GT-BE19000AI Issue

[jzchen]

Both of you guys @AlphaGator1 and @jzchen have to approach your communications (and perhaps surveillance) infrastructure the same way you approach your other essential electrical, water, drain, gas, fire, HVAC, etc. infrastructure - you call a professional and solve the problem once. The fact no license is required doesn't mean DIY is way to go. It is a waste of money on hardware doing something, somehow.

The 14x mixed make and generation APs in @jzchen house - no comment, SNB Forums Guinness Records application. The 6x APs in @AlphaGator1 house - the existing APs were too many already, but at least were capable of dedicated wireless backhaul. Added $900 AI messed them up with wrong radios configuration, it has features incompatible with the rest of the network and single 6GHz short range localized radio.

If you don't want advice - cool.

I thank you for your concern. Some hardware was purchased, some was given... Hardware already out of return period... It would be advice for someone who's looking to buy hardware, not trim down like in my case, or adjust settings as in @AlphaGator1 's case. In the latter's case it would be good to try to optimize the settings, before deciding whether or not to return the BE19000Ai (which I am assuming may still be in return window)...

There's a significant difference (now) between low power mode and standard power mode. Standard power on one router appears to illicit reciprocity in other WiFi 7 routers, as I experienced 6 GHz backhaul between Ai router and BE98 Pro from South end 1st floor to North end 2nd floor. There was no problem with 6 GHz backhaul between GT-AXE16000 and GT-AXE11000 way back in 2022 when there was a floor in between them (both South end rooms)....

I've noted that TP-Link Range Extender specs show < 30 dBm across all 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz. You've referenced material that that is no longer the case. So OLD firmware I suspect should return such routers as the GT-AXE16000 and GT-AXE11000 back to higher power 6 GHz broadcasts, I suspect....

 

[jzchen]

Should I enable MLO maybe? I have the GT6 as my main AI Mesh nodes, with an AC5300 in one of the more remote bedrooms.

View attachment 70300

The good news is MLO is easier to set up now than when it was first released (as a firmware update) to the GT-BE98 Pro. So I would suggest you can try it, see if you like how your client devices work, then turn it off if you notice no difference. Back when MLO was a beta firmware release and in fact for a while after, there were 4 settings for OFDMA/MU-MIMO, and the list of available settings was so long getting a screenshot to share/compare with others was not easy, at least for me...

All I'm suggesting is returning the "old" network portion to basically the same setup, with the wired basement GT6 as AP with AiMesh, add all the nodes to that. Leave the Ai router to work at its full potential not capped by the limitations (AiMesh is somewhat limited by the weakest/oldest node)....

 

[Poseidon]

Don’t understand how some people are having these issues with this router?

Personally the GE19000ai has been a fantastic router. No issues whatsoever once the initial “new router” bugs were fixed a while ago with firmware updates. Everything default - except smart connect, MLO enabled (no 2,4) and AFC enabled.

Perhaps I’m just using the single router and not a pile of 6-7 different routers meshed together. Lol.

 

[jzchen]

Don’t understand how some people are having these issues with this router?

Personally the GE19000ai has been a fantastic router. No issues whatsoever once the initial “new router” bugs were fixed a while ago with firmware updates. Everything default - except smart connect, MLO enabled (no 2,4) and AFC enabled.

Perhaps I’m just using the single router and not a pile of 6-7 different routers meshed together. Lol.

I haven't had issues with this router either. I did notice an increase in usage from AT&T gateway software (I was estimating around 1 TB from last month. I am hoping it was diagnostic data sent to ASUS. Thankfully no warnings of overuse from them, as it is "unlimited").

Yes AiMesh is available across the ASUS lineup, but things don't work optimally when you don't carefully choose your node specs. There are definitely ways to get optimal performance from a mixed network. WiFi Agile Multiband is good for those. Looks like WiFi 8 will include Mesh in it's specification. So my mutt network may not be a concern much longer. Hopefully I can afford to buy into WiFi 8 early...

If you get two of the same model WiFi 7 you can MLO their backhaul. I would be disappointed if that did not work. But if ever there's an issue you'll end up with double the trouble. I ended up with two EBM68s only because they sent me a 2-pack when I ordered a single. Otherwise I avoid buying multiple of any one model to avoid that risk....

 

[Tech9]

All I'm suggesting is returning the "old" network portion to basically the same setup, with the wired basement GT6 as AP with AiMesh, add all the nodes to that. Leave the Ai router to work at its full potential not capped by the limitations (AiMesh is somewhat limited by the weakest/oldest node)...

This is my suggestion to @AlphaGator1: GT-BE19000AI ($900) has to be replaced with much cheaper GT-AXE16000 (currently $338 on Amazon US). The old RT-AC5300 has to be removed. The existing GT6 routers connect to the new GT on 5GHz-2 band. The 5GHz-1 radios for clients on Ch.42 non-DFS, the 5GHz-2 backhaul radios on Ch.155 non-DFS for best reliability. The result - dual-band 2.4GHz/5GHz to clients network-wide, 6GHz option at the GT, dedicated wireless backhaul on 5GHz, 2x Guest Networks propagation per node option network-wide, Asuswrt-Merlin option for the GT... for $512 (!) less. Still a dead-end solution with consumer mesh, but better balanced and preserving the tri-band purpose of existing GT6 routers. The performance is expected to be better as well.

The error is in hardware choice and can't be fixed with settings. Your suggestion will result in flat network like it's 2006, just the way your mix of routers and extenders works. And all this after $1400 (!) in hardware?