Release ASUS RT-AC68U Firmware version 3.0.0.4.386_51722 (2024/11/26)

[wouterv]

Channel 13 on 2.4 GHz is an odd channel, supported outside the USA but not supported by all equipment: channels 1 to 11 are supported globally and by all 2.4 GHz equipment. The old rule of thumb is to select channel 1, 6 or 11 depending on what a site survey tells you, nevertheless site survey is a snapshot in time (channel 1 can be the best now and be fully occupied the next minute).
In practice if you work on closer distances and not try to push the distance limits, 2.4 GHz is quite trouble free, with or without neighbor disturbance.

For 5 GHz the channels 36 to 48 do in theory have the best radio specs and are not bound to Dynamic Frequency Selection, many (older) equipment does only support the channels 36 to 48.
Radar can be found on the channels 120, 124 and 128 (many equipment does not support these channels, like my RT-AC68U in the Netherlands does not list those channels).
The channels above 140 are rather newly allowed and not found on older equipment (my RT-AC68U goes up to channel 140).
Because of the shorter range of 5 GHz also neighbor disturbance is usually less then on 2.4 GHz.
I usually manual select a 2.4 GHz channel out of 1, 6 and 11 and leave 5 GHz to automatic.

Interesting can be your configuration (besides AiMesh): the best in case of troubles is to start with factory defaults and manually configure only the very bare minimal to get Internet access and get your AiMesh going:

• Router Login Name.
• Router Login Password.
• WAN Connection Type, and what is required to connect to the Internet.
• Wireless SSID's and WPA Pre-Shared Key's.
• Leave everything else default.

 

[Oniiz86]

@banger I can confirm that the physical WPS button did factory reset with 386_51722 firmware, so it does appear that Asus fixed it at some point after Merlin's 386.14 firmware.

 

[wouterv]

I had to reboot my RT-AC68U as this morning around 8:24 AM (the time of my previous post) the GUI was no longer responding (white screen after an attempt to access).
After a power cycle all back to normal.
The System Log appeared to have stopped around 9:45 PM last night (the time of my second last post when I checked the router up time) and missed e.g. the daily "firmware update check" of usually around 4:30 AM, the router functioned all the rest ok.

 

[Tech9]

I had to reboot my RT-AC68U as this morning

May be device hardware aging issue. Or power supply? In my experience RT-AC68U and variants work forever undisturbed. When Asus killed some with bad ASD update some time ago I had a friend with >1y uptime with 2x units in AiMesh. I had my own RT-AC66U B1 with months uptime and now support one remotely also doing months uptime. Not the best hardware in 2025, but when it works properly - hard to beat in terms of stability.

 

[wouterv]

Time will tell, so far the RT-AC68U never really failed, the last power cycle I can't remember (must be the power down when we are away for vacation, like last summer).