WNHDE111 vs. DAP-1522

[ciphermonk]

In the market for a 5Ghz AP and I'm trying to decide between these 2. I already have a DIR-655 for 2.4g/n. The DAP-1522 is where I'm currently leaning because I do like dlink hardware and the configuration interfaces would be the same. What are your thoughts? Is the a big performance difference between the 2? Either device would be configured to run in 802.11n mode only.

 

[thiggins]

I think I have to give the edge in performance to the WNHDE111. The review "con" of disappointing range was written before I had tested many 5GHz draft 11n products. They all have shorter range than 2.4GHz and actually the WNHDE111 has the best overall throughput for 5GHz, 40MHz B/W mode up and downlink. Check the charts
to see. (The only charts with WNHDE111 data are Open Air 5GHz 40 MHz B/W up and down).

 

[ciphermonk]

Sounds good mate. I'll try to find one this evening. Interested in seeing if it outperforms my 655 at 2.4 ghz

 

[thiggins]

Sounds good mate. I'll try to find one this evening. Interested in seeing if it outperforms my 655 at 2.4 ghz

WNHDE111 is 5 GHz only.

 

[ciphermonk]

Well I got it home and setup. The transfer rate is pretty nice.. I've getting 10.4 MB/s when I scp a large iso from my server to my laptop. The performance is pretty nice. The signal does attenuate pretty quickly though. Around one wall and the speed cuts in half. I'm running it in "n" only mode and 20/40. I probably won't get the throughput if I switch to 20. I also wonder if the orientation of the AP will make any kind of a difference (i.e. is it directional in anyway.) Any tips Tom? Let the playing begin

 

[thiggins]

Well I got it home and setup. The transfer rate is pretty nice.. I've getting 10.4 MB/s when I scp a large iso from my server to my laptop. The performance is pretty nice. The signal does attenuate pretty quickly though. Around one wall and the speed cuts in half. I'm running it in "n" only mode and 20/40. I probably won't get the throughput if I switch to 20. I also wonder if the orientation of the AP will make any kind of a difference (i.e. is it directional in anyway.) Any tips Tom? Let the playing begin

I didn't play with antenna orientation. But I would think that flat-side pointed at flat side would be best.

At lower signal levels, you'll actually do better in 20 MHz mode, or at least you will get better range.

 

[ciphermonk]

That's at the expense of speed though correct Tim?

 

[thiggins]

That's at the expense of speed though correct Tim?

Not necessarily. Look at some of the open air tests in the Wireless Charts. At Locations C and D, you don't necessarily get higher throughput with channel bonding.
Just try both and use the setting that works in your situation.

 

[ciphermonk]

Something interesting that I've found in testing. When I scp a large iso from my server with a GigE port to my laptop which is connected to the Netgear, the transfer speed is capping out around 10.5 MB/sec. If my math is correct, (100Mb ~= 12.5MB) that's pretty close to saturating the 100MB connection between the AP and the dir-655; especially after taking into account the overhead associated with Ethernet housekeeping. Kind of makes me wonder if the throughput would go up had Netgear decided to add GigE ports to the WNHDE111.

 

[thiggins]

Is that a wireless connection? Must be at close range.

I have rarely found draft 11n products that exceed 100 Mbps consistently, even with 10 ft of each other. And with any distance, throughput drops pretty quickly below 100 Mbps.

That said, the close range throughput of the WNHDE111 does seem like its throughput could be being limited by the 100 Mbps connection. But for its intended application, media streaming, >100 Mbps isn't really needed. Hell, if a wireless product could consistently deliver 20 Mbps over a decent range in the 5 GHz band, it would be the answer to a lot of people's prayers!

