Tried ubiquity unifi AP AC Pro and it failed! What's the best access point to get?

[JJ lolo]

So I'm probably an exception to the pack, but I'm a power user, have a home lab (Sophos firewall/router, Cisco POE gigabit switch, synology NAS, esxi server), and like to work (edit large files) on my 2018 Mac Pro laptop on my lap.

I need the fastest AP for 5 ghz single user (my laptop). Sure I'll have other devices but they won't use up much bandwidth and in fact I'll put all the dumb ones on a separate AP/vlan.

So I bought into the Ubiquiti unifi hype. Purchased an AP AC Pro but even manually setting the channel 80Mhz and choosing one where there is no interference, placing my laptop on the access point, I'm only able to get a transmit rate (TX rate in wifi settings) 780 Mbps max. I get 950 Mbps from my att fiber (Arris) router WITHOUT any tweaks and was expecting a little more than 950 but less than the advertised 1300. Then I read the less than stellar review here

So simply stated what's the best HIGH PERFORMANCE access point? I'd rather not pay for router functions since I won't be using them but if that's the highest performance so be it!

 

[CrystalLattice]

Ruckus Wireless R510 AP, or better in their product line-up. They have most of the enterprise market share due to superior tech. This is what Lennar uses in Wifi Certified homes, so it's now the gold standard for homes. Budget pick would be the last TP-link that was reviewed at Smallnetbuilder, the TP-Link EAP225v3. Good luck!

 

[umarmung]

Ruckus Wireless R510 AP, or better in their product line-up. They have most of the enterprise market share due to superior tech. This is what Lennar uses in Wifi Certified homes, so it's now the gold standard for homes. Budget pick would be the last TP-link that was reviewed at Smallnetbuilder, the TP-Link EAP225v3. Good luck!

Why are you recommending 2x2 APs for someone specifically looking for maximum single client throughput with one of the few 3x3 clients that are commonly available?

A top of the line, current 3x3 AP suitable for a residential network would be a Ruckus 600 Unleashed (9U1-R600). But their main value comes from having multiple units and the Unleashed version is already End of Sale, though not End of Support. If you can grab multiple cheaply or even better the (Wave 2 *) R610 Unleashed, I would.

Alternatively, if you just need a single unit, then the Ubiquiti UAP-AC-HD would deliver comparable or even better real-world performance for such a tiny network since it is a 4x4 Wave 2 AP with some of the highest performing Qualcomm radios. It should be cheaper or comparable to the above Ruckus APs.

Finally, if you cannot get any of the above, then you can just get the consumer router Netgear R7800 or Synology RT2600AC (whichever is cheaper at the time), which also sport high end Qualcomm radios, and use it in access point mode.

* Wave 2 here is only for future clients since I do not believe your 2018 MacBook Pro supports it.

 

[Pabla]

hmm I have a Ubiquiti setup consisting of some AC-pros, and NanoHDs. Connected to the NanoHD I'm able to get around 700mbps+ with my fibre gigabit connection (using a 2018 MacBook Pro as well). Maybe give the NanoHD a try? I've be thoroughly impressed with the performance of my Ubiquiti setup, what are you using as your power supply for the AP? There are a few more tweaks that you can do to maximize performance, I recommend you look at the Ubiquiti forum there's quite a bit of info there.

 

[coxhaus]

I think what you want is going to be 1 room specific. If you roam with your laptop you are not going to be able to maintain that high speed connection unless you install a wireless AP in every room of your house which is where we are headed for. So I think the request is not realistic. If you just want to claim fastest rights then yes it is what you want.

Maybe the right question is what is the best and fastest whole house system. It will not be a single wireless AP or router because as you leave the room where the unit is installed it will degrade your connection speed. The best system is going to be multiple APs in as many rooms as possible.

PS
If you are going to stay in 1 room you might as well put a wire on it. Wire always runs better than wireless.

 

[CrystalLattice]

Why are you recommending 2x2 APs for someone specifically looking for maximum single client throughput with one of the few 3x3 clients that are commonly available?

A top of the line, current 3x3 AP suitable for a residential network would be a Ruckus 600 Unleashed (9U1-R600). But their main value comes from having multiple units and the Unleashed version is already End of Sale, though not End of Support. If you can grab multiple cheaply or even better the (Wave 2 *) R610 Unleashed, I would.

Alternatively, if you just need a single unit, then the Ubiquiti UAP-AC-HD would deliver comparable or even better real-world performance for such a tiny network since it is a 4x4 Wave 2 AP with some of the highest performing Qualcomm radios. It should be cheaper or comparable to the above Ruckus APs.

Finally, if you cannot get any of the above, then you can just get the consumer router Netgear R7800 or Synology RT2600AC (whichever is cheaper at the time), which also sport high end Qualcomm radios, and use it in access point mode.

* Wave 2 here is only for future clients since I do not believe your 2018 MacBook Pro supports it.

"or better..." right now the pros still run 2x2 ap's unless the customer wants to pay more. try consulting in IT and networking

 

[MichaelCG]

There are a few more tweaks that you can do to maximize performance, I recommend you look at the Ubiquiti forum there's quite a bit of info there.

Pretty sure that is where he started and ended up here after finding the SNB reviews of the UniFi gear. In that thread it still wasn't clear if he was referring to slow link speeds or slow actual transmitted speeds. The biggest challenge I see with his use case is he is looking for single client max speed which is not what UniFi does as well as others.

 

[coxhaus]

It makes no sense what he is looking for.

 

[sfx2000]

So I'm probably an exception to the pack, but I'm a power user

take a deep breath - breath.... feel better?

Best thoughts here is to have a beginner's mind, and look at what is good - the AP is going to give a decent amount of BW considering it's design.

I think one of the problems with UBNT is user oriented - not buying the right ones to fit their needs,,,