The Asus ZenWiFi AX XT8 is a POS, right?

[Thirteen]

There isn't one. It doesn't auto update.

 

[rjbarker]

Been rocking the XT8 AX Mesh System since last Nov / Dec.....add another Node in Feb....so 3 in total....been working great...this last FW 43181 was the first FW that I actually did a re-boot to correct a connectivity issue, but has been solid since then.
I never do a complete hard re-set after manually updating FW, too many settings to go back into and re-set, thru maybe 3 or 4 FW updates no issues with not doing factory re-set.
I actually do my FW updates all at once thru the iPhone App, only takes a few minutes.

 

[ArbitRabbit]

It isn’t great. I have found that the signal strength has massive issue on XT8. I have three XT8s (one hard wired to router and two on wireless backhaul). Earlier, I would loose connection where the mesh nodes randomly switched to weak signal state every couple of days. Then I moved my slave units. My weak unit has RSSI of -75 db and the other one is at -65db and now I can last 10 days without having the weak signal issue. My theory is that if I can move the weaker unit to have an RSSI of about -70db, the system would behave a lot more stable. Of course I shouldn’t have to, but the firmware is indeed POS.

 

[neilybealy]

i had 2 units at first and bought another as I thought I needed it (my old mesh had 4 discs). I was running the latest firmware and every 4-6 hours the wireless connection between them would drop from great to weak and any device on the remote nodes would have poor or no internet. The only way to rectify was to power off and on. After a few days I decided to return the single unit as it was overkill. Then stumbled on this forum and advice that others were having the same issues due to the latest firmware so i downgraded to 42095. I've also tweaked the roaming assistant in wireless setting from 70 to 50 and this for me has made mine rick solid. I've not had the weak signal issue once

 

[Mikael]

I have found the 3.0.0.4.386_43181 to be much better then recent version prior to this. No stability issues whatsoever in a three unit setup with the two nodes on wired backhaul. I do reboot once a week though using the built in reboot feature, which seems to boot both the main router as well as the nodes.

 

[Straasha]

I am on firmware 42095. I changed my wireless backhaul to channel 100 and to 80MHz width. I have not had a problem since then. I am waiting to the next firmware release after 43181 before upgrading.

 

[sgoldswo]

I sorta don't get it. I've been really disappointed with the reliability of the ZenWifi XT8... and then as I read these forums it feels like the problems I see are pretty common. For me, it's node reboots and a regular loss of connectivity over the wireless backhaul. I had a google wifi setup before, then the Orbi setup they sell in costco... and both were considerably better than this system in terms of reliability.

Why isn't there a big-old warning everywhere telling people to avoid this crappy system, where users regularly try to *prevent* firmware updates because they make the system worse?

Has anyone actually gotten through to Asus and had these problems acknowledged? I never hear back from my "feedback" submissions where I tell them it's not working properly. :/

No - its a bargain but is temperamental. I did have a duff 2 pack of the XT8 to start with (my bad for buying amazon warehouse), which I exchanged. I found a set up that works for me on fw 42095 with 3 XT8 units. Rock solid, no drops, I use Sonos and lots of IOT devices, speeds from nodes 350-550 mbps, main router unit is 820-870 on a notionally 900mbps connection. I did have a lot of issues with the Google Nest Wifi (not so with its predecessor) that resolved over time, but it was never getting the best out of my connection. Real issue is the latest few firmware versions - the hardware is great.

 

[HellDiver]

Cost wise AX86U $249 at least, AC86U is $149 , vs 2 AX86U more expensive!

Or just buy a pair (or more) AX-56U which have a better CPU that some of the more expensive units?

 

[jpthsd]

Or just buy a pair (or more) AX-56U which have a better CPU that some of the more expensive units?

LoL I ended up decommissioned AC86U and got 2nd AX86U from BestBuy..the problem is with AC86U 2.4Ghz,,,Asus asked me to change the 2.4Ghz badwidth to 20Mhz or 40Mhz instead of dual bandwidth selection,,,(2.4Ghz of AC86U kept disconnecting/buffering/rejecting 2.4Ghz till it is inaccessible while the 5Ghz on the unit still accepts 5Ghz client. Thus I gave it a try for the 2nd AX86U as AiMesh node..if it doesn't work out next 2-3 weeks, I would return and live with AC86U 2.4Ghz inaccessible for my wifi client devices)

Still AX86U is still a beast!!! so far 1 week no issue!

 

[JagoUK]

Agreed. I'm currently using XT8 happily. The only cons of Aimesh from dual band router(AX86U) (MAIN) is cant adjust second band channel (5Ghz-1) unless I change the main router to XT8 or AX11000. Hope Asus can add more setting to Aimesh section.

