"Best" new router that supports Merlin?

[frequenzy]

My vote goes to GT-AX6000 if you are after good price and performance.

But if you have money to burn then get GT-AXE16000, it's the greatest but cost 700usd.

 

[L&LD]

So, you want Asus to upgrade to a faster CPU and more modern Wifi SoC, AND sell it at a lower price?

That's not how it works...

The newer chips are more likely less expensive than the older chips for Asus. Yes, for the same features as the old model, I want the new one to be cheaper (because it is). Regardless of if the CPU is 2000/1800 or 11% 'faster'.

Manufacturers don't issue a new model because it is more expensive to make. They do so because sourcing the old parts is more expensive.

For some reason, one of our members had decided (months ago, when the first info was becoming available) that the RT-AX86U Pro model is a "non-starter", and pretty consistently dismisses this model. Yes, it isn't quite the exquisite jewel that he esteems of the GT-AX6000, and it's true that the new Pro model will lack the extra (2nd) 2.5Gb port and 4x4 2.4Ghz radio (3x3 2.4Ghz only on the Pro), but they are otherwise the same.

Now we have choices: the RT-AX86U Pro just recently received a MSRP on the Asus website of $299.99, so that puts it $30 less than the "new" lower list (and commonly available retail) for the GT-AX6000 of $329.99. At that difference, it boils down to personal choice, in particular in regards to form factor. Either way, the GT model might be on it's way out (it's currently unavailable directly from Asus in the US, plenty still available at retail), and the new Pro hasn't really hit retail or internet stores in the US.

For a $30 difference over the expected life of these devices, buying the RT-AX86U Pro is still a bad idea (long term). Just like I've been saying all along. That price difference is just too little to worry about.

And for the record, the prices I'm mostly concentrating on aren't the MSRP (which means nothing for the past couple of decades or more). It is the 'on sale' prices of the units. When the sale price of the GT-AX6000 has already gone substantially below those prices already, the 'pro' is even less so, to me.

Everyone is free to convince themselves otherwise, of course. But I'm not judging today's prices by past history. I'm judging the hardware for what else can be bought with a little patience (and a good sale). YMMV.

 

[Tech9]

But if you have money to burn then get GT-AXE16000, it's the greatest but cost 700usd.

The greatest waste of $700. The same up to 400Mbps CPU relying on NAT acceleration hacks.

 

[martinr]

This is a killer router. If you trip and fall on top of this one - dead instantly. No firmware updates needed - it has great stab-ility already.

View attachment 45891

Sneak preview of the Gen 2 model:

 

[RMerlin]

he newer chips are more likely less expensive than the older chips for Asus.

Again, that's not how inflation works... TSMC, for one, increased their fab pricing by something like 20% over a short period of time.

Manufacturers don't issue a new model because it is more expensive to make. They do so because sourcing the old parts is more expensive.

That makes zero sense. The RT-AC66U was more expensive than the RT-N66U. The RT-AC68U was more expensive. The RT-AC88U was more expensive. And so on. New routers have been consistently more expensive than previous models they replaced.

And also, another reason for the new models is because the manufacturer is discontinuing the original part, and also because chip shortages forces the manufacturer to prioritize newer chips with larger profit margins. Look up the BCM6755 datasheet on Broadcom's site for instance, see the notice it contains about this chip being discontinued.

I know for a fact (i.e. I was told so by Asus) that a few router hardware changes since the start of the pandemic were made specifically due to availability issues with the original part.

 

[JoeBee]

Amazon have a special sale on the RT-AX86U for UK customers for £210.99, tempted to get it but just surprised the lack of 2.5Gbps ports, they have one for the wan or lan but then not for the devices not even 1 main PC.

I checked this and GT-AX6000 prices from October and November just gone and even the RT-AX86U was £189
and GT-AX6000 for £230 back then.

Wish I snapped up the GT-AX6000 when it was that low, its now £300, looks like Asus raised the prices december maybe due to COL crisis and world wide events.

 

[Tech9]

Sneak preview of the Gen 2 model:

This is Asus' version of BeamFlex+ adaptive antenna technology with 4200 antenna patterns.

 

[L&LD]

Again, that's not how inflation works... TSMC, for one, increased their fab pricing by something like 20% over a short period of time.


