5GHz channel bandwidth - "20/40/80" vs "80"

[SkippyP]

Understood

 

[OzarkEdge]

But locking it to 160 also means using one of the lower channels (36-48) if you can’t/don’t want to use DFS. And those lower channels have significantly less transmit power, resulting in poorer coverage. Locking to 80 and also locking to one of the upper channels (149-161) would provide a better balance of coverage and performance, no?

Do you know what the allowed Tx power is for bands U-NII-1 and -3 in your region?

OE

 

[SkippyP]

I’m in Toronto (Canada). Should be 200mW for channels 36-48 and 1W for 149-161.

 

[OzarkEdge]

I’m in Toronto (Canada). Should be 200mW for channels 36-48 and 1W for 149-161.

Region matters... I believe bands 1 and 3 in the US allow 1000mW... 1W.

OE

 

[SkippyP]

This is interesting. If the article linked below is to be believed, it looks like max transmit power for UNII-1 used to be 200mW but the government changed it in 2017 and it’s now 1W (just like UNII-3). Having said that, if I use channels 36-48, there’s a noticeable degradation in range across all my 5GHz-connected devices. And when switching back to channel 149, I immediately get better coverage.

5GHz Regulations in Canada (2018 Update) – SemFio Networks

semfionetworks.com

 

[OzarkEdge]

This is interesting. If the article linked below is to be believed, it looks like max transmit power for UNII-1 used to be 200mW but the government changed it in 2017 and it’s now 1W (just like UNII-3). Having said that, if I use channels 36-48, there’s a noticeable degradation in range across all my 5GHz-connected devices. And when switching back to channel 149, I immediately get better coverage.

5GHz Regulations in Canada (2018 Update) – SemFio Networks

semfionetworks.com

Maybe your next router will exhibit the change... maybe your current clients are old and don't know about the increase in allowed Tx power on band 1.

OE

 

[SkippyP]

Perhaps…

But all of my 5GHz-capable clients are less than two years old. And my router is an AX86U Pro…

 

[OzarkEdge]

Perhaps…

But all of my 5GHz-capable clients are less than two years old. And my router is an AX86U Pro…

You'll figure it out over time.

My original point was that your band settings advice here should respect the various regional regulations (including your own).

OE

 

[jayd]

When I leave Control Channel on Auto on the 5GHz band, it prefers DFS channel 124. And never changes. Router knows that channel is uncrowded. Pretty much empty. The channels close to it are too. From 100 to 128. Higher channels aren't. As I can see on the app.

 

[jerry6]

I lock 5.2 at 80 chan 149 get a solid connection very good speeds on an ancient AC card Intel 7260

 

[OzarkEdge]

When I leave Control Channel on Auto on the 5GHz band, it prefers DFS channel 124. And never changes. Router knows that channel is uncrowded. Pretty much empty. The channels close to it are too. From 100 to 128. Higher channels aren't. As I can see on the app.

If all of your clients support DFS channels, then you can use such uncrowded DFS control channels; otherwise, exclude DFS control channels to permit those legacy clients to connect.

OE

 

[jayd]

Thing about legacy clients is that most of them don't even support 5GHz. The one I still use sometimes only connects to 2.4GHz.

 

[OzarkEdge]

Thing about legacy clients is that most of them don't even support 5GHz. The one I still use sometimes only connects to 2.4GHz.

'legacy' is a relative term in technology time... it can mean any old difference, not just 2.4GHz.

By 'legacy' I mean older hardware that falls short of working well with current standards/equipment, usually requiring some special consideration to keep it in service... or not... retiring legacy equipment can be advisable to move forward with new technology.

I have 5GHz clients that do not support DFS channels... I suppose they are legacy clients in that respect, but with DFS being such a peculiar and marginal current tech feature, I don't hold it against them... and I'm not going to retire them for DFS... I just use non-DFS control channels.

