RT-AX86U vs GT-AX6000

[Tech9]

router is better, but not $300 usd better

Indeed.

 

[jsz]

Indeed.

Feel like I should just buy a second GT-AC2900 for wired backhaul. Could then run both in 160mhz mode 80+80 and not have to worry about range.

 

[Tech9]

Could then run both in 160mhz mode

This is not needed.

 

[jsz]

This is not needed.

Only for higher throughput if im on a gig plan, but not really right now, no.

I had gig before, peaked out around 600-700... 160mhz lets me push full port speed... Then again, its 80+80. reg 80mhz clients wont matter.. lol

 

[jsz]

So longer testing... I can pull max speed at night (580mbps at 30+ft) but the router is really biased to walls and local interference. I'll continue testing more stuff before I decide If I'm going to send it back.

When in LoS, the router gives me insane PHY speeds.. Probably the highest ive seen in a consumer single point unit... just not through (my) walls.. GT-AX6000 and GT-AC2900 lock into the same/similar phy range at testing distance/preferred locations.

 

[Tech9]

I can pull max speed at night (580mbps at 30+ft)

Not a big improvement. I can get 580Mbps from my AC-class access points or ~70MB/sec to the NAS. Not in a rush to replace them any time soon.

 

[jsz]

Not a big improvement. I can get 580Mbps from my AC-class access points or ~70MB/sec to the NAS. Not in a rush to replace them any time soon.

I'm normally in the low-mid 400mbps range with the GT-AC2900 at my specific testing distance/interference.

The GT-AX6000 is better when there's less local traffic, but performs similar to the GT-AC2900 when its peak hours. Not sure what to think..

Disabling 160mhz sorta helps the GT-AX6000 a bit too (when interference is high), but again, that should help any 4x4 AX router.

Edit: This router does 430mbps easily on a 80mhz wide DFS channel (52-64). That's at least impressive. GT-AC2900 would only push around 250mbps peak at the same location/settings.

Throughput is way more consistent than the older radios, but the range is lower (walls/interference).

Best performance on intel AX200 seems to be 36-64 (160mhz) with a DFS control channel (using 52) which I didn't expect, but 36-48 are really crowded here. AX200 WIFI Adapter is factoring the original 80mhz wide channel for PHY or so it seems. IE: PHY locks 432, but can consistently hit 570-580mbps.

The 2nd 160mhz block is completely off limits for me. Forces me into unii-3 as I'm hitting local radar.

Unii-3 80mhz block in general isn't much better than my GT-AC2900. Hits 500 instead of 450-460.


Soo... I'm sorta stuck in the 36-64 range if I keep this router.

Edit2: AX macbook and iPhone 13 are going to have lower performance closer to what my GT-AC2900 does at distance... (52 control DFS @ 250mw) Only 36-48 (1W) gives them a bump.. That sucks

That pushes me back to full 1w unii-1 +3.. which isn't much better than my gt-ac2900 in general.. hmm.

Edit3: Yep... the fastest this router would be for "all" connected devices is 80mhz wide channels on default unii1-3. Slight speed bump over 160mhz bonding. Better SNR.

Pretty funny how useless 160mhz bonding is if you don't own multiple intel clients. (don't consider phones a factor).


I will say the build quality on the GT-AX6000 in insane.. makes AX86U, GT-AC2900 etc all look like toys.. which is ironic since this looks the most gamer.. Very solid ID.

 

[killeriq]

Hi,

So AX86u is basically same as AX88 , 4 vs 8 LAN ports otherwise the same...

My RT-AX88 seems to have issue with flash NAND and i cant upgrade FW anymore.

So found AX6000, but it has only 4 ports, so i need to get an extra Switch for more ports.
Found RT-AX89x which seems bit better also 8x LAN ports, but seems like no Merlin FW support so far...

Any other router to check? Thanks

 

[Smokey613]

If you are buying a new Asus router that RMerlin supports, the GT-AX6000 for around $300 US would be my recommendation. Just have to ignore the alien spider look.

