RT-AC88U CPU bottleneck with 500mbps+ internet speed. Good replacement/upgrade with same features enabled?

[gian1200]

As already stated in some posts here (e.g. https://www.snbforums.com/threads/r...ax-dl-of-around-500mbps-from-speedtest.88480/), when having a fast internet speed (500mbps+) with features such as security, analytics, guest wifi, etc. enabled; speed usually doesn't go higher even on wired connection. Router is CPU bottlenecked (1 core goes to 100%).

Given that this router no longer receives updates and I already have some AX devices, I was thinking about getting a newer router (RT-AX88U or RT-BE88U). However, I was wondering if after upgrading (and keeping the same features enabled, as well as probably any new feature specific to the new device) I would still be bottlenecked.
All performance reviews usually talk about the fast speeds that the devices can handle, but probably are not tested with all features enabled (even my current device is supposed to reach those speeds).

 

[RMerlin]

However, I was wondering if after upgrading (and keeping the same features enabled, as well as probably any new feature specific to the new device) I would still be bottlenecked.

Depends on which specific features you use. Some of them like Traditional QoS are incompatible with hardware acceleration, which will limit throughput to around the 300-450 Mbps range, depending on the specific router model.

The most direct upgrade path for your RT-AC88U would be the RT-AX88U_Pro, which has a well balanced feature set that does not break the bank. If budget allows the RT-BE88U might be interesting, but expect it to be a good tad more expensive, so it depends on your specific needs and budget. It's also just got released, so you might want to look for some reviews of that model first.

 

[gian1200]

Thanks for answering. Yes, I currently have QoS disabled so it should be ok.

Budget is not an issue, more like availability (hard to find here); but it'd be bad if speeds don't improve after an upgrade. As long as I get 1Gbps wired, it's ok (theoretically also reachable via wifi, given that my bottleneck is in the CPU). Room for more speed is welcomed, but not needed in the near feature (I wouldn't change my router If my current device was able to reach 1Gbps).

I was hoping that an owner of any of those devices could share some real experience. but probably they don't see this subsection of the forum (I didn't want to post in the other sections, too, as it could be misinterpreted as spam).

 

[pusb87]

I have an RT-AX88U Pro

I run 2 Wireguard Clients (Surfshark) , adaptive Qos enabled, 1 wired AiMesh Node (AC86U) and regularly get (wired) download speeds on both clients around 750-800 Mbps down, 100Mbps up from a 1Gb down ,100Mb up ISP.