Repeater bridge, Asus and Linksys

[Powerlines2000]

*Posted in the general forum but no joy so trying in here*

Hi All

Bit of back story:
I used to have 2x Linksys WRT54GL's running DD-WRT, 1x acting as a bridge (working fine for 4yrs)
Upgraded to a 100mbs connection and decided to update to an ASUS RT-N66U (as Primary).
Installed (with the latest Merlin build) and working fine but.....

English houses, stone walls does not a great signal range make.

Question:
Can i use one of my old WRT54GL's (or both) as a range extender (will mostly be for phones/pads etc)?
If so how?

I have tried:
Setting 1x Linksys to an AP but this just seemed to bog down the Asus (may have got the Asus settings wrong)
Changing 1x Linksys to a Repeater bridge but this just shows up as a client connected to the Asus and does not extend the range.
Read about 10 different solutions but havnt found one that talks about connecting the Asus as the Primary.

Before you ask i cant move the router without running silly amounts of Ethernet to and from the router as Desktop and printer are LAN.

Any help would be great.

 

[L&LD]

What is 'silly amount of Ethernet'?

I would have guessed that connecting those old routers to an RT-N666U would slow down the network.

What version do you have running of RMerlin's firmware? 380.59 is the latest that you should install and perform a reset to factory defaults afterwards along with a minimal and manual configuration to secure the router and connect to your ISP.

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/asuswrt-merlin-380-59-is-now-available.32469/

http://www.snbforums.com/threads/no...l-and-manual-configuration.27115/#post-205573

 

[Powerlines2000]

Hi L&LD

Thanks

What is 'silly amount of Ethernet'?

Because i cant move the modem, Desktop and printer it would be minimum 3x 5m ethernets which is possable just a real pain to run and surface mount.

I would have guessed that connecting those old routers to an RT-N666U would slow down the network.

This was my worry, but as only phones on that AP I was hoping not too much of an issue. Laptops etc. pick up the connection quite happily but my S6 sat next to the laptop drops in and out.

Installed build at the moment is 380.58, does 380.59 improve the range?

As i said initial setup is happy and working it is just trying to link the 54's and if it is worth bothering.

Cheers.

 

[L&LD]

380.59 isn't about range, it is less buggy than 380.58 was for most.

I don't think connecting such old wireless equipment on a modern network makes sense, it will slow down the network even with just phones on them (WiFi is a time shared medium; older equipment need an order of magnitude more time than the newest equipment does (AC Wave 2).

If laziness is the only obstacle for wiring these properly; not really an excuse.

But if you do the wiring; put in a modern router at the end too (in AP mode, of course).

 

[wouterv]

The WRT54GL as bridge should still work on your RT-N66U...with one major restriction: 2.4 GHz will be limited to 802.11g or 54 Mbps. You will not benefit your new 100 Mbps Internet connection.
There is only one proper way to extend the wireless range: pull network cables from the router and install wireless accesspoints (with a wireless standard that matches your throughput needs) at the other cable ends.
Wireless range extenders (or wireless bridges or what ever) and powerline solutions all have their specific down side.