 

[killeriq]

If you are buying a new Asus router the GT-AX6000 for around $300 US would be my recommendation. Just have to overlook the alien spider look.

thanks for suggestion...ill probably get it out of ebay.
I dont care much about look as is hidden, just the functionality is important

So the GT-AX6000 is the successor of RT-AX86 ?
only disadvantage is only 4x LAN ports

 

[Clark Griswald]

@killeriq "only disadvantage is only 4x LAN ports"

The AX6000 has 2.5Gb ethernet for connecting a faster switch.

 

[Spartan]

thanks for suggestion...ill probably get it out of ebay.
I dont care much about look as is hidden, just the functionality is important

So the GT-AX6000 is the successor of RT-AX86 ?
only disadvantage is only 4x LAN ports

Yes, and the AX86U is better than the AX88U so the GT-AX6000 is the one to go for now in terms of price and performance.

 

[L&LD]

Agree with the above comments. Buy the GT-AX6000 today along with a $20 switch.

The RT-AX88U is a step behind the RT-AX86U, and they both fall to the superior and better-balanced (hardware) the GT-AX6000 offers for just a few dollars more. Do not base buying decisions on regular prices (always and only go for the sales), and remember that the better-balanced hardware will be more useful and worth more (when re-selling) for a far longer period of time.

As for the models with 8 Ports, give up on them. Almost all will give random glitches over time (because they don't have an 8 port switch, they have two 5 Port switches bridged together and eventually, the bridge fails or brings other issues to light on those models).

 

[Clark Griswald]

GT-AX6000 $299 Forum Link

 

[jsz]

thanks for suggestion...ill probably get it out of ebay.
I dont care much about look as is hidden, just the functionality is important

So the GT-AX6000 is the successor of RT-AX86 ?
only disadvantage is only 4x LAN ports

GT-AX6000 is a AX88U successor per hardware config. IE: 4x4 + 4x4 Radio. GT-AX6000 has newer Gen 2 BCM AX hardware.

I've had 2 GT-AX6000 and unfortunately both perform worse (PHY @ distance) than AX86S/U in my home layout.

I suggest you buy multiple routers with similar MIMO config and go from there. There is no objectiveness when it comes to how WIFI radios work in different environments given hardware variance, EE design/layout, interference, client config etc all influence the overall product(s).

 

[killeriq]

Hmm...have some time to think over X-Mass
I'm EU based

1. GT-AX6000 is around 270-300€ here,

+ newer HW
+ smaller then RT-AX88

- higher price
- almost no used ones on ebay
- no 8x LAN need extra switch

if i go with this option I need to add extra switch no sure yet which one

8-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch

8-Port 10/100/1000Mbps Desktop Switch, Gigabit, Plug and Play, Durable Metal Casing, QoS, IGMP Snooping, Shielded Ports, Green Technology, Loop Prevention

www.tp-link.com

16-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch

16-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch

www.tp-link.com

But then im not sure what advantage brings that 2.5Gbps port on GT-AX6000 router, as all ports on on switch are only 1000mbps

2. RT-AX88 cost 150-180€

+ Good price
+ functionality are speed are sufficient
+ 8x LAN ports

- not aware of any so far, bit older HW maybe

Issue i have with the current one after 2y that the Flash NAND is probably weard out and giving read errors (per log)

3. RT-AX89x goes 220-300€ has 8x LAN and No Merlin

+ newer HW
+ 8x LAN

- no Merlin FW means possible issues and loosing of various extra functions

 

[Spartan]

2. RT-AX88 cost 150-180€

+ Good price
+ functionality are speed are sufficient
+ 8x LAN ports

- not aware of any so far, bit older HW maybe

​

I had the AX88U and any firmware after the 384.xx range (ie. 386.xx) would cause the router to intermittently disconnect from the internet until I rebooted it. This happened both on the ASUS official firmware and on the Merlin Firmware. It was perfectly fine on older firmware and I've seen similar issues on the forum so I upgraded to the GT-AX6000 and couldn't be happier as I didn't want to wait longer for the AX86U Pro and didn't want to get the AX86U knowing something better is out there. Very happy with the speed and wireless range of the GT-AX6000 and didn't have a single disconnection since I bought it. Running on the latest ASUS firmware not Merlin.​

