RT2600ac replacement (RT6600ax, Orbi Pro, Omada)

[policeman51]

I currently have a RT2600ac and two MR2200acs using wired backhaul. The setup covers 2 floors as well as the backyard (one MR2200ac is in the garage wired.)
Internet is 940Mbps with Astound Broadband by RCN (just rolls off the tongue).
My speeds from the router or aps average around 520Mbps down and 65Mbps up. Not great, but I'm fine with it.

My problem is with the RT2600ac. The LAN ports have started to just stop working as well as the unit itself randomly restarting.
No additional firmware update has been done, I have not upgraded to any 1.3xxx version on any unit. Support has been helpful, but not willing to RMA due to the age (purchased it in 2017).

I would like to keep with the Mesh setup since I have it wired. I was like some isolation of my IoT devices and separating wifi ssids (which all seem to do but Orbi).
I was looking at a few options:
RT6600ax
- I'm familiar and like the UI and the parental controls. I've seen a lot of issues the the firmware releases so still not getting the warm and fuzzies from it.
Orbi Pro SXK80B3
- Orbi mesh AX6000 and AXE11000 get very high reviews for speed and range (assuming the Orbi Pro has similar results), but have really no customization which the Orbi Pro would add pretty much all the additional functionality I'm looking for.
Omada ER605, OC200, 3 EAP670
- I like the options of control as well as replacing APs when needed. I've read the maturity is not to the Ubiquiti level, but they are readily in stock unlike ubiquiti.

Asus is a maybe. There are a few deals on the GT-AX6000, XT12 or ET12 but I've gotten burned by Asus in the past with their hardware. Feel free to change my mind, I'm fine with that.

Any thoughts on my options would be appreciated.

 

[sfx2000]

I currently have a RT2600ac and two MR2200acs using wired backhaul. The setup covers 2 floors as well as the backyard (one MR2200ac is in the garage wired.)

I would suggest looking into the Synology RT6600ax as it will continue to work with your meshed MR2200ac's - should be a drop-in replacement, and SRM1.3 does bring in new functionality - the 2200ac's also support SRM 1.3 (and need it to mesh with the RT6600ax)

 

[Tech Junky]

I would probably go with a MikroTik of some sort and drop the whole combined wifi / router BS all together and then setup actual AP's instead.

I mean if you're going to put in the effort you might as well split things up a bit for when things eventually fail you're only out a fraction and not tied to one ecosystem.

Router + 2 AP's might run ~$500

I tried the RT2600 / R7800 and plenty of other gear and the Syn went back within 2 weeks of arrival and the R7800 eventually got replaced by a DIY setup after getting sick of the constant nagging for FW updates and spotty issues. Watching the themes around here RE: the Orbi's I would tend to be cautious about them and Asus is just...well.... there's a whole forum for them here. Just stick around and watch all of the new threads and you'll see trends of what to avoid.

 

[policeman51]

I would suggest looking into the Synology RT6600ax as it will continue to work with your meshed MR2200ac's - should be a drop-in replacement, and SRM1.3 does bring in new functionality - the 2200ac's also support SRM 1.3 (and need it to mesh with the RT6600ax)

I do remember the initial issues with the RT2600ac but the firmware did work out the kinks.

 

[policeman51]

I would probably go with a MikroTik of some sort and drop the whole combined wifi / router BS all together and then setup actual AP's instead.

I mean if you're going to put in the effort you might as well split things up a bit for when things eventually fail you're only out a fraction and not tied to one ecosystem.

Router + 2 AP's might run ~$500

I tried the RT2600 / R7800 and plenty of other gear and the Syn went back within 2 weeks of arrival and the R7800 eventually got replaced by a DIY setup after getting sick of the constant nagging for FW updates and spotty issues. Watching the themes around here RE: the Orbi's I would tend to be cautious about them and Asus is just...well.... there's a whole forum for them here. Just stick around and watch all of the new threads and you'll see trends of what to avoid.

I'm not too familiar with Mikrotik. I asked around and the consensus was the learning curve was steep.
I do like the router + ap combo.

Any thoughts on Omada?

 

[sfx2000]

I'm not too familiar with Mikrotik. I asked around and the consensus was the learning curve was steep.

Microtik has been on the wrong side of security issues in the past...

 

[Tech9]

Any thoughts on Omada?

Best price/performance ratio system. Similar to UniFi, software not that pretty, but works great.

 

[sfx2000]

Best price/performance ratio system. Similar to UniFi, software not that pretty, but works great.

But TP-Link doesn't have a long term history of supporting their non-comsumer based solutions.

It's down to a product line manager's decision on whether or not to remain in the small business/prosumer market segment - if the numbers for customer support stop working on the balance sheet...

 

[Tech9]

True, but works well and at the right price. Not sure what is better - 3 good updates or 30 buggy ones. Ubiquiti is supporting their customers good - first thing before update is to read support forums what is broken this time around. One of the reasons I replaced my UniFi network with something else.

 

[policeman51]

Best price/performance ratio system. Similar to UniFi, software not that pretty, but works great.

Thanks.
I'm leaning towards that route.

I don't have experience with APs for the home. I'm curious on speeds and range, are the similar/better/worse than a traditional router?
I know there are so many variables in that question, just trying to gauge for example location, router, wired backhaul being equal:
MRR2200ac that has a 2x2 5GHZ antenna and speeds are 866Mbps
Would I expect the fame for a EAP670 or EAP660 HD?