That makes zero sense. The RT-AC66U was more expensive than the RT-N66U. The RT-AC68U was more expensive. The RT-AC88U was more expensive. And so on. New routers have been consistently more expensive than previous models they replaced.

And also, another reason for the new models is because the manufacturer is discontinuing the original part, and also because chip shortages forces the manufacturer to prioritize newer chips with larger profit margins. Look up the BCM6755 datasheet on Broadcom's site for instance, see the notice it contains about this chip being discontinued.

I know for a fact (i.e. I was told so by Asus) that a few router hardware changes since the start of the pandemic were made specifically due to availability issues with the original part.

You're saying what I'm saying yet you come to a different conclusion. Margins are what rule prices. Not the cost of the BOM.

Increasing prices are not inflation, that is simply corporate greed.

If things really were more expensive, then manufacturers, by your definition, would be running on 0.05% margins today. Yet magically, they do not.

Inflation isn't what manufacturers work against. It's what they (chose to) create.

The BOM of an Apple product hasn't increased that much, yet the prices keep climbing. Every manufacturer is doing the same too.

Nothing in your quoted post significantly changes what I have previously stated on this topic.


iPhone X BOM Cost Report (with Supplier List) - International Electronic Business Information (esmchina.com)

Below is a small translation to English of this older phone I found in a 1-second search. Note that the 'small' Gross Margin of 63%.

iPhone X BOM Cost Report with Supplier List​

2017-11-14  Author:Network Finishing

On November 10, IHS Markit, a well-known institution, issued a detailed material cost report for iPhone X (64GB), concluding that it was $370.25 (about 2458 yuan). This figure is slightly higher than Techlnsights' $357.5 (equivalent to 2370 yuan), but the difference is not large, and the iPhone X still brings Apple a very considerable profit.

The cost is more expensive than the iPhone 8 and Galaxy S8​

iPhone X has two versions, 64GB and 256GB, corresponding to the National Bank's price of 8388 yuan and 9688 yuan respectively. The report pointed out that the material cost of the iPhone X A1865 low-end version (64GB flash memory) is 370.25 US dollars (about 2370 yuan), excluding Apple's research and development, manufacturing, software, services and other costs. The cost of materials for the iPhone X 64GB version accounted for 37% of the sales price, and the gross margin was 63%.
In comparison, the material cost of the 64G NAND flash Samsung Galaxy S8 is $302, and the retail price is about $720.
Compared to the iPhone X, the iPhone 8 costs much less. According to the disassembly analysis of HIS, the material cost of the iPhone 8 64GB version is 255.16 US dollars (about 1697 yuan), and its National Bank version is priced from 5888 yuan; the hardware cost of the 256GB iPhone 8 Plus is 288.08 US dollars (about 1906 yuan), and the National Bank version is priced from 7988 yuan.
Andrew Rassweiler, senior director of cost benchmarking services at IHS Markit, said: "The iPhone X is the most expensive model in the iPhone series to date, and it retails at the highest price compared to other flagship phones in its class, which will be a whole new price point for the smartphone industry."
"The iPhone X represents Apple's biggest design advancement since the iPhone came out in 2007, and its underlying architecture is similar to the iPhone 8 Plus," Rassweiler said. "Both models are built with components common to the platform, but the X has a better screen and TrueDepth camera, which sets it apart and costs more."

 

[Slapdaddy]

You're saying what I'm saying yet you come to a different conclusion. Margins are what rule prices. Not the cost of the BOM.

Increasing prices are not inflation, that is simply corporate greed.

If things really were more expensive, then manufacturers, by your definition, would be running on 0.05% margins today. Yet magically, they do not.

Inflation isn't what manufacturers work against. It's what they (chose to) create.

The BOM of an Apple product hasn't increased that much, yet the prices keep climbing. Every manufacturer is doing the same too.

Nothing in your quoted post significantly changes what I have previously stated on this topic.


iPhone X BOM Cost Report (with Supplier List) - International Electronic Business Information (esmchina.com)

Below is a small translation to English of this older phone I found in a 1-second search. Note that the 'small' Gross Margin of 63%.

I don't think you understand how inflation works.

 

[L&LD]

Inflation doesn't work. It is not a law. It is simply created out of thin air.

He who has the gold makes the rules. Always.

