Memory on RT-AC86U

[macster2075]

The temps are easy to deal with. Just put a couple USB fans on the back over the vents blowing out and the problem is solved. I ordered the fans below, and they are quiet enough I don't ever notice them in the living room with nothing else making noise unless I'm a foot or two from the router. The temps don't ever get over 60 for any of the sensors, but 55 is a more usual max. I blow the dust out once or twice a year. I tried attaching them with double sided tape, sticky tack gel, and command strips and none of those worked well, so I just strung some zip ties together around the router and fans and it is working fine.


AC Infinity MULTIFAN S5, Quiet Dual 80mm USB Fan, UL-Certified for Receiver DVR Playstation Xbox Computer Cabinet Cooling https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IJ2J2K0/?tag=snbforums-20

oh ok.. good to know. I see cpu temps keeps going up..it's now by 87c. Been reading some and I see some users say these cpu chips can handle temps over 100c and are meant to... others kind of freak out lol.
So, I guess i don't know. Im sure my older router AC68P had about the same temps, but I didn't even know to check the temps, so I never worried about it.

 

[kernol]

I have found that any suitably sized PC cabinet fan from an old box - or even broken PC power supply - works fine by simply connecting the red and black wires from the fan to a cut off USB cable's red and black wires. They run slow and quiet from USB power supply port [5v] yet provide ample cooling to the router.
Those cabinet fans of course run fast [and sometimes noisy] on a 12 volt power supply - but that is not needed on the router.

Edit: I run my cabinet fan from an old mobile phone charger which outputs 5 volts - rather than the USB port on the router itself.

 

[Sonofdavidsfather]

oh ok.. good to know. I see cpu temps keeps going up..it's now by 87c. Been reading some and I see some users say these cpu chips can handle temps over 100c and are meant to... others kind of freak out lol.
So, I guess i don't know. Im sure my older router AC68P had about the same temps, but I didn't even know to check the temps, so I never worried about it.

Personally I don't think it's something to really worry about unless you are running some CPU heavy scripts or you are really putting a load on the WiFi chips. With that said it is peace of mind if you worry about temps and its a low cost solution. That's why I did it. Also it was fun to learn about cooling. COVID led to a lot of boredom which led to a lot of home network tinkering.

Long story short, it's generally better to go with the largest possible fan. I started with some little 20mm "quiet" fans since they were about the size of the vent holes. Come to find out you aren't going to find small quiet fans, because they have to spin very high RPM to move a reasonable amount of air since they have such small surface area. I have been perfectly happy with the 80mm fans Ive used for a year and a half. I think they are as big as you can go without, bocking ports or being visible from the front.

 

[macster2075]

Personally I don't think it's something to really worry about unless you are running some CPU heavy scripts or you are really putting a load on the WiFi chips. With that said it is peace of mind if you worry about temps and its a low cost solution. That's why I did it. Also it was fun to learn about cooling. COVID led to a lot of boredom which led to a lot of home network tinkering.

Long story short, it's generally better to go with the largest possible fan. I started with some little 20mm "quiet" fans since they were about the size of the vent holes. Come to find out you aren't going to find small quiet fans, because they have to spin very high RPM to move a reasonable amount of air since they have such small surface area. I have been perfectly happy with the 80mm fans Ive used for a year and a half. I think they are as big as you can go without, bocking ports or being visible from the front.

So 120mm would be too big then?

 

[Sonofdavidsfather]

So 120mm would be too big then?

I think so. these are 80mm fans. 120 I suspect would over hang the edges and cover the ports at the bottom. I had to turn the left fan at an angle like that so the reset button was accessible. Now if you already have some 120mm fans around and a way to power them, then it doesn't hurt to try them for free and see what you think.

Also as a side note like I mentioned earlier. The fans really help with temps even with them and the router not be cleaned often enough as you can clearly see.

 

[macster2075]

I think so. these are 80mm fans. 120 I suspect would over hang the edges and cover the ports at the bottom. I had to turn the left fan at an angle like that so the reset button was accessible. Now if you already have some 120mm fans around and a way to power them, then it doesn't hurt to try them for free and see what you think.

Also as a side note like I mentioned earlier. The fans really help with temps even with them and the router not be cleaned often enough as you can clearly see.
View attachment 36444

Yikes!
If I were to install fans, I would set the airflow outwards…it’s probably not as effective, but I can imagine how the components on the inside of the router looks like after a few months. Blowing dust inside the router doesn’t sound like a good idea, specially if the inside is not easily accesible.

 

[dave14305]

I think so. these are 80mm fans. 120 I suspect would over hang the edges and cover the ports at the bottom. I had to turn the left fan at an angle like that so the reset button was accessible. Now if you already have some 120mm fans around and a way to power them, then it doesn't hurt to try them for free and see what you think.

Also as a side note like I mentioned earlier. The fans really help with temps even with them and the router not be cleaned often enough as you can clearly see.
View attachment 36444

I think this will be the dirtiest thing posted on the Internet today!

