Mesh node options for rt-ax86u

[mr8]

Current setup: an RT-AX86U located in the center of the house on the second floor, signal is great in all the rooms upstairs, however, the signal drops off on the first floor and is not even usable in some rooms on the first floor edges of the house.

Looking to add some AiMesh nodes to extend the range with plans to eventually pull cat6 to the nodes if possible.

1. Any benefit to purchasing more AX86U’s if they are only acting as nodes? Or can I get away with one of the budget AX routers in wired mesh mode and get similar performance and range? If so, what should I look for/avoid?


2. Would the ZenWifi nodes have any benefit over an AX router if they were to be placed on either end of the house and connected via the the main AX86 in the center of the house?

 

[OzarkEdge]

Current setup: an RT-AX86U located in the center of the house on the second floor, signal is great in all the rooms upstairs, however, the signal drops off on the first floor and is not even usable in some rooms on the first floor edges of the house.

Looking to add some AiMesh nodes to extend the range with plans to eventually pull cat6 to the nodes if possible.

1. Any benefit to purchasing more AX86U’s if they are only acting as nodes? Or can I get away with one of the budget AX routers in wired mesh mode and get similar performance and range? If so, what should I look for/avoid?


2. Would the ZenWifi nodes have any benefit over an AX router if they were to be placed on either end of the house and connected via the the main AX86 in the center of the house?

If a second node is required, you will want to spread them out, so move the first node now to test its coverage from the new location, including on the lower level in case one is enough when its on the lower level. Also, try the antennas tilted \ | / to improve coverage above/below.

Two AX86Us would allow using their 2.5GbE LAN/WAN for the wired backhaul.

A second AX86U would be a backup router in a critical application.

A second node with matching antennas/streams would help a wireless backhaul.

There are hoped for initial efficiencies/compatibilities with using like nodes. ZEN packaged systems might take this in the other direction... or might not. If you only need a second wired node, I'd be inclined to choose a non-ZEN dual-band model, like you will do again in ~3-5 years when you install a new router and push the old router out to node duty.

What is the area of the lower level? And wall/floor materials? Any large masonry obstacles? Difficult space/materials might require more nodes; but don't add more than you need.

OE

 

[mr8]

Thanks for the help! First floor is 75ft x 35ft. I believe the walls are mostly drywall.

I don't think we'd take advantage of the 2.5GbE backend, so standard gigabit should be enough at least until the next router upgrade or wifi7.

I'll try moving the AX86 around the first floor to see what the potential coverage might be. We've got an old AC68 setup as a wireless node on one end of the house which helps with coverage on that end, but it doesn't really do much for the other side of the house which is why I was looking into maybe placing a nodes at either end of the house with the 86 in the center.

How would something like the AX82, AX55, or AX3000 compare to the AX86 when operating as nodes if we were to use a wired backhaul?

Edit: since our main router on the second floor is already centrally located, would it cause issues if we were to get another AX86 and place it directly below on the first floor?

 

[L&LD]

You only need a quality Cat5e cable (mine work great with a 100' run) to enjoy a 2.5GbE backhaul.

AiMesh Ideal Placement

Do not place routers above each other, see the link above.

Use 2x RT-AX86Us in wired backhaul mode for the most reliable network with the most stable performance.


I would use any additional APs in Media Bridge mode for any of your distant, wired-capable, clients. I would not use them in AiMesh (or AP mode) at all.

Media Bridge Mode

Repeater mode = wireless AiMesh


The following link may be useful to understand what I found trying to mix even an RT-AX86U with an RT-AX88U (i.e. worse performance than even a single RT-AX86U).

RT-AX86U vs. RT-AX88U

 

[mr8]

Thanks for the info @L&LD

I think cat6 is probably the better deal since it’s practically the same price, but with future proofing to handle up to 10GbE.

Majority of the clients are WiFi only, and devices with Ethernet are already at the router (servers, hue bridge, NAS, etc). Also have a couple of Apple TV’s with ethernet, but they all seem to be fine streaming 4K over WiFi, and can max out the read speed from the NAS, so I don’t think I’d have much use with media bridge mode.

What I really want is to extend the WiFi coverage on the first floor.

My current situation is something like this where ( ) denotes WiFi is useable from the ax86:

|(——————RT-AX86——————)| 2F
|———(——————————)———| 1F

 

[Tech9]

Try to make it like this:

|(Router1———————)(———————)| 2F
|(———————)(———————Router2)| 1F

 

[L&LD]

AiMesh Ideal Placement

 

[mr8]

So it’s better to minimize the overlap of the mesh if using a wired backhaul? Wouldn’t the clients in the middle still suffer from a poor connection if there is less overlap?

Wouldn’t something like this be better:

|(——————RT-AX86——————)| 2F
|{node———[—————}———node]| 1F

 

[OzarkEdge]

So it’s better to minimize the overlap of the mesh if using a wired backhaul? Wouldn’t the clients in the middle still suffer from a poor connection if there is less overlap?

Wouldn’t something like this be better:

|(——————RT-AX86——————)| 2F
|{node———[—————}———node]| 1F

Never mind the backhaul. It's best to not use more nodes than you need for coverage, and to not place them too close nor too far apart for client function and roaming.

If one AP at one end of your space nearly covers it, adding a second AP at the other end will finish the job while keeping the APs as far apart from each other as is possible. Don't underestimate radio propagation; too much radio spoils the Wifi.

OE