Slower than expected WiFi speed on Asus AX11000

[Soupladel]

So I have spent much of today configuring my shiny new AX11000 (with a full fibre 900Mbps connection) and discovered i am getting slightly less then expected speeds on either of the 5Ghz bands that I have enabled 160Mhz and AX for.

The very first test was via Ethernet and I was only getting around 600Mbps, I updated the firmware to the latest non-beta version and I was then getting consistent speeds of between 850-900Mbps.

I then went on to testing Wifi with three different AX capable devices and I am unable to get anything above 650-700Mbps when virtually on top of the router. Is it likely there is something amiss or am I being hopelessly naive in expecting close to maximum speed when using WiFi 6 in close proximity to the router?

The devices I used for the wifi test are:

Iphone 11 Pro Max
Iphone 12
Asus G512LV Gaming Laptop

 

[bbunge]

If you haven't checked with Intel to see if there is an upgrade for the AX201 in your Asus laptop, do so. It may make a difference. Try the 160 MHz set to channel 36. This will give you eight consecutive WIFI channels and your clients that don't like UNI 2 DFS will still connect. Disable Airtime Fairness and Universal Beamforming for both 2.4 and 5 GHz. I recommend Dual Band SmartConnect. When you test download bandwidth don't be too close to the router. Some devices just will not get to the bandwidth you expect as they so not have "enough" radio. My old iPod downloads faster than my one year old Samsung tablet. The Moto Power G is faster than the others. The ThinkBooks (new AX200 2x2) are fast but as I don't have Gig FIOS I can't really max them out.

 

[Soupladel]

Thanks for the suggestions, I will give that a try when I am next in the house. It wouldn’t be so but its a new build property I am moving into which has the fibre connection in a small cupboard under the stairs and no provision for ethernet and I am not allowed to “pierce the walls” within the first 12 months, so I am entirely reliant on WiFi in the short term until such time as I can get the drill out

 

[Soupladel]

I have tried all you have suggested and even with updated drivers, i cant seem to get above 700Mbps on any device. The ax11000 even has a version of the ookla soeedtest built in and it is reporting internet speeds at 900Mbps+ so the issue is entirely related to wifi in some capacity.

 

[leerees]

It's could be the wireless devices you are using don't support 4 x 4 streams. Even without 160Mhz you should be able to get 900mb/s+ on 4 x 4 AX.

 

[Soupladel]

So, despite the link speed being 1.2Gbps, it was never going to reach these speeds with it supporting 4x4 stream? it seems the AX201 card in my laptop only supports 2x2 stream as does my iphone 11 Pro

 

[leerees]

So, despite the link speed being 1.2Gbps, it was never going to reach these speeds with it supporting 4x4 stream? it seems the AX201 card in my laptop only supports 2x2 stream as does my iphone 11 Pro

Unfortunately, this is what the marketers don't tell you. A lot of people have been stung in this way. 4 x 4 on a laptop doesn't make sense because it uses more power.

I imagine Apple ditched it for the same reason. However, ask yourself this, do you really need 900mb/s on a phone? ok, it would be nice on a laptop but a phone would be more than fine with just 100 mb/s.

I have a smart TV that connects at 90mb/s on the 2.4ghz band. Netflix streams play instantaneously without any buffering at all.

Once you get above 100mb/s web browsing doesn't get noticeably faster. At these speeds the bottleneck is latency. The only way that can be improved is by being closer to the server you are accessing.

Companies don't tell you this because they want to sell you more routers. It's the same with WiFi 5 vs WiFi 6. Yes WiFi 6 is faster and better but you won't actually notice the difference unless you run a speed test.

The reality is you have purchased a really good router and it will last you for years to come.

 

[Soupladel]

Unfortunately, this is what the marketers don't tell you. A lot of people have been stung in this way. 4 x 4 on a laptop doesn't make sense because it uses more power.

I imagine Apple ditched it for the same reason. However, ask yourself this, do you really need 900mb/s on a phone? ok, it would be nice on a laptop but a phone would be more than fine with just 100 mb/s.

I have a smart TV that connects at 90mb/s on the 2.4ghz band. Netflix streams play instantaneously without any buffering at all.

Once you get above 100mb/s web browsing doesn't get noticeably faster. At these speeds the bottleneck is latency. The only way that can be improved is by being closer to the server you are accessing.

Companies don't tell you this because they want to sell you more routers. It's the same with WiFi 5 vs WiFi 6. Yes WiFi 6 is faster and better but you won't actually notice the difference unless you run a speed test.

The reality is you have purchased a really good router and it will last you for years to come

In fairness, the speed on the phones was less about daily use as it was a means to test the speed of the Wi-fi so I could do a comparison between devices. Like you say it’s highly unlikely the difference between 600Mbps and 900Mbps will show on the phone.

