HELP with second ASUS router

[pete y testing]

OK, but I also have read bad comments about the REALTEK chipset the RP-AC68U uses, instead of the BROADCOM of the RT AC-68U. Ive been told its not a good idea to mix chipsets when pairing routers/repeaters.

its swings and roundabouts , what you gain with one you loose with the other , and as stated repeating is plagued with issues etherway , if it where me i would invest in ethernet and an ap

 

[mabhz]

its swings and roundabouts , what you gain with one you loose with the other , and as stated repeating is plagued with issues etherway , if it where me i would invest in ethernet and an ap

1. Ok, i got the "importance" (or maybe the "difference it makes") of using a cable from the main router until the "slave" router and them broadcast a wifi signal. That makes it an Access Point, correct?

2. This "architecture" would provide the best signal to the area of the house the "slave" router is covering, correct?

Considering that, I might try a different solution: ADSL MODEN as bridge connected to the new router (yet to decide), a cable from this router going up to the second floor and right into the trusty old RT AC-68U, and then, a wireless 2.4/5 ghz Network from the AC68U convering (hopefully) all second floor.

3. Would that give me a better signal compared to a Wireless Repeater (either with RT or RP AC68U??

4. Main question: considering that layout, will the RT5300 (and its magnificent 8 antennas) provide me a "better"/stronger signal on the first floor compared to the AC88U/RT3100??

If not, I think my best choice is the RT3100, or the AC88U if for any reason its out of stock.

 

[sfx2000]

Newer iPad and iPhones will support 5 GHz, yes. I don't know when Apple started to support it however.

I collected info - I'll have to search the forums perhaps - but for iPhone/iPad/iPodTouch/AppleTV...

Basically all iPads support 5Ghz, iPhone5 and later, iPodTouch 5G and later, along with all AppleTV's - differing degrees of support (11ac/2-stream MIMO, wide channels, etc...)

 

[pete y testing]

Considering that, I might try a different solution: ADSL MODEN as bridge connected to the new router (yet to decide), a cable from this router going up to the second floor and right into the trusty old RT AC-68U, and then, a wireless 2.4/5 ghz Network from the AC68U convering (hopefully) all second floor.

sounds like a great plan

3. Would that give me a better signal compared to a Wireless Repeater (either with RT or RP AC68U??

yes both reliable and less loss and far less issues

4. Main question: considering that layout, will the RT5300 (and its magnificent 8 antennas) provide me a "better"/stronger signal on the first floor compared to the AC88U/RT3100??

the simple answer is no , as explained we are at max transmission rates power wise so they will all be around the same

i actually dislike the 5300 with that antenna farm that tend to fall down all the time and side by side adds nothing over an 88u coverage or distance wise

If not, I think my best choice is the RT3100, or the AC88U if for any reason its out of stock.

yep the 3100 should be fine , you only need the 88u if you can use its 8 lan ports or have a nas that is capable of teaming / bonding

 

[mabhz]

yep the 3100 should be fine , you only need the 88u if you can use its 8 lan ports or have a nas that is capable of teaming / bonding

THANK YOU very much for all your commets. I guess RT3100 is my target purchase. Just curious: when I purchased the RT AC68U, there were TONS of reviews and awards attesting it was a "one of a kind" product, excellent features and signal, etc, etc.

Does the AC88U / RT3100 bare the same acomplishments?? Did they "inherited" AC68U quality, or are totally diferente products, another line with another standards???

Last question: changing the default antenas on my AC68U would "improve" its signal on any way (12db antenas), or it wont make any difference??

 

[RMerlin]

Does the AC88U / RT3100 bare the same acomplishments?? Did they "inherited" AC68U quality, or are totally diferente products, another line with another standards???

It's still the same firmware (Asuswrt), and the hardware is from Broadcom, so I'd expect similar stability/reliability. My main concern so far with the RT-AC88U is the antenna connector which doesn't seem to be very solid, compared to those on the RT-AC68U. But as long you don't mess with it, it shouldn't be a problem.

Most of the feedback posted here on SNBForums has been positive so far.

 

[pete y testing]

RT AC68U, there were TONS of reviews and awards attesting it was a "one of a kind" product, excellent features and signal, etc, etc.

it was the first of its kind and thus got the acknowledgement

we now have a slew of similar 1900ac routers on the market all doing about the same

with the advent of the 1900ac class we started seeing the limitations of wifi coverage as we have reached max eirp for pretty much all new routers , thus meaning we wont be seeing claims of massive increases in wifi coverage etc , its hard to also get excited about things that dont matter to most like faster vpn or faster usb ( most use nas now anyway ) , so i guess the excitement level isnt there any more as we are continually bombarded with yet more and more new models that for most wont improve the important thing and thats wifi coverage , after all i would hazard a guess that 80% of thread here are related to wifi coverage and how to fix it and alas there is no new magic bullet as there was with the release of the 1900ac class as its exceptional wifi increase over older wireless N routers

 

[mabhz]

Jesus, Im amazed about how much I have learned in the last few days here in this fórum!