 

[ciphermonk]

Yep it's wireless. My macbook is about 20 feet away from the AP with a direct line of sight to it. If I walk around the corner into the dining room, the speeds drops to between 5 - 6MB/s

 

[themicah]

I also wonder if the orientation of the AP will make any kind of a difference (i.e. is it directional in anyway.) Any tips Tom? Let the playing begin

I stumbled on this old thread while researching 5GHz APs and wanted to note that the WNHDE111 manual implies it is directional and broadcasts toward the front panels. The quote from page 1-6 of the user manual (ftp://downloads.netgear.com/files/WNHDE111_UM_12May08.pdf):

If placing 2 Wireless-N AccessPoint/Bridges with a direct line of sight between them, do not place them closer than 15 feet, as the antennas are tuned for this optimum distance. Orient the 2 units with the front panels (the side with the Power light) facing each other.

Separately, I live in a very high-density neighborhood and 2.4GHz wifi has grown increasingly useless. I've tried multiple 802.11b/g routers (Trendnet, D-Link, Linksys running Linksys, DD-WRT and Tomato firmware) and they all have very limited range and periodic dropouts in my apartment, which probably has something to do with the fact that Netstumbler can see at least 85 unique wifi networks from my kitchen table. So I'm thinking about getting a 5GHz AP to add to my network (my Linksys/Tomato router works great on the wired side--it's just the wireless that's problematic).

The WNHDE111 and DAP-1522 seem to be the top contenders (I don't really want to shell out for an Apple AEBS or a Netgear WNDAP330, which seem to be the next step up). Are the posts in this thread about the WNHDE111 still accurate? Is it still the best choice for wireless reliability among the cheapie APs? My desktop is connected to a GigE switch, so if I could manage to get 802.11n throughout >100Mbps, I suppose the GigE capability of the DAP-1522 would have an advantage. But if the WNHDE111 is more likely to reach my living room from my bedroom (a distance of no more than 40 feet through only one wall), I could live with 90Mbps throughput vs. 110Mbps throughput.

Any problems with Macbooks (mine is a 2008 white model) playing nice with the WNHDE111 or DAP-1522? Aside from Apple's 802.11n "enabler" shenanigans, of course...

 

[thiggins]

I did a bit more testing of the WNHDE111 in this article. I wouldn't worry about the WNHDE111 being too directional. In fact, sounds like it could a bit of an advantage in your situation.

No draft 11n product is going to provide close to 100 Mbps of consistent TCP/IP throughput. If you get over 50, even with your relatively short range requirements, consider yourself lucky.

All the products you refer to are Wi-Fi Certified for draft 11n 2.0. Doesn't mean you won't have problems, but at least it is some assurance.

 

[Madwand]

Separately, I live in a very high-density neighborhood and 2.4GHz wifi has grown increasingly useless. I've tried multiple 802.11b/g routers (Trendnet, D-Link, Linksys running Linksys, DD-WRT and Tomato firmware) and they all have very limited range and periodic dropouts in my apartment, which probably has something to do with the fact that Netstumbler can see at least 85 unique wifi networks from my kitchen table. So I'm thinking about getting a 5GHz AP to add to my network (my Linksys/Tomato router works great on the wired side--it's just the wireless that's problematic).
...
Any problems with Macbooks (mine is a 2008 white model) playing nice with the WNHDE111 or DAP-1522?

I'm in a crowded wireless area, and there's no contest between 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz, at least at this time. 2.4 GHz is very crowded, and I'm the only one I can see on 5 GHz. But even with more crowding on 5 GHz, there are more channels to choose, so from this perspective alone, 5 GHz is much better.

I don't have problems maintaining connection (except on occasion with 2.4 GHz vs. microwave oven), but do get much better throughput with 5 GHz. Without a great deal of distance, I also see lower reported signal strength with 5 GHz, but personally haven't hit the point where the distance / obstruction penalties of 5 GHz outweigh the crowding effects at 2.4 GHz.

I understand the attraction of a gigabit wired ports, but be realistic -- at any sort of range / with any sort of obstruction, you'd have to be very lucky to exceed 100 Mb/s, and even then, these days, you won't exceed it by much.

I wouldn't expect any interoperability issues. AFAIK the Macbook has a Broadcom chipset, the Netgear an Atheros, and the D-Link an RALink. I've had all 3 chipsets interoperating here at 5 GHz.