 

[AntonK]

I think so. these are 80mm fans. 120 I suspect would over hang the edges and cover the ports at the bottom. I had to turn the left fan at an angle like that so the reset button was accessible. Now if you already have some 120mm fans around and a way to power them, then it doesn't hurt to try them for free and see what you think.

Also as a side note like I mentioned earlier. The fans really help with temps even with them and the router not be cleaned often enough as you can clearly see.
View attachment 36444

Now that is one superb setup!

 

[Sonofdavidsfather]

Yikes!
If I were to install fans, I would set the airflow outwards…it’s probably not as effective, but I can imagine how the components on the inside of the router looks like after a few months. Blowing dust inside the router doesn’t sound like a good idea, specially if the inside is not easily accesible.

The airflow is outwards on the fans.

 

[Sonofdavidsfather]

I think this will be the dirtiest thing posted on the Internet today!

I figured it was dirty back there, but to be honest I was even a little surprised. The front does look nice and clean though. Time to break out the electronics vac.

 

[Clark Griswald]

@Sonofdavidsfather

Not a personal attack, but more of my own OCD issues, perhaps a regular "dusting & vacuuming" of your electronic area will assist in lowering your router temps.
I need to carry my anxiety and OCD meds on my person for filthy internet postings on these forums.

 

[L&LD]

Fans on a router? I've never seen a reason to do this myself. Nobody would want to change the oil and filter (see post 25 above) regularly for what they consider an appliance.

A laptop cooler is slightly more appropriate if absolutely needed. Or a larger (room) fan that moves enough air around to create a breeze and allow the routers' cooling design to work as expected (even on the lowest setting, from several feet up to a couple of metres away, a room fan works exceptionally well to keep most electronics at the proper temperatures. And the further the better (close-up fans do not effectively move air).

 

[Centrifuge]

I've never seen a reason to do this myself.

One of the largest threads on SNB right now is Router Temperatures, which is maybe where this thread could go, but just to give an idea of how prevalent the interest is.

https://www.snbforums.com/threads/router-temperatures.71123/

 

[L&LD]

Oh, I know how prevalent the interest is. Interest doesn't equal need though (for all). And even the over 400 posts by mostly the same players aren't an indication of how important it is for most Asus router users (worldwide).

 

[Centrifuge]

Oh, I know how prevalent the interest is. Interest doesn't equal need though (for all). And even the over 400 posts by mostly the same players aren't an indication of how important it is for most Asus router users (worldwide).

I agree, like most niche interests on these forums they are not as relevant to non-enthusiast, but we embrace the discussion as a possible vehicle to understand more about routers and tech in general. The Router Temp discussion is a good example of how poor design can collide with the marketing need to keep pushing new and updated features, but that's just my opinion.

 

[macster2075]

You guys are not going to believe this.
So the reason I purchased this AC86U was to see if I could improve the wifi signal.
And it did…great coverage...but!!

When I was putting away the old AC68P, I noticed one of the antennas had the inside wire sticking out a bit, meaning it wasn't connected at all..just hanging out.
So I was like... could that may have been affecting wifi performance?

So, I ordered a replacement antenna set in Amazon $4.99 and and just got it today..installed it and now I get the same wifi coverage as the AC86U!
My dilemma is.. do I keep the AC86U or return it?

I don't really need two routers and could really save $148 by returning it, but on the other hand I wanna keep it and setup aiMesh, even though I don't need it.
I guess I now have the weekend to think about it LOL

I had bought the AC68P used on Ebay years ago and it's always been working great for me.. I guess I never noticed that antenna being broken because it wasn't that noticeable.. I'm surprised I even noticed it now.

 

[macster2075]

 

[Tech9]

installed it and now I get the same wifi coverage as the AC86U!

The coverage area is about the same, but AC86U can do better link speeds/throughput at the same distance. Test both again - look at link speeds in GUI. This is a real benefit only if you have fast enough ISP. AC68U is very reliable device, I would keep it anyway as a backup router or wireless bridge. I wouldn't buy AC86U because it's 4 years old already, has reliability issues history and I know how it's made. You decide.

 

[macster2075]

The coverage area is about the same, but AC86U can do better link speeds/throughput at the same distance. Test both again - look at link speeds in GUI. This is a real benefit only if you have fast enough ISP. AC68U is very reliable device, I would keep it anyway as a backup router or wireless bridge. I wouldn't buy AC86U because it's 4 years old already, has reliability issues history and I know how it's made. You decide.

My speeds on this parts are not great.. I only get 50/10. Which reliability issues are you referring to? I would like to know these things as I only get 30 days return period haha.

 

[Tech9]

Which reliability issues are you referring to?

The most common are 2.4GHz radio issues (dead radio), internal step-down converter failure (dead router), overheating (CPU throttling at 100C impacting performance). There is a link in post #12, read it. I registered here because of this router model. I've never seen so many dead routers from the same model. There is a hope Asus improved the manufacturing process, but still this router is 2017 model year. It's 2021 now.