Below is the proof that my XT8 node dont disconnect more than 24hrs on 160MHz channel 100

View attachment 35747

Glad you had better luck. I had to return mine because of the 160mhz issues.

 

[dacotmeister]

Agreed. I'm currently using XT8 happily. The only cons of Aimesh from dual band router(AX86U) (MAIN) is cant adjust second band channel (5Ghz-1) unless I change the main router to XT8 or AX11000. Hope Asus can add more setting to Aimesh section.

Below is the proof that my XT8 node dont disconnect more than 24hrs on 160MHz channel 100

View attachment 35747

How do you manage to get the 4 NSS? It must be decvice dependant... (are you using a MAC fi?)
The max I get is 2 NSS and 2,5 Mbit of throughput

 

[KingBravery]

Glad you had better luck. I had to return mine because of the 160mhz issues.

It is not luck actually. It might be cause I'm not in weather radar or airport area

 

[KingBravery]

How do you manage to get the 4 NSS? It must be decvice dependant... (are you using a MAC fi?)
The max I get is 2 NSS and 2,5 Ghz of throughput

View attachment 36033

4 NSS is from XT8 node backhaul as it run 4x4 antenna configuration. And because it is mesh node, the bandwith is cut by half.

 

[Claudius2k]

I have two XT8 hardwired backhaul for 6 months. I truly regret it. After owning a great 3200 I though it was the way to go. I now have a small collection of legacy networking devices that won't connect. My Rabbitair Air cleaner, a brand new Wyze IP camera my network of Squeezebox streamers. I have to be very careful what I buy. Certain things will NOT connect even on the 2.4 band. The external USB I tried to use for Time Machine constantly disappears. I wish I could return them.

 

[JagoUK]

I have two XT8 hardwired backhaul for 6 months. I truly regret it. After owning a great 3200 I though it was the way to go. I now have a small collection of legacy networking devices that won't connect. My Rabbitair Air cleaner, a brand new Wyze IP camera my network of Squeezebox streamers. I have to be very careful what I buy. Certain things will NOT connect even on the 2.4 band. The external USB I tried to use for Time Machine constantly disappears. I wish I could return them.

Have a look at the specs of the devices. I can't remember the exact channels but my amazon firesticks could only work on certain bands (lower channels only of lower bands IIRC). Should be in the link in my sig.

I couldn't get them to be stable until I locked the bands on my XT8s.

 

[KingBravery]

I have two XT8 hardwired backhaul for 6 months. I truly regret it. After owning a great 3200 I though it was the way to go. I now have a small collection of legacy networking devices that won't connect. My Rabbitair Air cleaner, a brand new Wyze IP camera my network of Squeezebox streamers. I have to be very careful what I buy. Certain things will NOT connect even on the 2.4 band. The external USB I tried to use for Time Machine constantly disappears. I wish I could return them.

try disable 802.11ax / Wi-Fi 6 mode for 2.4Ghz if your device is not compatible with Wifi 6

 

[Claudius2k]

Thank you. I tried that. I am working with ASUS as of this am. I have tried most everything. I even sent them my screens. They are escalating to level 2.

I'll let you know if we learn anything.

 

[jasonvelocity]

Yes. Yes it is.

My first purchase stopped working after a few months when the node would not boot into anything but the blinking blue light. Asus sent me a new one, and it lasted around 45 days before encountering the same issue. I am waiting for them to send me my RMA/FedEx details now.

 

[leerees]

I sorta don't get it. I've been really disappointed with the reliability of the ZenWifi XT8... and then as I read these forums it feels like the problems I see are pretty common. For me, it's node reboots and a regular loss of connectivity over the wireless backhaul. I had a google wifi setup before, then the Orbi setup they sell in costco... and both were considerably better than this system in terms of reliability.

Why isn't there a big-old warning everywhere telling people to avoid this crappy system, where users regularly try to *prevent* firmware updates because they make the system worse?

Has anyone actually gotten through to Asus and had these problems acknowledged? I never hear back from my "feedback" submissions where I tell them it's not working properly. :/

Welcome to the world of Asus, where everybody is a beta tester.

It may be of little comfort now but eventually, all of the problems with your XT8 will be sorted by firmware updates. I was in the same boat with my AX92u's.

Don't bother with Google or Orbi's, the performance, range, latency and throughput on them is poor compared to Asus. Asus has a WiFi latency of 1ms - 2ms. That puts it leagues ahead of the others and will have a noticeable difference in making your web browsing feel fast.

 

[jmpr]

My XT8 with latest firm is perfectly stable, fast... No problems at all, as they were solved at last.