GT-AX11000 PRO and 2.5G port for LAN

[jaklan]

Hi all,

I wonder about buying GT-AX11000 Pro as it seems to be a pretty nice balance between GT-AX6000 and GT-AXE16000 (from both money & capability perspectives), I just have one question about the 2.5G port.

Looking at the specification, you can see it's described as "1 x 2.5 Gigabit WAN Port". The same in the manual. But in the model brief we have quotes like:

Flexible networking ports – One 2.5G port and one 10G port can be configured for either WAN or LAN operation

The GT-AX11000 Pro has one 2.5 Gbps port and one 10 Gbps port that can be configured for either WAN or LAN operation.

So I'm actually pretty confused if I can use the 10G port for WAN and the 2.5G port for LAN or not really. Maybe someone already has that router and could verify that or you have some experience based on previous Asus models with similar port spec?

Also, if the answer is "no" - is that sth potentially achievable one day with Asuswrt-Merlin?

Cheers!

 

[jaklan]

I bought that Router today and returned it thinking i could use my full speed of my internet. Both ports are input only, i have 1.5Gbps Fiber internet and would like a router that can actually support it on the output. I am Looking at the GT-AX6000, that one has 2.5Gbps input and output.

Thanks for the answer! But have you actually tried to use it for LAN? I read some comments from guys with GT-AXE16000, which also has a WAN-only 2.5 Gbps port in theory, but they succeeded to use it for LAN, so I believe here it should work the same...

 

[jaklan]

Oh I feel your pain. That's what I was afraid of - becoming a beta tester of freshly released router, as it seems to be pretty common with Asus... So it seems the battle-proved GT-AX6000 could be a better idea as for now, even taking the lack of 10Gbps port into consideration. At least unless @RMerlin can say if "unlocking" the port with Asuswrt-Merlin would be possible.

 

[bixiosun]

From the router video presentation only the 10g should be wan / lan port:
video presentation

 

[wags1]

If it's anything like the 2.5G port on the RT-AX86U it can be easily configured and used as a LAN port using the stock FW. That is how I'm using it on my RT-AX86U.

 

[Kingp1n]

Has anyone seen the GT-AX11000 Pro for sale in the states? I've seen some go for sale in Europe only.

 

[jaklan]

If it's anything like the 2.5G port on the RT-AX86U it can be easily configured and used as a LAN port using the stock FW. That is how I'm using it on my RT-AX86U.

RT-AX86U is said directly to have a WAN/LAN port:

-- WAN/LAN: 2.5G/1Gbps multi-Gig port (configurable)

And information about GT-AX11000 Pro are not coherent - specs mention only WAN, briefs mention both...

 

[Maverick009]

The GT-AX11000 Pro 2.5G port only operates as a WAN port (an upgrade from the 1Gb port on the non-pro model) The 10G port can operate as either LAN/WAN (An upgrade over the 2.5G port on the non-pro model). Hope that helps you out.

 

[jaklan]

The GT-AX11000 Pro 2.5G port only operates as a WAN port (an upgrade from the 1Gb port on the non-pro model) The 10G port can operate as either LAN/WAN (An upgrade over the 2.5G port on the non-pro model). Hope that helps you out.

Thanks for clarification! Having said that - 10G WAN port without even single 2.5G LAN port is pretty disappointing. The setup in GT-AX11000 was at least useful to get 3.5G via port aggregation, but who cares about it anymore when having 10G port?

 

[Maverick009]

Thanks for clarification! Having said that - 10G WAN port without even single 2.5G LAN port is pretty disappointing. The setup in GT-AX11000 was at least useful to get 3.5G via port aggregation, but who cares about it anymore when having 10G port?

Not exactly disappointing. There is cost involved. The AX11000 Pro was more of mid-grade evolution over the non-pro version adding a 10G port and making the WAN port 2.5G. It also makes sense as most internet services are only surpassing 1G speeds with 2G speeds held as premium. If you want multiple 10G ports, then the AXE16000 router would be the way to go. Other option would be to build a custom firewall router and use Pfsense or Opnsense (I personally use Opnsense now). The ports and tech are not cheap and Asus just like others, build in tiers for the consumers to pick what they are willing to pay to get that tech.

 

[jaklan]

It also makes sense as most internet services are only surpassing 1G speeds with 2G speeds held as premium

Well, depends where you live. In some countries 10G is getting pretty common and I believe AX11000 Pro is the Asus's answer to increasing demand for 10G support also in the mid-to-high price range.

If you want multiple 10G ports, then the AXE16000 router would be the way to go.

Yeah it seems as an only uncompromising option, but a) the price is ridiculous b) as reported in multiple threads at SNB, the software seems to be still pretty buggy. Not to mention issues with the 2.5G port, which could be even more serious.

The ports and tech are not cheap and Asus just like others, build in tiers for the consumers to pick what they are willing to pay to get that tech.

To be honest - I'm not convinced by that one. Is 2.5G WAN/LAN port really making such a cost difference in comparison to 2.5G WAN port? Especially when we talk about still pretty expensive device.

 

[Slapdaddy]

The GT-AX11000 Pro 2.5G port only operates as a WAN port (an upgrade from the 1Gb port on the non-pro model) The 10G port can operate as either LAN/WAN (An upgrade over the 2.5G port on the non-pro model). Hope that helps you out.

