Continued from previous post...AX58 vs. AX 68

[wh7qq]

Started new post rather than poach on a prior topic.

L&LD asserts:"AX68 is a better router" (than AX58).

I have no personal experience with either...just considering the options should my RT-N66 give up the ghost. I initially chose the '58 because its price and its more recent cpu and release date. It is $50 US less expensive on Amazon and released 6 years later. Those aren't functional reasons so my question is what is $50 buying? My setup is very simple: 2 Ethernet devices plus pi-hole and 2 wireless, home-brew IoT thingies that don't need speed. No Alexa, smart phone, smart TV. etc. and no intention to add same in the future. Likely both are overkill.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Likely both are overkill.

Given that your current setup works well with an N66U both of those models are complete overkill. The AX68 has potentially higher WiFi throughput than the AX58 but both are significantly more than the N66U if you have a client that supports it.

I don't get the "6 years" reference. The N66U was released in 2011, the AX58 in 2019 and the AX68 in 2020/21.

 

[RMinNJ]

?? Did you mean the AC68u compared to the AX58U?

Direct spec comparison of your title;

Asus RT-AX68U Review: A Cool AX2700 Router | Dong Knows Tech

A bit late to the Wi-Fi 6 game, the Asus RT-AX68U AX2700 still makes a splash thanks to its stellar combo of performance, features, and affordability. Get one!

dongknows.com

Certainly confusing here that it says the AX68 does not support 160

Also in Dongs test the AX88 outperformed the AX86 for wifi 5 clients.

 

[L&LD]

This isn't a question of which is overkill. The original question on the other thread I responded to was what would be a good contender today to get similar 10+ years of use out of it into the future. If you buy yesterday's technology today, you're already obsolete with little hope of getting a decade's use out of anything.

The RT-AX58U is inferior to the RT-AX68U, (my guess, because of the CPU, not just 300MHz faster, but also AES support on the latter), and the much more current SDK used on the RT-AX68U. The network is much more stable, reliable, and fluid when the RT-AX68U is powering it (vs. the RT-AX58U).

Given that the RT-AX68U is a superior router vs. the previous 'king', the RT-AC86U, and the fact that the RT-AX58U is using inferior hardware and SDKs, that $50 isn't something to 'save' today when considering a router into the future.

Best ASUS router right now?

Hey everyone, What's the best ASUS router/s to buy right now (no specific budget, just want the below needs satisfied): •VPN speed (AES optimised) •Range •Throughput Obs has to be supported by @RMerlin's insanely good firmware/on the list to be supported in upcoming versions. Thank you :)...

www.snbforums.com

Follow the links in the post above to see the details of why I know and believe the above to be so.

 

[ColinTaylor]

Follow the links in the post above to see the details of why I know and believe the above to be so.

I only quickly scanned the 5 separate links from that post and only found one passing mention of the RT-AX58U. I didn't see anything comparing the RT-AX58U to the RT-AX68U.

 

[L&LD]

[ 386.4 alpha Build(s) ] Testing available build(s)

There are some odd regressions being discussed on the dnsmasq-discuss list from the PiHole guy (Dominik). https://lists.thekelleys.org.uk/pipermail/dnsmasq-discuss/2021q3/015598.html https://lists.thekelleys.org.uk/pipermail/dnsmasq-discuss/2021q3/015596.html I see Merlin is testing 2.86 out...

www.snbforums.com

While not directly compared (RT-AX58U vs RT-AX68U), the RT-AX68U is superior, overall, to the RT-AC86U (the previously best router).

The RT-AX58U was never at the level of the RT-AC86U when I tested/compared those against each other (sometime before/during the time I had bought the RT-AX88U over a year ago).

While the RT-AX58U may have better (overall) WiFi than the RT-AC86U in certain environments, as a router, it feels sluggish. Those weak cores do not do the rest of the hardware justice.

 

[wh7qq]

Given that your current setup works well with an N66U both of those models are complete overkill. The AX68 has potentially higher WiFi throughput than the AX58 but both are significantly more than the N66U if you have a client that supports it.

I don't get the "6 years" reference. The N66U was released in 2011, the AX58 in 2019 and the AX68 in 2020/21.

You are absolutely correct. I am not sure where I got that...must have been from the AC68 or something else...brain flatus I guess. The N66 was definitely overkill when I bought it as I was on the old Starband ISP at the time, later Viasat but it has lasted so long that it paid off. I doubt anything will hold up that well today. Everything is "cost reduced" to the max.

 

[jtp10181]

Thanks to the feedback in here it made for a quick decision. I just purchased an AX68U on an Amazon Warehouse deal for $140 (open box basically). Replacing my old AC56U which I think I am over working and it crashes and reboots when I change certain DNS and DHCP settings. I cannot wait to see the current firmware since I have been stuck on an old version!

So... is there any way to "mesh" the AC56U with the new one? Or would my only option be to use it as a hard wired AP? I used a range extender a while back and I did not like how it messed with the MAC of the devices, made it harder to keep track of the devices that would roam from one part of the house to another. Hoping if I do a mesh or a wired AP setup it wont cause that problem.

 

[L&LD]

The RT-AC56U doesn't support AiMesh v2.0, afaik. Even if it does (see link below), my experience suggests that it would be a poor fit with the RT-AX68U. While not directly comparable to the RT-AX68U you just purchased, it may give you pause for thought.

RT-AX86U vs. RT-AX88U


What I would suggest is to use it for your wired-capable devices in Media Bridge mode. Not only will this give those devices a stronger and more stable connection, but it will also relieve the wireless load on the router too (stronger connections require less airtime, which equals a faster, overall, network.

Media Bridge Mode


The following links may be helpful too when setting up your new router (with RMerlin firmware, or not).

[Wireless] ASUS router Hard Factory Reset | Official Support | ASUS Global

Fully Reset / Best Practice Setup / More

Almost all L&LD Links

About L&LD

 

[jtp10181]

@L&LD thanks for the tips and yes that other post is good. I will have to watch for a deal on one of the compatible models if I want to setup the AiMesh. The upgrade just to the AX68 might give me enough range where I don't need it anymore anyway. Mostly just weak in one area of my house and also spotty just past that in the garage / driveway, but it does work everywhere in the 1300sqft footprint 2-story house.