Thank you both (and everyone else who contributed!) for all the knowledge you kindly shared, with tons of patience for my pretty newbie and stupid questions!!

PETE, you are currently testing the RT AC88U. Care to share a few thoughts about it, specially comparing to old models like AC68U?

Any aspect of RT5300AC that you already considered "superior" to the AC88U?

Thanks again in advance!

 

[pete y testing]

PETE, you are currently testing the RT AC88U. Care to share a few thoughts about it, specially comparing to old models like AC68U?

Any aspect of RT5300AC that you already considered "superior" to the AC88U?

i have been doing some thinking about this and i have to say merlin summed it up nicely in this post

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/new-router-time.32303/#post-257098

the breakdown in cost v feature set v need is hard to quantify

like merlin i believe the rt-ac68u esp with the newer 1ghz cpu is at the top of the bell curve with regards to normal usage as the main concern for most eg wireless coverage see's diminishing returns with greater increase in cost with little in the way of improvement

sure if you need 8 ports or faster vpn or faster usb 3 or fancy gaming features certainly justify the case for needing the ac88u , but if you dont at this stage i see it as spending money for the sake of it

with regards to the comparason between the 5300 and the 88u and the cost for me its the 88u as even i dont have 30+ wireless AC clients and that the only reason to have tri band , besides i run 2 access points anyway and that shares the load as a tri band would anyway

i guess that its a balance of cost v usability to the end user thats at play and you would need to sell yourself the extra features and determine if extra cost gives you any major benefit in your case , but certainly when it comes to pure wifi coverage i find it hard to put a case for spending almost twice as much for very little gain

 

[mabhz]

like merlin i believe the rt-ac68u esp with the newer 1ghz cpu is at the top of the bell curve

Excellent thoughts and thank you very much for every word you shared!

But you lost me with the "newer RT-AC68U with 1GHZ cpu". Is there a NEW version of the RT AC68U?

I definitely dont need faster USB or gaming VPN, and I would put down Money on the RT3100 merely for the faster CPU and optimized algorithm.

 

[pete y testing]

But you lost me with the "newer RT-AC68U with 1GHZ cpu". Is there a NEW version of the RT AC68U?

yep the original had a 800mhz cpu , the new version has a 1ghz cpu

just avoid the rt-ac68A as it look like for some reason the amazon zersion has had the firmware crippled

im not sure how much more $$ wise the 3100 is over the 68u and how much you will notice the cpu performance unless you work over the router with tons of torrents and lots of abuse that i dont think you have said you where doing , that plus it looks to be $150 more than a 68u

look im torn between being a geek who obviously wants the best of everything and being the voice of reason

 

[mabhz]

yep the original had a 800mhz cpu , the new version has a 1ghz cpu

just avoid the rt-ac68A as it look like for some reason the amazon zersion has had the firmware crippled

im not sure how much more $$ wise the 3100 is over the 68u and how much you will notice the cpu performance unless you work over the router with tons of torrents and lots of abuse that i dont think you have said you where doing , that plus it looks to be $150 more than a 68u

look im torn between being a geek who obviously wants the best of everything and being the voice of reason

Wait... This 1Ghz CPU ia by any chance the AC68P or AC68R I see people complaining about bad firmware on Amazon.com reviews and other forums, many saying they had to "apply" the AC68U firmware to solve problems?

If not, how do I make sure I'm purchasing a RT AC68U with the 1Ghz CPU? I'll very likely purchase on Amazon, Newegg or BH Photo Video. I'd really appreciate the info, cause I'm more and more inclined towards purchasing a second AC68U instead of the 88U.

Unless someone confirms that I might get a slightly better (more powerful!) signal with the 88U...

Pete, the major geek in me wants the spidery beast with eight horns (antennas), but the voice of reason in me wants anything that will put out at least 1% more signal and wifi coverage than the 68U...

PS- are you sure the Amazon crippled version isn't the 68P?? I couldn't find a 68A, only the U, P and W (white).

 

[pete y testing]

Wait... This 1Ghz CPU ia by any chance the AC68P or AC68R I see people complaining about bad firmware on Amazon.com reviews and other forums, many saying they had to "apply" the AC68U firmware to solve problems?

thats the rt-ac68A which is amazon specific sold router and the one that seems to downgrade the firmware


so dont get on amazon esp the $112 one

the rt-ac68u or r should now be the 1ghz model

i did post somewhere about the different versions and what cpu they had , best is to ask the seller

PS- are you sure the Amazon crippled version isn't the 68P??

im pretty sure the rt-ac68A is the one to avoid

Pete, the major geek in me wants the spidery beast with eight horns (antennas), but the voice of reason in me wants anything that will put out at least 1% more signal and wifi coverage than the 68U...

look worse case the 88u will be no worse but at twice the price of the 68U i just cant justify the $$$ over the signal

 

[mabhz]

look worse case the 88u will be no worse but at twice the price of the 68U i just cant justify the $$$ over the signal

Thats a very reasonable point, specially considering the $100 difference in price.

