Latest Merlin vs latest fork by John, specifically for WiFi performance on AC68U?

[binarydad]

Apologies if this comparison is elsewhere but I can't seem to find it.

I recently purchased a AC68U rev C to replace my N66U and wanted to know the differences in wireless performance between the two latest firmwares. I understand John's fork uses an older version of the wifi drivers, but wanted to hear in detail the real-world differences. Thanks.

EDIT: noted wrong revision number/letter

 

[jrmwvu04]

I understand John's fork uses an older version of the wifi drivers

About that...

But joking aside, If you have a rev 3 you’re looking at a similar driver either way as I understand it. I like the fork because it’s more customizable and I don’t particularly use the newer features in the current Merlin builds. My advice would be to try them both and see which you like.

 

[dlandiss]

Apologies if this comparison is elsewhere but I can't seem to find it.

I recently purchased a AC68U rev C to replace my N66U and wanted to know the differences in wireless performance between the two latest firmwares. I understand John's fork uses an older version of the wifi drivers, but wanted to hear in detail the real-world differences. Thanks.

EDIT: noted wrong revision number/letter

It is my understanding that the only model affected by this is the RT-N66U. John?

 

[john9527]

It is my understanding that the only model affected by this is the RT-N66U. John?

The wireless driver is directly tied to the SDK for the particular router. I recently added support for the newer AC68 rev C1,E1 to my fork which required a new SDK that also supports the newer rev processors. (This SDK is also shared with the AC56.) This means the wireless drivers were also updated (my fork is currently using AC68 wireless drivers equal to those in Merlin 380.66). The other models supported by my fork, N16, N66 and AC66, continue to use the older wireless drivers, vintage 2014. It's the N66 in particular where some users see better performance on the older drivers.

 

[dlandiss]

The wireless driver is directly tied to the SDK for the particular router. I recently added support for the newer AC68 rev C1,E1 to my fork which required a new SDK that also supports the newer rev processors. (This SDK is also shared with the AC56.) This means the wireless drivers were also updated (my fork is currently using AC68 wireless drivers equal to those in Merlin 380.66). The other models supported by my fork, N16, N66 and AC66, continue to use the older wireless drivers, vintage 2014. It's the N66 in particular where some users see better performance on the older drivers.

Thank you, John. My impression from other threads on the topic was that only the N66 enjoyed improved radio performance from the older driver.