 

[GHog]

To get back on track here, I have been looking at the Gt-AX6000 and the RT-AX88u. How are the GT-AX6000 and RT-AX88u behaving when setup using AiMesh and Merlin`s 388 firmware. That would be the combination I would use. I also might just go ahead and get another RT-AX88u and use 2 of those in a mesh with Merlin`s firmware. Any issues with that combination users are having. I would be using the backhaul feature with my connection. Hate to get another RT-AX88u when I will need a phone update in the next year too and the 6e spec finally gets resolved. I suspect the 6e spec will be awhile out so it`s a crap shoot. Do I pay now for future proof or just go with what works the best right now. They question here is how these two routers behave in a mesh setup using Merlin firmware.

 

[Smokey613]

I wish I had a dollar every time someone post about buying a particular model or feature to “future proof” their investment.

There is no such thing as a “Future Proof” puchase, especially technology.

 

[AppleBag]

So I got the Ax-6K and am in the process of setting it all up; I flashed the latest Merlin Rog and noticed one (minor, but I used it all the time) thing; I used to change the icon to something more intuitive per device in the "Network Map | View List" by clicking the icon, which brought up the device's properties, and you could select an icon. This isn't available in the Rog GUI; is it available in the non-Rog GUI?

I can also change it in the LAN DHCP server list after I've added a device, but that's not very convenient, to have to add a device first and then change it's icon, and finally remove it again.

 

[Viktor Jaep]

In case anyone is interested, you probably won't find a better deal anytime soon... But the GT-AX6000 just went on sale for $299 on Amazon:

Limited-time deal: ASUS ROG Rapture WiFi 6 AX Gaming Router (GT-AX6000) - Dual Band 2.5G WAN/LAN Ports, Quad-Core 2.0Ghz CPU, Triple-Level Game Acceleration, AiMesh Compatible, Lifetime Internet Security, Instant Guard https://a.co/d/eUcnZAt

 

[AppleBag]

In case anyone is interested, you probably won't find a better deal anytime soon... But the GT-AX6000 just went on sale for $299 on Amazon:

Limited-time deal: ASUS ROG Rapture WiFi 6 AX Gaming Router (GT-AX6000) - Dual Band 2.5G WAN/LAN Ports, Quad-Core 2.0Ghz CPU, Triple-Level Game Acceleration, AiMesh Compatible, Lifetime Internet Security, Instant Guard https://a.co/d/eUcnZAt

Thanks for the heads up @Viktor Jaep =)

I just bought it from BestBuy for $329 and it's still under their Price Match Guarantee. Went to their Agent chat, everything was goin great until ... the bonehead agent was in some kinda rush, didn't read my reply to send it to my Discover card (that I also used at the time), and sent it to a Visa gift card that I used, that I had already explained to him that I cut up into a million pieces after using it all up on the router. LOL

After that he said "nothing I can do now, I already sent it". Well ... I was excited for about 5 minutes at least! $32 have been sent off into the ether!

 

[RMinNJ]

Thanks for the heads up @Viktor Jaep =)



After that he said "nothing I can do now, I already sent it". Well ... I was excited for about 5 minutes at least! $32 have been sent off into the ether!

Bummer. FYI I was told by Best Buy they won't match a price if it's for Amazon Prime members only..only the non-prime price.

 

[AppleBag]

Bummer. FYI I was told by Best Buy they won't match a price if it's for Amazon Prime members only..only the non-prime price.

This is the one I showed the Agent.

 

[JoeBee]

Seems prices are fluxing somewhat in UK with the GT-AX6000, some retailers got it for £290 others £370.

I managed to buy it for £250 with an ebay discount this week.

I still wish to give openwrtx86 a proper testing out, but after a week I miss merlins firmware and simplicity, it just gets the basics right.

 

[Viktor Jaep]

Merry Christmas to me... whoooo! Bit the bullet, and made the switch from the AC86U to the GT-AX6000 this morning... along with a nice speedy Samsung SSD to hold all these scripts! So far so good... seeing a few small (weird) discrepancies on what it's reporting back for WiFi stats between the 86U and the AX6000 in RTRMON, and will be diving into those a little further. I might need some others with an AX6000 to validate that they're seeing the same issue?

But so far, the AX6000 is performing nicely. Thanks to all for the recommendation, and to all a good night!

 

[Tech9]

The best router that supports @RMerlin right now is the one generating more heat and has "Show shoveling" option in firmware set on Auto.