AP VS MESH (Ethernet Backhaul)

[CorruptedMind]

As of late I have had some issues with my Orbi's. I am fortunate enough to have Ethernet Backhaul as an option.

I decided to test out the Netgear x4s R7800 and the overall WiFi and Routing performance seems to be much better than the Orbi's. I know I these are two different animals and I can't really compare the two classes. I am deciding if I should buy another R7800 as the AP or a cheaper TP-Link EAP225 or just keep the Orbi's because of the available features. I really enjoy the power of the X4S but more so the features of the Orbi's. Freaking Wifi....

It is nice with the Orbi's that there is one SSID. Also Thiggins mentions in his Wifi Roaming article that the "Orbi—and no other consumer Wi-Fi system I know of—automatically adjusts transmit power level to optimize roaming." So that is a another plus as well. Roaming is a hard thing to tackle as I have read from the articles.

I guess since I have Ethernet Backhaul as an option, the question comes up - does the mesh work better with Ethernet Backhaul and hoping between the two AP's/Satellites? Also does Netgear's Nighthawk stock firmware even support one SSID? Does naming the 2.4ghz and 5ghz the same cause problems?

 

[thiggins]

It is nice with the Orbi's that there is one SSID. Also Thiggins mentions in his Wifi Roaming article that the "Orbi—and no other consumer Wi-Fi system I know of—automatically adjusts transmit power level to optimize roaming." So that is a another plus as well. Roaming is a hard thing to tackle as I have read from the articles.

Sorry, but that was sloppy writing on my part. The sentence (now corrected) properly reads:

"Neither Orbi--nor any other consumer Wi-Fi system I know of--automatically adjusts transmit power level to optimize roaming."

In other words, consumer mesh systems in general don't automatically adjust transmit power.

 

[tannebil]

Wired is far superior to wireless so if it’s an option, it should be your first choice.

Having a unique SSID for every unit on each band gives you the maximum control over each client connection but is a major PITA if you roam around the house. Using a single SSID for all units and bands is the most convenient but leaves you at the mercy of the client when you roam. You are likely to end up on the “wrong” band with no obvious way to get onto the “right” band. But frequently the wrong band is still good enough. 99% of the time I can’t tell the difference between a decent 2.4Ghz connection vs a great 5Ghz connection unless I actually tun a test.

If you been reading the recent roaming tests, you’ll know that roaming expectations are far ahead of most realities. Personally, I’ve mostly gone the single SSID route (I have a single access point 2.4 network for testing with IoT devices).

 

[RogerSC]

I ‘m currently using a R7800 as my main router, with the Orbi as an AP. Works really well. I have the 2.4GHz band set at 25% tx power, and the Orbi never puts anything on that band. All my clients are dual band but run faster on 5GHz, so that makes me happy.

Not sure what problem you’re having with the Orbi as AP...but then while I have a bunch of wired and wireless clients, I don’t use my router and AP for anything other than routing and wireless. No USB, no VPN, etc., no wired backhaul, either. just routing and wireless. Like I said, works great for me. So I’m wondering what the specific issues are with your Orbi?

 

[Easy Rhino]

RogerSC, when you say the 7800 is your main router, are you actually using the Wifi too? (or just as a wired router).

CorruptedMind, if you use the R7800, and only the R7800, what coverage gaps are you left with?

 

[RogerSC]

RogerSC, when you say the 7800 is your main router, are you actually using the Wifi too? (or just as a wired router).

CorruptedMind, if you use the R7800, and only the R7800, what coverage gaps are you left with?

Yes, I've turned off the wifi on the R7800, and use the Orbi for that (in AP mode) instead. So the R7800 is used for "wired-only" connections.

 

[CorruptedMind]

Late reply...

No worries thiggins

Netgear has seemed to do better with the latest updates for the Orbi's and seem more stable. I'm not sure if I am disconnecting from the Orbi's or not because it shows still connected but my devices would be slow to load/buffer or not load at all. Xbox, Nivida Shield, iPhones, Nest Cameras. Once I only use my R7800, it works awesome. Since I run the Orbi's in AP Mode I think I experience much less than everyone else that is running in router mode. I have done all the factory reset steps for the Orbi's and have the latest firmware.

Easy Rhino - I have 2 outdoor nest cameras and 1 nest doorbell camera. My connection from the R7800 can barley reach it but it does. I'm testing out the R7800 and I haven't had issues yet. I need to find more of a central location for the R7800.

RogerSC - What I might do is that I am currently using the dumb Centurylink C3000z modem and using the R7800 in AP mode. I have a 1 Gig connection. Maybe I will do PPPOE and VLAN tagging with the R7800 and make that the router and my Orbi's the AP's again and see how that does. I heard PPPOE can bottleneck the router on the wireless but not on the wired.