 

[Tech Junky]

The bottleneck is the port on the APs. I went nwa210ax based on the 2.5ge port and 4x4 radios. On a single client I can get 1.5gps which is just under 70% of the link rate which is to be expected. The max calculated rate should be 1.7gbps.

Marketing though of higher numbers doesn't matter if they don't have an uplink to support those speeds. If you have two clients you could saturate the uplink with simultaneous transfers at max speed. For instance if I did large transfers using my phone and laptop at the same time I could hit a bottleneck on the port.

 

[policeman51]

The bottleneck is the port on the APs. I went nwa210ax based on the 2.5ge port and 4x4 radios. On a single client I can get 1.5gps which is just under 70% of the link rate which is to be expected. The max calculated rate should be 1.7gbps.

Marketing though of higher numbers doesn't matter if they don't have an uplink to support those speeds. If you have two clients you could saturate the uplink with simultaneous transfers at max speed. For instance if I did large transfers using my phone and laptop at the same time I could hit a bottleneck on the port.

Good explanation, thank you.
As long as I have consistent speeds per machine tested and at >=wireless range I'm satisfied. As well as stability, which I'm struggling with now.

Marketing... that doesn't exist. I trust when they say I can get 6Gbps out of the GT-AX6000 EVA Edition, lol

 

[sfx2000]

The bottleneck is the port on the APs. I went nwa210ax based on the 2.5ge port and 4x4 radios. On a single client I can get 1.5gps which is just under 70% of the link rate which is to be expected. The max calculated rate should be 1.7gbps.

Folks tend to forget that WiFi is half-duplex, whereas ethernet is full duplex - so gigabit isn't that much of a bottleneck with a 4 stream AP

 

[Tech9]

Exactly. How many home users saturate Gigabit Ethernet over Wi-Fi, how often and doing what?

 

[Tech Junky]

Folks tend to forget that WiFi is half-duplex, whereas ethernet is full duplex - so gigabit isn't that much of a bottleneck with a 4 stream AP

Well, if your speed is capped at 960mbps due to the gig port vs 1.5gbps with a 2.5 port it's a 50% boost in speed.

@policeman51
My uptime on an AP is typically at least 90 days without needing a reboot for a self imposed firmware update if one is available for download. The thing about most routers is they tend to need frequent reboots for performance or updates. There are advantages to splitting off the WiFi as well. When new tech comes out it's cheaper to replace an AP for say $200 vs a new router for $300+.

 

[policeman51]

Well, if your speed is capped at 960mbps due to the gig port vs 1.5gbps with a 2.5 port it's a 50% boost in speed.

@policeman51
My uptime on an AP is typically at least 90 days without needing a reboot for a self imposed firmware update if one is available for download. The thing about most routers is they tend to need frequent reboots for performance or updates. There are advantages to splitting off the WiFi as well. When new tech comes out it's cheaper to replace an AP for say $200 vs a new router for $300+.

Yes, stability is key and honestly if my router hadn't started freaking out, for lack of a better term, I would not even consider a change. The Synology setup has been solid for me before this.
My fried has the Unifi dream router and 2 aps and has been happy. That would be my first choice but the stock is just so low. I set up alerts and bots for PS5 stock, I really don't feel like doing that for networking gear.

The AP route does seem to be the way to go though. I like that you're not married to one vendor and you have the option for a complicated or simple config.

 

[Tech9]

MRR2200ac that has a 2x2 5GHZ antenna and speeds are 866Mbps

Anything starting from the cheapest Omada dual-band AP model EAP225v3 for $60 and above. The "speeds" are not 866Mbps. Link speeds are up to 866Mbps, throughput is about 50-60% usually. This is your around 520Mbps. What do you need more for, especially on phones/tablets?

Would I expect the fame for a EAP670 or EAP660 HD?

The fame is going to be limited to your client devices radio capabilities. Expect link speeds up to 866Mbps to common 2-stream AC client, up to 1200Mbps to common 2-stream AX client and up to 2400Mbps to 2-stream AX client with 160Mhz wide channel support, if you can use 160MHz at all.

 

[policeman51]

Anything starting from the cheapest Omada dual-band AP model EAP225v3 for $60 and above. The "speeds" are not 866Mbps. Link speeds are up to 866Mbps, throughput is about 50-60% usually. This is your around 520Mbps. What do you need more for, especially on phones/tablets?



The fame is going to be limited to your client devices radio capabilities. Expect link speeds up to 866Mbps to common 2-stream AC client, up to 1200Mbps to common 2-stream AX client and up to 2400Mbps to 2-stream AX client with 160Mhz wide channel support, if you can use 160MHz at all.

Thanks for the spelling emoji, lol.

Those speeds make sense and yes I did mean up to 866Mbps.
I'm about 10ft away from my MR2200 now and I'm getting an average of 650Mbps down and 65Mbps up on both my laptop and phone. That's plenty for me even during the work day on calls, video, screen sharing, etc.

Honestly, I'm getting excited about planning a new network.
This is gonna be fun.

 

[Tech9]

UniFi/Omada work best with more APs on lower power and properly placed. Some APs are slightly directional to achieve optimal results. Home routers are designed to work as single AP with omni-directional antenna pattern and most transmit on high power, regardless of client's capability to reply back. You have to find the balance based on your needs with equipment tuned to your unique Wi-Fi environment. There is no single best solution. Don't look at range of a single AP. When you build the system, look at total throughput and stability. It will be better than most home routers and "mesh" systems.