Excuse the ignorance

[stsalkit]

I apologize for this question however I am new to this 2.5 - 5 Ghz thing. I live in a rather isolated area - the nearest house is over 100m away, so there is no interference from other Wi-Fi networks.
In my situation therefore, what do I gain - if anything - having both 2.4 and 5Ghz bands on? Is there something special (apart from being less congested) in the 5Ghz band, that in my situation should care about?
Thanks in advance

 

[joegreat]

In my situation therefore, what do I gain - if anything - having both 2.4 and 5Ghz bands on? Is there something special (apart from being less congested) in the 5Ghz band, that in my situation should care about?

Hi,

There are multiple things here:
- Having the online WLAN in 100m range you can use 2.4 GHz with 40 MHz channel with to get 150 MBit speed (but locking 4 channels)
- Using 5 GHz with 40 MHz will give you up to 300/450 MBit range - with the right and capable devices
- 2.4 GHz has a better range / coverage then 5 GHz

Finnally it all depends on you devices who are connected to the router.

Lucky you that there are not interferences! Otherwise 40 MHz is always addng more trouble then good...

With kind regards
Joe

 

[RogerSC]

There can be interference problems in your house on 2.4GHz. that can limit your effective bandwidth there. A lot of household items, like baby monitors, microwave ovens, cordless phones, cordless headphones, etc. can interfere with the 2.4GHz. band. While you may be able to get 40MHz. bandwidth on 2.4GHz. (great if you can get it), 5GHz. tends to be much less affected by household interference, so can be better for streaming video and media that require a wide bandwidth. Since you have an RT-N66U you won't be taking advantage of the 802.11ac stuff, which is going to provide even better bandwidth on 5GHz., but 5GHz. can still be better if the range (shorter than 2.4GHz.) fits your needs. For example, you could sort things out so that you're using 2.4GHz. wireless for laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc. and stream your media on 5GHz.

Just a couple of thoughts. So while you may start with 2.4GHz., you will probably find yourself using both that and 5GHz. at some point. There are also alternatives to wireless that can be more reliable for streaming, but that's another subject.

 

[stsalkit]

Thank you both. Just to get things clear in my mind. Given that:
- I have no interference from other wifi and
- the property I want to cover is rather large and flat I.e. one level
What are the suggested settings I.e. ab vs n and 20 vs 40 etc.
thank you in advance

 

[nubyOz]

Thank you both. Just to get things clear in my mind. Given that:
- I have no interference from other wifi and
- the property I want to cover is rather large and flat I.e. one level
What are the suggested settings I.e. ab vs n and 20 vs 40 etc.
thank you in advance

Hi,
I use 2.4GHz for my long range and "legacy needs".
Set it to 20Mhz only and pick any channel.
Allow it to support G and N.
That will cover all your basic devices.

Only for devices that support 2 or 3 channel 5GHz I would use the 5GHZ locked to 40 MHz. That way you get the best speed for those devices.
Keep in mind that 40MHz actually will be slower with highter distance than 20MHz. It is only suitable if no other slower devices share that band AND you stay relatively close.

Make sure you set 2.4GHz and 5 GHz to different SSIDs. That way you can ensure you don't to the wrong band accidentally.

Cheers

 

[jlake]

Are you using inSSIDer?

I change it from the default "auto" to "N". But if you have older Wireless G adapters, you should leave it on auto. Or if you have friends/family with wireless G adapters, leave it on auto.

On 2.4 Ghz, I put it on 20 MHz, because even though inSSIDer says I should be able to use auto or 40 MHz. I still have sporadic unknown interference. The only time I notice the issue is when gaming on 2.4 Ghz.

For 5Ghz I put it on N and use auto width and a fixed channel (149). But lower channels may work better for you.

Really the best thing for you to do is experiment. Nobody here in this forum is going to have the exact same environment as you do.

Use the routers default settings as your baseline and then go from there.

Always make sure you are using WPA2 Personal wireless security for both 2.4 Ghz and 5Ghz as that will give you the best performance.