On the AXE16000, on Merlin firmware (haven't tried stock), you can select a 10G port or a 2.5G port for WAN and either of the two ports that are not selected as WAN will work as a viable LAN port.

 

[Maverick009]

Well, depends where you live. In some countries 10G is getting pretty common and I believe AX11000 Pro is the Asus's answer to increasing demand for 10G support also in the mid-to-high price range.


Yeah it seems as an only uncompromising option, but a) the price is ridiculous b) as reported in multiple threads at SNB, the software seems to be still pretty buggy. Not to mention issues with the 2.5G port, which could be even more serious.


To be honest - I'm not convinced by that one. Is 2.5G WAN/LAN port really making such a cost difference in comparison to 2.5G WAN port? Especially when we talk about still pretty expensive device.

You are correct it depends on where you live, but the answer I gave also holds true that most internet services are just surpassing 1GB speeds with 2G speeds held as a premium. 10G is still in its infancy mainly with tests and rudimentry setups. Cost effective 10G is just beginning to hit countries, but I do not believe it will grow fast enough for companies such as ASUS to fully dedicate building devices around it enough to lower pricing.

That brings us to the AXE16000 and why it is priced high. The hardware it is built around is not cheap and a 10G port, let alone multiple 10G ports are going to cost you. Even todays 10G single port cards cost between $80-$100.00. So add 2 of them and that price goes up. Once the rest of the solid components are selected and markup, you get to that price tag. Yeah we will not like it, but that is what you call early adopter pricing. I am sure once we get to WiFi7 routers, the 10G ports may be more cost effective as well, but the early adopter fee for WiFi7 may be hit or miss. My point is eventually the tech will tringle down into more affordable everyday type pricing.

As for the last part you don't have to be convinced, but you also cannot look at just the ports. You are need the chipset and board traces for it. Adding just a port capable of 2.5G may be a small fraction going from 1G, but then add chipset and other internals to make it work, and the price goes up. Most of the premium routers were also in development and already had tech locked in before any price drops on multigig connections. Even motherboard manufacturers have just started to enable 2.5G ports on some of thier lowerend boards. It has not fully hit the rock bottom boards, but it is now more affordable and we are now seeing cheaper multigig switches as a result. I am sure as WiFi7 routers come out or even some mid gen router upgrades, we would see some with the switch portion of the router carrying multiple multigig ports. Just sayin...

 

[jaklan]

On the AXE16000, on Merlin firmware (haven't tried stock), you can select a 10G port or a 2.5G port for WAN and either of the two ports that are not selected as WAN will work as a viable LAN port.

Hah, and that's what I wanted to believe is also possible with the GT-AX11000 Pro, but it seems no one was able to verify it yet...

 

[jaklan]

Okay guys, I can put some more light on the issue. I've just found a YouTube review of GT-AX11000 Pro. It's in Chinese, but English subtitles works well enough. The most important outcome from the video - the reviewer was able to use the 2.5G port for LAN:

Btw, what's also interesting in the video - the WiFi range of GT-AX11000 Pro seems to be significantly worse than the GT-AX6000 one:

It was concluded this way:

The router needs to be configured with a filter to reduce the interference between the two 5G frequency bands, resulting in a drop in transmit power.

 

[Kingp1n]

I saw Asus page selling the AX11000 Pro:

https://shop.asus.com/us/90ig0720-ma1a0v-rog-rapture-gt-ax11000-pro.html?gclid=CjwKCAiAy_CcBhBeEiwAcoMRHJMrxr09Klvl696sMSzrdFwhNRuwjx5eluFJfcSswhpt9qwmYbyPqhoCXioQAvD_BwE

 

[modisx5]

Hi all,

I wonder about buying GT-AX11000 Pro as it seems to be a pretty nice balance between GT-AX6000 and GT-AXE16000 (from both money & capability perspectives), I just have one question about the 2.5G port.

Looking at the specification, you can see it's described as "1 x 2.5 Gigabit WAN Port". The same in the manual. But in the model brief we have quotes like:


So I'm actually pretty confused if I can use the 10G port for WAN and the 2.5G port for LAN or not really. Maybe someone already has that router and could verify that or you have some experience based on previous Asus models with similar port spec?

Also, if the answer is "no" - is that sth potentially achievable one day with Asuswrt-Merlin?

Cheers!

If you set the 10G port for WAN, then the 2.5 G port will work on LAN.
I just bought one of these and did it.
The pic shows (right to left) the speed of my ISP router HH4000 3Gbps service, the "Internet Speed" on "Game Accelleration" of the AX11000 Pro, and on the far left, which is routed through a 2.5G switch to a 2.5G ethernet port on my PC.

I previously fed the ISP 3 Gbps service into the 2.5 G WAN port and got the 2.5 G speed on WAN.

Notice the port status shows 10G is connected to the internet. I have the 2.5 Port feeding a 2.5 G switch. Never mind LAN3, it is on an IOT device that just has a 100 Mbps connection, so the router flags it thinking something is wrong lol. Same thing will happen for a PC that is in sleep mode and low power on the LAN.