But, even after all this questioning and learning, something is still unclear to me:

Is the AC88U actually "better" than the AC68U?

If I test the AC68U and AC88U in the exact same place, with exctly same devices, exact same placements, and exact same ISP bandwith conditions (fantasyland), would I actually find results showing at least a "marginally" better signal performance at far distant placed devices (ipad, macbook, gaming console, etc) on the AC88U than on the AC68U, OR can I expect the exact same performance or even worse??

Believe it or not, I still dont understand if there will be an improvement (even if only 2%!) on that area if upgrade to the AC88U. If the answer is "yes", even if only slightly better, the upgrade makes sense to me.
If the improvement is in other areas of the router performance (faster USB, faster VPN, etc), which I dont need, it makes no sense and I will stick to a second AC68U (or P).

 

[L&LD]

Thats a very reasonable point, specially considering the $100 difference in price.

But, even after all this questioning and learning, something is still unclear to me:

Is the AC88U actually "better" than the AC68U?

If I test the AC68U and AC88U in the exact same place, with exctly same devices, exact same placements, and exact same ISP bandwith conditions (fantasyland), would I actually find results showing at least a "marginally" better signal performance at far distant placed devices (ipad, macbook, gaming console, etc) on the AC88U than on the AC68U, OR can I expect the exact same performance or even worse??

Believe it or not, I still dont understand if there will be an improvement (even if only 2%!) on that area if upgrade to the AC88U. If the answer is "yes", even if only slightly better, the upgrade makes sense to me.
If the improvement is in other areas of the router performance (faster USB, faster VPN, etc), which I dont need, it makes no sense and I will stick to a second AC68U (or P).

It will depend on your specific environment and network usage.

Buy both routers if you can and you will know in less than a day (test them individually for a few hours each) which is better (or not). Return the one that doesn't match your expectations.

 

[mabhz]

It will depend on your specific environment and network usage.

Buy both routers if you can and you will know in less than a day (test them individually for a few hours each) which is better (or not). Return the one that doesn't match your expectations.

As i stated on my first post, unfortunately that is not possible because I dont live in USA or Europe. My purchases (imports) are definite and VERY expensive, hence my extremelly annoying questions and persistance: i need to make the right decision BEFORE putting down the Money. Only regret or happiness will follow.

 

[RMerlin]

I still dont understand if there will be an improvement (even if only 2%!) on that area if upgrade to the AC88U.

@thiggins reviewed both models. You can compare models in the Router charts: http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/tools/charts/router/view

 

[mabhz]

I found the RT-AC68R (not the P) besides de usual 68U on sale on Amazon:

R model

No "A" or "P" model.

Which one is this the "latest" AC68U version??? The P or the R??

Could someone please advice me if I should go for the R version or keep looking for a "P" version somewhere else??

 

[RMerlin]

I found the RT-AC68R (not the P) besides de usual 68U on sale on Amazon:

R model

No "A" or "P" model.

Which one is this the "latest" AC68U version??? The P or the R??

Could someone please advice me if I should go for the R version or keep looking for a "P" version somewhere else??

RT-AC68U and RT-AC68R are identical, the later is intended for large retailers.
RT-AC68P was a special SKU for Best Buy, which had a 1 GHz CPU

Starting with hardware revision B1, the RT-AC68U and RT-AC68R are also using that same 1 GHz CPU.

RT-AC68A and RT-AC68UF are new SKUs, the details as to what is different with these is still sketchy, initial signs indicate that it comes with a newer 1 GHz CPU (not just faster clock like the P was), but also has a more limited feature set. Until we know more, you'll want to avoid these two new models.

 

[mabhz]

RT-AC68U and RT-AC68R are identical, the later is intended for large retailers.
RT-AC68P was a special SKU for Best Buy, which had a 1 GHz CPU

Starting with hardware revision B1, the RT-AC68U and RT-AC68R are also using that same 1 GHz CPU.

RT-AC68A and RT-AC68UF are new SKUs, the details as to what is different with these is still sketchy, initial signs indicate that it comes with a newer 1 GHz CPU (not just faster clock like the P was), but also has a more limited feature set. Until we know more, you'll want to avoid these two new models.

MERLIN, thank you VERY much for your kind and detailed reply!

So does it means if I purchase a RT AC68U on Amazon.com, ill get the 1Ghz edition, right?

If possible, I would like to pop a complete different question, considering you folks are top experts: I need to bundle a VDSL Asus modem. Which model you folks recommend? Or maybe other brand/model?

I'm upgrading my ADSL connection from 15 to 25mb and was just now informed that my old DSL 2640B no longer works, and I need a VDSL compatible piece. Any help?

Thanks again!