RT-AX88U poor network performance/speed

[Rossco33333]

Hi There,

I am a newbie at this and wondered if you could help me?

My network performance seems to be quite poor on wifi...and the range doesn't seem great even though I have two AX56's in the house to serve as extenders on top of the modem.

i am a fibre max plan which offers nearly 1Gbit for downland and nearly half a gigabit upload.

I still seem to sit at around 400mbps on wifi for download, sometimes it's worse. The range throughout the house is not great regardless of the AX56 extenders.

Could I have some help to seem if I am doing something wrong?

Thanks very much, appreciate it.

 

[L&LD]

Welcome to the forums @Rossco33333.

Those are the expected speeds from those entry level (and, I believe EOL) models.

You will need to upgrade your hardware to achieve better.

 

[Tech9]

I have two AX56's in the house to serve as extenders on top of the modem

Extenders (also called repeaters) use the same radio to communicate to the parent AP (your modem/router) and to the connected clients. This retransmission of the data is causing 1/2 throughput to the clients. What you get is actually excellent speed for an extender connected client. For better speed you need to wire your routers and use them as access points (AP Mode). Then you may see about 800Mbps to AX client close to the AP.

 

[drabisan]

"400mbps on wifi for download" may not be bad at all! An AC client will be more than happy with it. Although in excellent conditions you may be able to achieve some 650-700mbps.
Depends on tons of factors, one of the most important being the clients.
You have an AX router, but from what client you're expecting better speeds? And please don't say phone and/or tablets. Those are not clients that need better speeds.
AX56 - how they connect to the main router? Wireless? That's not a great way if you need even more speed.
Coverage...you can tweak that for your needs. Nobody but you known where you actually need better signal. And better signal for what? A -65dB would suit most users, like 99.999%! One doesn't need full bar to watch Netflix or YouTube.

Take it one by one: what is the most important for you? Ask that particular question, describe your setup and you'd be surprised how constructive help here can be!

 

[Rossco33333]

hi there, thank you for the responses, I appreciate it. What info do you need to start looking at this…it’s my PC…not tablets etc…

If you can help me change set up, that would be great.

 

[Rossco33333]

House is large too…275sqm which is why I thought extenders would assist but I may not have these connected properly or set up…my step daughter complains internet is terrible when she is connected to a node and uses her mobile data. She has also told me she can’t use her TV to stream etc as connection isn’t good. I’m just trying to help. I don’t think I’m set up properly and am hoping I can be steered in the right direction…my pc is my main focus too…

 

[Tech9]

When connected to the main AP (router) AX 2-stream client may get about 800Mbps, AC 2-stream client about 500Mbps. When connected to the extenders - about half of that due to retransmissions. With distance the speed drops. Good connection is up to about -65dBm. If you have no Ethernet cables around the house the only thing you can do is change the location of your repeaters. You can't get better speed.

 

[Rossco33333]

Ok..thank you. I’m not sure if my set up is ok…honestly I don’t know…I appreciate the response. Is the AX88 a good router? I ve had it quite a few years but thought it was still a good router?

 

[Tech9]

A new dual-band router with existing dual-band repeaters won't change much. This is how repeaters work.

 

[glens]

Yes, to do this acceptably in a wireless fashion one really needs three-radio sources and repeaters so at least the data rate doesn't get cut in half at the repeaters.

 

[L&LD]

As I mentioned in Post 2 above, the nodes you're using (RT-AX56Us) are not a good match to the main RT-AX88U. They are degrading your overall network performance.

Your 3,000 SqFt home/area is much smaller than the 5,000 SqFt (nominal) area the RT-AX88U can cover if it is appropriately located.

The RT-AX88U was a great router when it was introduced. The RT-AX86U was noticeably superior. Be sure you are not using LAN Ports 5-8 on the router. If you are, get/use an 8-Port switch instead.

The location of the nodes is important too. The location, relative to the main router and the area(s) you want to light up with WiFi, should be strategically sought and tested for. Do not use a WiFi 'app' to determine this location. Only experimenting will give it to you.

As an overview, do not place routers/nodes above/below each other. Do not use any more nodes than absolutely necessary. Determine if nodes are required at all by first properly locating the main router and adjusting its Control Channels and antennae orientation as necessary.

How to Connect an AiMesh Node

AiMesh Ideal Placement


See more tips at the following links below.

Am I all set to start fresh with the latest stable release? And a request for L&LD...

After creating the checklists two weeks ago to save the pages with settings, I've made all the screenshots (I think at least) of all the relevant guides written by @L&LD and the very useful tip by @netware5. The only thing is, those guides are great, except when you'll be offline at least for a...

www.snbforums.com

L&LD

www.snbforums.com

Buying a new AX class router, and placing it correctly in your home as needed, will greatly benefit your ISP speeds and main router.


The nodes you're using today are worth only using in Media Bridge mode (see link above for details) for your far away (from the main router), wired-capable devices.

Your most bang for the buck upgrade today would be the RT-AX88U Pro, to replace your current router as the main router of your home.

Test it and dial it in fully before attempting to add any nodes (and the only one worth adding would be the current router you're using as the main one, right now).


For such a small area (275 metres square) and assuming you're not living in a brick/concrete walled/floored home, you don't need the finicky/gimmicky 'tri-band', 3-radio routers to greatly improve your network performance today.

Before you buy anything new though, unplug or turn off those nodes. Unplug all Ethernet cables from ports 5-8. Find the best location and antennae orientation for your main router (note that even a few inches can make a world of difference at distant corners of the areas you want coverage in). Also, test for the best Control Channels for your environment and re-adjust the location/orientation of the router as needed. You may find you already have enough equipment to fix the issues you've expressed above.

 

[Ola Malmstrom]

When / if you reconnect the AX56u's, do this through ethernet cables and set them up as APs. Use ports 1-4 on the AX-88U.