However I do a lot of downloading and work from home so having the maximum speed available is a real benefit and the fact I am largely prevented from using Ethernet means I have to rely solely on Wi-fi so my thinking with getting the AX11000 was (perhaps naively) to maximise the speed available in lieu of an Ethernet connection.

my next task in light of all this is considering a mesh node to go upstairs to provide better speed for my desktop PC and my work laptops. Presumably something like the Asus XT8 would fit that bill, or I am again being naive in assuming the backhaul would provide close to full speed from the AX11000 to the XT8 for the purposes of using the Ethernet connections on it?

 

[Soupladel]

It's could be the wireless devices you are using don't support 4 x 4 streams. Even without 160Mhz you should be able to get 900mb/s+ on 4 x 4 AX.

I have been continuing my research into this problem and the router doesn’t even support 4x4 streams unless I am very much mistaken?

 

[le_communiste]

I have been continuing my research into this problem and the router doesn’t even support 4x4 streams unless I am very much mistaken?

The AX11000 has two 5 GHz 4x4 streams with up to AX speed (160MHz).
Check the System Log->Wireless Log to see connection speeds.
My AX88U is connected with 4 AX Streams to the AX11000 main router:

Most Phones, Tablets and Laptops support a maximum of 2x2 Streams. Some MacBooks have 3x3 broadcom Wireless adapters.

 

[oldguy]

If you are using a browser, you might want to try another browser.
I was seeing slow speeds using Speedtest.net with Chrome on an iPAD, I switched to safari and got very close to my rated internet connection speed.

 

[Soupladel]

The AX11000 has two 5 GHz 4x4 streams with up to AX speed (160MHz).
Check the System Log->Wireless Log to see connection speeds.
My AX88U is connected with 4 AX Streams to the AX11000 main router:
View attachment 33234

Most Phones, Tablets and Laptops support a maximum of 2x2 Streams. Some MacBooks have 3x3 broadcom Wireless adapters.

So, ignoring the issue of streams, if i have a device that is connecting at 160Mhz to 5G_1 with a link speed of 1900 Mbps (but yes using 2 streams) should i be able to achieve close to 900Mbps realistically?

I now have an AX200 based card in my desktop PC, as well as the AX201 in my laptop and neither can get above 690-700Mbps on a good day

 

[ROO2020]

I have tried all you have suggested and even with updated drivers, i cant seem to get above 700Mbps on any device. The ax11000 even has a version of the ookla soeedtest built in and it is reporting internet speeds at 900Mbps+ so the issue is entirely related to wifi in some capacity.

You may have mentioned but have you ran a speed test directly from your modem? Which internet services do you use? I was having the same problem and Spectrum updated my speed and replaced my modem all is ok now. I only have 400 speed which was 200 mbps. 400 speed cost me $69 a month and that is only good for 2 years. My speeds run around 400 to 490 download and 20-25 upload. I have 23 devices on my network, 11 are Nest products.

 

[Soupladel]

I am on a full FTTP connection in the uk so i don't strictly have a modem as such but do have an ONT which is probably much the same thing really. However there is no issues with the overall connection speed because i get full speed when using ethernet, the speed issues seem to be limited to Wifi.

 

[leerees]

So, ignoring the issue of streams, if i have a device that is connecting at 160Mhz to 5G_1 with a link speed of 1900 Mbps (but yes using 2 streams) should i be able to achieve close to 900Mbps realistically?

I now have an AX200 based card in my desktop PC, as well as the AX201 in my laptop and neither can get above 690-700Mbps on a good day

My phone connects to my Ax92u at 1400mbps, if I run a speed test I get around 800mbps. My internet connection is 1gbps so this seems about right. Obviously, this will drop depending on your range. If I stand at the end of the garden I only get 200mb/s on AX, if I switch to 2.4ghz it's only 30mb/s.

If set up correctly (160mhz) it's safe to assume most Asus routers should offer similar performance.

The key point is you have to set it up manually. Most Asus routers I've seen are not set to 160mhz by default. Getting 160mhz can be tricky as if you don't pick the right channel, it will drop down to 80mhz. If you live near radar signals operating they will shut down your DFS channels every time they transmit. To avoid the support calls I guess they just leave it off. Give it a try and see if it works.

 

[Soupladel]

That’s just it, I have spent quite a bit of time on this tweaking various setting and am using the 5g_1 SSID and have definitely enabled Ax and 160Mhz and can can confirm this from the Wi-fi logs of the router yet despite optimum conditions (distance, line of sight etc…) I don’t get anywhere near 800Mbps which is frustrating

 

[leerees]

Have you set your AX band to "AX only"? If not AC and N devices will connect and slow it down.