RT-AC68U sudden, random terminal drop-outs .. is it dying?

[vmaul]

Hello all,

I've had an RT-AC68U for about 3 years and in the last few months I've been having a steadily increasing number of internet drop-outs while working on my PC.

First I thought it was my powerline connectors, as I could unplug and replug network cables and it would almost always come back online. Figured it was decaying Devolo units, so...

After replacing my powerline plugs, it seems I might be wrong; this "unplug/replug fix" no longer works, too, the internet connection drops and doesn't come back.

Connecting to the router over wireless I can watch all the ethernet clients vanish. Then, if I wait 20 seconds, the connection over wireless goes sour. Then basically it's power-cycle time for the RT-AC68U, and things are back to normal.

I confirmed that it wasn't still some powerline glitch by trying to connect to PSN on the PS4, which is wired in directly to the router - no dice.


Last time it happened I had the Merlin perf tuning open on the PC .. nothing unusual in the temperatures (you can see it flatline - https://i.imgur.com/6piDm9T.png) .. and nothing in the system logs even close to the time it dies.

I did a full factory reset + nvram clear when I installed Merlin (and set up from scratch, no re-importing). Didn't help.

Anyone have any insights or other things to check? Time to replace the router and see what breaks next?

Thanks

 

[sfx2000]

Check the power adapter for the router - 3 years is a good sign that the AC adapter might be going soft...

 

[vmaul]

That's certainly something I would not have considered - what do you mean by going soft, and is there any obvious symptoms of it? It never looks like the unit loses power, it just seems to die inside.

 

[SoCalReviews]

"Going soft"... He is saying that the power supply is not solid. It's can become unreliable over time due to the aging of it's internal components... capacitors, etc.. It's a common failure with many AC adapters that power devices and realize that this is not a particular issue exclusive to Asus adapters. Because the AC adapter output varies it can cause the device it is powering to become unreliable... turn on and off, intermittently lose functionality, etc..

Therefore you have a choice here. You can try replacing the AC power adapter with a new one (you can check the Asus site for pricing....I am guessing less than $40 USD) and hope that solves the problem or you can purchase an entire new wireless router with a new included ac adapter which will cost much more but if the router itself is the problem then buying a new router would be the best choice over just trying a new adapter.

You could also try calling Asus support for help. They might be able to repair it or possibly offer a replacement or repair or new AC adapter for a nominal fee... It depends exactly how old your AC68U is. There are also inexpensive generic AC adapters available for sale for the RT-AC68U on Amazon and other online stores but those may or may not work well so purchase those aftermarket adapters at your own risk. Read the reviews. There are probably some that would work fine.

I would also recommend trying to plug your ac adapter into a new or different power strip. Sometimes power strips with surge protectors can go bad and effect anything plugged into them. Also try plugging the ac adapter directly into an ac power source avoiding the power strip all together. You might be drawing too much current on that outlet or power strip.