​

WiFi disconnect on new firmare 388 -AX88U​

Ax88u disconnect clients​

RT-AX88U w/ Centurylink ONT -- Persistent Disconnects (HELP?)​

Persistent internet disconnects on RT-AX88U with RP-AX56 node.​

WAN disconnect issue RT-AX88U 386.1_2 merlin​

RT-AX88U PPPoE disconnect help​

RT-AX88U - Internet status: disconnected​

AX88U Internet disconnect every reboot​

rt-ax88u net disconnect but not wan​

 

[RMinNJ]

I have both the 86 and now the 6000 and for my simple setup I can see no performance difference between them both in speed and 5Ghz range.

I would think you can find 1G switches used. 2.5G switches maybe not so much.

 

[jsz]

Hmm...have some time to think over X-Mass
I'm EU based

1. GT-AX6000 is around 270-300€ here,

+ newer HW
+ smaller then RT-AX88

- higher price
- almost no used ones on ebay
- no 8x LAN need extra switch

if i go with this option I need to add extra switch no sure yet which one

8-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch

8-Port 10/100/1000Mbps Desktop Switch, Gigabit, Plug and Play, Durable Metal Casing, QoS, IGMP Snooping, Shielded Ports, Green Technology, Loop Prevention

www.tp-link.com

16-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch

16-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch

www.tp-link.com

But then im not sure what advantage brings that 2.5Gbps port on GT-AX6000 router, as all ports on on switch are only 1000mbps

2. RT-AX88 cost 150-180€

+ Good price
+ functionality are speed are sufficient
+ 8x LAN ports

- not aware of any so far, bit older HW maybe

Issue i have with the current one after 2y that the Flash NAND is probably weard out and giving read errors (per log)

3. RT-AX89x goes 220-300€ has 8x LAN and No Merlin

+ newer HW
+ 8x LAN

- no Merlin FW means possible issues and loosing of various extra functions

You really have to mess with it yourself. No one here can tell you what works better... I would personally go with the cheapear solution with the best performance.

PS: AX89X has older HW from 2018. The benefit of AX89X is 8x8 MIMO 5G + SFP/10G port. It's an older design with a late release.

-The 8x8 5G will generally penetrate to a higher degree and clients will have an easier time "grabbing" onto the signal..

The 12 stream QCA stuff has an issue with overheating, at least the design seems to require a 3rd party fan and there are plenty of reports of the unit randomly reseting. Same thing happens with Netgear's variant (RAX120).


Like I said earlier.. the AX86 (Gen 1 HW) I bought performs better than the GT-AX6000 in my environment (via walls/objects) in terms of radio performance to a stationary AX2XX client. This may be different for you. WIFI IS RNG.

I don't know how the UK works in regards to return policy, but I would try multiple designs.

 

[killeriq]

Thanks for tips guys...

So AX89 option is out.

As is Xmass time and need to wait anyway , I will consider all the tips i've got till Jan 2nd

Just in theory, issue with Flash NAND i'm having is probably due to continuous log collections of "QoS - Web History" logs, so it can happen even on newer HW if i keep it tracking nonstop. Really useful for me as i can see where are various devices "calling"

Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: bcm63xx_nand ff801800.nand: program failed at eea2e00
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: jffs2_flush_wbuf(): Write failed with -5
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: Recovery of wbuf succeeded to 03720000
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: Write of 212 bytes at 0x037a2fd8 failed. returned -5, retlen 0
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: Not marking the space at 0x037a2fd8 as dirty because the flash driver returned retlen zero
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: bcm63xx_nand ff801800.nand: program failed at ee20e00
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: jffs2_flush_wbuf(): Write failed with -5
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: Recovery of wbuf succeeded to 039c0000
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: Write of 632 bytes at 0x03720fb8 failed. returned -5, retlen 0
Dec 23 13:13:17 kernel: jffs2: Not marking the space at 0x03720fb8 as dirty because the flash driver returned retlen zero