OE

 

[Tech9]

Thing about legacy clients

Just careful with Legacy setting on 2.4GHz because in Asus meaning it's 802.11g link rates. The clients will be restricted up to 54Mbps.

The same effect if WMM is disabled in Professional settings, it's required for 802.11n and will cut the link rates down to 54Mbps maximum.

 

[sfx2000]

So if individual clients can dynamically adjust channel bandwidth, I’m curious as to why even use the “20/40/80” option on the router? Why leave it up to the router to dynamically adjust the channel for ALL clients when individual clients can do this themselves based on their specific conditions? Best to lock the router to 80, no?

Clients generally make that decision - channel width and number of streams - mobiles in particular, to save battery...

Like I mentioned earlier - just leave it as 20/40/80 (and perhaps 160 if you have gear that can use it) - I think that 80MHz only is likely an artifact of a really ancient codebase...

 

[Listedguru2]

Clients generally make that decision - channel width and number of streams - mobiles in particular, to save battery...

Like I mentioned earlier - just leave it as 20/40/80 (and perhaps 160 if you have gear that can use it) - I think that 80MHz only is likely an artifact of a really ancient codebase...

This past week I upgraded from a Netgear Nighthawk AC router to an Asus AX88U Pro router. I live in a subdivision where the homes are pretty close together in the US. I came across this thread about what settings to use for 5Ghz and which channels and that got me thinking. My new Asus router has been working great (knock on wood) but I am using the same channels I used on my previous Netgear AC router - for 5Ghz I am using the 20/40/80 ib channel 36. Should I be using a higher channel on 5Ghz (I see 149 mentioned here). It sounds like the higher channels are more powerful for 5Ghz but like I mentioned I live in a subdivision with many close neighbors so not sure if using a channel with a more powerful signal strength is ok?

I saw another person mention a wifi analyzer to see what the congestion looks like in one's particular setting. Can anyone recommend a wifi analyzer they've been happy with? Also I live close to an airport with planes that fly overhead quite often if that makes any difference in all of this...

 

[Tech9]

Switch your router to Auto channel for some time and see which one it picks. The router sees the environment better than a client running Wi-Fi analyzer app. If close to an airport - use channels 36-48 or 149-161 at 80MHz channel bandwidth. Wi-Fi settings are environment specific. Don't copy someone else's settings, find your own working best for you.

 

[CaptainSTX]

Switch your router to Auto channel for some time and see which one it picks. The router sees the environment better than a client running Wi-Fi analyzer app. If close to an airport - use channels 36-48 or 149-161 at 80MHz channel bandwidth. Wi-Fi settings are environment specific. Don't copy someone else's settings, find your own working best for you.

Not a bad idea but the OP will need to pay attention if any devices have trouble connecting or drop off regularly. IoT devices in particular often are not very frequency agile but fortunately many IoT devices only run on the 2.4 Ghz band so if the OP locks this radio on channel 1,6,11 and possibly 13 depending where they are in the world then most IoT devices should be fine.

 

[Listedguru2]

Switch your router to Auto channel for some time and see which one it picks. The router sees the environment better than a client running Wi-Fi analyzer app. If close to an airport - use channels 36-48 or 149-161 at 80MHz channel bandwidth. Wi-Fi settings are environment specific. Don't copy someone else's settings, find your own working best for you.

Thanks for the suggestion and I will give auto a try. Is it true that the higher channels (like 149-161 at 80MHz) are more powerful than channel 36 which I currently using now and have been for many years on my AC router.

 

[Listedguru2]

Not a bad idea but the OP will need to pay attention if any devices have trouble connecting or drop off regularly. IoT devices in particular often are not very frequency agile but fortunately many IoT devices only run on the 2.4 Ghz band so if the OP locks this radio on channel 1,6,11 and possibly 13 depending where they are in the world then most IoT devices should be fine.

My 2.4Ghz devices are locked on channel 11 and have been for several years without issue. I have 2.4Ghz locked on channel 11 on my new AX router as well.