showing 72.0 Mbps connected to my wireless-N laptop. I played with the channels (currently set to auto) and the security (currently WPA2 personal) and nothing helps. I did see that everytime after I made a change and reset the router, the speed would jump to 130 - 144Mbps for a few seconds, but then drop back down. It also seems to jump up to those speeds seemingly randomly for a few seconds every now and again as well.

 

[thiggins]

What card /wireless chipset is in your laptop? 72 Mbps maximum link rate sounds like single-stream N. If that's the case, there is no way to get higher speed other than to put in a proper two-stream N adapter.

 

[Pharcyder1406]

Im at work right now and cant seem to find the exact card online. Ill check when I get home. The comp is a brand new lenovo y560p if that means anything to you.

Im wondering though, if it is only a single stream N card, how could I see infrequent jumps up to 144Mbs?

Also, I checked and the wireless card driver are up to date.

Another issue is the network range seems to be shorter than my last router (an old linksys). I get 4-5 bars (signal switches between 4-5 bars) only 12 feet away from the router.

 

[thiggins]

Spec sheet says:
"11b/g/n wireless4, PCIe Half Mini Card, Intel Centrino® Wireless-N 1000, 1x2"
Single-stream N.

The occasional 144 Mbps link rates you're seeing are just glitches. I've seen similar things like seeing > 300Mbps briefly when testing three-stream routers with a two-stream card.

 

[Pharcyder1406]

Still seem to be having range/speed fluctuation issues with the router. Typically only have 4 bars of connectivity at 10 feet away (no obstructions) dropping down to 3 bars at 20 feet (going around a corner in an "L" shaped room). Speed also still seems to fluctuate. Any settings I should check or tests I can run or anything to make sure everything is configured properly?

 

[thiggins]

How many neighboring networks can you see and how strong are the signals? Could also be microwave, cordless phone, baby monitor interference.

 

[Pharcyder1406]

I live in an apartment complex (in a two-bedroom, two-floor townhouse) so there are usually between 2-4 besides mine. One network has a strong signal (3-4 bars) while the others are usually weaker (1-2/3 bars). Is there a way to better isolate my network from the neighbors? I didnt seem to have this issue with the previous router.

The router is pretty far from the kitchen and we dont have a baby monitor or cordless phone.

Thanks for the help!

 

[JoeJoe]

Use the freeware called inSSIDer, and instead of auto, set the router to the most unused channel 1, 6 or 11.

I have seen the 'auto' channel setting mess things up before.

 

[hceuterpe]

Do you have the option to upgrade the 1000 to at least a 6200 and preferably a 6300? 1000 is at the bottom of the list and it can only do 2.4Ghz.

Unfortunately you also have a Lenovo and they white-list wifi cards so any old 6300 won't work. It has to be specifically Lenovo. Normally you can buy the generic version for about $35. You could always try eBay, but I would be very cautious as many gray market Intel wifi cards have passed through there in the past.

The inSSIDer suggestion is a tool use to do what is known as a wireless survey. You will want to take that measurement in several places. For each spot I suggest you take the measurement while it is resting, not in your hands, not in motion, not while you are in front of it. It will generate graphs to help.

Likely you'll be limited if the apartment is that congested. 2.4Ghz is very narrow for WiFi, vs 5Ghz. Could be one of your neighbors force 40Mhz on channel 6, impacting your performance.
This is also why you won't find many APs that can do 3-stream at 2.4Ghz vs 5Ghz.

 

[claykin]

Intel Centrino Wireless N 1000 is a 1x2 card. It has 2 stream receive and 1 stream transmit. Its capable of up to 300Mb/s receive (theoretically). I say that because I cannot even get close to the throughput rate you should get with 300Mb/s (18MB/s) with a 6200, 6205 or 6300. The most I ever get is 8-10MB/s. Given that the 1000 series is 1x2 I suspect it will bee-bop back and forth between 150Mb/s and 300Mb/s depending on whether its sending or receiving. Seems quirky.

Be careful trying to upgrade this card. Lenovo has a habit of BIOS locking certain peripherals. They often do this with wireless cards to keep their laptops within FCC compliance. That means you can only replace the card with another Lenovo OEM card that was OK'd for that model laptop. In the case of the Y series, I think you are outta luck. Of course you can try, but buy from a vendor you can return if it doesn't work.